Sustainability Analysis of Innovative Transport System

Authors:

Ieva Meiere, Gatis Bažbauers

Link to the Journal Paper

The focus of the research is to develop a new approach to transport solution based on the use of a conveyor-type system and to compare the environmental impact of the new system with the existing ones. The new transport system consists of a conveyor driven by an electric motor, with a wind power plant supplying electricity, hydrogen storage and a fuel cell for matching the wind power production with the motor load. The research tasks included the evaluation of the consumption of fossil fuels and the associated environmental impact of existing transport system and a comparison with energy consumption and associated environmental impact of the new system. The energy balance of the conveyor transport system was modeled on an hourly basis by using the EnergyPLAN computer program which allows to analyze a combination of intermittent renewable energy technologies, storage and transport systems. The results show that the existing transport system has greater impact on the environment than the proposed one.