After Gutenberg

How to get 20% Wind Energy by 2030?

2008-5-12 – 8:25 pm

“20% Wind Energy by 2030: Increasing Wind Energy’s Contribution to U.S. Electricity Supply” is easily “the most comprehensive and credible report released on wind power in a decade,” writes Joe Romm.

Credit: Clipper Windpower

One reason to continue to bolster the wind energy industry is that it is one of the quickest ways to bring up additional generating power.

Key Conclusions of DOE Wind Energy Report

Annual installations need to increase by only a factor of three from current levels by 2018.
Costs of integrating intermittent wind power into the grid are modest. 20 percent wind can be reliably integrated into the grid for less than 0.5 cents per kWh.
No material constraints currently exist. Although demand for copper, fiberglass and other raw materials will increase, achieving 20 percent wind is not limited by the availability of raw materials.
This would require 300,000 MW of wind, delivering electricity for about 6 to 8.5 cents per kilowatt hour, unsubsidized (i.e. no federal tax credit) and including the cost of transmission to access existing power lines within 500 miles of wind resource [new nuclear is currently about 15 cents/kwh (see here)].
The 20% Wind Scenario could require an incremental investment of as little as $43 billion NPV [net present value] more than the base-case no new Wind Scenario. This would represent less than 0.06 cent (6 one-hundredths of 1 cent) per kilowatt-hour of total generation by 2030, or roughly 50 cents per month per household.

Staggering benefits for small incremental investment, you would think it would have been something to implement rather than just study. Of course, implementation would suggest:

Continuing the production tax credit for wind

A 20% (or higher) renewable electricity standard for utilities.

A cap and trade system that results in a significant price for carbon.

…policies that have resulted in disinterest to outright opposition by the current administration.

The DOE report begins with identifying 3 key concerns — energy prices, supply uncertainties, and environmental concerns — to which the development of greater wind energy in the United States could address. While U.S. wind capacity has been growing rapidly since 2005, it is from a very small base. There needs to a major national commitment to development of the abundant offshore and land based wind resources in the United State be for wind energy to become a significant part of electricity generation by 2030. With such development forthcoming, the report anticipates significant benefits.

A life sustaining commitment to a clean energy future requires mitigation of anthropogenic GHG emissions. A way for the United States to achieve such a critical goal is to switch energy production to renewable energy sources.

Key Benefits identified by DOE Wind Energy Report

Reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electricity generation by 25 percent in 2030.
Reduce natural gas use by 11%;
Reduce water consumption associated with electricity generation by 4 trillion gallons by 2030;
Increase annual revenues to local communities to more than $1.5 billion by 2030; and
Support roughly 500,000 jobs in the U.S., with an average of more than 150,000 workers directly employed by the wind industry.

While release of the report coincided with a speech on the all important issue of global heating, staff for Conservative presidential candidate Sen. John McCain announced the location of this “climate speech” prior; and, Romm took the opportunity to inform us of the irony.

The clever, but ultimately hypocritical location was an American plant for Danish wind turbine company Vestas. The irony is that “conservatives including John McCain, are the main reason McCain has to go to a Danish wind turbine manufacturer to give a climate speech.”

With the major government investments in wind in the 1970s, the United States was poised to be a dominant player in what was clearly going to be one of the biggest job creating industries of the next hundred years. But conservatives repeatedly gutted the wind budget, then opposed efforts by progressives to increase it, and repeatedly blocked efforts to extend the wind power tax credit.

The United States is now a bit player in an industry that we launched. In the mid-1980s, we had 90% of global installed capacity. Compare that today. Between 2000 and 2003, Germany became the world leader in wind development. Industry analysts attribute such development to introduction of a feed-in tariff.

Romm reminds us that McCain failed to show for a key vote in December that would have extended the PTC (Production Tax Credit) for wind power. The PTC “has been a key driver of wind power in this country — allowing it to compete with our better-subsidized power sources (like nuclear) in this country, and to partly offset the much bigger subsidies other countries have for renewables.”

If you are wondering how such an important vote could have been missed by some and against which the majority of senators voted, the vote would have shifted money from subsidies to the oil industry, “which hardly needs it given record oil prices and record oil profits,” bemoans Romm.

AP Photo/Greg Wahl-Stephens

Refer to Romm’s post for how he details the McCain hypocrisy.

By jcwinnie | Posted in analysis, development, energy, environment, forecast, growth, intention, policy, politics, security, survival, weather | Tagged analysis, development, forecast, policy, wind power | Comments (3)

Solar Rights?

2008-5-12 – 2:15 pm

“Even Al Gore had to fight to put solar panels on the roof of his house,” and Toronto Treehugger Lloyd Alter is of the opinion that we should remove stupid “restrictions and covenants limiting the installation of solar hot water and photovoltaic systems from housing.” 8 states now have “solar rights” laws that prevent restrictions by lower levels of government on solar power installations.

Installing new solar roofing modules made by Sharp, like the PowerGuard rooftop system from PowerLight, the photo voltaic panels are integrated into the roof tiles, which then can be snapped onto an existing roof without puncturing its surface.

There are all kinds of zoning bylaws, condo rules, homeowners associations and even building code rules that make it harder to go green. In Arizona, with 300 days of sun per year, they just passed legislation to prevent homeowners associations from stopping solar panel installation. Illinois state Democratic Rep. Karen May, a sponsor of a “solar rights bill” says “If you’re going to have local governments and condo associations saying, ‘Solar panels are ugly,’ that’s a real stumbling block.”

While a consumer’s rooftop photo voltaic panels are her / his castle, more important is the bottom line resisted by some utility companies. Net metering programs give photovoltaic system owners a credit for the electricity they deliver to the grid. This credit is used to offset electricity provided from the grid when the photovoltaic system cannot meet demand. According to Wikipedia (2008-May-12), “New Jersey/and Colorado are widely considered to have the best net-metering policies in the United States as both have no limit on enrollment (less than 2MW each), roll over month to month and pay annually for excess generation at avoided-cost rate.”

A grid tie is implicit in the building of most zero-energy homes, i.e., the home owner is reimbursed for surplus electricity fed into the grid. The same is true for other net-zero, carbon-neutral buildings.

By jcwinnie | Posted in architecture, commerce, connection, development, economics, energy, law, policy, shelter | Tagged development, electric power, policy, shelter, solar power | Comments (0)

The Future of Light Electric Vehicles in China

2008-5-12 – 8:42 am

Subtitle: It may be E2W to UC but it’s diandong zixingche to me.

Recently noted, e-bikes are selling well in China and Vietnam. Green Car Congress relays further commentary on the e-bike market in Asia. The observations are part of a UC Davis study of E2W (Electric Two-Wheelers) in China. The study concludes that ongoing rapid growth could drive further electrification of transport sector, which this blog perceives as potentially very good development, yet recognizes the UC Davis concern about the high carbon intensity of the Chinese grid. (”Pay no attention to the high carbon intensity in the Ohio Valley, ‘Merika.”)

To maximize the benefits of electric drive transport, the authors suggest that policy makers in China takes steps to lower the carbon intensity of the grid and to encourage a transition to advanced batteries.

The authors at ITS (Institute for Transportation Studies at UC Davis) —Jonathan Weinert, Joan Ogden, Dan Sperling, and Andrew Burke—concluded that more grid-able vehicles would drive:

Continued innovation in batteries and motors
A switch from lead-acid to Li-ion batteries, and
Development of larger E2Ws and EVs.

The ITS authors used force field analysis to assess future E2W growth in China. They concluded that “driving forces appear to outweigh the resisting forces for E2Ws.” Such a conclusion corresponds with the perception at the April 2008 Shanghai Cycle Show.

Chinese presenters at an international seminar on “Lithium-Ion Battery Technology Applied to Electric Bikes” noted new models for the 2008 season are entering the market. The newer lithium battery technology offers better performance and is safer. Lithium batteries have a 50% share in the European market and about the same is true in Japan. In the US, more and more Lithium batteries are becoming available. Lithium batteries, which can meet stringent battery safety standards, definitely should become prevalent in LEVs (Light Electric Vehicles) in China.

Note: LEV is a catchall category, to include 2, 3 and 4-wheeled vehicles, which could be designed for various applications. The term generally refers to all-electric vehicles rather than combinations and implies low speed vehicles.

As recently suggested to the MIT Smart Cities posse’, this goes for IntragoMobility, as well, if you are going to rent electric cycles for eco-commuting, then offer a variety of attachable bicycle trailers, too.

The obstacles perceived by the ITS authors included a greater demand for a charging infrastructure, battery cost and the inherent complications that come with traction battery systems. This blog agrees with the authors that a major determinant is battery technology and recently noted that more e-bikes and electric scooters could make use of lithium ion chemistry when combined with less expensive lead acid batteries. Motive Power is Chinese company that is developing a system to use lithium nano-phosphate cells to keep the lead acid batteries “topped-off.”

The GCC commentary for the post also was quite informative. stomv relates:

I lived in Shanghai last summer, with time spent in Beijing and Wuhan. The electric scooters were quite common in all of those places, although most common in Shanghai and least common in Beijing — I suspect a function of population density in the downtown area [Shanghai density is much more than Wuhan downtown, which is much higher than Beijing which covers much more land area].

What’s driving it? My bet is storage space and closeness. On the storage front, most folks simply don’t have a place to park a car, either at their home or at their destination. Scooters, on the other hand, can be parked on the sidewalk under protected shelters.

As for the bike lane itself, I don’t think that’s as big an issue for driving choice — the bike lane was often more congested than the auto lanes, and recent construction in places like Pudong favors the auto lanes over [all kinds of] bike and pedestrian travel.

While it has regen, the E+ only has 1000 watt motor (750) standard, which means considerable need for pedal power. The $3500 price tag is daunting, especially with a limited warranty on the batteries.

Another GCC commentator is seriously looking at a e-bike conversion kit., or a full e-bike.

And, GCC regular Rafael Seidl provides yet another informed commentary, this time from a social science perspective:

A large fraction of the whole population of Chine (~1.2 billion) lives along the coast. Population density there is at least 4 times that of the US East Coast. Now imagine the congestion and pollution that would result from having every person in China drive a car.

Electric two-wheelers make perfect sense for China in terms of both road capacity and affordability. Tailpipe criteria emissions are zero, which is a massive gain relative to two-stroke engine. However, most of the electricity used to run these vehicles is produced at coal-fired plants built to antiquated designs.

In China, owning a car is very much a status symbol right now, something that millions aspire to trade up to at some point in the future. The authorities are investing $165 billion in rail infrastructure, much of it electric and some of it high-speed (~186mph). Perhaps the combination of E2Ws and high-quality electric rail service will persuade a new generation of big city dwellers in China that owning a home is more important than owning a car - let alone multiple cars per family.

GCC Recommended Resource

Weinert, Jonathan X., Joan M. Ogden, Daniel Sperling, Andrew F. Burke (2008) The future of electric two-wheelers and electric vehicles in China. Energy Policy In Press

By jcwinnie | Posted in chemistry, commerce, design, development, economics, energy, environment, intention, transportation, world | Tagged bicycle, chemistry, China, commerce, development, electric drive, scooter | Comments (0)

Plug-in Kits with Buffered Battery Packs?

2008-5-10 – 10:36 am

Sebastian Blanco talked with Kim Adelman, president of Plug-in Conversions, at EV23. Adelman uses Nilar nickel-metal hydride packs for the plug-in conversion kits that he offers.

“Plug-in Conversions offers three different battery options - either 2, 4 or 7 kWh. The small system costs around $8,000 and bumps up the mpge rating to around 50-60 with an all-electric range or around eight miles. The 4 kWh system costs $12,500 and gives 16 miles of EV range (although Adelman was able to squeeze 19+ miles from this pack recently). The large 7 kWh pack goes for $15,000 and will move your Prius for 24 miles on electrons and pushes your mpge to 100+.”

Nilar’s Kurt Jensen says that there remains a place for NiMH in the plug-in market. Implicit in such an observation is that patent issues will become moot and NiMH battery packs will become less expensive.

Rafael Seidl commented:

let’s say you live in California drive your Prius mostly in town or in the burbs, 12000 miles a year. Let’s say you manage 50mpg on the stock vehicle. At $3.50 a gallon, you’re using 240 gallons/year at cost of $840/year.

Now let’s say you spend an extra $15k for the 7kWh supplemental pack. Let’s further assume that your duty cycle is such that you really do end up paying as much as you would without plugging in to the grid but averaging 100MPG, i.e. 120 gal/yr or $420.

Ignoring net present value considerations and assuming the price of gasoline will not change, you’re looking at an ROI horizon of $15000/$420 = 36 years, i.e. three times the vehicle’s life expectancy.

This illustrates why plug-in retrofits are not a scalable solution and therefore, of little value to either the individual or society as a whole. For the $15000, you could equip perhaps 30 cars with a factory-installed option of a stop-start system plus intelligent alternator (cp. BMW efficient dynamics, Citroen C2/3/4 etc) Fuel savings: ~5% in combined-cycle driving.

Now, lets assume you decide to spend your $15k one a tax-deductible donation to a charity that subsidizes the purchase of new vehicles that feature this option. Let’s also say that qualifying models must achieve at least 35MPG combined cycle even without it, the CAFE target the House has voted for in 2020. Your identity will be revealed to benefactors if you so wish.

In a single year, these 30 vehicles will save roughly 5% * 30 * 12000 / 35 = 514 gallons of fuel, over 4x the amount you would save by upgrading your Prius to 100mpge! The tax deduction (worth ~$4000-5000) more or less compensates you for forgoing your own savings at the pump. The only fly in the ointment is that very few manufacturers currently offer the described option on their vehicles, but that may change before long.

Now tell me, what would give you greater bragging rights: driving around in a modded Prius that gets 100mpge or philanthropy that achieves over 4x the impact?

UC Davis Prof. Andy Frank (on left) with Plug-In Conversions founder, Kim Adelman, at Santa Monica Alt Car Expo, October, 2007

While other than specifically in response to Seidl, it is the considered opinion of Professor Andrew Frank to “let the big guys argue about who is better or more cost effective. We need to focus on what is good for the people on earth as the cost of fossil fuel rises.” Frank contends, “the main reason for the PHEV! To displace fossil fuel with electricity that can be generated from a plethora of sources including renewables at a very high efficiency with low to zero emissions!”

Interestingly, while carping about use of the term MPGe in a recent post about brothers and backyard mechanics, who converted a Prius to a plug-in, in the post, the author, Sebastian Blanco, refers to an earlier discussion with Adelman; and, the earlier post (with links to Adelman and Jensen podcasts) uses the same MPGe designation. This blog previously noted that a formula for converting gallons of gasoline to an equivalent energy number has been established.

And, not so long ago, this blog made note of development by Motive Power Industry. Their developers suggested that ‘buffering’ lead acid batteries with Li-ion cells improves the range from the lead-acid batteries. Thus, there could be greater efficiency at a lower cost.

The Motive Power system depends upon the ability of the advanced nano-phosphate chemistry to soak up peak demand needs. Nickel metal hydride perform less adequately in this regard. It probably is too soon to tell whether improvements in NiMH cells and battery management systems, combined with lower cost, might make such a cheaper combination practical. Further research also might determine the feasibility and affordability of lithium nano-phosphate buffering of NiMH battery packs.

By jcwinnie | Posted in chemistry, design, development, economics, energy, transportation | Tagged chemistry, control, electric drive, plug-in hybrid, power electronics | Comments (0)

Compound Charge Compression Ignition

2008-5-9 – 9:01 pm

Subtitle: Dies Otto went DME All the Way Home

Because of coal reserves and a growing economy, China, as noted, has an interest in the conversion of coal to a liquid fuelAdvanced heavy duty hybrid propulsion systems can utilize DME if equipped with “a purpose-designed fuel handling and injection system as well as a lubricating additive”.

Furthermore, instead of coal to DME this blog noted in a prior series that an advantage of DME is it can be made from waste rather than fossil fuel, particularly when the feedstock is forestry waste or municipal solid waste.

In the United States, coal, oil and automobile companies fund something called the Environmental Institute at Princeton University, which one outsider perceived as funded “to demonstrate feasibility of, and smooth the way for, ‘clean coal’ and synthetic fuels from coal.”

Whether from coal, waste or some combination, the DME comes from Syngas. The coal industry and its suppliers strongly advocate gasification technologies, even when feedstock other than coal is used, since a high minimum throughput of many tons per day is required to be cost effective and the infrastructure for coal delivery exists.

Syngas is a favorite topic of Green Car Congress. For instance, Mike Millikin has relayed results from research by Volvo scientists indicating that DME rates very high as an energy source in regard to lower energy use and GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions. Also, GCC had reported a 50% investment by Siemens Power Generation in a Chinese Coal to DME Venture.

GCC now informs us about development in China of a novel combustion system. Researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University are developing CCCI (Compound Charge Compression Ignition).

Fueled with DME (Di-Methyl Ether, “the combustion process consists of HCCI (homogeneous charge compression ignition) combustion, premixing combustion, and diffusion combustion. The combustion characteristics are mainly decided by the premixed fuel ratio and CO₂ concentration in the air charge.”

The Shanghai Jiao Tong team notes that diesel engines using DME as a fuel can achieve high thermal efficiency with lower emissions. However, a trade off relation exists between NO_x emissions and thermal efficiency for a diesel engine fueled with DME using a conventional in-cylinder direction-injection combustion mode.

The Shanghai Jiao Tong team believe they has found a way to combine port aspiration and direct injection. They “modified a two-cylinder, four-stroke naturally aspirated, high-speed DI diesel engine to conduct their CCCI combustion tests. To improve combustion and reduce emissions, they regulated the ratio of port-aspirated DME to injected DME in the cylinder. ”

A direct injection supply pump, like the one from Stanadyne Automotive Corp. pictured above, is used in common rail systems.

When a portion of fuel is aspirated into the combustion chamber via the air intake port, the compression stroke can enable HCCI combustion because of the high volatility of DME. Driven by a conventional fuel pump, the remaining fuel charge is sprayed into the cylinder.

They found that with an increase of the premixed fuel ratio, CO emissions increased first but decreased later and NO_x emissions decreased first but increased later. Meanwhile, DME fuel consumption suffered from improper combustion phasing.

Advancing the injection timing with the same premixed fuel ratio increased peak values of in-cylinder temperature and pressure and advanced the beginning of combustion of in-cylinder-injected fuel. NO_x emissions increased, but HC and CO emissions decreased. As a result, the thermal efficiency was improved.

“DME HCCI combustion shows very low NO_x emission levels, and the in-cylinder injection can control the combustion and provide more engine output. The evaporation rate for fuel drops in the DME spray is much faster after HCCI combustion, which reduces the burning time, decreases the charge heterogeneity, and therefore, reduces NO_x formation in the phase of the mixing controlled combustion.”

To control the ignition and combustion phase of HCCI engines, reduce engine knock, and expand the engine load range, the port-aspirated DME was mixed with liquid petroleum gas (LPG), which has a good antiknock property. They also investigated the effect of the percentage LPG percentage in DME/LPG blended fuel on combustion characteristics. To further reduce NO_x emissions, they used port introduction of CO₂ to function as EGR to evaluate the effect of EGR on CCCI combustion and emission characteristics.

After port aspiration of the DME/LPG-blended fuel, at the same load, peak
values of in-cylinder temperature and pressure decreased gradually when compared to neat DME.

With the increase of the LPG percentage in the blended fuel, NO_x emissions decreased and thermal efficiency was improved at 0.35 MPa IMEP with a high premixed fuel ratio. Fuel consumption was decreased at 0.525 MPa IMEP for all premixed ratios.

Finally, the found that with an appropriate CO₂ concentration in air charge, the HCCI-MK combustion concept for CCCI combustion engines can lower NO_x emissions to near-zero levels.

GCC Recommended Resources

Junjun Zhang, Xinqi Qiao, Bin Guan, Zhen Wang, Guangei Xiao, and Zhen Huang (2008) Search for the Optimizing Control Method of Compound Charge Compression Ignition (CCCI) Combustion in an Engine Fueled with Dimethyl Ether, ASAP Energy Fuels, doi: 10.1021/ef700781w

By jcwinnie | Posted in conversion, economics, energy, environment, policy, politics, transportation, waste | Tagged biomass, coal, conversion, DME, economics, emissions, petroleum, policy, politics, waste | Comments (0)

Low Carbon Strategies for UK Vehicles

2008-5-9 – 6:36 pm

This blog previously reported on the “Ultra Low Carbon Car Challenge”. Established by the Energy Saving Trust, this effort took place in the United Kingdom.

In addition, Green Car Congress informs thatthe Department of Transport established the Low Carbon Vehicles Innovation Platform in the autumn of 2007. Now the UK Technology Strategy Board has awarded the first grants.

GCC relays a “baker’s dozen” of TSB approved projects.

Axon 60: A structural carbon fibre car with plug-in hybrid option.

The Axon 60 will use a globally patented structural carbon beam technology. A plug-in hybrid system will be used to explore the bounds of PHEV in light vehicle applications. The vehicle is light weight (less than 500 kg), low drag and is powered by a best practice 500 cc engine and Infinitely Variable Transmission (IVT).

Lead Organization: Axon Automotive; Consortium members: University of Warwick, Powertrain Technologies Ltd, Scott Bader Company Limited.

Hybrid Electric Technology for Transit Buses.

This project will accelerate the production of a UK hybrid electric drive (HED) transit bus application and develop a UK center of excellence for HED application engineering in UK.

Lead Organization: BAE Systems; Consortium members: Alexander Dennis Ltd, University College London.

Li-ion Batteries for Plug-In HEVs.

The project aims to improve the energy density of the low cost, very safe titanate/manganate Li-ion system by incrementally increasing the capacity of the active electrode materials whilst preserving their other characteristics.

Lead Organization: FiFe Batteries Limited; Consortium member: ABSL Power Solutions Limited.

Engine optimization for reduced parasitic losses.

The project will investigate the application of various new technologies which seek to lower the losses due to internal friction of the engine plus other engine and gearbox related parasitic losses. The aim is to demonstrate an overall fuel economy improvement and thus CO₂ reduction of between 5 and 10% on the European drive cycle.

Lead Organization: Ford Motor Company Ltd; Consortium members: MAHLE Powertrain Ltd, BP.

Commercial vehicle fuel and carbon reduction by the use of ‘aerospace aero’ devices.

The project will develop a device fitted to commercial vehicles to significantly reduce fuel consumption and consequently carbon dioxide pollution. The intention is for the device to build on current systems and technology and move this forward into a new dimension that further utilizes developments from the aeronautical industries.

Lead Organization: Hatcher Components Limited; Consortium members: Mercedes Benz UK Ltd, Cranfield University.

Zero Emission London Taxi Commercialization.

This project will initiate and accelerate the introduction of commercial fleets of zero-emission fuel cell hybrid taxis primarily for London by 2012 and for other cities by 2014. The project will develop and integrate robust, high efficiency, Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell hybrid powertrains into LTI TX4 taxis. The arduous duty cycle of the London taxi will be utilized to provide a platform for accelerated fuel cell vehicle lifecycle testing.

Lead Organization: Intelligent Energy; Consortium members: Lotus Cars Ltd, LTI Ltd, TRW Conekt

Flywheel Hybrid System for Premium Vehicles.

This project will design and develop a mechanical hybrid (flywheel and variable drive system), kinetic energy recovery system for use in a premium segment passenger vehicle as an alternative, cost competitive solution to other hybrid systems. The project will demonstrate this within an existing vehicle platform to prove its effectiveness and viability for production and suitability for modular application.

Lead Organization: Jaguar Cars Limited; Consortium members: Flybrid Systems, Ford Motor Company Limited, Prodrive, Ricardo UK Ltd, Torotrak plc, Xtrac Ltd.

Limo-Green.

This project will use Jaguar executive sedans, with their lightweight aluminium body structures, as a basis for proving out the concept of a large luxury vehicle with an advanced hybrid electric driveline, consisting of an advanced drive motor, small battery pack and a small auxiliary power generator for sustained cruising. The project aim is to demonstrate a vehicle with sub-120 gm/km whilst maintaining the “premiumness” of the vehicle.

Lead Organization: Jaguar Cars Ltd.; Consortium members: MIRA Ltd, Lotus Engineering, Caparo Vehicle Technologies.

Lower Cost, Light Weight Vehicles by Increasing the Use of Post Consumer Aluminium Scrap.

This project will demonstrate the feasibility of manufacture within five years of a mass producible lightweight car based on a body in white (BIW) structure built using sustainable aluminium sheet derived in part from low cost energy efficient recycled post consumer scrap. The sheet manufacture will be based on world leading continuous casting technology and melt conditioning technology using high performance, low cost sheet cast from melts containing up to 75% of recycled material.

Lead Organization: JLR; Consortium members: Novelis Inc, Zyomax, Norton Aluminium, Innoval Technology, Brunel University, Stadco Ltd.

Range Extended Electric Vehicle (REHEV).

This project will develop a modular electric and electric/diesel powertrain, suitable for several different vehicle types. This will be tested on a large premium sport utility platform delivering 120 to 130 g/km and zero emissions range of at least 12 miles. The project will also investigate range extension and plug-in charging and installation/ commissioning of local recharging facilities for vehicle trials within the EON fleet.

Lead Organization: Land Rover; Consortium members: Amberjac Projects Ltd, Ricardo UK Ltd, E.ON UK PLC.

High torque density electric drive for commercial vehicles (HiTED)

. This project will develop a novel brushless permanent magnet electrical machine incorporating integral magnetic gearing for traction use with hybrid trucks, buses and construction vehicles. The recently invented pseudo-direct-drive (PDD) has the highest torque density of any known electrical machine, according to the team, and has improved energy efficiency, requires only natural air cooling, and is more compact with low manufacturing cost. The project will provide and evaluate two demonstrators.

Lead Organization: Magnomatics Limited; Consortium members: Kollmorgen Corporation, Magnet Applications Ltd, Volvo Group.

2/4CAR 2/4-Stroke Switching Carbon Reduction Vehicle.

The project will deliver a global premium vehicle demonstrating a 25 - 30% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions with no loss of performance using an innovative, highly-downsized gasoline engine with two-stroke/four-stroke switching technology. Laboratory work has shown that torque output more typical of an engine of twice the capacity is achievable. The engine design incorporates a cycle-switching valvetrain, an advanced boosting and control system, and will demonstrate powertrain integration and driveable control strategies.

Lead Organization: Ricardo UK Ltd; Consortium members University of Brighton, DENSO Sales UK Ltd, Jaguar Cars Ltd.

DESERVE, Develop high Energy battery + high power Supercaps for all Electric Range.

The project will integrate, within a 3.5-tonne electric delivery van high energy Zebra batteries and high power supercapacitors. The project will look to maximize the respective energy and power capabilities of the two systems. A power electronic interface controller to optimize the performance of the combined storage system will also be developed. The project will also integrate the storage system within the vehicle and optimize vehicle performance. The targets being range 250 km, top speed 100 km/h, acceleration to 80 km/h in 18 sec.

Lead Organization: Tanfield Group plc; Consortium members: Beta Research and Development Ltd, The University of Manchester, Energy Technology Services.

By jcwinnie | Posted in design, development, energy, environment, finance, policy, transportation | Tagged combustion, design, development, emissions, factor, finance, fleets, flywheel, gears, kinetic energy reclamation, plug-in hybrid, power electronics, traction battery, uk | Comments (1)

Working in the Carbon Capture and Storage

2008-5-9 – 4:14 pm

In his treatise, “Sustainability and Energy”, Ulf Bossel advised that a characteristic of “below-ground” energy is dwindling EROEI (Energy Returned On Energy Invested). “At some point, neither increased prices nor increased energy conversion efficiency can overcome” when “an energy source becomes an energy sink.”

No longer can we claim ignorance. Denial equates to death on a planetary scale.

Gristmill Guest Contributor Joseph (a.k.a., Joey the Weasel) Romm states emphatically that our most urgent climate policy should be the prevention of dirty coal plants. Which leaves the barn door wide open for bamboozling about clean coal.

Repeat after me, Washington Theater goers, “You are a coal zombie. You are one of the undead. I refuse to join you.“.

This blog does agree with his caveat that, while it may be possible, if highly unlikely, to have a livable climate when burning almost all of the world’s reserves of conventional oil and gas, it certainly spells the end of life on the planet as we know it if we were to burn even half of the world’s remaining coal reserves, with or without a few, drought-killed Aussies thrown into the hopper for the boys in blue.

And, yes, buried (”Whop! about to slip down”) within his post, he acknowledges the possibility that CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) will prove impractical. “My best projection today,” writes Professor Romm, “CCS is going to be both less practical and more expensive than people think.” It certainly is other than a low-cost option; “the jury is out on whether it will be an affordable option.”

Remember, only you can prevent zombies.

Ostensibly, the reason for considering CCS as an option is to lower anthropogenic emissions from power generation, which is the single greatest GHG source. Yet, Romm falls back upon consideration of feasibility and affordability. Romm endorses “a strong effort to find out as quickly as possible if coal with CCS can deliver significant quantities of affordable carbon-free power,” to include:

An enhanced R&D program for capture technologies at both SCPC and IGCC [Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle] facilities to reduce the costs of capture as quickly as possible
An accelerated program to gain large-scale experience with sequestration for a range of geologic formations
A comprehensive national inventory of potential storage reservoirs
A new regulatory framework for evaluating, permitting, monitoring, and remediating sequestration sites and allocating liability for long-term CO2 storage.

While such suggestions make for nice language, i.e., proposed action that never gets done, the scenario is quite unfortunates (Cue the Syllogism of Doom theme) mainly for future generations, although… (Whoops, there goes the tundra!!)

Professor Romm does have his principles; the policy framework proposed by Berlin and Sussman, “simply goes too far for me.”

I don’t want some utility building a brand-new (traditional) coal plant that could last for 50 to 80 years and “offsetting” that by shutting down some decades old coal plant that wasn’t going to last many more decades anyway.

No, if CCS takes a bit longer to develop than people hope, the country can certainly live without new coal plants for a few years — especially if we have an aggressive energy efficiency and renewable energy deployment strategy.

True, Berlin and Sussman are suggesting more BAU (Business As Usual. All plants that begin construction after 2008 could be subject to their proposed standard; would be required to implement carbon capture technology by 2013; and, then would be required to meet all sequestration requirements by 2016.

“They also suggest,” quotes Romm, “while CCS technology is being perfected, plant developers during the first three years, in which the new performance standard is in effect, could have the option to construct traditional coal plants that do not capture and sequester CO2 if they offset on a one-to-one basis their CO2 emissions by taking one or more of the following steps” –

Improving efficiencies and lowering CO2 emissions at existing plants
Retiring existing coal or natural gas units that generate CO2 emissions
Constructing previously unplanned renewable fuel power plants representing up to 25 percent of the generation capacity of the new coal plant.

But, as (Tales from the) Crypt-o-gon has cautioned, “Don’t get taken in by the zombie mind trick which tempts you to engage in worthless political debates.”

No Coal Face Paint
Coal, Good to the Last Gasp and Beyond

By jcwinnie | Posted in advocacy, conservation, control, danger, death, denial, energy, environment, immunology, monitor, policy, politics, risk, safety, standards, survival, transportation, water, weather, world | Tagged coal, danger, drought, electric power, emissions, politics, standards, weather, world | Comments (2)

ZF Sachs Makes Mild Mercedes Hybrid

2008-5-9 – 11:10 am

This blog previously noted that Plus ZF Friedrichshafen AG, a German driveline and chassis technology company, along with Continental, had begun development of a hybrid drive.

VW / Audi previously placed an order with ZF for their hybrid modules.

Writing for Autoblog Green, Sam Abuelsamid now reports that ZF will enable Mercedes to offer hybrid modules for cars, buses, and delivery vehicles. “The first production application is expected to be the S400 hybrid which will pair a 3.5L gasoline V-6 with the 15kW electric motor/generator and a lithium ion battery to recapture energy from regenerative braking.” This will be a mild hybrid system, similar to what Mercedes co-developed with BMW and displayed at last fall’s Frankfurt Motor Show.

The electric motors which are produced by ZF Sachs, the Powertrain and Suspension Components division of ZF Friedrichshafen AG, in Schweinfurt were developed especially for the integration into the driveline, are ideally suited for parallel hybrid drives, [and] can be implemented with the DynaStart [system]… DynaStart is [a proprietary] start/stop function, [whereby] the combustion engine switches off during standstill, the electric motor lets the vehicle start, and the combustion engine is not activated before the optimal engine speed is attained.

The electric motor is also capable of braking down the vehicle; in this process, it acts as a generator and transforms kinetic energy into electric power which can be stored in the battery (”recuperation”). Moreover, the high-torque module supports the combustion engine during acceleration by taking the energy from the intermediate storage, meaning that driving pleasure does not come off badly (”boosting”).

By jcwinnie | Posted in control, design, development, transportation | Tagged design, development, electric drive, emissions, gears, kinetic energy reclamation | Comments (0)

Fancy that? No Coal, Down Under.

2008-5-5 – 7:54 am

Subtitle: Spring, and an Eco Geek’s Fancy turns to Grid Parity from Metamorphic Materials

Until fairly recently, a utility-scale, photo voltaic, solar electric power plant was something achievable as proof-of-concept, but in no way could such a project be considered cost effective. Last year, this blog began to notice mention of utility-scale solar power facilities and more recently noted increased discussions about the capability, even for PV (Photo Voltaic) systems, to generate electricity on par with or even below typical grid prices.

“Grid parity…it’s what we’re all hoping for. That magical moment when solar power (or other renewables for that matter) become available at the cost of current power sources. And, if Sunrgi’s claims are to be believed, it could be only 15 months away.”

Via The Big Gav, we learn from Ecogeek that a start-up is emerging from stealth mode. Well, it is Spring for the upper half, BG.

A company called Sunrgi is selling Spectrolab’s concentrating solar PV technology in units that may be able to generate power as cheap as coal. AG readers already will know that Spectrolab is a leader in development of better photo voltaic cells, recently claiming 40.7 percent efficiency with a solar cell comprised of a metamorphic semiconductors.

The state-of-the-art, multi-junction cells incorporate “new semiconductors in the top and middle layers that excel at capturing infrared light that was all but missed by the cell’s predecessors.” When developers announced Spectrolab’s success, they expressed the hope that a new fabrication process plus the use of low cost concentrating optics will reduce the cost and make large scale use of solar energy even more effective.

Speaking of state-of-the-art CSP, BG.

Albeit power from the heavens, a challenge to the efficacy of solar power is its intermittent nature, thus the need for systems that eliminate the need for substantial firm power or dispatchable demand response.. The Big Gav envisions even greater efficiency by introducing co-generation.

The units actually dump waste heat, so presumably they could be coupled with Stirling engines or some sort of co-generation style setup to generate more power (or at least some hot water or air).

The blog has opined that the United States of America certainly could more greatly develop combined heat and power from renewable energy resources and it would seem a possible solution for Australia, also.

Read more about Sunrgi at Clean Technica.

By jcwinnie | Posted in advocacy, art, development, economics, energy | Tagged advocacy, analysis, coal, economics, electric power, renewable energy, solar power, thermodynamics | Comments (0)

Multi-Step Upgrading of Land Fill Gas

2008-5-1 – 5:43 pm

LFG (Land Fill Gas) is a source of methane. This blog repeatedly has made note of projects, where the gaseous byproduct from the biological decomposition of organic material in the absence of oxygen is upgraded and used for power generation. Less often has this blog noted the use of CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) as a transportation fuel, with a portion of the methane coming from renewable energy sources rather than drilling. Given present and anticipated world conditions, it is worthwhile to consider both applications.

“Upgrading on digestion gas has been practiced since 1935 and, in Germany, there was large scale injection into the gas grid between 1982 and 1999. Since 1992 there has also been injection into the gas grid in Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Injection currently only occurs in local distribution gas grids, though. In these cases, relatively small volumes are added, at low pressures, mostly for domestic end-users. As far as is known, no major problems have been reported related to the addition of biogas to natural gas.”

Such a source of renewable energy has been developed more in Europe than Asia or the Americas. Development has begun to move forward elsewhere. This blog previously noted establishment of biogas recovery, refining, transportation and supply systems in Japan. Recently noted was methane extraction from landfills in Brazil. And, also noted in the United States was co-digestion to produce biogas, followed by conditioning and storage of the bio-methane by Environmental Power Corporation.

Green Car Congress now reports on a joint venture between Linde North America and Waste Management. They plan to build the world’s largest facility for processing landfill gas (LFG) into liquefied natural gas (LNG). The facility will be situated at the Altamont Landfill near Livermore, California. The developers anticipate that operation will begin in 2009.

The projected production capacity is up to 13,000 gallons per day of LNG. The report mentions that plant capacity would be sufficient to fuel 300 refuse trucks, so this may be another instance of converting LFG to be used as an alternative transportation fuel.

(Serendipity again, GCC, I just finished suggesting the need to test heavy-duty, short haul transport that utilizes Big Electric serial hybrid propulsion with generator sets running on a combination of Natural Gas and biogas.)

Biogas and landfill gas are somewhat different. Biogas is a product of anaerobic digestion of animal manure; sometimes referred to as cow power or poop power. When the waste is offal, it may be referred to as “digester gas”. Organic material entering land fill is more heterogeneous.

Gas cleaning is necessary to eliminate impurities in the biogas produced at waste treatment facilities. These impurities are principally hydrogen sulfide, halogens (fluorine, chlorine and bromine), moisture, bacteria and solids. LFG can have heavy hydrocarbons (both aliphatic and aromatics such as benzene), chlorinated hydrocarbons (e.g., dioxin, furans, and PCBs (Poly Chlorinated Bi-phenyls).

LFG requires more extensive cleaning and careful monitoring for toxins.

Linde will use a multi-step purification system to remove CO₂, N₂, H₂S and trace contaminants and then use a cryogenic process to cool the purified gas into LNG at a temperature of -260° F.

Currently, Waste Management has 10 waste treatment landfill projects in operation in the US and Canada that have full-scale bio-reactors.

A bioreactor landfill operates to rapidly transform and degrade organic waste through the addition of liquid and air to enhance microbial processes. These bioreactors can be used for the production of landfill gas. There are three different general types of bioreactor landfill configurations, according to the EPA:

Aerobic. In an aerobic bioreactor landfill, leachate is removed from the bottom layer, piped to liquids storage tanks, and re-circulated into the landfill in a controlled manner. Air is injected into the waste mass, using vertical or horizontal wells, to promote aerobic activity and accelerate waste stabilization.
Anaerobic. In an anaerobic bioreactor landfill, moisture is added to the waste mass in the form of re-circulated leachate and other sources to obtain optimal moisture levels. Biodegradation occurs in the absence of oxygen (anaerobically) and produces landfill gas. Landfill gas, primarily methane, can be captured to minimize greenhouse gas emissions and for energy projects.
Hybrid (Aerobic-Anaerobic). The hybrid bioreactor landfill accelerates waste degradation by employing a sequential aerobic-anaerobic treatment to rapidly degrade organics in the upper sections of the landfill and collect gas from lower sections. Operation as a hybrid results in the earlier onset of methanogenesis compared to aerobic landfills.

BIOGASMAX is a project in Europe that uses urban waste as feedstock with garbage trucks and city buses partially running on methane extracted from anaerobic digestion.

In addition to gaining the operational knowledge needed for working with anaerobic and hybrid bioreactor technologies, Waste Management currently is evaluating the economic and environmental impacts. Such knowledge is wanted by a number of governmental, non-governmental and commercial entities. For instance, “the $15.5 million Waste Management-Linde project will receive grant assistance from the California Integrated Waste Management Board, the California Air Resources Board, and the South Coast Air Quality Management District.” This blog previously mentioned biogas projects at urban waste treatment facilities in California that receive similar support.

GCC Recommended Resources

Bioreactors (EPA)

By jcwinnie | Posted in biology, development, economics, energy, environment, health, knowledge, monitor, standards, transportation, waste, water | Tagged biogas, biomass, electric power, emissions, health, renewable energy, safety, urban, waste, water | Comments (1)