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Dr. Stefan Hirschberg
Laboratory for Energy Systems Analysis, Energy Divisions, Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI), CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland

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0 Decision Support
0 Energy Systems
0 Life Cycle Assessment
0 Resilience
0 Risk Assessment

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Article
Published: 19 June 2018 in Energy Technology
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Resilience often addresses preparedness of systems and social units to internal or/and external hazards, and the subsequent recovery. Preparedness is primarily associated with the designed, as-built, pre-disaster phase of a system, while recovery deals with the post-disruption response. While the damage of a system and the service disruption is associated with inherent properties of its components, as well as the magnitude of the hazard, recovery is additionally influenced by external factors, such as the state of the access infrastructure. This paper demonstrates a simulation approach to quantify a metric of resilience, in this case the integral loss of function or service. A case study on the impact of floods on a natural gas network is presented, considering the geospatial location of the network, the areas with and without service, the required times for travel to the damage locations and inspection/repair. The results underscore how the priorities selected for recovery can lead to strikingly different outcomes in terms of the resilience measure.

ACS Style

Miltos Kyriakidis; Peter Lustenberger; Peter Burgherr; Vinh N. Dang; Stefan Hirschberg. Quantifying Energy Systems Resilience-A Simulation Approach to Assess Recovery. Energy Technology 2018, 6, 1700 -1706.

AMA Style

Miltos Kyriakidis, Peter Lustenberger, Peter Burgherr, Vinh N. Dang, Stefan Hirschberg. Quantifying Energy Systems Resilience-A Simulation Approach to Assess Recovery. Energy Technology. 2018; 6 (9):1700-1706.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Miltos Kyriakidis; Peter Lustenberger; Peter Burgherr; Vinh N. Dang; Stefan Hirschberg. 2018. "Quantifying Energy Systems Resilience-A Simulation Approach to Assess Recovery." Energy Technology 6, no. 9: 1700-1706.

Journal article
Published: 01 November 2016 in International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control
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ACS Style

Kathrin Volkart; Christian Bauer; Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg; Warren Schenler; Matteo Spada. Interdisciplinary assessment of renewable, nuclear and fossil power generation with and without carbon capture and storage in view of the new Swiss energy policy. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 2016, 54, 1 -14.

AMA Style

Kathrin Volkart, Christian Bauer, Peter Burgherr, Stefan Hirschberg, Warren Schenler, Matteo Spada. Interdisciplinary assessment of renewable, nuclear and fossil power generation with and without carbon capture and storage in view of the new Swiss energy policy. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control. 2016; 54 ():1-14.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Kathrin Volkart; Christian Bauer; Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg; Warren Schenler; Matteo Spada. 2016. "Interdisciplinary assessment of renewable, nuclear and fossil power generation with and without carbon capture and storage in view of the new Swiss energy policy." International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control 54, no. : 1-14.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2016 in Reliability Engineering & System Safety
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ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Christian Bauer; Peter Burgherr; Eric Cazzoli; Thomas Heck; Matteo Spada; Karin Treyer. Health effects of technologies for power generation: Contributions from normal operation, severe accidents and terrorist threat. Reliability Engineering & System Safety 2016, 145, 373 -387.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg, Christian Bauer, Peter Burgherr, Eric Cazzoli, Thomas Heck, Matteo Spada, Karin Treyer. Health effects of technologies for power generation: Contributions from normal operation, severe accidents and terrorist threat. Reliability Engineering & System Safety. 2016; 145 ():373-387.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Christian Bauer; Peter Burgherr; Eric Cazzoli; Thomas Heck; Matteo Spada; Karin Treyer. 2016. "Health effects of technologies for power generation: Contributions from normal operation, severe accidents and terrorist threat." Reliability Engineering & System Safety 145, no. : 373-387.

Journal article
Published: 01 December 2014 in Energy Policy
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ACS Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. Comparative risk assessment of severe accidents in the energy sector. Energy Policy 2014, 74, S45 -S56.

AMA Style

Peter Burgherr, Stefan Hirschberg. Comparative risk assessment of severe accidents in the energy sector. Energy Policy. 2014; 74 ():S45-S56.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. 2014. "Comparative risk assessment of severe accidents in the energy sector." Energy Policy 74, no. : S45-S56.

Journal article
Published: 01 September 2012 in Reliability Engineering & System Safety
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ACS Style

Peter Burgherr; Petrissa Eckle; Stefan Hirschberg. Comparative assessment of severe accident risks in the coal, oil and natural gas chains. Reliability Engineering & System Safety 2012, 105, 97 -103.

AMA Style

Peter Burgherr, Petrissa Eckle, Stefan Hirschberg. Comparative assessment of severe accident risks in the coal, oil and natural gas chains. Reliability Engineering & System Safety. 2012; 105 ():97-103.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Peter Burgherr; Petrissa Eckle; Stefan Hirschberg. 2012. "Comparative assessment of severe accident risks in the coal, oil and natural gas chains." Reliability Engineering & System Safety 105, no. : 97-103.

Book chapter
Published: 07 April 2012 in Environment & Policy
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ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg. Externalities in the Global Energy System. Environment & Policy 2012, 121 -138.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg. Externalities in the Global Energy System. Environment & Policy. 2012; ():121-138.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg. 2012. "Externalities in the Global Energy System." Environment & Policy , no. : 121-138.

Research articles
Published: 09 October 2008 in Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal
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This study presents a comparative assessment of severe accident risks in the energy sector, based on the historical experience of fossil (coal, oil, natural gas, and LPG [Liquefied Petroleum Gas]) and hydro chains contained in the comprehensive Energy-related Severe Accident Database (ENSAD), as well as Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) for the nuclear chain. Full energy chains were considered because accidents can take place at every stage of the chain. Comparative analyses for the years 1969–2000 included a total of 1870 severe (≥ 5 fatalities) accidents, amounting to 81,258 fatalities. Although 79.1% of all accidents and 88.9% of associated fatalities occurred in less developed, non-OECD countries, industrialized OECD countries dominated insured losses (78.0%), reflecting their substantially higher insurance density and stricter safety regulations. Aggregated indicators and frequency-consequence (F-N) curves showed that energy-related accident risks in non-OECD countries are distinctly higher than in OECD countries. Hydropower in non-OECD countries and upstream stages within fossil energy chains are most accident-prone. Expected fatality rates are lowest for Western hydropower and nuclear power plants; however, the maximum credible consequences can be very large. Total economic damages due to severe accidents are substantial, but small when compared with natural disasters. Similarly, external costs associated with severe accidents are generally much smaller than monetized damages caused by air pollution.

ACS Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. A Comparative Analysis of Accident Risks in Fossil, Hydro, and Nuclear Energy Chains. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal 2008, 14, 947 -973.

AMA Style

Peter Burgherr, Stefan Hirschberg. A Comparative Analysis of Accident Risks in Fossil, Hydro, and Nuclear Energy Chains. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal. 2008; 14 (5):947-973.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. 2008. "A Comparative Analysis of Accident Risks in Fossil, Hydro, and Nuclear Energy Chains." Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal 14, no. 5: 947-973.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2007 in International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management
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Severe accident risks in China's coal chain were investigated in detail based on extensive statistics using Chinese sources that were not open until recently. Every year about 6000 fatalities occur in Chinese coal mines; about one third due to severe (≥ five fatalities) accidents. The Chinese severe accident fatality rate for the coal chain is 6.17 per GW

ACS Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. Assessment of severe accident risks in the Chinese coal chain. International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management 2007, 7, 1157 .

AMA Style

Peter Burgherr, Stefan Hirschberg. Assessment of severe accident risks in the Chinese coal chain. International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management. 2007; 7 (8):1157.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Peter Burgherr; Stefan Hirschberg. 2007. "Assessment of severe accident risks in the Chinese coal chain." International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management 7, no. 8: 1157.

Journal article
Published: 12 December 2005 in CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry
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ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Roberto Dones. Sustainability Aspects of Current and Future Electricity Supply Systems. CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry 2005, 59, 887 -893.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg, Roberto Dones. Sustainability Aspects of Current and Future Electricity Supply Systems. CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry. 2005; 59 (12):887-893.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Roberto Dones. 2005. "Sustainability Aspects of Current and Future Electricity Supply Systems." CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry 59, no. 12: 887-893.

Journal article
Published: 30 September 2005 in Energy
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This paper presents some selected analysis approaches developed and applied in Switzerland in the context of the analysis of Greenhouse Gas emissions associated with energy systems. The studies address both current and future energy systems. Furthermore, results examples from the China Energy Technology Program are provided, putting in perspective the climate change issue and damages due to air pollution. This is further illustrated by highlighting global risk benefits of climate-friendly energy supply options.

ACS Style

S. Hirschberg. Greenhouse gas emission reduction options: modeling and implications. Energy 2005, 30, 2025 -2041.

AMA Style

S. Hirschberg. Greenhouse gas emission reduction options: modeling and implications. Energy. 2005; 30 (11-12):2025-2041.

Chicago/Turabian Style

S. Hirschberg. 2005. "Greenhouse gas emission reduction options: modeling and implications." Energy 30, no. 11-12: 2025-2041.

Original articles
Published: 01 June 2005 in Safety and Reliability
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ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg. Human reliability analysis in probabilistic safety assessment for nuclear power plants. Safety and Reliability 2005, 25, 13 -20.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg. Human reliability analysis in probabilistic safety assessment for nuclear power plants. Safety and Reliability. 2005; 25 (2):13-20.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg. 2005. "Human reliability analysis in probabilistic safety assessment for nuclear power plants." Safety and Reliability 25, no. 2: 13-20.

Comparative study
Published: 26 July 2004 in Journal of Hazardous Materials
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This paper addresses one of the controversial issues in the current comparative studies of the environmental and health impacts of energy systems, i.e. the treatment of severe accidents. The work covers technical aspects of severe accidents and thus primarily reflects an engineering perspective on the energy-related risk issues, though some social implications are also touched upon. The assessment concerns fossil energy sources (coal, oil and gas), nuclear power and hydro power. The scope is not limited to the power production (conversion) step of these energy chains but, whenever applicable, also includes exploration, extraction, transports, processing, storage and waste disposal. With the exception of the nuclear chain the focus of the work has been on the evaluation of the historical experience of accidents. The basis used for this evaluation is a comprehensive database ENSAD (Energy-related Severe Accident Database), established by the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI). For hypothetical nuclear accidents the probabilistic technique has also been employed and extended to cover the assessment of economic consequences of such accidents. The broader picture obtained by coverage of full energy chains leads on the world-wide basis to aggregated immediate fatality rates being much higher for the fossil chains than what one would expect if only power plants were considered. Generally, the immediate fatality rates are for all considered energy carriers significantly higher for the non-OECD countries than for OECD countries. In the case of hydro and nuclear the difference is in fact dramatic. The presentation of results is not limited to the aggregated values specific for each energy chain. Also frequency-consequence curves are provided. They reflect implicitly the ranking based on the aggregated values but include also such information as the observed or predicted chain-specific maximum extents of damages. This perspective on severe accidents may lead to different system rankings, depending on the individual risk aversion.

ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Peter Burgherr; Gerard Spiekerman; Roberto Dones. Severe accidents in the energy sector: comparative perspective. Journal of Hazardous Materials 2004, 111, 57 -65.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg, Peter Burgherr, Gerard Spiekerman, Roberto Dones. Severe accidents in the energy sector: comparative perspective. Journal of Hazardous Materials. 2004; 111 (1-3):57-65.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Peter Burgherr; Gerard Spiekerman; Roberto Dones. 2004. "Severe accidents in the energy sector: comparative perspective." Journal of Hazardous Materials 111, no. 1-3: 57-65.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2004 in International Journal of Global Energy Issues
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This paper summarises the results of the assessment of health and environmental impacts, and the corresponding external costs within the China Energy Technology Program (CETP). China faces an enormous challenge, as it needs to meet the growing demand for energy in general and electricity in particular. Coal is, and will most probably remain for a long time, the dominant energy carrier in China, and its continued use causes enormous damage to public health and the environment. Such damage backfires on the rate of economic growth. As demonstrated in the present work, the total (internal plus external) costs of environment-friendly electricity supply strategies are significantly lower than those of the seemingly cheaper, but ''dirty'' and nonsustainable, strategies based on traditional coal technologies. As demonstrated by the detailed analyses carried out for the Shandong province, cost-efficient reduction of health and environmental damages, and of the corresponding external costs, can be achieved by implementation of scrubbers and other ''clean-coal'' technologies, together with fuel diversification and promotion of efficiency.

ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Thomas Heck; Urs Gantner; Yongqi Lu; Joseph V. Spadaro; Alfred Trukenmuller; Yihong Zhao. Health and environmental impacts of China's current and future electricity supply, with associated external costs. International Journal of Global Energy Issues 2004, 22, 155 .

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg, Thomas Heck, Urs Gantner, Yongqi Lu, Joseph V. Spadaro, Alfred Trukenmuller, Yihong Zhao. Health and environmental impacts of China's current and future electricity supply, with associated external costs. International Journal of Global Energy Issues. 2004; 22 (2/3/4):155.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Thomas Heck; Urs Gantner; Yongqi Lu; Joseph V. Spadaro; Alfred Trukenmuller; Yihong Zhao. 2004. "Health and environmental impacts of China's current and future electricity supply, with associated external costs." International Journal of Global Energy Issues 22, no. 2/3/4: 155.

Book chapter
Published: 01 January 2004 in Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management
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Within the China Energy Technology Program (CETP), sponsored by ABB in conjunction with the Alliance for Global Sustainability (AGS), PSI, together with American (MIT), numerous Chinese, Japanese (Tokyo University) and Swiss (ETHZ and EPFL) partners, investigated how the future electricity supply in China could be made more sustainable. Most detailed analyses were carried out for the Shandong province though a wide spectrum of results was obtained for whole China. Representatives of major Chinese stakeholders participated in the program.

ACS Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Roberto Dones; Peter Burgherr; Thomas Heck; Warren Schenler. An Integrated Decision-Support Tool for Sustainable Energy Supply. Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management 2004, 2552 -2557.

AMA Style

Stefan Hirschberg, Roberto Dones, Peter Burgherr, Thomas Heck, Warren Schenler. An Integrated Decision-Support Tool for Sustainable Energy Supply. Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management. 2004; ():2552-2557.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Stefan Hirschberg; Roberto Dones; Peter Burgherr; Thomas Heck; Warren Schenler. 2004. "An Integrated Decision-Support Tool for Sustainable Energy Supply." Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management , no. : 2552-2557.