DOE Awards $29 Million for Weatherization Training Centers
DOE selected 34 projects to develop and expand weatherization training centers across the country – they will receive $29 million under the Recovery Act. Located in 27 states, the projects will provide green jobs training for local workers in energy efficiency retrofitting and weatherization services.
The funding will support expansion of eight existing weatherization training centers and establishment of 26 new training centers, more than tripling the number of DOE-funded weatherization training centers nationally.
Under the Recovery Act, the Obama Administration is making unprecedented investments in clean energy, including $5 billion to significantly ramp the pace of weatherization in the US. These training programs will support a range of public and private energy efficiency efforts, including DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program. That program has funded weatherization of nearly 200,000 homes since last February, using both Recovery Act and annual program funds. See the DOE press release and the Web site for DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program.
Data Centers Can Now Earn the Energy Star Label
The U.S. EPA announced on June 7 that stand-alone data centers and buildings that house large data centers can now earn the Energy Star label.
To earn the Energy Star label, data centers must be in the top 25% of their peers in terms of energy efficiency, as measured by EPA’s energy performance scale.
The EPA uses a commonly accepted measure for energy efficiency, the Power Usage Effectiveness metric, to determine whether a data center qualifies for the Energy Star label. Before being awarded the Energy Star, a licensed professional must independently verify the energy performance of these buildings and sign and seal the application document that is sent to the EPA for review and approval. The Energy Star program is a joint effort of DOE and the EPA.
Data centers are found in nearly every sector of the economy and deliver vital information technology services, including data storage, communications, and Internet accessibility. Data centers use a significant amount of energy, accounting for 1.5% of total U.S. electricity consumption at a cost of $4.5 billion annually, an amount that is expected to almost double over the next five years.
Based on the latest available data, improving the energy efficiency of U.S. data centers by just 10% would save more than 6 billion kilowatt-hours each year, enough to power more than 350,000 homes and save more than $450 million annually. See the EPA press release and the Data Center Energy Efficiency Initiatives page on the Energy Star Web site.
Data centers can improve energy efficiency in many ways, such as purchasing Energy Star-qualified servers and ensuring that all cooling equipment functions properly. In fact, DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) has been studying energy use in data centers for years, and has compiled a list of 67 best practices for data centers, covering such topics as air delivery systems and water systems for cooling, internal and external power supplies, and other issues. LBNL also worked with the PG&E to create design guidelines for high-performance data centers. Access to both is available on the "Data Centers: Best Practice Summaries" page on LBNL’s High-Performance Buildings for High-Tech Industries Web site.
U.S. Market for Small Wind Turbines Gained Ground in 2009
The U.S. market for small wind turbines grew 15% in 2009 and accounted for about half the units sold globally, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
The trade group released its annual Small Wind Turbine Global Market Study on June 8, focusing on wind turbines with rated capacities of 100 kilowatts or less, which are primarily used to power individual homes, farms, and small businesses.
9,800 small wind turbines were sold in the US in 2009, for a total generating capacity of 20.3 MW. The economic downturn caused growth to slow in 2009, following a 78% surge in the U.S. market in 2008.
According to AWEA, expanded federal tax credits provided by the Recovery Act helped keep the small wind turbine market afloat in the US, despite the recession. AWEA estimates that 100,000 small wind turbines are now operating throughout the country, providing about 100 MW of generating capacity.
The US is the world’s leading manufacturer of small wind turbines, according to AWEA. In 2009, about two-thirds of all small wind systems sold throughout the world were made by U.S. manufacturers. About 250 companies throughout the world manufacture or plan to manufacture small wind turbines, and 95 of them are located in the US, though most are in the start-up phase.
The world’s 15 leading manufacturers predict exponential sales growth in the U.S. market over the next five years, projecting over 1,000 MW installed by 2015. Manufacturers report that the fastest growth was in the Midwest last year, but the largest markets overall are in the Northeast, the upper Midwest, and California.
States with strong consumer incentives, robust utility policies, and streamlined permitting processes have the strongest markets. U.S. manufacturers also exported about 36% of their turbines in 2009, up from 28% in 2008. See the AWEA press release and the full report (PDF 4.9 MB).
One factor that could help the small wind industry grow is certification of wind turbines to an industry standard. In December 2009, AWEA adopted a Small Wind Turbine Performance and Safety Standard that spells out requirements for performance, quietness, strength, safety, and durability of small wind turbines. The standard also specifies reporting and labeling requirements for certifying small wind turbines.
In February, the Small Wind Certification Council (SWCC), an independent certification body, began accepting certification applications. The SWCC website lists independent test organizations, including DOE’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) and four NREL regional test centers. So far, the SWCC lists three manufacturers that intend to submit wind turbines: American Zephyr Corporation; Renewegy, LLC; and Xzeres Wind Corporation.
AWEA notes that certification requires an average of 6-12 months of field testing, so the earliest that small turbines might gain certification would be late this year. The North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners plans to start certifying installers of small wind turbines this fall. See the AWEA standard (PDF 197 KB) and the SWCC Web site.
Forecasters Predict Very Active Atlantic Hurricane Season
Government and university researchers are predicting a very active hurricane season in the Atlantic Basin this year, which could both disrupt natural gas and oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and complicate efforts to respond to the ongoing BP oil leak.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) notes that record warm sea surface temperatures are now present in the area where storms often develop, while wind shear, which can literally tear storms apart, is expected to weaken. Combining those conditions with a long-term cyclical trend toward more active hurricane seasons leads NOAA to predict 14-23 named tropical storms, of which 8-14 will develop into hurricanes and 3-7 could develop into major hurricanes, of Category 3 or higher. See the NOAA press release.
The team from Colorado State University (CSU) agrees, predicting 18 named storms, 10 hurricanes, and 5 major hurricanes. The CSU team also goes further, predicting a 76% chance of a major hurricane making landfall along the U.S. coastline, with a 51% chance of one hitting the U.S. East Coast and a 51% chance of one hitting the Gulf Coast.
Both research teams note the El Niño in the eastern Pacific has dissipated, reducing wind shear over the Atlantic basin. The CSU team also warns that tropical Pacific conditions could transition to a weak La Niña by mid-season, creating more favorable conditions for hurricane formation. See the CSU press release and the related report (PDF 2.4 MB).
Based on the NOAA forecasts, DOE’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) is predicting that 26 million barrels of crude oil production and 116 billion cubic feet of natural gas production will be prevented due to tropical storms in the Gulf of Mexico this year. That’s the median outcome of EIA’s simulation, but there is also a 17%-20% probability that the production outages could be equal to or greater than the outages caused by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008, when the production of 65 million barrels of oil and 400 billion cubic feet of natural gas production was prevented.
Meanwhile, the EIA predicts that a 6-month moratorium on deepwater drilling, imposed by the Interior Department on May 27, will reduce oil production in the Gulf by an average of 26,000 barrels a day in the fourth quarter of this year and roughly 70,000 barrels per day in 2011. Those impacts equal about 28 million barrels of oil, essentially equal to the median outcome of the EIA’s tropical storm assessment.
Despite those predictions, the EIA lowered its price forecast for crude oil, expecting spot prices to average $79 per barrel this year and $83 in 2011. Gasoline is expected to average $2.79 per gallon during the summer driving season, 15 cents lower than last month’s forecast. See the EIA’s "Short-Term Energy Outlook and the related report, "2010 Outlook for Hurricane-Related Production Outages in the Gulf of Mexico" (PDF 318 KB).
DOE Halts Sales of Inefficient Heat Pumps, Air Conditioners
DOE ordered three manufacturers to stop distributing 61 models of heat pumps and one air conditioner model that don’t comply with federal energy conservation standards.
On June 3, DOE ordered Aspen Manufacturing, Inc.; Summit Manufacturing; and Advanced Distributor Products to halt distribution of the noncompliant models and to notify all previous buyers of the noncompliant models. If the companies fail to respond or to notify their customers, DOE will seek a judicial order to prevent the sale of noncompliant models.
Under federal law, manufacturers of certain products covered by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act must certify with DOE that their models meet the applicable minimum energy conservation standards. Based on certification information submitted to DOE, the agency discovered that Aspen Manufacturing had certified 58 heat pumps models and one air conditioner model that failed to meet federal energy efficiency standards by up to 7%. DOE also found one heat pump model manufactured by Summit Manufacturing that failed the energy use standards by about 16%, as well as two heat pump models manufactured by Advanced Distributor Products that missed the standard by 1%-2%. See the DOE press release and the Web site for DOE’s Appliances and Commercial Equipment Standards Program.
ZeaChem Breaks Ground on Cellulosic Ethanol Biorefinery in Oregon
ZeaChem, Inc. held a groundbreaking ceremony on June 2 for a cellulosic ethanol biorefinery in Boardman, Oregon.
The demonstration-scale facility will produce 250,000 gallons per year of ethanol from hybrid poplar trees grown at a nearby tree farm, and will test production of ethanol from other biomass sources, such as agricultural residues and herbaceous crops.
ZeaChem’s technology uses a chemical process to separate sugars (xylose and glucose) from biomass, then uses bacteria to ferment the sugars, forming acetic acid. The acetic acid is then concentrated and chemically converted into ethyl acetate. While ethyl acetate is itself a marketable chemical product, ZeaChem intends to use a $25 million grant, awarded by DOE through the Recovery Act, to add the capability of converting the ethyl acetate into ethanol.
To accomplish that trick requires several additional steps. First, residues left over after sugars are separated from biomass are fed into a high-temperature gasifier, forming a hydrogen-rich synthetic gas, or "syngas." The hydrogen is separated from syngas and reacted with ethyl acetate to form ethanol. The remaining syngas is burned to create steam and power for the biorefinery.
As a result, the facility will be able to produce multiple products: a biobased chemical, cellulosic ethanol, and electrical power. ZeaChem expects the steam and power produced to cover the energy demands of the biorefinery. The company also claims the facility could be modified to produce a variety of biobased organic chemicals, allowing it to change its product to best respond to market conditions.
ZeaChem expects the facility to begin operating this year using its core technology for ethyl acetate production, with cellulosic ethanol production starting in 2011. The company tested its fermentation technology at a research facility in Colorado, and it claims that numerous industry vendors have validated the additional process steps, include acetic acid concentration and ethyl acetate production. The Oregon Employment Department calculates that construction and operation of the Boardman facility will create 292 direct and indirect jobs in Oregon. See the ZeaChem press release and the technology description on the ZeaChem Web site.
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EREE Network News is a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
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