Last Updated: Thursday, October 28, 2010 | 3:50 PM ET .
By Emily Chung, CBC News
New Canadian research may help scientists design a system that captures carbon without guzzling water and energy like current methods do.
Capturing carbon dioxide before it reaches the atmosphere and storing it underground is one way governments are hoping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which have been linked to global warming.
To capture carbon before it escapes from the smokestacks of factories or power plants, the emissions are bubbled through water that contains dissolved chemicals called amines. The amines grab onto the carbon dioxide, and later heat is used to recover the trapped carbon for storage. A huge amount of energy is consumed in heating the water during that process.
By 2030, this kind of carbon capture technology could boost water consumption in the U.S. electricity sector by 80 per cent or 7.5 billion litres per day, the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory reports.
Current carbon capture technology could boost water consumption in the U.S. electricity sector by 80 per cent or 7.5 billion litres per day, the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory reports. (Charlie Riedel/Associated Press)
In addition, a typical coal-fired power plant would have to boost its output by more than 20 per cent to cover the extra energy used to capture the carbon.
But findings published Thursday in Science by a team of chemists from the University of Calgary and the University of Ottawa could help engineers design materials that suck up large amounts of carbon — "without generating a lot of CO2 in capturing the carbon," said George Shimizu, one of the article's six co-authors.
He and his colleagues used a technique called X-ray crystallography to watch how carbon dioxide molecules get captured by a porous, solid carbon "trap." A solid material saves energy because no water has to be heated to recover the trapped carbon.
Shimizu likened the trap to a baseball mitt grabbing a carbon dioxide "baseball."
"Obviously, different mitts are going to be better for different sized balls," said Shimizu.
The results showed exactly how the "mitt" and "ball" are shaped, sized and positioned relative to each other.
Meanwhile, collaborators led by Tom Woo at the University of Ottawa created a computer model that calculated how tightly the carbon dioxide was trapped and how easily it could be released again for storage.
"Professor Woo's modelling basically was able to tell us every little finger that was holding the CO2 — how strongly it was contributing," Shimizu said.
The material doesn't grab onto carbon dioxide as tightly as the watery solutions used now, so less energy is needed to release it.
The researchers found that carbon dioxide molecules were sucked into the pores as T-shaped pairs. That means it should be possible to design pores specifically shaped to trap larger clumps of carbon, leading to a high capacity, Shimizu said.
Now that researchers have precisely measured and studied this particular carbon trap, and have a computer model that appears accurate, they should be able to use the computer model to design better carbon-trapping materials.
"It would save us a lot of time in the lab," Shimizu said.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/10/28/greener-carbon-capture.html#ixzz13wMFa1Gc
Sunday, 31 October 2010
Biofuels Could Mean Bigger Rotors
Posted by Graham Warwick at 10/30/2010 3:40 PM CDT
Sikorsky has completed a study of alternative fuels and their impact on rotorcraft design and recommended further research into additives and blends for biodiesel and biobutanol to make them more suitable as replacements for jet fuel.
Supported by the US Army, Sikorsky considered a range of alternative fuel options and selected biodiesel and butanol for further study. Both fuels have lower heat content than JP-8 - 8% less for biodiesel and 22% less for butanol - and the study assessed the impact on design of small, intermediate and large helicopters.
Graphic: Sikorsky
For an intermediate helicopter carrying 16 passengers 250nm at 170kt, using biodiesel in place of JP-8 required 2.6% more fuel capacity, for an 11.2% higher fuel weight, 1.7% heavier empty weight and 3.4% higher gross weight. Rotor diameter increased 1.6% and engine power required 3.7%.
Using butanol required 34.5% more fuel capacity, for a 35.7% higher fuel weight, 6.7% heavier empty weight and 10.3% higher gross weight. Rotor diameter increased 5% and engine power 9.3%.
To reduce the impact, Sikorsky recommends further study into additives and blends for biodiesel and butanol. It also recommends defining a propulsion system architecture, and materials for use in the fuel system and engines, that will work with a range of alternative fuels including 100% synthetic biojet, biodiesel and butanol.
Sikorsky has completed a study of alternative fuels and their impact on rotorcraft design and recommended further research into additives and blends for biodiesel and biobutanol to make them more suitable as replacements for jet fuel.
Supported by the US Army, Sikorsky considered a range of alternative fuel options and selected biodiesel and butanol for further study. Both fuels have lower heat content than JP-8 - 8% less for biodiesel and 22% less for butanol - and the study assessed the impact on design of small, intermediate and large helicopters.
Graphic: Sikorsky
For an intermediate helicopter carrying 16 passengers 250nm at 170kt, using biodiesel in place of JP-8 required 2.6% more fuel capacity, for an 11.2% higher fuel weight, 1.7% heavier empty weight and 3.4% higher gross weight. Rotor diameter increased 1.6% and engine power required 3.7%.
Using butanol required 34.5% more fuel capacity, for a 35.7% higher fuel weight, 6.7% heavier empty weight and 10.3% higher gross weight. Rotor diameter increased 5% and engine power 9.3%.
To reduce the impact, Sikorsky recommends further study into additives and blends for biodiesel and butanol. It also recommends defining a propulsion system architecture, and materials for use in the fuel system and engines, that will work with a range of alternative fuels including 100% synthetic biojet, biodiesel and butanol.
Solar photovoltaic on the brink of an economic breakthrough
Published on Oct 27, 2010 - 7:28:29 AM
By: Greenpeace
DELHI, India, Oct. 27, 2010 - Solar photovoltaic could account for 5% of global power demand by 2020, and up to 9% by 2030, according to a study presented today by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) and Greenpeace International.
The global solar photovoltaic outlook “Solar Generation 2010” (1) projects investments in solar photovoltaic (PV) to double from €35 billion today to €70 billion in 2015. At the same time, costs for PV systems are expected to almost halve (-40%). As a result, PV systems can compete with current electricity costs for households in most industrialized countries. This so-called “grid parity” will change the PV market significantly.
“Solar photovoltaic is a key technology to combat climate change and to secure access to clean electricity. Today’s figures show that the technology is on the brink of an economic breakthrough,” said Sven Teske, Senior Energy Expert at Greenpeace International. “By 2015, the market could be twice as big as today, leading to a €70 billion investment. Our goal is to make solar photovoltaic a mainstream power source through more supportive polices around the world.”
Ingmar Wilhelm, President of EPIA, said: “Solar photovoltaic power can give a massive contribution to global electricity supply, in traditional photovoltaic markets as well as in developing countries. By 2030, up to 2.5 billion people could benefit from solar energy. This enormous growth potential is strongly sustained by remarkable and continuous reduction of costs and by the technology's unique versatility. Herein lies the key to develop photovoltaic systems for every kind of roof and it is also a great opportunity for the electrification of communities not yet benefiting from the supply of electrical power.”
Current solar PV capacity could grow from 23 GW at the beginning of 2010 to 180 GW by 2015, according to the report, which was presented at the Government of India’s Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC) with the support of Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century. Over 1,800 GW could be installed by 2030. This would save as much as 1.4 billion tonnes in CO2 emissions every year.
In addition to its environmental benefits, solar energy is shown to be a sustainable way to address concerns about energy security and volatile fossil fuel prices, as well as a substantial factor in economic development. The PV industry, which already employs about 230,000 people worldwide, could provide jobs to 1.3 million workers by 2015. By 2050, this figure could stand at 5 million.
Greenpeace highlighted the enormous PV potential for India in particular. Scaling up from a near zero solar capacity to 20 GW by 2022 was the right direction and an obvious choice for the country, the organisation said. It stressed that the Indian government will have to ensure the right investment and political signals are send now in order to achieve the goal.
The executive summary of the “Solar Generation 2010” report is available for download at: www.greenpeace.org/international/solargeneration OR www.epia.org/publications.
Notes:
1. The “Solar Generation 2010” is a joint initiative by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) and Greenpeace. The title Solar Generation reflects the study’s aim to define the role that solar electricity will play in the lives of a population that is born today and will develop into an important energy consumption group.
2. Over the whole scenario period, it is estimated that an average of 0.6 kg of CO2 would be saved per kilowatt-hour of output from a solar generator. For the period 2025-2050, a moderate annual growth rate of 5% has been assumed, as well as a very conservative lifetime of 20 years for PV modules. The scenario is also divided in two ways – into the four main global market divisions (consumer applications, grid-connected, remote industrial and off-grid rural), and into the regions of the world as defined in projections of future electricity demand made by the International Energy Agency. These regions are OECD Europe, OECD Pacific, OECD North America, Latin America, East Asia, South Asia, China, the Middle East, Africa and the Rest of the World.
3. Greenpeace International and the European Photovoltaic Industry Association are urging governments to secure those investments with support programmes. The most successful scheme is a “Feed-in Tariff” which guarantees a specific price for each kilowatt-hour fed into the grid. Over 50 countries, states and provinces have already introduced the “feed-in policy”. In these countries, consumers are able to operate a solar system on their rooftops in an economically viable way.
Website: www.greenpeace.org
By: Greenpeace
DELHI, India, Oct. 27, 2010 - Solar photovoltaic could account for 5% of global power demand by 2020, and up to 9% by 2030, according to a study presented today by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) and Greenpeace International.
The global solar photovoltaic outlook “Solar Generation 2010” (1) projects investments in solar photovoltaic (PV) to double from €35 billion today to €70 billion in 2015. At the same time, costs for PV systems are expected to almost halve (-40%). As a result, PV systems can compete with current electricity costs for households in most industrialized countries. This so-called “grid parity” will change the PV market significantly.
“Solar photovoltaic is a key technology to combat climate change and to secure access to clean electricity. Today’s figures show that the technology is on the brink of an economic breakthrough,” said Sven Teske, Senior Energy Expert at Greenpeace International. “By 2015, the market could be twice as big as today, leading to a €70 billion investment. Our goal is to make solar photovoltaic a mainstream power source through more supportive polices around the world.”
Ingmar Wilhelm, President of EPIA, said: “Solar photovoltaic power can give a massive contribution to global electricity supply, in traditional photovoltaic markets as well as in developing countries. By 2030, up to 2.5 billion people could benefit from solar energy. This enormous growth potential is strongly sustained by remarkable and continuous reduction of costs and by the technology's unique versatility. Herein lies the key to develop photovoltaic systems for every kind of roof and it is also a great opportunity for the electrification of communities not yet benefiting from the supply of electrical power.”
Current solar PV capacity could grow from 23 GW at the beginning of 2010 to 180 GW by 2015, according to the report, which was presented at the Government of India’s Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC) with the support of Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century. Over 1,800 GW could be installed by 2030. This would save as much as 1.4 billion tonnes in CO2 emissions every year.
In addition to its environmental benefits, solar energy is shown to be a sustainable way to address concerns about energy security and volatile fossil fuel prices, as well as a substantial factor in economic development. The PV industry, which already employs about 230,000 people worldwide, could provide jobs to 1.3 million workers by 2015. By 2050, this figure could stand at 5 million.
Greenpeace highlighted the enormous PV potential for India in particular. Scaling up from a near zero solar capacity to 20 GW by 2022 was the right direction and an obvious choice for the country, the organisation said. It stressed that the Indian government will have to ensure the right investment and political signals are send now in order to achieve the goal.
The executive summary of the “Solar Generation 2010” report is available for download at: www.greenpeace.org/international/solargeneration OR www.epia.org/publications.
Notes:
1. The “Solar Generation 2010” is a joint initiative by the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) and Greenpeace. The title Solar Generation reflects the study’s aim to define the role that solar electricity will play in the lives of a population that is born today and will develop into an important energy consumption group.
2. Over the whole scenario period, it is estimated that an average of 0.6 kg of CO2 would be saved per kilowatt-hour of output from a solar generator. For the period 2025-2050, a moderate annual growth rate of 5% has been assumed, as well as a very conservative lifetime of 20 years for PV modules. The scenario is also divided in two ways – into the four main global market divisions (consumer applications, grid-connected, remote industrial and off-grid rural), and into the regions of the world as defined in projections of future electricity demand made by the International Energy Agency. These regions are OECD Europe, OECD Pacific, OECD North America, Latin America, East Asia, South Asia, China, the Middle East, Africa and the Rest of the World.
3. Greenpeace International and the European Photovoltaic Industry Association are urging governments to secure those investments with support programmes. The most successful scheme is a “Feed-in Tariff” which guarantees a specific price for each kilowatt-hour fed into the grid. Over 50 countries, states and provinces have already introduced the “feed-in policy”. In these countries, consumers are able to operate a solar system on their rooftops in an economically viable way.
Website: www.greenpeace.org