Search Results (5)

This review provides a comprehensive and multidisciplinary overview of recent advancements in solar tracking systems (STSs) aimed at improving the efficiency and adaptability of photovoltaic (PV) technologies. The study systematically classifies solar trackers based on tracking axes (fixed, single-axis, and dual-axis), drive mechanisms (active, passive, semi-passive, manual, and chronological), and control strategies (open-loop, closed-loop, hybrid, and AI-based). Fixed-tilt PV systems serve as a baseline, with single-axis trackers achieving 20–35% higher energy yield, and dual-axis trackers offering energy gains ranging from 30% to 45% depending on geographic and climatic conditions. In particular, dual-axis systems outperform others in high-latitude and equatorial regions due to their ability to follow both azimuth and elevation angles throughout the year. Sensor technologies such as LDRs, UV sensors, and fiber-optic sensors are compared in terms of precision and environmental adaptability, while microcontroller platforms—including Arduino, ATmega, and PLC-based controllers—are evaluated for their scalability and application scope. Intelligent tracking systems, especially those leveraging machine learning and predictive analytics, demonstrate additional energy gains up to 7.83% under cloudy conditions compared to conventional algorithms. The review also emphasizes adaptive tracking strategies for backtracking, high-latitude conditions, and cloudy weather, alongside emerging applications in agrivoltaics, where solar tracking not only enhances energy capture but also improves shading control, crop productivity, and rainwater distribution. The findings underscore the importance of selecting appropriate tracking strategies based on site-specific factors, economic constraints, and climatic conditions, while highlighting the central role of solar tracking technologies in achieving greater solar penetration and supporting global sustainability goals, particularly SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and SDG 13 (Climate Action). Full article

Governments across the world are facing challenges in urgently responding to the adverse impacts of climate change. Australian cities have been proactively working on various climate action plans. Despite this, the Climate Action Tracker rates Australia’s climate net zero targets, policies, and climate finance as “Insufficient”, highlighting the urgent need for substantial improvements to align Australia’s climate policies and commitments towards the Paris Agreement. This study explores the readiness of Australian cities towards climate change mitigation, with a focus on Sydney. It identifies prioritized cooling measures and proactive local governments in Great Metropolitan Sydney, through an analysis of official documents and policy statements. Interviews were conducted with local governments to gain insights into implementation processes, perceived effectiveness, challenges, and opportunities related to heat mitigation initiatives. The results reveal efforts to amend local environmental and development control plans to mitigate the urban heat island effect and create cooler, more comfortable built environments. However, challenges exist, including limited authority of local governments in urban planning, as national and state governments set stringent codes and regulations for heat mitigation. Financial constraints pose challenges, particularly in maintaining and monitoring strategic plans during their implementation stage, leading to the potential removal of sustainability measures from designs. Full article

Climate change is a global issue that requires collective action to address. One of the most pressing concerns is reducing emissions resulting from combustion processes. The use of renewable energy sources and green energy has become a trend worldwide. Solar energy is one of the most promising sources due to its abundance and simplicity of implementation. The city of Aswan, located in the South of Egypt, has a high solar radiation that makes it ideal for utilizing solar power. The current study investigates the optimal design for a sustainable building electricity system at the Aswan Campus of the Arab Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport (AASTMT) in Egypt. The campus has four electricity sources: a utility grid, PV panels, batteries, and a diesel generator, along with a weather station. Experimental investigations have been carried out in this research paper to study the performance characteristics of solar power. Moreover, HOMER pro software is used to model various configurations of the campus grid, including different photovoltaic (PV) panel types and tracking systems. The simulations are compared with real-world data collected from a weather station on campus. Additionally, CO₂ and NO₂ emissions are measured to assess the environmental impact of different scenarios. The total net cost over the life cycle is also calculated for different cases. The results demonstrate that the addition of a PV renewable system can reduce traditional grid usage by 38% and emissions by 50%. A decrease in the Levelized Cost of Energy (LOCE) from USD 0.0647 to USD 0.0535 is reported. Moreover, the difference in NCP cost between dual-axis tracking and fixed zero angle is USD 143,488. The dual degree tracker for PV panels can further enhance energy production by 30% more, compared with fixed panels, while reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 20%. The simulation results reveal that tracking systems provide greater energy generation, and that a cost–benefit analysis may prioritize fixed panels in some cases. The results from the HOMER software simulations closely match those of the experimental data, which is that the total presentation error does not exceed 8%, demonstrating the software’s effectiveness for optimizing renewable energy systems. This study demonstrates that a comprehensive analysis and optimization of a building’s energy sources can significantly reduce costs, lower emissions, and promote the use of renewable energy, particularly solar power. Full article

Sustainable Development Goal 13 echoes the fact that all countries must make urgent and stringent efforts to mitigate against and adapt to climate change and its associated impacts. Climate financing is one of the key mechanisms used to enable countries to remain resilient to the hastening effects of climate change. In this paper, we empirically assess the effect of institutional governance indicators on the amount of climate finance received by 21 nations for which progress towards the internationally agreed-upon target of reducing global warming to 1.5 °C is tracked. We use the fixed-effects ordinary least squares (OLS) and the feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) estimators, drawing on the Climate Action Tracker panel data from 2002 to 2020. Empirical results reveal that perceived political stability significantly enhanced climate finance inflows among countries that strongly increased their NDC targets, while perceived deterioration in corruption control negatively impacted the amount of climate finance received by the same group of countries. Therefore, governments should reduce corruption tendencies while striving to avoid practices and alliances that lead to any form of violence, including terrorism and civil war. Low developing countries (LDCs) in particular need to improve the standard of public services provided to the populace while maintaining a respectable level of autonomy from political influences. Above all, as countries work towards strengthening institutional governance, there is an urgent need for developed economies to assist developing economies in overcoming debt stress since the likelihood of future resilience and prosperity is being undermined by the debt crisis, with developing countries spending almost five times as much annually on repayment of debt as they allocate to climate adaptation. Full article

The emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) have significant influence on the global economic and environmental trajectories. They have carbon intensive economic systems, which contribute significantly to total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, leading to climate change. However, BRICS have joined the race to net-zero emissions by 2050 in the quest for a climate neutral and sustainable global economy. The journey, however, is not without challenges and opportunities. The proliferation of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) had mixed reactions from scientists regarding its implications on net-zero trajectories. While statistical data show a correlation between COVID-19 and a decrease in total emissions, it is envisaged that COVID-19 compromised the efforts to develop carbon neutral economies. Hence, there is still need for more scientific examination of COVID-19’s impact on net-zero ambitions, especially in the emerging economies. This study focuses on India and South Africa’s trajectories. Statistical analysis of secondary data from authentic interactive web-based dashboards for COVID-19 data repositories, namely Our World in Data and Climate Action Tracker was performed in conjunction with the document analysis approach following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methodology. Some of the COVID-19 challenges as indicated by the results of the study include curtailing the technology transfer staircase in the energy sector, retaliatory emissions for recovery and resource diversion. The opportunities presented by COVID-19 in the quest for carbon neutrality include behavioural changes in investment, production and consumption patterns with a focus on low carbon options. Governments and stakeholders need to focus on addressing the barriers whilst riding on the opportunities presented by the pandemic to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Full article