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Ads Continued: Johnson Controls U.S. Army

eblock — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:30:18 +0000

Feb 2, 2012 – Johnson Controls has an ad in Forbes and other magazines showing the entrance to the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command. Of course, this facility should get energy savings. The ad states, “Mission Accomplished:L $134 million in energy savings, guaranteed.

“Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is a 94-year-old U.S. Army installation with a 21st century mission… an executive order to cut energy use by 30% by 2015. To meet this challenge, the U.S. Army partnered with Johnson Controls to upgrade buildings across its 72,500-acre testing, research and training facility.

The result? The installation is expected to reap $134 million in energy savings over the next 20 years.”

This is admirable, but it seems we are now stretching out the return to 20 years. First, savings on any program were shown for ONE year. It has lately become fashionable to project the savings over 20 years so that the headline numbers look more impressive. This is the first time I have seen the savings indicated over 20 years. That makes the $134 million in savings equal to $6.7 million per year and we don’t know how much of the calculation will be in years 11-20. I’m not saying it isn’t worthwhile or a good move in the right direction, but it does make it hard to evaluate what is really being done in the here and now.

Snapshots Make Power Grid More Efficient

eblock — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:08:34 +0000

Jan 25, 2012 – Siemens wants to use “snapshots” of the power grid to help make it more stable. Power snapshots from smart meters by Siemens provide synchronous grid information with maximum precision from the low-voltage grid, data that can serve as a basis for analyzing these grids in cities and communities. Analysis of the collected data makes it possible to use the grid infrastructure more efficiently and to better integrate electric vehicles or the feed-in of power from photovoltaic systems, for example. Siemens developed the power snapshot analyses (PSSA) in collaboration with the Austrian Institute of Technology and several grid operators in Austria. The project received financing from Austria’s Climate and Energy Fund.
In the coming years, the growing number of decentral and fluctuating renewables-based energy sources feeding into the grid, and electric vehicles and electric heating systems will pose an enormous challenge for the power transmission and distribution networks. To estimate how many feed-in sources and how many users a local grid can handle, model simulations are conducted. These models used to be very rudimentary, so big safety margins had to be planned in. For more accurate simulations, detailed data on the low-voltage grids is needed.
That’s why developers from Siemens Austria developed the PSSA, with which the smart meters in local grids were equipped. These meters don’t only record energy-use data; they also generate real-time and synchronous displays of voltages in the local grids at points in time that are critical for the grid technology. The accuracy of the data is unprecedented because the load variations of the phases and the ground return conductor are also recorded. This information on the actual conditions in the grid enables grid operators to more efficiently use the available infrastructure. To compensate for power consumption peaks, the operators can for example take load groups like electric heating systems or heat pumps offline without compromising end users’ convenience. The data also can be used to estimate investment costs for expansions of grid infrastructure.
PSSA will be launched on the market before the end of 2012. Siemens smart meters, which are already being used by many customers, can be equipped with this additional function by means of a firmware download without disturbing the validity of the meters’ calibration.

Green Energy Winning and Losing Sectors in 2011

LMerker — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:17:22 +0000

Not only is research and development pushing forward in so many different directions, certain technologies are evolving quickly, while others are just getting going.

For the first time, energy storage received the most venture capital funding ($514 million), displacing solar ($350 million). Solar also lost the No. 1 spot in deal volume. Energy efficiency was the most popular area, with 34 funding rounds.

Energy storage (e.g. batteries) — considered something of a silver bullet — still presents sizable technological hurdles, while efficiency is now clearly the low-cost, plain vanilla version of clean tech.

This rotation of sorts is commonplace in maturing industries.

By no coincidence energy efficiency and storage, specifically electric cars, along with the booming recycling business, are our three winners.

At the same time, the U.S. solar industry is clearly one of our three losers.

Nothing as fatal as those events struck the ethanol industry, our third loser, which is more a victim of conventional market forces and uncertainty over government incentives, a key element in the alternative energy sector.

All three losers, however, have one thing in common — momentum has temporarily shifted against them and that’s rarely good for keeping and attracting investors.

Source cnbc.com.

Energy Credits

eblock — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:33:29 +0000

Jan 20, 2012 – Now is the time when we receive tax data forms from our banks, brokerage companies, 401(k)s, etc. Make sure that you also have information on hand about the energy conservation & renewable energy installations you made in 2011. You can claim your federal credits with your tax filing. Also, make sure you check with your state and utility to see if you are due any rebates or tax credits. Remember, these rebates and credits were implemented to encourage renewable energy and energy conservation. If you have made the investments, you should take advantage of the credits and rebates. Please leave your comments here describing state and utility programs. Future posts will describe federal credits in more detail.

Oil Prices Do Not Reflect Demand

LMerker — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:05:10 +0000

According to Fareed Zakaria on CNN, oil prices are higher than normal for the current demand. Political instability in the middle east has as inflated oil prices. Speculators have helped drive up prices. As a result, there may be increased interest in alternative energy. Oil prices may fall when fear of political instability eases, unless demand increases.

Mitt Romney’s Views on Conventional and Alternative Energy

LMerker — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:48:44 +0000

Mitt Romney has an excellent chance of becoming our next president. He won the primary in New Hampshire today.

His website contains a lot of excellent information about him and his views. For his views on conventional and alternative energy, please visit mittromney.com/jobs/energy .

Energy Conservation: What is Your Company Doing?

eblock — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:39:33 +0000

Jan 10, 2012 – What is your company doing to conserve energy and utilize green energy sources? Costco has a major program underway for a number of years already. Their buildings are all insulated to meet or exceed current energy code requirements. In 2008, they opened their first certified Silver Level LEED warehouse in New Jersey. They now have 60 large rooftop solar photovoltaic [PV] systems out of 592 locations. These are in Hawaii, California, New Mexico and New Jersey. They generate 55 million kWh of electricity per year. They also have programs in place to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In 2007 they stopped using HCFC refrigerant that is ozone-depleting. They also have in place many recycling and reuse programs. These help reduce their carbon footprint because the materials they reuse or recycle don’t have to be manufactured from scratch, thereby reducing energy for the manufacture of those items.

Please leave your comments here for the activities that you are using in your company.

Hyundai Elantra wins North American Car of the Year for 2012

LMerker — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:08:33 +0000

This is the car that my wife drives. We enjoy it very much. The four-cylinder engine with automatic transmission is very smooth. The engine is so quiet that it is easy to forgot to turn it off when parking. Interior space is utilized very efficiently and there is plenty of room in the rear seats. The trunk has a surprising amount of space. The hood is shorter than on many cars because of the efficient engine design. The air-conditioner is excellent in the Florida heat. Many features usually found on luxury cars are included such as a usb port, blue tooth for hand free cell-phone conversation through the car’s speakers and a built-in microphone. Gas mileage is up to 40 miles per gallon on the highway, a very green vehicle. Safety ratings are excellent.

For more details about award winning features, please visit http://www.hyundaiusa.com/research-tools/awards/elantra-ar_elantra_NACOTY.aspx .

New Hampshire Republican Primary

eblock — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:53:48 +0000

Jan 9, 2012 – The 2012 New Hampshire Republican Primary is tomorrow. Mitt Romney has a comfortable lead as of today. Will any more prospective candidates quit after this primary? Michelle Bachmann left after the Iowa caucuses. How will this affect green energy going forward? Please leave your predictions here.

Rick Perry Seems to be Staying in the Race

eblock — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 22:15:17 +0000

Jan 6, 2012 – First it seemed as if Rick Perry was pulling out of the Republican primary race when he didn’t immediately head to New Hampshire. Now he seems to be staying in the race, but just avoiding the winter weather in New Hampshire in January. Keep reading here for further updates. How will this affect green energy during the upcoming debates?