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Energy is one of the basic inputs and driving forces for economic and social development modernization. Sustainable energy supply is one of the major challenges in the modern world. Sustainable energy supply can be obtained through alternative energy sources, and efficient energy use is a high priority to optimize the environmental impact. This paper investigates the potential for energy savings involving five end-load equipment in academic institutions. The saving potential is obtained through energy efficiency analysis and feasibility analysis of the solar power generation systems. An energy audit is conducted on end-use consuming equipment (i.e., fans, lights, air conditioning, ICT equipment, etc.) in these five end-load sectors to find out the major energy-consuming equipment, energy consumption, and potential energy savings. The analysis of energy consumption per equipment helps determine the appropriate type of equipment to be upgraded and replaced for energy saving. The feasibility of rooftop solar power generation has been also analysed to integrate into the energy end load. The research findings confirm that laboratory equipment, lighting, and air conditioning are vital to energy consumption in academic buildings. The energy savings, bill savings, and carbon emissions reductions have been estimated based on integrating rooftop solar power generation. The feasibility analysis of onsite energy generation using a hybrid solar system found that the total energy-saving potential and bill savings within five years are 311,131 kWh and RM 113,563, respectively. This value refers to comprehensive energy-saving and bill for all academic buildings involved in this research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to environmental issues and the upward trend of fossil fuel prices, the study of renewable energy (RE) based generation and their effects on the electrical system has become an important part of the government's energy policies and university projects. In RE generation, as solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are modular, silent, and transportable and demonstrate ease of installation, they have attracted a greater amount of attention specifically in those areas which receive considerable average solar radiation per day such as Malaysia. However, connecting solar PV farms to the grid like any other distributed generation (DG) units poses serious issues which arise in the distribution network. This paper presents a novel fault location algorithm based on the recording of short circuit power values at the primary substation of unbalanced radial distribution networks including PV systems. The recorded values are evaluated by a designed and tuned multi-layer feed forward neural network and the fault distances from the source are estimated accordingly. In order to highlight the accuracy of the presented method, the scenario is also repeated by recording the peak values of short circuit current which have been mostly used in the published intelligent fault location studies and the obtained results via two different values are compared with each other. The results reveal that the presented algorithm using a small scale input set is able to precisely locate different fault types in the unbalanced distribution networks including DG units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Solar energy is one of renewable energy sources which have potential for future energy applications. New technology developments in solar energy utilization are expected to result in the improvement of the photovoltaic performance with lower production cost. This will increase the demand and viability for commercial applications. The current popular technology converts solar energy into electricity and heat separately. The photovoltaic-thermal (PV/T) hybrid system is designed to generate thermal and electrical energy simultaneously. It is well known that using a hybrid system can eliminate the need for external source of electrical energy. This paper presents research and development activity being carried out at Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in order to realise the technology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper examines solar photovoltaic (PV) in Malaysia. First, it analyzes the current energy demand in Malaysia and discusses some of the national policies and the installations of solar PV in urban and rural areas in the country. Next, the general Feed-In Tariff (FiT) scheme is explained, indicating its potential as one of the investment options for Malaysians. Finally, the loan financing option for solar PV is presented, providing examples that have been implemented in other countries, as well as explaining the Green Technology Financing Scheme (GTFS) for companies and the proposed soft loan scheme for individual households in Malaysia. It also analyses the impact of the proposed interest rate to household consumers in Malaysia, in terms of total profit, net present value and internal rate of return. It is found that the FiT scheme could potentially help in increasing renewable energy penetration, particularly for solar PV. To provide upfront capital for solar PV installation, it is shown that the GTFS is a good financial source for companies while for individual home owners, a soft loan facility from banking institutions is a feasible source if the interest rate is 5% or less. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper aims to present the feed-in tariff (FiT) outlook in Malaysia, which is in the process of being enacted through a Renewable Energy (RE) Policy by the Government of Malaysia (GoM). A brief in policies leading towards the RE policy and the potential of each RE sources under FiT mechanism have been discussed. The successful utilisation of RE source in electricity generation and the FiT implementation globally are positive indicators to implement FiT in Malaysia. Potentials of FiT on biomass, biogas and solid waste energy are currently very promising in Malaysia, but it is solar energy which is predicted to be the main RE of the future, surpassing all other REs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Solar energy is the most promising source of clean, renewable energy and it has the greatest potential of any power source to solve the world''s energy problems. However, the problem, is how best to harness this vast amount of solar energy. Nevertheless, even if highly efficient Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) could be made cheaply, there would be considerable change in solar power. This technology is expected to be more efficient and to achieve a manufacturing cost of less than $1/W near future. This paper reviews and elaborates the methodology utilized to design and fabricate the solar dish concentrator and outlines the parameters that can be used to increase the efficiency of solar fraction in parabolic dish concentrator under wet climate environment in Malaysia. The study finally provides ideas to the continually increasing ability of these technologies to concentrate and harness solar energy for electricity production and thus eliminate the growing concern over climate change and how it will hurt the region''s environment, human health and economy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]