*News and Events
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New and Renewable Energy Centre
*Energy Facts and Tips
Multi-Colored LEDs Offer Energy Savings for the Holidays
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NEWS AND EVENTS
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Tucson Electric Power Activates 2.4-Megawatt Solar Array
The Western Hemisphere’s largest solar photovoltaic power system is now pumping out power near Springerville, Arizona. Tucson Electric Power (TEP) continues to follow through on its plans to expand the Springerville Generating Station Solar System, which now has a peak generating capacity of 2.4 megawatts. TEP plans to expand the system to 4 megawatts by 2004. Currently, the world’s largest photovoltaic system is a 3.3-megawatt installation in Serre, Italy, although larger systems are now being planned throughout the world. See the December 10th press release from TEP: [sorry this link is no longer available]
The TEP installation is rivaling another solar power system being built in Arizona by APS. As reported in the November 6th edition of the EREN Network News, the utility hopes to expand the Prescott Airport Solar Power Plant to 5 megawatts within the next five years. See the EREN Network News article at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
Spire Corporation is providing much smaller solar power systems to 12 homes in the Chicago metropolitan area. The company’s Spire Solar Chicago operation will install 1.2-kilowatt systems on single-family homes in an affordable housing development in southeastern Chicago. The systems should provide about one-quarter of the electricity needs for the energy-efficient homes. See the Spire press release at: http://www.spirecorp.com/Spire/news/PV383.htm
NHTSA Proposes Increased Fuel Efficiency for Light Trucks
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), part of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), proposed new fuel economy standards for light trucks last week. The new standards will first take effect during model year 2005 and become gradually more restrictive until model year 2007. Over those three years, light truck fuel efficiency standards will increase from today’s 20.7 mile-per-gallon (mpg) requirement to 22.2 mpg, an increase of more than 7 percent, which will save an estimated 2.5 billion gallons of gasoline. The corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standard was last increased in 1996; a final rule establishing the new standards will be issued by April 2003. See the DOT press release: [sorry this link is no longer available]
“Light trucks” refer to pickups, vans, and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) with a gross vehicle weight rating of 8,500 pounds or less — some heavy pickups and SUVs exceed this vehicle weight rating and are exempt from the standard. In submissions to the NHTSA in May 2002, the three major U.S. automakers said they expected to increase light-truck fuel efficiency by 2007, with General Motors Corporation aiming to achieve 19.1 to 20.8 mpg, Ford Motor Company targeting 22.0 mpg, and DaimlerChrysler shooting for 22.2 mpg. When the new CAFE standards are in place, manufacturers that fail to meet the standards will be subject to civil penalties. See the “Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” on the NHTSA Web site at:
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Toyota Advances Fuel Efficiency While Cutting Energy Use
Toyota Motor North America announced last week that it is not only improving fuel efficiency in its vehicles, but also increasing energy efficiency in its factories. According to the Toyota North America Environmental Report, the company has improved fuel efficiency by 4 to 8 percent in nine vehicle configurations from model year 2001 to 2002. Since last year, Toyota has also reduced energy consumption per unit of production at its North American plants by 7 percent. See the December 11th press release on the Toyota Web site at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
Toyota aims to cut its energy use per unit of production to 15 percent below its 2000 levels by 2005. To achieve its goals, the company is reducing its use of compressed air, developing waste-heat recovery systems for use in its painting shops, and installing high-efficiency lighting systems and controls. See the Toyota North America Environmental Report: [sorry this link is no longer available]
Toyota continues to experience strong demand for its hybrid-electric vehicle, the Prius, in the United States. As of November, U.S. sales of the Prius had reached 18,329 for the year, up more than 32 percent from last year’s year-to-date sales figures. See the December 3rd press release on the Toyota North American Pressroom Web site http://pressroom.toyota.com
Nissan Unveils Fuel Cell Vehicle; John Deere in Development
Nissan Motor Company Ltd. unveiled its first fuel cell vehicle in Japan last week. UTC Fuel Cells, a unit of United Technologies Corporation, provided the 75-kilowatt fuel-cell power plant that powers the hydrogen-fueled vehicle. Called the X-TRAIL FCV (for “Fuel Cell Vehicle”), the prototype vehicle will undergo public road testing in Japan. See the UTC Fuel Cells press release and accompanying photo: [sorry this link is no longer available]
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Deere & Company, maker of John Deere equipment for agriculture and industry, will soon join the fuel cell club. The company announced last week that it is developing a fuel-cell-powered version of its Pro-Gator Utility Vehicle, which is used primarily for hauling supplies and equipment around golf courses and other facilities that feature a large amount of turf. John Deere is working with Hydrogenic Corporation, a Canadian fuel cell manufacturer, to develop the vehicle. See the December 11th press release on the Deere & Company Web site: [sorry this link is no longer available]
DOE is supporting fuel cell vehicles through its FreedomCAR program. Its latest contribution is the new Advanced Powertrain Research Facility, located at DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The new test facility, unveiled in November, includes state-of-the-art performance and emissions measurement equipment for testing advanced engines, fuel cells, electric drives, and energy storage devices. The facility is capable of testing vehicles fueled with gasoline, diesel fuel, natural gas, and hydrogen. See the ANL press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
Fuel cell vehicles are also advancing in California, thanks to a public-private partnership called, appropriately, the California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP). The CaFCP just released its goals for 2003, which include introducing fuel cell vehicles into fleets, adding additional hydrogen fueling stations, and operating up to 60 fuel cell vehicles. See the CaFCP press release: [sorry this link is no longer available]
New Biodiesel Facility Begins Operation in Iowa
A new facility with the capacity to produce 12 million gallons of Biodiesel per year started operating in Ralston, Iowa, in early December. The West Central Soy plant is owned and operated by a farmers’ cooperative and produces the biodiesel from soybeans. According to the National Biodiesel Board, the new facility is one of 18 dedicated biodiesel plants in the United States, with more than a dozen others in the planning stages.
The National Biodiesel Board also noted recently that tests on biodiesel by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) show a 47 percent reduction in particulate emissions compared to diesel fuel. The test also showed that the emissions benefits from using B20, a 20 percent blend of biodiesel with 80 percent diesel fuel, are greater than would be expected from the pure biodiesel results. As summarized by Steve Howell, technical director of the National Biodiesel Board, “Using B20 in 100 vehicles will actually reduce more pollution overall than using B100 (pure biodiesel) in 20 vehicles.” See the press releases and the draft EPA report on the National Biodiesel Board Web site at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
One biodiesel manufacturer that is aggressively pursuing new facilities and outlets is Southern States Power Company, Inc. The company is currently planning to develop biodiesel production facilities in Riverside, California, and Phoenix, Arizona. The Riverside facility, if built, is expected to produce about 35 million gallons of biodiesel per year. The company is also working with U.S. Fuel Partners LLC to distribute and sell biodiesel in Colorado. See the recent press releases: [sorry this link is no longer available]
DOE Awards $4.4 Million for Energy-Saving Technologies
DOE awarded a total of $4.4 million on December 11th to 18 organizations for the development of energy-saving products and industrial processes. DOE selected the awardees from 200 proposals submitted to two programs: the National Industrial Competitiveness through Energy, Environment and Economics (NICE3) initiative and the Inventions and Innovation (I&I) program.
The NICE3 initiative awarded more than $2.5 million to five organizations. The awardees will develop the use of near-infrared sensors for testing veneer wood strength before it dries, thereby saving energy costs and reducing wastes; examine a technology that allows better control of presses to form parts from sheet metal, avoiding unnecessary sheet-metal wastes; scale-up a manufacturing process for a novel type of rechargeable battery; demonstrate a new process for converting biomass to pulp; and examine acid-catalyzed hydrolysis, which is used to break down biomass into simpler chemicals.
The I&I program awarded 13 organizations up to $200,000 each to develop a wide variety of energy-related inventions. The awardees will examine a wide range of technologies, including ways to convert wastes into useful products, new processes for making ethanol and fuel gas, high-efficiency dehumidifiers for air conditioners, and advanced processing technologies for making “smart” electrochromic windows. [sorry this link is no longer available]
See also the full list of awardees:
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For more information on these DOE programs, see the NICE3 and I&I home pages:
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Ocean Power Corporation Declares Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
Ocean Power Corporation, a U.S. company with a focus on Stirling heat engines, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week. Formed in 1992 to develop modular power plants and seawater desalination units, Ocean Pow
er has since made a large number of acquisitions and business arrangements related to such varied advanced energy technologies as fuel cells, wind turbines, solar dish concentrators, and external combustion engines, also known as heat engines. The company aimed to produce integrated units that would generate both pure water and power.
In 2001, Ocean Power began working with EPRIsolutions, a subsidiary of the Electric Power Research Institute, to study a Stirling heat engine that would produce 3 kilowatts of electricity and 9 kilowatts of heat. In May 2002, the company announced an agreement with a private real estate management company for the sale of 10,000 such units, with delivery and installation planned for 2005. The announcement was covered in the May 29th edition of the EREN Network News.
In last week’s announcement, Ocean Power noted that it has tried to stem severe cash flow shortages over the past year through workforce and overhead reductions. Prior to filing Chapter 11, the company terminated essentially all of its employees, and now intends to sell off all nearly all its assets. See the Ocean Power press releases: http://www.powerco.com/Corporate/PressReleases/prindex.html
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SITE NEWS
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New and Renewable Energy Centre
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The NaREC portal features international resources on renewable energy, including news, community forums, directories, sub-portals, and events. NaREC, based in the United Kingdom, strives to create strong partnerships between academic and industrial research centers in offshore engineering, power generation, and renewable energy.
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ENERGY FACTS AND TIPS
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Multi-Colored LEDs Offer Energy Savings for the Holidays
If you’ve been procrastinating on hanging up your holiday lights, we have good news: new LED (light-emitting diode) holiday lights are now available in a wider variety of colors and shapes! You may remember that as of last December, only red, green, and yellow bulbs were available, and the fashion-conscious among us probably found them to be, well, somewhat lacking in aesthetic appeal. This year’s models offer a much wider range of choices, including two new colors — white and blue — and a variety of shapes, such as multi-faceted, mini-light, globe, and the good-old flame-tip shape. The bulbs use only one-tenth the electricity used by mini-lights, and one-hundredth the electricity used by traditional C-7 bulbs. In addition, they are very rugged, never get hot, last a long time, and are easy to maintain. And for those who like to cover a lot of distance with their lights, up to 20 strings of LED lights can be connected together without overloading a typical U.S. household’s electrical circuit.
The Energy Ideas Clearinghouse recently updated last year’s fact sheet on holiday lights with the latest information on the LED bulbs. The clearinghouse even found that LED lights will pay for themselves over five years of use. See the latest “Holiday Lights” fact sheet, on the Energy Ideas Clearinghouse Web site: [sorry this link is no longer available]
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| Kevin Eber is the Editor of EREN Network News, a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. |
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