Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s initiative for renewable and alternative energy and clean technology, and Hydrogen Energy, the joint venture between BP Alternative Energy and Rio Tinto, today announced the signing of an agreement to work together on the front-end engineering design of an industrial-scale hydrogen-fired power generation project with capture of the carbon dioxide (CO2), which would then be available for transportation and storage. The plant would be located in Abu Dhabi.
Natural gas would be processed to create hydrogen and CO2. The hydrogen fuel would generate low-carbon electricity. Rather than being emitted to the atmosphere, the CO2would be captured, ready for transportation and injection into a producing oil field where it could replace natural gas currently being injected into the field to maintain pressure. The injected CO2 has also the potential to increase the proportion of Abu Dhabi’s oil that can be recovered.
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Thursday, January 24, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Britain Reports Set Brazil's Ethanol Apart
SAO PAULO, Brazil, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- An important step in the
right direction. That is how Brazil's Sugarcane Industry Association
(UNICA) assesses the report "Sustainable Biofuels: Prospects and
Challenges", released by Britain's Royal Society on January 14, 2008. The
report's key conclusions are that each biofuel must be evaluated on its own
merits and governments should ensure their policies promote only the
sustainable production and use of biofuels that result in meaningful
emissions reduction.
According to UNICA President and CEO Marcos Jank, the Royal Academy's
conclusion should go a long way to clarify misleading and incomplete
information that often surfaces when Brazilian ethanol, produced from
sugarcane, is lumped together with less efficient biofuels produced from
non-sustainable sources.
"Biofuels can be produced from various feedstocks, and they are not all
the same," Jank says, emphasizing that ethanol from sugarcane produced in
Brazil is widely recognized as the most efficient in terms of reduced
greenhouse gas emissions, improved energy balance and lower production
costs.
"Studies produced in various countries frequently consider biofuels as
if they were somehow equals that one can compare. Unfortunately, some
studies arrive at broad conclusions without recognizing the profound
differences that exist among different biofuels. These generalizations are
often the basis for misleading assessments about Brazilian sugarcane
ethanol."
The Royal Society report highlights the importance of continued
independent research for a complete picture about the sustainability of
different types of biofuels. "The sugar and ethanol industry in Brazil is
ready to cooperate with these efforts. We find it essential that quality
analyses and unbiased comparisons continue to be produced and
disseminated," concludes Jank.
The British report comes at a defining moment for the future of
biofuels in Europe as a new directive governing the use of renewable energy
is expected to be issued on January 23. Once the directive is approved by
the European Parliament in coming months, it will lead to the
implementation of the decision reached by the heads of government of EU
member states requiring a 10% biofuel target for transportation fuels by
2020.
"We are optimistic that Europe will not only implement the 10% biofuel
mix, but to also adopt biofuel certification mechanisms that come from a
transparent consultative process that involves all interested parties,
including the world's major producers," says Jank.
About UNICA:
Brazil's Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) represents the top
producers of sugar and ethanol in the country's South-Central region,
especially the state of Sao Paulo, which accounts for 60% of the country's
total production. Along with its 101 member companies, UNICA develops
position papers, statistics and specific research in support of the sugar
and ethanol sector. Its membership accounts for about 50% of Brazil's
sugarcane harvest. In 2007, Brazil produced 425 million metric tons of
sugarcane, which yielded 29.8 million tons of sugar and 17.7 billion liters
of ethanol.
right direction. That is how Brazil's Sugarcane Industry Association
(UNICA) assesses the report "Sustainable Biofuels: Prospects and
Challenges", released by Britain's Royal Society on January 14, 2008. The
report's key conclusions are that each biofuel must be evaluated on its own
merits and governments should ensure their policies promote only the
sustainable production and use of biofuels that result in meaningful
emissions reduction.
According to UNICA President and CEO Marcos Jank, the Royal Academy's
conclusion should go a long way to clarify misleading and incomplete
information that often surfaces when Brazilian ethanol, produced from
sugarcane, is lumped together with less efficient biofuels produced from
non-sustainable sources.
"Biofuels can be produced from various feedstocks, and they are not all
the same," Jank says, emphasizing that ethanol from sugarcane produced in
Brazil is widely recognized as the most efficient in terms of reduced
greenhouse gas emissions, improved energy balance and lower production
costs.
"Studies produced in various countries frequently consider biofuels as
if they were somehow equals that one can compare. Unfortunately, some
studies arrive at broad conclusions without recognizing the profound
differences that exist among different biofuels. These generalizations are
often the basis for misleading assessments about Brazilian sugarcane
ethanol."
The Royal Society report highlights the importance of continued
independent research for a complete picture about the sustainability of
different types of biofuels. "The sugar and ethanol industry in Brazil is
ready to cooperate with these efforts. We find it essential that quality
analyses and unbiased comparisons continue to be produced and
disseminated," concludes Jank.
The British report comes at a defining moment for the future of
biofuels in Europe as a new directive governing the use of renewable energy
is expected to be issued on January 23. Once the directive is approved by
the European Parliament in coming months, it will lead to the
implementation of the decision reached by the heads of government of EU
member states requiring a 10% biofuel target for transportation fuels by
2020.
"We are optimistic that Europe will not only implement the 10% biofuel
mix, but to also adopt biofuel certification mechanisms that come from a
transparent consultative process that involves all interested parties,
including the world's major producers," says Jank.
About UNICA:
Brazil's Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) represents the top
producers of sugar and ethanol in the country's South-Central region,
especially the state of Sao Paulo, which accounts for 60% of the country's
total production. Along with its 101 member companies, UNICA develops
position papers, statistics and specific research in support of the sugar
and ethanol sector. Its membership accounts for about 50% of Brazil's
sugarcane harvest. In 2007, Brazil produced 425 million metric tons of
sugarcane, which yielded 29.8 million tons of sugar and 17.7 billion liters
of ethanol.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
General Electric and Wind Turbine Co. Team Up
NEW YORK, Jan. 15, 2003 - A company in Bellevue, Wash., is working on a new design for wind turbines that officials believe could lower the cost of wind energy in the electric power marketplace, according to a report in the January 2003 issue of Mechanical Engineering magazine, a publication of ASME International (American Society of Mechanical Engineers).
The Wind Turbine Co. is developing a turbine with the rotor blades set in a down-wind configuration. This radically different design, which is aided by flexible towers, allows for significant weight and load reduction in the blades and other components, resulting in higher energy producing efficiency and lower costs.
Meanwhile, energy giant General Electric is going the route of very large wind turbines, including a 3.6-Megawatt machine featuring a rotor 330 feet in diameter atop a tower nearly 40 stories in height. According to Mechanical Engineering, GE plans to situate multiple 3.6-MW turbines in the waters of the Irish Sea later this year.
In addition to GE and Wind Turbine Co., other organizations supporting environmentally sustainable wind energy include the U.S. Department of Energy. In the mid-1990s, the DOE granted $40 million in seed money to private companies to develop low-cost, utility-scale wind turbines, reports Mechanical Engineering.
The commitment to technology development notwithstanding, many experts in the power business are dubious about the future of wind energy in the United States, as well as other countries. Wind turbines currently account for less than one percent of electrical energy produced in the U.S.
The main problem with wind power is cost.
The Wind Turbine Co. is developing a turbine with the rotor blades set in a down-wind configuration. This radically different design, which is aided by flexible towers, allows for significant weight and load reduction in the blades and other components, resulting in higher energy producing efficiency and lower costs.
Meanwhile, energy giant General Electric is going the route of very large wind turbines, including a 3.6-Megawatt machine featuring a rotor 330 feet in diameter atop a tower nearly 40 stories in height. According to Mechanical Engineering, GE plans to situate multiple 3.6-MW turbines in the waters of the Irish Sea later this year.
In addition to GE and Wind Turbine Co., other organizations supporting environmentally sustainable wind energy include the U.S. Department of Energy. In the mid-1990s, the DOE granted $40 million in seed money to private companies to develop low-cost, utility-scale wind turbines, reports Mechanical Engineering.
The commitment to technology development notwithstanding, many experts in the power business are dubious about the future of wind energy in the United States, as well as other countries. Wind turbines currently account for less than one percent of electrical energy produced in the U.S.
The main problem with wind power is cost.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
nCoat to Join U.S. and Germany in Solar Venture
WHITSETT, NC, Jan 09, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- nCoat, Inc. (OTCBB: NCOA) ("nCoat" or the "Company") has announced the signing of an agreement for business collaboration and commercial product development with Sunvention USA, Inc. ("SV-US": www.sunvention.us) and BSR Solar Technologies GmbH ("BSR": www.bsrsolar.com) using nCoat nanotechnology coatings in a Concentrated Solar Thermal Power (CSP: 10.99, -0.02, -0.18%) system to concentrate the solar radiation and create highly efficient heat absorption and retention in the heat collection element. nCoat coatings will also be used to protect solar "Green Energy" systems developed and built by SV-US and BSR.
"Thermal absorption and transfer coatings used in solar energy production is a new market segment for nCoat," said Paul Clayson, CEO of nCoat, Inc. "Combining our nanotechnology coatings products and experience with commercialization of solar energy systems positions nCoat to capture revenue at the leading edge of the projected exponential market expansion. Since our coatings are known world-wide as state-of-the-art in market ready nano materials, we are being sought by other technology players to commercialize products with them."
In collaboration with BSR technologies (located in Loerrach, Germany), SV-US is creating a working Solar Power Village on site at its Greencastle, Indiana facilities. The core patented technology of the village is an Envelope Power Greenhouse ("EPG") housing optical solar CSP systems mounted in the greenhouse roof which concentrates the energy of the sun 80 to 100 times into the solar collector system, generating electricity by converting solar radiation captured in a heat receptor into electrons. The heat generated then rapidly heats inert vegetable oil to 200 degreesC and transports the oil to a tank outside the greenhouse. The hot oil transfers thermal energy to practical uses including heat for cooking and housing, heat energy to drive a proprietary Stirling (closed-cycle, heat driven) engine to operate water pumps, mill grain and to generate electric power.
The BSR/SV-US technologies can scale from a single residence or commercial site to large scale operations. Envelope Power Greenhouses can be constructed solely for power production or for joint applications to include plant growth.
Under the terms of the agreement, nCoat will provide thermal and corrosion management coatings for BSR/SV-US technologies and will collaborate on innovations to create more efficient thermal capture and transfer of the sun's radiant light to thermal energy production and distribution. nCoat will supply both low emissivity (thermal capture) and high emissivity (thermal transfer) coatings to help enable the solar Green Energy systems.
"After 4 years and nearly 15 million dollars in development, our technologies are now fully operational and moving to commercial development," said Dr. C. William Arrington, Co-Chairman of Sunvention USA. "nCoat coatings will play a significant role in the success of the thermal management process of our systems."
BSR Solar Technologies GmbH develops solar products for...
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
A Missourri Town Runs on Wind Energy
The collaboration between John Deere Wind Energy, Wind Capital Group and the small Missouri town of Rock Port has resulted in what may be the first community in the nation capable of producing enough electricity from wind to meet all of its power needs.
Known as the Loess Hills Wind Farm, four Suzlon 1.25-MW turbines are currently being erected and will deliver 5MW of electricity into the grid that serves the 715 or so households that make up Rock Port, Mo. Missouri Public Utility Alliance, the local power company, will buy any excess electricity generated, and will also be the backup energy supplier when there isn’t enough wind to supply all the power the town needs.
Small projects like Loess Hills often are not feasible, but Rock Port’s nearness to the Cow Branch project, an excellent wind regime on a bluff within the city limits, easy proximity to the power grid and John Deere Wind Energy’s willingness to finance the effort made the Loess Hills project possible.
John Deere began working with the Wind Capital Group last year to develop the Bluegrass Ridge wind farm near Kansas City. That project is expected to begin producing power within the next month. The power generated through this project will be purchased by the Associated Electric Cooperative, a cooperative which serves rural customers in MO, southern IA and OK. AECI was recently named Wind Cooperative of the year by the U.S. Dept. of Energy for its efforts to expand the use of renewable energy in its generation mix.
More recently, the Wind Capital Group and John Deere Wind Energy joined forces again and are in the process of co-developing the 50-megawatt Cow Branch project, the Conception Wind Farm in Nodaway County and of course, the Loess Hills project in Rock Port.
While the Loess Hills project in Rock Port is small when compared to the Bluegrass Ridge project, which will have 24 Suzlon S-88 turbines and the capacity to produce enough power for approximately 30,000 homes, the residents of Rock Port don’t seem to mind.
Loess Hills could be producing electricity this fall.
Known as the Loess Hills Wind Farm, four Suzlon 1.25-MW turbines are currently being erected and will deliver 5MW of electricity into the grid that serves the 715 or so households that make up Rock Port, Mo. Missouri Public Utility Alliance, the local power company, will buy any excess electricity generated, and will also be the backup energy supplier when there isn’t enough wind to supply all the power the town needs.
Small projects like Loess Hills often are not feasible, but Rock Port’s nearness to the Cow Branch project, an excellent wind regime on a bluff within the city limits, easy proximity to the power grid and John Deere Wind Energy’s willingness to finance the effort made the Loess Hills project possible.
John Deere began working with the Wind Capital Group last year to develop the Bluegrass Ridge wind farm near Kansas City. That project is expected to begin producing power within the next month. The power generated through this project will be purchased by the Associated Electric Cooperative, a cooperative which serves rural customers in MO, southern IA and OK. AECI was recently named Wind Cooperative of the year by the U.S. Dept. of Energy for its efforts to expand the use of renewable energy in its generation mix.
More recently, the Wind Capital Group and John Deere Wind Energy joined forces again and are in the process of co-developing the 50-megawatt Cow Branch project, the Conception Wind Farm in Nodaway County and of course, the Loess Hills project in Rock Port.
While the Loess Hills project in Rock Port is small when compared to the Bluegrass Ridge project, which will have 24 Suzlon S-88 turbines and the capacity to produce enough power for approximately 30,000 homes, the residents of Rock Port don’t seem to mind.
Loess Hills could be producing electricity this fall.
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