Life Cycle Energy Analysis for Energy Planning of the Rio De Janeiro State

Abstract

The human development would not be possible without energy. But the way electricity has been generated and fuels have been burnt causes serious impacts in environment. Our current society is concerned about these problems, and studies have been carried out to find renewable power sources and ways to use energy as efficient as possible. In this context, we will study the electrical generator park of Rio de Janeiro State, which is composed by hydroelectric plants, one wind farm, thermal plants and two conventional thermonuclear plants, having reached an installed capacity of 7.991 MW in 2012. In this same year, the electric generation in the state was 51.633 GWh, which accounted for 9,3% of national production, while the electricity consumption of 50.746 GWh represented 10,2% of the country's consumption. An increase in electricity consumption is expected for the next years due to the heating of the state economy, the large industrial investments and the great international events which will take place there. Therefore, the state will have to expand the capacity of its electric generating facilities, preferably in a sustainable and efficient way. This project aims to study how energy is used and generated in Rio de Janeiro State and begin to compile its energy inventory, so that, further studies can be conducted in order to make a comparative of these energy sources through the life cycle energy analysis seeking viable alternatives to the electricity demand in the state.