Energy related problems are part of the major challenges for humanity in this century worldwide. In most countries, energy is the first national priority. Our research in Energy Systems aims to explore the realities of energy infrastructure in different regions, as well as study the implications of energy policies from an engineering perspective.
Our research efforts on this topic are currently focused on large scale environmental impacts of energy and transportation technologies such as electric vehicles (EVs) and their associated energy infrastructure. We perform system-level analyses of environmental impacts such as greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) across a range of present and future scenarios, analyzing different aspects of technological deployment (e.g., physical and operational features, component life cycles, technological adoption).
Currently one of our most active projects is the construction of the Canadian Open Energy (CANOE) provincial-national energy system optimization model, which will be released in 2024 or 2025.
For a sample of other recent projects, please find a non-exhaustive list of relevant publications below:
Energy and greenhouse gas implications of shared automated electric vehicles
Year: 2022
Authors: Saleh, Marc, Alexandre Milovanoff, I. Daniel Posen, Heather L. MacLean, and Marianne Hatzopoulou.
Published in: Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment 105 (2022): 103233.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2022.103233
Does location matter? Investigating the spatial and socio-economic drivers of residential energy use in Dar es Salaam
Year: 2021
Authors: Luo, Chibulu, I. Daniel Posen, and Heather L. MacLean.
Published in: Environmental Research Letters 16, no. 2 (2021): 024041.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abd42e
Electrification of light-duty vehicle fleet alone will not meet mitigation targets
Year: 2020
Authors: Milovanoff, Alexandre, I. Daniel Posen, and Heather L. MacLean.
Published in: Nature Climate Change 10, no. 12: 1102-1107.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-020-00921-7
Modelling future patterns of urbanization, residential energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in Dar es Salaam with the Shared Socio-Economic Pathways
Year: 2020
Authors: Luo, Chibulu, I. Daniel Posen, and Heather L. MacLean.
Published in: Journal of Cleaner Production 254 (2020): 119998.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.119998
Marginal greenhouse gas emissions of Ontario’s electricity system and the implications of electric vehicle charging
Year: 2019
Authors: Gai, Yijun, An Wang, Lucas Pereira, Marianne Hatzopoulou, and I. Daniel Posen.
Published in: Environmental science & technology 53, no. 13 (2019): 7903-7912.
Link: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b01519