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Fruit and vegetable processing comes 6th in terms of energy consumption in the agri-food industry. At the same time, 88.4% of the industry's final energy consumption structure is thermal energy, which depends heavily on electricity consumption. In addition, fruit and vegetable processing has a significant impact on the environment due to consumption of significant amounts of water. Reducing these three indicators simultaneously would increase the efficiency of the process while improving environmental protection. This paper proposes neural models of thermal energy, electricity and water consumption for selected major fruit- and vegetable-processing plants in Poland. These models were the basis for formulating a multi-criteria optimization task. Optimization of thermal energy, electricity and water consumption was carried out using genetic algorithms. The optimization results in the sense of Pareto can be the basis for the use of sustainable technology in selected fruit- and vegetable-processing plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the face of ongoing climate changes and the current geopolitical situation, Renewable Energy Sources (RES) are continuously gaining popularity in many countries. Objectives related to environmental protection and the use of RES set by different countries all over the world, as well as by the European Union (EU), are becoming priorities for many. The increase in the installed capacity of photovoltaic systems has been growing steadily for several years, leading to the creation of new systems accompanying PV installations; this phenomenon has also been observed in Poland. This paper presents a photovoltaic system in the form of a bicycle shed next to a school building as an example of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) without connection to the power grid. It was shown that the energy consumption profile should be properly correlated with the production profile, otherwise significant losses occur. Alternative methods to improve the correlation of production and energy consumption by using SCADA systems or building automation to properly manage the electricity generation and consumption installation were also proposed. Furthermore, it was shown that adopting a fixed discount rate in financial analyses can distort the picture of real profits. An analysis of the changes in the NPV ratio using variable discount rates was carried out when analyzing the entire life of the solar plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analyses presented in the publication allowed, on the basis of the data collected, development of an econometric model for the Polish steel industry from the point of view of the relationship between heat and energy management in the steel production process. The developed model is the main novelty of the paper. The main objective of the study was to develop an econometric model of Poland's heat and energy economy. The following research questions were raised: Is there an econometric model describing heat consumption (intensity) in the steel industry in Poland in relation to steel production and the energy economy? What are the relations between heat intensity and energy prices and steel production in Poland? How might the current energy crisis affect steel production? In the analysis we used data of energy and heat management in the Polish steel industry. An econometric model was developed of the dependence of heat consumption (Yt) on electricity prices (X1t) and steel production (X2t) in Poland. The authors took advantage of open access to data. Annual volumes of heat consumption in steel production processes in Poland were analysed as a function of the annual volume of steel production and the prices of electricity, which are consumed in technological processes in steel mills. We analyzed data for years 2004–2020. The analyses carried out showed that there is an inversely proportional relationship between electricity prices and the intensity of heat consumption by the steel industry. Research shows that rising energy prices lead to lower steel production. This is a dangerous phenomenon for the steel industry in the context of the current energy crisis caused by the pandemic and war in Ukraine. We think that the significance of our results is connected with the fact that the developed model is a useful analytical tool, as it not only allows the analysis of historical data, but can also be used to predict how steel industry parameters will change in the future under the influence of changes in external factors, such as energy prices. This gives a wide range of analytical possibilities for the use of the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the changes in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions related to energy consumption in the Polish agricultural sector between 2000 and 2019. Based on the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI), the changes in agricultural CO2 emissions are viewed in the context of changes in six factors, i.e., CO2 emission intensity, substitution of fossil fuels, penetration of renewable energies, energy intensity, labor productivity and number of employees. The analysis demonstrated that total energy consumption declined over the study period; this was related to a reduction in the intake of energy derived from solid fossil fuels (−1.05%), crude oil (−1.01%), electricity (−4.89%), and heat (−1.37%), and to an increased consumption of natural gas (5.78%) and biofuels (0.82%). Furthermore, it follows from the analysis that changes in CO2 emissions witnessed in that period were consistent with changes in energy consumption levels; this resulted from a negligible transformation of the energy mix (largely determined by fossil fuels). Generally, CO2 emissions declined over the study period at a rate comparable (−0.9%) to that of the reduction in energy consumption (−1.03%). In light of the LMDI method, the reduction in CO2 emissions from fuel consumption in the Polish agricultural sector was mainly driven by a reduction in energy intensity and in employment. Conversely, rapid growth in labor productivity was the key factor in increasing carbon dioxide emissions. Compared to these impacts, changes in other factors (i.e., emission intensity, energy mix and penetration of renewable energies) had an extremely small or marginal effect on the variation in CO2 emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of fossil fuel-based energy systems that provide heat and electricity to a building has adverse environmental impacts. These impacts can be mitigated, to a certain extent, through the incorporation of renewable energy sources (RES). The primary objective of this study was to conduct an environmental assessment of the performance of energy systems in existing public facilities located in Poland. Based on the findings, we proposed and implemented changes to these systems and validated the environmental impact of the RES systems used. SimaPro 8.1 software and the Ecoinvent 3.0 database were employed for the analysis, which entailed an environmental assessment of six public facilities located in Poland. The installation of RES resulted in an average 27% reduction in electricity consumption from the national electricity grid. This reduction was observed to be the least in the hospital and the most in the religious building. This was reflected in the environmental assessment of heating systems. The implementation of RES reduced the environmental impact of the religious building by an average of 20%. Concurrently, the CO2 emissions decreased by 35%, SO2 by 44%, and PM10 by 42%. Significant investments and the installation of advanced RES will not prevent the occurrence of unintentional environmental consequences unless the demand for electricity and thermal energy is reduced. The use of RES in the analyzed buildings and the associated avoided emissions do not entirely offset the negative emissions resulting from the utilization of other (conventional) energy sources in the analyzed energy systems of public buildings. Consequently, the analyzed facilities collectively exert a detrimental impact on the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents an economic analysis of the use of electricity storage in PV installations, based on previously adopted assumptions, i.e., the type and location of the tested facility and comparative variants, divided into the share of the storage in the installation, and the billing system. The work takes into account the share of the energy shield and assumes a consumption limit of 2000 kWh. The cost of building the installation is based on July 2023 prices. The work assumes potential directions of changes in electricity prices, based on which the degree of investment profitability for a given price situation is determined. Depending on the adopted change in the direction of electricity prices, with a low price increase rate, for installations in the new billing system (net-billing), the optimal choice is an installation without energy storage with a power exceeding the actual energy demand. Assuming a high increase in electricity prices, the optimal choice is an installation with energy storage with an installation capacity exceeding the actual demand. For installations billed using the net-metering system, the optimal choice is an installation without storage with an appropriately selected installation power. This article shows how much you can gain after installing a PV installation and not only what costs must be incurred to complete the investment. Profit analysis will enable a more complete assessment of the profitability of investing in PV panels (with or without energy storage). It describes the verification of the profitability of a PV installation for a standard user depending on various types of settlements with the electricity supplier and the lack or installation of an energy-storage facility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we aim to identify the determinants that profoundly impact renewable energy sources development in Poland. To this end, the authors have conducted qualitative and quantitative analyses of Poland's renewable energy sector. In this paper, we demonstrate an original approach considering the different development levels of the given sector across provinces (voivodeships). It uses panel data from the Local Data Bank of the Statistics Poland on electricity production from renewable energy sources in individual voivodeships in Poland from 2005 through 2019. The study confronts the results of previous studies and sheds light on the situation in Poland—specifically, upon the changes that have happened over the ten years (2010–2019). The qualitative analysis shows a negative correlation between energy consumption and the share of renewable energy sources in total energy production. Evidence shows that favorable changes are underway in the energy production structure: RES share is growing and by degrees satisfying energy demand, and there is growing potential of energy entities in Poland. Furthermore, the analysis shows that R&D and total expenditures on environmental protection and water management investments do not significantly affect the development of RES. A dynamic panel data model has been used to analyze the group and time effects on the dependent variable. The findings confirm the existence of the persistency effect and indicate positive effects of total installed electric capacity (IEC) and household electricity consumption (HEC). Nonhousehold electricity consumption (NHEC) has a negative effect on the endogenous variable, i.e., the renewable energy sources share in the gross final energy consumption (RESS). The research results may be applicable as recommendations for energy efficiency policy development based on renewable energy sources depending on the RES development level in the regions of Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in electricity demand and, consequently, electricity consumption profiles. Given the rapid changes in energy prices, it is significant from the perspective of energy companies, and forecasting consumed energy volume. A necessity for accurate energy volume planning forces the need for analyzing consumers' behaviors during the pandemic, especially under lockdowns, to prepare for the possibility of another pandemic wave. Many business clients analyzed in the paper are economic entities functioning in sectors under restrictions. That is why analyzing the pandemic's impact on the change in energy consumption profiles and volume of these entities is particularly meaningful. The article analyzes the pandemic and restrictions' impact on the total change of energy consumption volume and demand profiles. The analysis was conducted basing on data collected from a Polish energy trading and sales company. It focused on the energy consumption of its corporate clients. Analyzed data included aggregated energy consumption volumes for all company's customers and key groups of economic entities under restrictions. The analysis demonstrates the influence of pandemic restrictions on energy consumption in the group of business clients. Significant differences are observable among various sectors of the economy. The research proves that the largest drops in energy consumption are related to shopping centers and offices. Altogether, the restrictions have caused a 15–23% energy consumption drop during the first lockdown and a maximum 11% during the second against expected values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A substantial share of the building sector in global energy demand has attracted scholars to focus on the energy efficiency of the building sector. The building's energy consumption has been projected to increase due to mass urbanization, high living comfort standards, and, more importantly, climate change. While climate change has potential impacts on the rate of energy consumption in buildings, several studies have shown that these impacts differ from one region to another. In response, this paper aimed to investigate the impact of climate change on the heating and cooling energy demands of buildings as influential variables in building energy consumption in the city of Poznan, Poland. In this sense, through the statistical downscaling method and considering the most recent Typical Meteorological Year (2004–2018) as the baseline, the future weather data for 2050 and 2080 of the city of Poznan were produced according to the HadCM3 and A2 GHG scenario. These generated files were then used to simulate the energy demands in 16 building prototypes of the ASHRAE 90.1 standard. The results indicate an average increase in cooling load and a decrease in heating load at 135% and 40%, respectively, by 2080. Due to the higher share of heating load, the total thermal load of the buildings decreased within the study period. Therefore, while the total thermal load is currently under the decrease, to avoid its rise in the future, serious measures should be taken to control the increased cooling demand and, consequently, thermal load and GHG emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrification of powertrain systems offers numerous advantages in the global trend in vehicular applications. A wide range of energy sources and zero-emission propulsion in the tank to wheel significantly add to electric vehicles' (EV) attractiveness. This paper presents analyses of the energy balance between micro-photovoltaic (PV) installation and small electric vehicle in real conditions. It is based on monitoring PV panel's energy production and car electricity consumption. The methodology included energy data from real household PV installation (the most common renewable energy source in Poland), electric vehicle energy consumption during real driving conditions, and drivetrain operating parameters, all collected over a period of one year by indirect measuring. A correlation between energy produced by the micro-PV installation and small electric car energy consumption was described. In the Winter, small electric car energy consumption amounted to 14.9 kWh per 100 km and was 14% greater than summer, based on test requirements of real driving conditions. The 4.48 kW PV installation located in Poznań produced 4101 kWh energy in 258 days. The calculation indicated 1406 kWh energy was available for EV charging after household electricity consumption subtraction. The zero-emission daily distance analysis was done by the simplified method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of the analysis of parameters describing electricity consumption in individual phases of the production cycle on a poultry farm. One full broiler rearing cycle on the farm was analyzed. Electrical parameters were tested during the broiler rearing process using a power quality analyzer with a measurement interval of 1 min. During the tests, the analyzer recorded the active and reactive power, phase and line voltage, power factor, and frequency. On the basis of collected data, original indicators describing electricity consumption per chicken wkA, wkQ, and per unit area wiA, wiQ were determined. The regression curves of active and reactive power consumption in particular stages of the cycle were also determined, and the minimum and maximum values of active and reactive power consumption were determined. The accomplished research can be used in planning electricity demand in energy-self-sufficient areas. The presented original indicators can be used to determine power demand on broiler farms, depending on the planned production volume or size of farm buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to show the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on electricity consumption and, consequently, on decisions regarding the installation of photovoltaic panels using the example of a selected local authority in Poland—the Szemud Municipality. The analysis was conducted in 2022 and covered the years 2019–2021. An attempt was made to explore the factors that may have triggered an increase in the use of solar energy in households and identify the determinants of installing photovoltaic panels in the period under analysis. Previous analyses of the PV market (and the impact of the pandemic on it) have so far focused on the market as a whole, either in macro or global terms, while studies on smaller municipalities have been limited to examining changes in electricity consumption levels during the COVID-19 pandemic and during lockdown. Therefore, a research gap was identified in that there are no studies analyzing the reasons for the shift from conventional to PV-assisted energy in households, with the COVID-19 pandemic as the background of these changes. The literature research showed that there are currently no studies attempting to establish a link between the increased interest in this type of energy by local authorities and the COVID-19 pandemic. The research confirmed the hypothesis of increased interest in household PV during the pandemic. The main conclusions of the study boil down to the need for further support as well as promotion of the use of solar energy. In addition, the results derived from the empirical research indicate the need to take action at a policy level to counter adverse trends regarding undesirable social behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the global characteristics of the Polish manufacturing industry and the structure of its energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions related to direct emission as a result of fuel combustion and indirect emission as a result of electricity consumption. The share of individual sectors in energy consumption and emission levels was determined, and the changes in this share over the last 20 years were determined. A method for determining the carbon productivity index for the emissions of individual industries with the use of global macroeconomic indicators was proposed. The index allows for the comparison of the productivity of individual industries, regardless of the nature of production. The change in carbon productivity in Polish industry over time was presented. On this basis, it was assessed which industries are particularly promising in terms of decarbonising the Polish industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Poland, in 2021, an increase in demand for electricity was recorded, and hard coal and lignite power plants still had a dominant share in its production. Another source of electricity was renewable energy sources (RES), mainly wind farms. Young people in Poland are aware that electricity is not only its production, but also consumption in households. Therefore, it is also essential to properly educate young people, aiming at a cost-effective, sustainable lifestyle, in relation to electricity consumption. The article presents the current state of the electricity generation sector in Poland along with the proposed changes in this respect, in particular in terms of the development prospects for the use of renewable energy sources and the influence of government administration on the production and consumption of electricity. The aim of this research was to broaden the knowledge of young people's opinions on energy production and consumption. The research results can be used to create long-term directions of energy policy and to build a social attitude of sustainable energy consumption in Poland. The research was non-probabilistic, based on questionnaires, using the CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interview) technique. The questionnaire was conducted in 2021, and the analysis was made on the basis of 741 correctly completed research questionnaires. The results of the research confirmed the research hypotheses—that the surveyed youth see the need to reduce consumption as a way to counteract climate change and excessive energy consumption. They also expect government support in the energy transformation in Poland, based on a diversified scenario, using both renewable energy sources (RES) and nuclear energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy transition forcing a change in the structure of the electricity generation system is a particularly difficult task in countries such as Poland, where the dominant source of energy is fossil fuels. Due to the nature of renewable sources (stochastic and seasonally variable), it is necessary to study their impact on the power system. Much research was conducted on this subject. They consider modelling power systems in terms of dealing with an increasing amount of renewable energy sources, stabilization of electricity generation or environmental aspects. This article examines one of the key sources of future power systems—offshore wind turbines (OWT). The influence of offshore wind sources on the power system in the fields of stability of generation, methods of regulatory strategies, and economics were examined. One of the aspects that are less considered is the correlation of energy production in OWT with energy demand and with generation in other renewable energy sources, especially in the region of the southern Baltic Sea and the distribution of energy demand in countries such as Poland. The key aspect of the research is to fill this gap. The obtained results indicate that the average monthly power generation in OWT is strongly positively correlated with the demand, and the hourly average is positively correlated moderately. Correlation between generation in OWT and photovoltaic sources is very high negative, and between onshore and offshore wind turbines is highly positive. The study indicates that the OWT has a significant potential for the development and replacement of conventional sources, due to the very high capacity and a positive correlation with demand. Moreover, future offshore wind farms can cooperate with photovoltaic sources as these sources complement each other. On the other hand, a significant saturation of the system with offshore and onshore wind sources may pose a threat to the power system due to their positive correlation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to energy, including electricity, determines countries' socio-economic development. The growing demand for electricity translates into environmental problems. Energy is therefore a crucial element of the European Union's sustainable development strategy. This article aims to present the changes taking place in the electricity market in Poland considering the goals of the energy policy until 2040. This is the basis for the determination of the scale of processes taking place in the Polish energy sector from two perspectives, i.e., the production of electricity considering its level and energy carriers used, and the consumption of electricity in households depending on their location (rural vs. urban areas). The research was conducted at the regional level (NUTS 2 until 2017) in Poland. Secondary data from the Central Statistical Office (GUS) contained in the Local Data Bank were used, along with information from the European Commission and Eurostat websites. Results of the study made it possible to identify areas in which a greater environmental load is observed due to increasing electricity consumption. The coefficient of localization and concentration (by Florence) and the rate of change were applied. These results indicate that, in Poland, it is now the rural areas that have a greater negative environmental impact than urban areas, resulting from differences in unit energy consumption. Compared to the other provinces, rural areas of Podlaskie province had the highest rate of growth in energy consumption in the years 2004–2019, with an annual average of almost 20%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resource intensity is a measure of the resources needed for the production, processing and disposal of good or services. Its level decides on the costs the companies have to bear both for production and for environmental protection, which in turn have a crucial importance for their competitiveness. Given these facts, our study analyses the issues of resource intensity in the Polish steel industry in correlation to investments made, and more specifically, to the impact of investments on the consumption of energy media used during steel production. Its key element is the development of econometric models presenting the impact of investments on resource consumption in steel production in Poland. Electricity and coke consumption were analysed according to manufacturing installation. The research was carried out on the basis of statistical data for the period of 2004–2018. The obtained findings confirmed the impact of the increase in investment on the decrease in the resource intensity in steel production in Poland. These facts have implications for both policy makers, as they confirm the thesis on a direct correlation between investments in technology and a reduction in resource intensity (environmental protection), as well as company managers. In the case of the latter, the data show the actions which companies should focus on in their activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]