Energy Abundance

John Davis

This weekend I visited the RIT/NASA AstroZone exhibit in St. Louis. The free exhibit was offered in conjunction with the 212th meeting of the American Astronomical Society and it offered all kinds of fascinating scientific demonstrations: from seeing yourself in infrared to star-gazing in a portable planetarium to being enveloped in Cosmic Collisions while watching a video a portable dome. I’m not going to lie, the free exhibit was geared towards children but, that’s why I had my little brother and sister in tow.

So what’s all this have to do with domestic fuel? One of the videos that I watched in one of the cool, miniature, omnimax-type domes said that one solar flare releases the same amount of energy as millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs. That’s just too big of a number for me to even grasp. But, it did get me thinking. The U.S. is awaiting an apparent “energy crisis” as oil becomes more scarce and gas prices go up. Yet, just one little burst from the sun emits enough energy to… well, again… I can’t even fathom how much energy millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs means. So it looks like there’s plenty of energy coming from the sun and it doesn’t look like that energy source will “dry up” anytime soon.

My point is, developing alternative ways to harness energy from an abundance of energy out there, yes abundance, is exactly what we should be doing. Whether it be from the sun, from wind, water, or corn and crops. It just makes more sense to start relying on what nature already offers us in plenty instead of continuing to chase after this “oil scarcity.”

corn, Energy, Hydrogen, Solar, Wind

USDA Chief to Defend Biofuels at UN Summit

John Davis

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Shafer is defending biofuels ahead of next week’s United Nations conference that will address the growing world food crisis.

This story in the New York Times says Shafer is taking a stand that biodiesel and ethanol are making a minimum contribution to any price hikes in food worldwide while making a major contribution to extending world energy resources:

Mr. Schafer took the offensive at a press conference on Thursday that discussed the food summit, planned for Rome. He said an analysis by the Agriculture Department had determined that biofuel production was responsible for only 2 to 3 percent of the increase in global food prices, while biofuels had reduced consumption of crude oil by a million barrels a day.

“We think that policy-wise in the United States of America — and certainly in the rest of the world — as we see the price of oil and petroleum escalate dramatically beyond anyone’s imagination, that one of the ways to deal with that is to produce biofuels which are renewables, better for the environment and help lower that cost,” he said.

Mr. Schafer’s remarks came as ethanol and biofuels are coming under increasing criticism from foreign leaders and members of Congress, as grocery prices climb in the developed world and malnutrition and hunger threaten to spread in the poorest nations.

Even a report critical of biodiesel and ethanol… released just hours before Shafer offered his counterpoint… admits that drought has played a major factor in food price hikes, and prices are expected to go down as weather returns to normal.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, International, News

Wind Power Company Receives Endorsement

John Davis

A Minnesota-based wind energy development company has received an endorsement from a maker of safety gear and clothing for the construction industry.

This press release from National Wind Assessments says the wind energy company picked up the product endorsement from Ergodyne. But why a deal of this kind?:

“National Wind Assessments and its parent company, National Wind have received a lot of press coverage and will soon be featured in an episode of Sustainable Planet, on National Geographic. When the filming takes place, they will be wearing our products,” says Howard Huber, Marketing Director, Ergodyne Work Gear. “We strongly believe in creating partnerships and relationships with high profile companies such as this, to showcase our innovative products.”

National Wind Assessments will utilize the company’s safety products, such as gloves, outerwear, elbow pads, back supports, and visibility vests when they complete on-site installations of meteorological towers and when they are photographed and filmed. National Wind Assessments will be featured in Ergodyne’s upcoming promotional materials.

“We are thrilled to endorse Ergodyne,” says Kevin Romuld, President of National Wind Assessments. “We feel a bit like a sports superstar. However, our employees love the gear and it helps us do our jobs safely. Ergodyne has a great, high-quality product line.”

As you might remember from my May 20th, 2008 post, National Wind has been selected to put in 10 meteorological towers in Northern Nebraska and will be using the Ergodyne products. The company has also completed advanced wind resource analysis for more than 100 wind energy projects across the United States.

Wind

Ethanol Hybrid Chopper

John Davis

Now that’s a mouthful. But that’s also pretty cool. The chopper pictured isn’t the ethanol hybrid, though it is a Cadillac. But, the e-magazine Winding Road reports that Cadillac boss Jim Taylor says an ethanol hybrid version is being built.

A motorcycle enthusiast himself, Taylor commissioned the Cadillac chopper in the photo above from Great American Chopper of Clawson, Michigan. More interesting still is a second bike that’s still in the works, which will feature a hybrid engine capable of running on ethanol or in a pure electric mode.

The hybrid Cadillac bike is being built by V20 Consulting of New York City, and has been tasked with displaying “GM’s strength in science and technology.” The bike is purported to be capable of a 0 to 60 sprint of 4.5 seconds, and should be unveiled for the public at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show.

Click here to see the article at Winding Road.

Energy, Ethanol, transportation

Ethanol Terminal Opens in Arlington, Texas

U.S. Development GroupAccording to the Houston Business Journal, U.S. Development Group, LLC opened its ethanol handling and rail terminal in Arlington, Texas. The company will distribute fuel grade ethanol to north and central Texas. Union Pacific Railroad serves the facility and can store up to 130,000 barrels of storage.

Vice-President of U.S. Development Group, LLC noted, “This terminal will help bring cleaner air to the Dallas-Forth Worth area by more efficiently distributing fuel-grade ethanol to the metroplex. The Dallas Fort Worth Rail Terminal forms a key link in the supply chain needed to meet growing demand for cleaner-burning blended fuel. The ability to pump ethanol directly to gasoline blend terminals via pipelines significantly reduces the time and cost associated with secondary trucking.”

U.S. Development Group has five additional terminals across the country, two of which also handle fuel grade ethanol. These facilities are in Linden, New Jersey and Baltimore, Maryland.

Currently, there are 38 E85 fueling locations to serve nearly 600,000 flexible fuel vehicles in the state of Texas.

E85, Ethanol, Facilities, News, transportation

Ribbon Cut For Nebraska Ethanol Plant

Cindy Zimmerman

VeraSun Ribbon CuttingNebraska Governor Dave Heineman helped officials with VeraSun Energy and others in a ceremonial ribbon cutting ceremony and open house Thursday for its 110 million-gallon-per year biorefinery in Albion, Nebraska.

The plant is one of 11 VeraSun ethanol production facilities currently in operation. The company has an annual production capacity of more than one billion gallons, making VeraSun one of the largest ethanol producers in the United States. The Albion plant will annually process about 39 million bushels of corn to produce 110 million gallons of ethanol and 350,000 tons of distillers grains for livestock feed.

Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dinneen congratulated VeraSun on the celebration. “Nebraska’s residents have long understood the economic, environmental and security benefits of a strong domestic ethanol industry, and their legislators have helped set the stage for ethanol and other biofuels to contribute to our nation’s energy security,” said Dinneen.

Ethanol, Facilities, News, RFA

Twelve E85 Stations to Open in Atlanta

CleanFUEL Distribution announced that twelve E85 stations will soon be open in cities surrounding Atlanta, GA. A promotion, sponsored by several entities on June 2 and 3, will sell E85 for $1.85 per gallon parts of each day. Involved in the openings will be Protec Fuel Management, CleanFUEL Distribution, Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA), the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC), Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Chrysler, SAFA Express, Indore Oil and the Atlanta Clean Cities Coalition.

EPIC E85“Never before have twelve E85 stations opened at once. This is a momentous occasion. Since E85 is the key to creating a market for cellulosic ethanol, this is an extremely important step that will put the greater Atlanta area on the path to increasing petroleum independence and cleaner air. Protec and CleanFUEL Distribution are proud to have worked with our outstanding partners to open these stations,” said Todd Garner, Managing Partner of Protec and CEO of CleanFUEL Distribution.

GEFA assisted in financing 21 E85 facilities in Georgia, ten of which will be part of the grand opening festivities the week of June 2.

Read More

Car Makers, E85, EPIC, Ethanol, National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition, News

Solar Power in Spain

John Davis

Another 8.7 megawatts of solar energy is now available in Spain. SunPower Corp. has opened two new solar-electric power plants in Llerena and Lebrija.

The solar power plant constructed by SunPower in Llerena is 4.8 megawatts; the plant in Lebrija is 3.9 megawatts. In Spain, SunPower has completed or has signed contracts to deliver solar power plants totaling more than 100 megawatts.

For these projects, SunPower used its proprietary SunPower(R) Tracker technology, which follows the sun during the day, and delivers significantly more energy than traditional fixed-tilt systems.

“We utilized our industry-leading SunPower Tracker technology at both of the power plant sites, maximizing energy output, while optimizing land use and reducing related costs,” said Marco Antonio Northland, general manager of SunPower’s European operations.

SunPower says renewable energy has a great potential of thriving in these regions of Spain.

Energy, International, Solar

World’s First Renewable Gasoline

John Davis

Sapphire Energy says renewable technology is not just for alternative fuels. The San Diego-based company says it can produce gasoline from sunlight, CO2 and microorganisms, such as algae.

Not biodiesel, not ethanol. And no crops or farm land required.

Company scientists have built a platform that uses sunlight, CO2, photosynthetic microorganisms and non-arable land to produce carbon-neutral alternatives to petrochemical-based processes and products. First up: renewable gasoline.

Sapphire’s processes and science are so radical, the company is at the forefront of an entirely new industrial category called ‘Green Crude Production.’ Products and processes in this category differ significantly from other forms of biofuel because they are made solely from photosynthetic microorganisms, sunlight and CO2; do not result in biodiesel or ethanol; enhance and replace petroleum-based products; are carbon neutral and renewable; and don’t require any food crop or agricultural land.

Energy

Airplane Builders Looking at Biodiesel, Alt Fuels

John Davis

Some of the world’s biggest airplane manufacturers are looking at renewable fuels… made from everythig from hydrogen to algae… to fly the friendly skies.

This AP article from the Seattle Times says companies at the the famous Berlin, Germany Air Show were showing off some of their alternatively-fueled aircraft:

Boeing displayed a one-seater demonstration airplane that can fly on batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. While the plane is still in the early stages, the company said that test flights have shown “a manned airplane can maintain a straight-level flight with fuel cells as the only power source.”

Boeing said the technology could potentially power small manned and unmanned aircraft. But it said it “does not envision fuel cells will provide primary power for large passenger airplanes,” although it will continue investigating their potential.

Airbus brought along a demonstrator version of its A320 passenger jet that uses fuel cells to power some of the aircraft’s steering systems. The company said it sees great potential in fuel-cell applications.

Dutch airline KLM, meanwhile, said at the show that it had signed a contract with AlgaeLink for fuel made from algae for a pilot project whose first test flight is scheduled for this fall.

AlgaeLink produces technology to grow algae that can be turned into biodiesel and is setting up two plants of its own in Europe.

Biodiesel, Hydrogen