Old habits die hard, and almost 10 years working in research labs gave me a strange desire to read scientific journal articles.  My field has changed, but I was happy to find there are plenty of journals that focus on energy generation, building science, and sustainability.  I’ll cover the highlights from time to time.

Picture it: your boss tells you that you’ve got $20,000 to invest in renewable energy for your office, and you want the biggest bang for your buck.  Where do you begin?  Do you slap a few solar panels on the roof because you heard there was a tax credit, or is there a better way to assess your options?

Turns out, there are many ways, and research organizations, software developers and good old Uncle Sam are here to help.  Which tool is right for you?

Check out a new article by Connolly et. al. from the University of Limerick in Ireland.  They skimmed through 68 different energy analysis tools to bring you further information on 37 winners designed to fit almost any project you can imagine.

Each package offers different functionality, including analysis by Simulation, Scenario, Equilibrium, Top-down, Bottom-up, Operation optimization, or Investment optimization, and the authors conclude that no single system works in every case.  But they go to the trouble of telling you about each alternative so you can choose the one that’s right for your project.

Notables include RETScreen, HOMER, and LEAP, plus about 34 others I had never heard of.  There’s something for everyone, many of the programs are free of charge, and the authors do a nice job of weighing the pros and cons.

Connolly D et al. A review of computer tools for analysing the integration of renewable energy into various energy systems.
Appl Energy (2009), doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2009.09.026

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