EERE: Advancing Commercialization and Geothermal Power, plus the Auto X Prize

On 9/22/2010 2:03 AM, EERE Network News wrote:

A weekly newsletter from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). The EERE Network News is also available on the Web at: www.eere.energy.gov/news/enn.cfm September 22, 2010 News and Events DOE Awards $63 Million to Advance Clean Energy Commercialization DOE Awards $20 Million to Develop Geothermal Power Technologies USDA Offers Renewable Energy Feasibility Studies for Rural Businesses Edison2, Li-ion Motors, and X Tracer Win the Automotive X Prize ACEEE Recognizes the Leading State-Led Energy Efficiency Programs Energy Connections UNEP: Clean Energy Investments can Help Meet Poverty Reduction Goals

News and Events DOE Awards $63 Million to Advance Clean Energy Commercialization DOE announced on September 15 its award of more than $63 million to support the commercialization of clean energy technologies, including $57 million for small businesses and $5.3 million for universities. The awards to small businesses include nearly $11 million provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. They will help 33 small businesses across the country develop manufacturing processes to scale up the production of their new clean energy technologies. Those technologies include 21 renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, as well as six new technologies for power grids, three for next-generation nuclear power, and three for cleaner fossil energy. The awards are the first under DOE's Small Business Phase III Xlerator program, which builds on the successes of DOE's Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. The renewable energy technologies include an algae-based biodiesel; four fuel-cell technologies, including two designed for biomass fuels; a high-temperature electrical insulation for geothermal energy applications; three solar cell technologies; and four wind power technologies. On the efficiency side is a lighting product using organic light-emitting diodes; innovative capacitors, permanent magnets, and lightweight materials for advanced vehicles; and four industrial technologies, including a low-cost microchannel heat exchanger, advanced laser-based sensors, a more energy-efficient way to make styrene, and a process that will allow ethanol producers to reduce their use of energy-intensive distillation. These 21 commercialization projects will receive nearly $38 million out of the total $57 million to be awarded. See the DOE press release and a detailed description of the 33 selected projects. DOE also announced its first-ever funding for universities and nonprofits to build and strengthen "innovation ecosystems" that will accelerate the movement of cutting-edge energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies from university laboratories into the market. For instance, the University of Central Florida will hold the "MegaWatt Ventures" event, incorporating a technical showcase with a business plan competition and business and prototyping services. Teams will tap into the intellectual property portfolios and research expertise held by Florida universities. Each year, 10 teams will be awarded $10,000 each and will be given six months to complete a prototype and assemble a start-up team. The 10 teams will then compete for a $100,000 prize, with the aim of providing an incentive for commercializing the university-developed technologies. In its third year, MegaWatt Ventures will be expanded to include all universities in the southeastern United States. Similar entrepreneurial efforts will be led by the Clean Energy Trust of Chicago, Illinois, for Illinois scientists and entrepreneurs; by the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems of Cambridge, Massachusetts, for university-originated technologies across New England; by the University of California, San Diego, which will hold an annual Regional Energy Innovation Challenge; and by the University of Utah, which will create the Energy Innovation Commercialization Center for participating western universities and research institutions. The projects will receive a total of $5.3 million in federal funding over three years, which will be leveraged with grantee investments to support $9 million in total projects. See the DOE press release. DOE Awards $20 Million to Develop Geothermal Power Technologies DOE announced on September 15 its selection of seven projects to research, develop, and demonstrate cutting-edge geothermal energy technologies involving low-temperature fluids, geothermal fluids recovered from oil and gas wells, and highly pressurized geothermal fluids. Today's geothermal power plants draw on underground reservoirs of water or steam that are heated by "hot spots" in the Earth's crust. While traditional geothermal power plants require reservoirs at temperatures greater than 360°F, hot enough to easily generate steam, the latest generation of power plants is using binary-cycle technology to draw on lower-temperature resources. This technology uses a "working fluid" that vaporizes at a lower temperature than water. By passing the geothermal fluid through a heat exchanger, the working fluid is vaporized, and its vapor is used to drive a turbine, which spins a generator to produce power. The vapor is then condensed and reused in a closed cycle. Because the geothermal fluid is kept apart from the working fluid, the two fluids form two separate cycles, hence the name "binary-cycle" technology. See the description and illustration of binary-cycle power plants on the Web site of DOE's Geothermal Technologies Program. Binary-cycle technology had the advantages of being low-profile and modular, as demonstrated by these power units manufactured by UTC power. Credit: Raser Technologies, Inc. Three of the selected projects will develop new advances to binary-cycle technology, including a scale-resistant heat exchanger that could increase power production by 40%, as well as systems that use carbon dioxide and ammonia-water mixtures as working fluids. A fourth project will aim to extract more energy from the geothermal fluid by developing a generator that can run on the waste heat from an existing geothermal power plant. The geothermal fluid will then be used as the heat source for a heating system, a greenhouse, and a fish farm. This "cascading" use of the geothermal resource is meant to improve the economics of tapping nearly 1,500 potential low- to moderate-temperature well sites in towns and medium-sized cities throughout the West. The three remaining projects seek to tap unconventional sources of geothermal energy. In one case, ElectraTherm, Inc. will aim to draw power from the hot geothermal fluids that oil and gas wells often generate as a byproduct. The company plans to develop a low-cost, modular, mobile power plant that can be moved from well site to well site, reducing the need to generate on-site power from diesel generators. The other two projects will aim to draw power from geothermal fluids that exist at high pressures under certain geological conditions, particularly along the Gulf Coast. Such "geopressured" fluids often contain high concentrations of dissolved natural gas. To demonstrate viable energy production from such geopressured resources, Louisiana Geothermal will produce power from a resource in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, while NRG Energy Inc. will aim to demonstrate the cost-effective recovery of heat, kinetic energy, and natural gas from geopressured resources. See the DOE press release. USDA Offers Renewable Energy Feasibility Studies for Rural Businesses The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on September 7 the availability of grants of up to $50,000 for agricultural producers and rural small businesses to conduct feasibility studies for installing renewable energy systems. The proposed systems can produce heat, electricity, or fuel. They must produce energy from renewable energy sources, including wind energy, solar energy, biomass energy, geothermal energy, hydropower, or hydrogen-based sources. They must be also located in a rural area and owned by the applicant. Under the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), the USDA is making $3 million available for the grants, which is sufficient to support at least 60 grants. Applications are due October 5. See the USDA press release, the USDA's REAP Feasibility Study Grants Web page, and the related Federal Register notice. The USDA also announced on September 9 that it is awarding $1.9 million to Lincolnway Energy, LLC of Nevada, Iowa. The award will help the company modify a coal-fired boiler at its ethanol biorefinery to burn wood and other biomass. The award was made under the USDA's Repowering Assistance Program, which makes payments to eligible biorefineries to encourage the use of renewable biomass as a replacement fuel source for fossil fuels. Authorized by the 2008 Farm Bill, the program is only available to biorefineries that were in existence when the bill was enacted on June 18, 2008. Lincolnway Energy started making ethanol in 2006 and produces up to 60 million gallons of fuel-grade ethanol per year at its facility. See the USDA press release, the USDA's Repowering Assistance Program Web page, and the Lincolnway Energy Web site. Edison2, Li-ion Motors, and X Tracer Win the Automotive X Prize Edison2's prize-winning "Very Light Car" waits at the starting line during the on-track competitions held in June. Credit: David Freers/X Prize Foundation The X Prize Foundation and Progressive Insurance awarded $10 million on September 16 to three teams that won the Progressive Automotive X Prize. Edison2, from Charlottesville, Virginia, claimed half of the prize purse by winning the "mainstream" class with its "Very Light Car," a four-wheeled, aerodynamic vehicle that runs on E85 (a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) and seats four. The vehicle achieved the energy equivalent of 102.5 miles per gallon of gasoline (MPGe). It also achieved the lowest drag coefficient of any car with four wheels ever tested at Chrysler Proving Grounds, and it lived up to its name with a curb weight of only 830 pounds. Earning a $2.5 million prize with a win in the "alternative side-by-side" class, the "Wave II" from Li-ion Motors Corp. of Mooresville, North Carolina, is an all-electric car powered by lithium-ion batteries. It seats two people, side-by-side. The car achieved 187 MPGe and demonstrated a driving range of more than 100 miles. Its distinctive look features an aerodynamic body that encloses all four wheels. The remaining $2.5 million was awarded to X-Tracer Team Switzerland from Winterthur, Switzerland, which won the "alternative tandem" class with the E-Tracer, essentially an enclosed all-electric motorcycle that deploys two extra outrigger wheels at low speeds to stabilize the vehicle. The E-Tracer achieved more than 200 MPGe, the greatest fuel economy reached in the competition. Its range exceeds 100 miles. DOE was heavily involved in the Progressive Automotive X Prize, providing $9 million in grants to support education, outreach, and technical operations related to the competition. For the final stage of the competition, DOE's Argonne National Laboratory performed dynamometer tests under controlled laboratory conditions to verify each vehicle's performance. See the Progressive Automotive X Prize press release and Web site and the Web sites for Edison2 and Li-ion Motors. ACEEE Recognizes the Leading State-Led Energy Efficiency Programs The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) announced on September 15 its first-ever awards for exceptional state-led energy efficiency programs. Among the top five programs is the Colorado Energy Star New Homes Program, which "presents an excellent model in which the state energy office forms regional partnerships with counties, cities, nonprofit organizations, and utilities to offer locally tailored programs." The program promotes Energy Star certification in new residential construction. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) earned kudos for two of its programs: the Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Demonstration Program, which has helped pay for the installation of CHP systems at 65 locations, and the Wastewater Efficiency Program, "a model program for states intent on improving the energy efficiency of wastewater systems." A top award also went to the State of Hawaii for its Lead by Example Program, in which state agencies demonstrate the benefits of energy efficiency. Hawaii's state agencies used 5.8% less electricity in fiscal year (FY) 2009 than they did in FY 2008, saving about $10 million. Rounding out the top five is the Maryland Statewide Farm Energy Audit Program, which invests carbon allowance proceeds to offer energy audits and technical and financial assistance to agricultural producers. The ACEEE also awarded honorable mentions to 10 additional programs that originated in Alaska, Connecticut, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington. In addition, three emerging programs won awards for their innovative approaches: a California program that gives fleet owners vouchers to halve the extra cost of buying hybrid versions of heavy-duty trucks and buses; a Massachusetts program that provides incentives for creating higher-density, mixed-income housing in smart-growth locations; and a New Jersey program that takes a comprehensive, whole-building approach to energy efficiency in existing commercial and industrial buildings. See the ACEEE press release and report.

Energy Connections UNEP: Clean Energy Investments can Help Meet Poverty Reduction Goals Investing in clean energy is an essential part of meeting international goals to reduce poverty, according to a new report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The report, "A Brief for Policymakers on the Green Economy and the Millennium Development Goals," released on September 20, asserts that the "green economy" and poverty reduction goals are inextricably intertwined. Focusing on the Millennium Development Goals, which include a goal to halve the number of people in extreme poverty by 2015, the UNEP report contends that a shift to a green economy will not only reduce environmental risks and ecological scarcities, but will also improve human well-being and lessen inequalities. For instance, solar power and efficient lighting can replace oil-based lighting sources, on which the "energy poor" in Africa spend about $17 billion per year. See the UNEP press release and report.

This newsletter is funded by DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and is also available on the EERE Web site. If you have questions or comments about this newsletter, please contact the editor. This service is provided to you at no charge by DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE). Visit the Web site at http://www.eere.energy.gov.

 

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