"We have made a lot of progress, thanks to good policies here in Washington and the strong response of the market. And now even more dramatic advances are within reach. ...Let us build on the work we have done and reduce gasoline usage in the United States by 20 percent in the next ten years."

 

President George W. Bush

 

January 23, 2007

 

  1. Energy Sources: a brief introduction
  2. Sources and Usage of Alternative Energy
    1. Solar Power
    2. Wind Power
    3. Biomass
    1. Hydropower
    2. Geothermal energy
    3. Hybrid Technology: The Hybrid-Electric Cars
    4. Ethanol fuel
  3. Organizations promoting the Use of Alternative Energy
    1. The Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST)
    2. The Alliance for Affordable Energy
    3. Office of Energy Technology and Renewable Energy
  4. Projects promoting the Use of Alternative Energy
    1. The solar energy technologies program
    2. Solar America Initiative 
    3. The California Solar Initiative (CSI)
    4. DOE’s Biomass Program
  5. References
  6. Links

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Photo source)

 

 

Energy Sources: a brief introduction

 

Energy is the vital force which serves the American and world economies. Energy plays an increasingly vital role in the economic output and in national security. This is why the United States spends over 500 billion dollars annually on energy.

 

As America's need for energy grows, the Department of Energy is trying to promote clean fuel initiatives from traditional fossil fuels, to invest in cutting edge research to develop sustainable sources, such as fusion and employ hydrogen. These sources can be produced from domestic sources and, most importantly, can reduce the national dependence on imported oil.

 

Forms of alternative energies can be found in geothermal sources and by regenerating the energy of ocean currents and tides. However, today the technology for these methods is still in progress in comparison to other better-known sources... Despite the environmental and economic dangers of fossil fuel reliance, growth of renewable energies is torpid. In the United States, 45% of renewable power comes from hydroelectric facilities. Solar energy contributed less than 0.1% of total energy consumption, and wind energy remains a similarly infinitesimal fraction.

 

Three of the most important programs dealing with energy sources are the following.

 

  1. Modernizing energy infrastructure. In this context the challenge consists in developing an infrastructure to support these fuels.
  2. Ensuring the productive and optimal use of energy resources and trying to limit environmental impact.
  3. Cooperating on international energy issues.

 

In addition, the Department of Energy is testing the power of the earth itself in concordance with the nation's needs. As far as this plan is concerned, in 2006 the Department proposed advances in wind, hydro and geothermal energy. That way it should be possible to take advantage of clean, abundant energy (U.S. Department of Energy, 2006).

 

 

Sources and Usage of Alternative Energy

 

 

Solar Power

Solar panels are the most common renewable energy. A photovoltaic panel converts solar energy into electricity, but only sunlight of certain energy will work efficiently to create electricity, because of this, in a typical commercial photovoltaic panel only 15% of the sunlight striking the cell transforms it into electricity.

 

On January 12, 2006, the California Public Utilities Commission approved the California Solar Initiative (CSI), investing $3.2 billion to promote the use of solar power over the next 11 years. The rest of the United States should adopt similar measures to begin the transition away from fossil fuel dependence.

 

 

Wind Power

 

 

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According to the U.S.A. Department of Energy, wind power is the fastest-growing renewable resource of energy and cleaner than fossil fuels. It doesn’t produce neither air pollution nor waste and what’s more it creates jobs and income especially in rural areas.

Wind turbines are fixed on a tower to catch the most energy, they can be used as stand-alone applications but they can be even combined with a photovoltaic system. Wind turbines can generate enough energy if they’re built close together to form a wind plant and there must be a large amount of wind year-round to utilize kinetic energy. Wind farms can be built offshore and wind turbines are widely spaced, lands with windmills can have several employments.

 

Wind power is the leader in wholesale renewable electricity production in the United States. Total installed U.S. wind power capacity was 9,149 megawatts at the beginning of 2006, according to the American Wind Energy Association. A large part of this—2,420 megawatts—was installed in 2005, and an estimated 3,000 megawatts is planned for installation in 2006. With recent technological advances, the price competitiveness of wind generation versus natural gas has improved, supporting continued growth. In addition, the U.S. federal government offers companies a production tax credit for wind power equal to about 1.9 cents per watt-hour. This has been a powerful incentive to attract tax-oriented investors, such as utility companies, into wind farm ownership.

 

AWEA (the American Wind Energy Association) promotes wind energy as an alternative and clean energy resource for people all around the world; it provides up-to-date information about domestic and international wind energy industry too. According to AWEA market research wind power generating capacity increased by 27% in 2006: they produced nearly 31 billion kilowatt-hours which is enough energy to serve 2.9 million household American need.

 

In America wind power is also widely supported by the state itself and by each federal government legislatures: their aim is to increase the number of wind farms throughout the U.S. Thanks to a federal production tax credit (PTC), wind plants productivity and that of other alternative energy technologies are rewarded; the Government has recently extended this incentive through 2008.

 

The original market for wind power was Denmark in the late 1990s, followed by Germany. Today, the hot markets are Spain, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, and India. But wind power is available almost everywhere.

 

 

Biomass

 

photo source

 

Biomass energy is derived from plants; the most known type of biomass energy comes form burning wood. However, other technologies have been developed to replace carbon-emitting fuels with cleaner and more considerable fuels. One of the potential fuels is biodiesel. Biodiesel is a domestic, renewable fuel for diesel engines derived from natural oils like soybean oil. The toxic emissions of biodiesel have lower levels than those of petroleum. Anyway, planting enough soybeans to fuel all the United States on biodiesel alone would take about one-sixth of the world's cropland. Nevertheless, it has the potential to play a role in reducing carbon emissions in conjunction with other changes.

Hydrogen fuel cells have enormous potential as a replacement for gasoline in combustion engines too; its only emission is water vapour.

 

Although the technology for hydrogen fuel cells has existed for years, no purified and efficient methods exist to isolate and transport it. Nearly all hydrogen production today is powered by steam reformation of natural gas the most encouraging method of producing hydrogen is from electrolysis, in which water is electrochemically split into hydrogen and oxygen. The advantage of this renewable process is that it uses a reasonable source of electricity. But, hydrogen has a very low energy for its volume, so new technology must be developed to transport and store it.

 

 

 

Hydropower

 

photo source

 

Hydropower offers several benefits, such as the possibility to produce power with low costs and the reduction of air pollution and greenhouse effect. However, the energy produced thanks to the water flow has some negative aspects as well, e.g. the high capital costs and regulatory burden for hydro power that are obstacles to attract new investments. If US government was able to quantify and underline hydropower’s benefits, it would be able to attract new investments to start new projects in order to develop this type of clean energy production process. Hydropower provides 80,000 megawatts of electricity and is thus the largest renewable electricity source in the USA.

 

Thanks to the so called DOE program, 49 out of 50 states (Delaware is the only state not analyzed because of scarce resources) have been assessed: researchers found out that there are other 5,677 sites in the United States with a further capacity of 30,000 MW to be used. According to the U.S. Department of Energy website “the aim of the DOE Program for Ecosystem Research (PER) is to produce scientific knowledge about potential effects of climatic change on ecosystems so that decision makers (including the public) can determine if fossil-based energy production is ‘safe’”. 

 

There are about 180 federal projects and other 2,000 projects regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) which controls the production of Hydropower energy. This Regulatory Commission works in all 50 states and in Puerto Rico as well.

 

 

Hydropower combined with others renewables

 

Many renewable energy technologies are not always available because for example they use wind or sun to generate energy. Hydropower energy differs from these types because its generating plants can, in some ways, store energy stopping part of the water and then releasing it when it is needed. For these reasons, hydropower can be combined with other types of energy such wind energy (that is intermittent in nature) for a continuous providing of energy. Unfortunately, there are also some reasons why hydropower cannot be easily combined with other renewable technologies, including the measures of the flows and of the ramp rates.

 

Allowable flows are also chosen depending to some reasons like the presence of wildlife, irrigation, navigation, flood control and energy/power demands needs.

Moreover, power needs are quite low in priority and the production of energy must respect other factors imposed by the other system needs. These factors are:

 

  • technical;

  • institutional (individual institutional cases are important for wind and hydropower integration, mainly because it happens sometimes that hydropower resources are developed for some specific customers or because a production system has to operate in an integrate fashion);

  • economic (because economic analysis are associated with market prices and also differences in seasonal and daily power demand co-occur on make prices vary);

  • political (on one side certain parties want to combine the use of hydropower with wind energy in order to develop economically speaking  those areas where energy is produced thanks to the wind, while on the other side some others parties see wind energy as a treath to their interests (e.g. if they have investments in fuel production and others electric plants);

  • engineering (like physical locations of the facilities and seasonal variability of flows).

 

 

Some facts about hydropower energy in the USA

 

  • Today, hydropower, including pumped storage, supplies over 10 percent of the electrical generating capacity of the United States compared to coal-fired steam generation which is the number one source.

  • Hydropower is the primary contributor of renewable energy in the United States.

  • The costs of generating hydropower are the lowest of all sources of electricity.

  • The hydroelectricity currently produced each year in the United States is equivalent to nearly 500 million barrels of oil.

  • Hydropower generation doesn't contribute to atmospheric emissions, which are a growing problem on both national and global levels.

  • Hydropower is nowadays the most efficient way to produce energy with each kilowatt-hour of hydroelectricity being produced at an efficiency more than twice that of any competing energy resource.

  • Only 3 percent of the around 80,000 existing dams in the United States have hydropower facilities.

  • Potential sites for all types of hydropower exist and would double the U.S. hydroelectric production if they could be developed. However, a variety of restraints exist on this development, some are natural while some others are imposed by our society. The natural restraints include things such as occasional unfavourable terrain for dams. Other restraints include disagreements about who should develop the resource or the resulting changes in environmental conditions. Finding solutions to the problems imposed by natural restraints demands extensive engineering efforts. Sometimes finding out a solution is not possible or it is so expensive that the entire project doesn't become practicable. Finding out solution to obstacles imposed by the society is much more difficult, mainly because the costs are far greater than those imposed by nature.

  • Developing the full potential of hydropower will require consideration and coordination of many varied factors. 5

 

 

 

What is NHA?

 

NHA stands for National Hydropower Association: it was founded in 1983 and it is the only trade association in the USA which dedicates exclusively to the theme of hydropower in North America. Its seat is in Washington D.C. and it is an association that accomplishes its policy work and outreach through the initiatives of its standing Committees.

 

Hydroelectric Power Plants

 

photo source

 
The biggest example of hydroelectric power plant is the Hoover Dam which is located about an hour away from Las Vegas. This dam is composed of 17 main turbines which provide electricity for the nearby cities. There are two other turbines which generate electricity for the power plant. These 19 generators create 2,998,000 horsepower which translates into 4 billion kilowatt hours a year (enough to serve 1.3 million people). [Reference]
 

There are many benefits to generating electricity with hydroelectric plants. However, there are two main downsides too. The first one is the enormous initial capital investment required to build a power plant of this type. The Hoover Dam was built in 1933-35 and its cost was of 165 million dollars entirely paid by the customers of the supplier. The second point against hydroelectric power plants is the fact that the dam, which is essential to the plant, destroys many habitats and alters the landscape. A dam needs to hold a huge quantity of water and floods out the naerby forests, deserts, towns and anything else in its way. Just think that the amount of water of Lake Mead, which supplies the Hoover Dam, could flood the entire state of Pennsylvania to a depth of 1 foot! Hydroelectric power has many benefits that outweigh the downsides but improvements are still needed. 

 

 

Geothermal energy

Geothermal energy results from exploiting heat that comes from the earth’s core (for further information about geothermal energy in general please visit Alternative Energy Sources in Italy).  Being deeply underground you may not see the most geothermal energy sources apart from volcanoes, hot springs, geysers and fumaroles that are its only visible signs.

 

To find geothermal resources geologists analyze for example the chemical composition of the soil and water, magnetic fields and gravity, maps and photographs of the territory but drilling wells is the only way to know for sure if in that site there are geothermal sources because it allows to measure underground temperatures.

 

Geothermal resources are divided into four groups:

-         hydrothermal;

-         geopressured;

-         hot dry rock;

-         magma.

 

However only hydrothermal are exploited for producing electricity and e.g. for heating buildings and greenhouses today, whereas the other three have to be more developed for being used.

In the world geothermal resources are concentrated in the so-called “Ring of Fire” an area that edges the Pacific Ocean, Japan, the Philippines, the Aleutian Islands, North America, Central America, and South America.

 

 photo source

 

 

The USA is the greater producer of electricity generated from geothermal energy in the world. The most important geothermal resources are in western states and Hawaii, while other moderately hot ones are located in the Dakotas, along the Atlantic coast, in Arkansas and Texas.

In 2004 there were 43 power plants producing electricity from geothermal energy in the US. The most of them are located in California and Nevada, whereas Utah has two power plants and Hawaii, an archipelago of volcanic origin, has one. California, Nevada, Utah and Hawaii are, indeed, the four states that produce the most geothermal energy as shows the picture below:

 

 

 

 photo source

 

 

Exploiting geothermal energy for getting electricity is possible only in few specific sites that have some particular geologist conditions. One of them is The Geysers, north of San Francisco California, that produces electricity equivalent of what all the other geothermal sites combined do. In California, indeed, 6% of the electricity is got from geothermal energy.

In Utah the most important geothermal sources, Roosevelt Hot Spring and the Cove Fort-Sulphurdale, are located in the southwestern part of the country, while in Hawaii the geothermal area is Puna Geothermal Venture which is in the south of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii and produces 20% of electricity that the population needs.

Today American geothermal power plants produce about 3,200 megawatts (MW) that corresponds to what three nuclear power plants do.

 

 

An alternative to oil: biofuels

 

Algae as microscopic power plants

 

How can the world wean off of oil? Given that fossil fuels are mainly used for transport, finding out and developing alternative means of powering cars, buses and trucks may be the answer. While the first goal has already been achieved, the second is still at an initial stage, but several researchers from all over the world are trying to refine both theories and technologies in order to achieve more concrete results.

 

These researchers agree on the fact that, at present, the best alternative to petroleum is biodiesel, a fuel that is made out of vegetable oils and animal fats and that can be produced by micro-algae, in particular the so-called “pond scum” (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii):

 

 

 photo source

 

The discovery of this microscopic green alga dates back to the 30s. Hans Gaffron, a German researcher who went to the University of Chicago in those years, was the first person to become aware of the power potential of these algae, which have so high an oil and protein content that the Mayas and the Aztecs of present-day Mexico used them as a dietary supplement.

 

In 1999, Professor Tasios Melis (University of California), together with a team of researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), discovered that algae, if deprived of sulphur and oxygen would produce hydrogen for a certain period of time.

 

Two years later, Melis created the “Melis Energy” company in order to commercialize a technique that harnessed algae’s potential for turning sunlight into hydrogen. In autumn 2001, the company built a bioreactor containing 500 litres of water and algae that can produce up to 1 litre of hydrogen per hour. This hydrogen is, then, extracted by a siphoning system and stored in its gaseous state.

 

Thus far, just a small percentage of the algae’s full production potential has been achieved. This means that, currently, biofuel energy can’t be cost-competitive with fossil fuel. Micro-algae technologies may be at present a small industry, but they are at the core of recent studies and projects in the context of greenhouse gas mitigation.

    

 

Micro-algae applications in greenhouse gas mitigation

 

 

 

                                 Applications of micro-algae technologies
production of energy saving products (fertilizers, bioplastics)
wastewater treatment
aquaculture

 

 

Micro-algae mass cultures use solar energy for the biofixation of power plant flue gas and other concentrated CO2 sources into biomass. This biomass can be used to produce renewable fuels, such as methane, ethanol, biodiesel, oils and hydrogen, thus reducing CH4 and N2O emissions. Consequently, this process helps mitigating the effects of greenhouse gases.

 

According to a University of New Hampshire study on biofuel production from algae, wastewater treatment plants may be redesigned to use raceway algae ponds as the primary treatment phase, with the twofold aim of treating the waste and growing algae for biofuel extraction. Furthermore, it is possible to use the algae mush (that kind of soft paste which remains after the extraction of oil) as a fertilizer.

In 2001, EniTecnologie, the U.S. Department of Energy and the IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme organised a Workshop in Monterotondo (Rome), in order for all the participants to discuss about micro-algae technologies in the context of greenhouse gas mitigation.

For further information, please have a look at the following PDF document.

 

 

 

 

Hybrid Technology: The Hybrid-Electric Cars

 

  
Nowadays motor vehicles such as cars and SUVs are one of the main responsible for emissions of carbon dioxide - the primary global-warming gas in the United States- which seriously pollutes the air and damage the environment. However, there are many vehicle technologies commercially available today which can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, for example: engine modifications, cylinder deactivation, improved transmissions etc. Furthermore, there is a quite new technology which is being spread more and more: the hybrid technology. Thanks to that, it will be possible in the near future to reduce some of the major problems faced by the United States (and the entire world as well) such as climate change, oil dependence, air and global-warming pollution.

The first modern hybrid electric car, the Toyota Prius, was produced and sold in Japan. Two years later, the United States sold their first hybrid, the Honda Insight. These two vehicles, followed by the Honda Civic Hybrid, marked a radical change in the type of car offered to the public.

 

How does an hybrid-electric vehicle work?

 

Hybrids put together a small combustion engine with an electric motor and battery. Thanks to these two technologies it is possible to reduce fuel consumption and tailpipe emissions. Hybrids capture energy lost during braking and return it to the battery ("regenerative braking."). 4

 
 

Ethanol fuel

 

Ethanol is a colorless, chemical compound which is often simply called alcohol[1]. There are two different types of ethanol: synthetic ethanol, which is produced in a chemical process, and bio-ethanol, which is obtained from plants such as sugar canes, sugar beets, potatoes, sunflowers, etc. In the United States, the principal supplier for the production of ethanol is corn.

 

Nowadays, ethanol is becoming an important alternative to gasoline; it is a clean burning fuel and is increasingly used to power cars. However, it is not really a substitute of gasoline yet, (100% ethanol is not used as a fuel) but it can be combined with different percentages of gasoline in order to reduce the consumption and the prices of the latter. [2] According to the Energy Policy Act (1992), E85 (85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) and blends with higher concentrations are considered alternative fuels. [3] Ethanol is a sustainable energy resource which may become economically important in future; it costs less than gasoline and is not a limited resource (in the sense that it will not run out), but is produced from renewable resources. However, for its production water, sunlight and soil are necessary.

 

A disadvantage of the use of ethanol as fuel is the fact that it contains less energy than gasoline and therefore, it is necessary to refuel the vehicles more often. Moreover, in order to be able to use ethanol as a fuel, the fuel system of the cars must be modified. An additional disadvantage is that ethanol cannot be very easily transported in pipelines because the production levels are not high enough and it would be too expensive to create pipelines from the Midwestern United states, where the corn is produced, to the coasts.

 

In the United States, the government allows up to 10% combinations of ethanol with gasoline and all the vehicles are compatible with this mixture without modifications of the engine. As the pollution using ethanol fuel is minimal, in some of the States and cities the mixture is compulsory, above all during the winter, when the level of air pollution is particularly high. Pollution can, however, be caused in the production of ethanol if a large amount of fertilizers and pesticides are used. In 2004, in the United States, about one third of the gasoline was combined with ethanol.

 

The United States and Europe need much more petroleum and natural gas than they produce in their territory. This means that these states are dependent on the petroleum resources of other countries. To reduce this dependence and increase the production of ethanol the government of the United States has developed bio-ethanol fuel programs and researchers are working to improve the efficiency of ethanol fuel.

 

 

 

Organizations promoting the Use of Alternative Energy

 

 

The Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST)

  

REPP (Renewable Energy Policy Project) supports, fosters and accelerates the use of renewable energy which includes biomass, hydropower, geothermal, photovoltaic, solar thermal, wind and renewable hydrogen in the USA. REPP fosters the  growth of strategies for renewable energy, which are competitive within energy markets and at the same time meet environmental needs.

 

The organization provides:

-useful information;

-insightful policy analysis;

-innovative strategies for changing energy markets;

-initiatives towards environmental needs.

 

 

Moreover, experts in the field can examine REPP’s platform which contains issues of medium-to long-term importance to policy makers, green energy entrepreneurs, and environmental advocates.

REPP’s main activities are:

-researching;

-publishing and wide spreading information;

-creating policy tools and

 

-hosting on-line renewable energy discussion groups.

 

 

 

REPP Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) Map

 

  Puerto Rico District of Columbia Maryland Delaware New Jersey Connecticut Rhode Island Massachusetts Hawaii New Hampshire Vermont New York Pennsylvania West Virginia Virginia North Carolina Florida South Carolina Georgia Alabama Mississippi Tennessee Kentucky Ohio Indiana Misourri Illinois MIchigan Iowa Wisconsin Minnesotta Louisiana Arkansas Oklahoma Kansas Nebraska South Dakota North Dakota Texas New Mexico Arizona Colorado Wyoming Montana Utah Idaho Nevada California Oregon Washington Maine Alaska New Hampshire Vermont

- States that have an RPS.

- States that have voluntary renewable energy goals or RPS-type legislation without enforcement provisions.

- States that do not have RPS or renewable energy goal policies.

Three states (Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesotta) have voluntary renewable energy goals or RPS-type legislation without enforcement provisions

 

Source RPS' S map

 

 

Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) refers to state policies mandating a state to produce its electricity from renewable sources such as wind, solar, biomass, geothermal or other renewable sources. The choice of how to fulfill the mandate is up to each state.

 

 

 

The Alliance for Affordable Energy

 

The Alliance is a non-profit organization whose main purpose is that of “creating fair, affordable, environmentally responsible, community-based energy policies for Louisiana and the nation”. This membership organization, founded in 1985, is, nowadays, helping citizens and enterprises to become more energy efficient and avoid high energy bills. This association offers services directly to its members through active workshops, publications, and by providing information on the best ways helping them to save energy.

 

After the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Alliance started a campaign to promote smart redevelopment of the city of New Orleans and the entire area around.

This is the logo of the campaign and the explanation of its purposes:

 

 

photo source

 

 

"In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, energy efficiency and modern,

environmentally-responsible building materials are the key to good home investment and the answer to rebuilding New Orleans better than before."

 

At first, the organization saw the hurricanes Katrina and Rita as a big tragedy, but soon they considered the catastrophe as a brand new possibility to change and improve people’s lives. They wanted the projects of rebuilding houses to focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy; doing so they will be able to reduce energy consumption and costs, reducing the degree of pollution as well.

 

The main features of this program are the following.

 

 

  1. Maximizing energy efficiency.
  2. Incorporating “green building” principles, such as water efficiency, indoor air quality, environmentally friendly materials.
  3. Reducing  dependence on fossil fuels by generating power from numerous sources as renewable sources and by powering vehicles with alternative fuels.
  4. Installing solar panels.
  5. Promoting the use of solar energy, high-efficiency combustion turbines, wind power, fuel cells, and cogeneration systems and 
  6. Informing the region’s leaders and general public about the catastrophic local effects of global warming and the need for actions to reverse the trend.

 

 

Office of Energy Technology and Renewable Energy

 

The Department of Energy’s Solar Technology Program, managed by the Office of Energy Technology and Renewable Energy fosters the development of solar technologies as alternative sources of greener energy. This initiative helps to educate the public opinion  about the importance of exploiting renewable sources of energy. Solar power has many advantages since it represents a clean and reliable source of energy which  enables to reduce greenhouse effects as well. Moreover, the development of solar technologies stimulates the economy and creates new jobs in this sector.

Examples of technologies based on solar energy which have been developed by the Department of Energy and Industry are the following:

 

  • photovoltaic cells;

  • concentrating solar power technologies;

  • low temperature solar collectors.

 

 

Photovoltaic cells transform sunlight into electricity. These cells are made of a special semiconductors such as crystalline silicon or other thin-film materials. Photovoltaic energy can be used for several small consumer items, to large commercial solar electric systems.

(The nation's lead laboratory for renewable energy efficiency technologies is NREL)

 

Concentrating solar power technologies exploit reflective materials in order to concentrate the sun’s heat energy,which is used by a generator for the production of electricity. These technologies include dish/engine systems, parabolic troughs and central power towers.

The picture below shows a solar thermal power plant located in the Mojave Desert in Kramer Junction, California.

 

photo source

 

 

 

 

 

Projects promoting the Use of Alternative Energy

 

 

The solar energy technologies program

 

 

The Department of Energy’s Solar Technology Program, managed by the Office of Energy Technology and Renewable Energy is fostering the development of solar technologies as alternative sources of greener energy. This initiative also helps to educate the public about the importance of exploiting renewable sources of energy. Solar power has many advantages since it represents a clean and reliable source of energy which also enables to reduce greenhouse effects. Moreover, the development of solar technologies stimulate the economy and creates new jobs in this sector.

Examples of technologies based on solar energy which have been developed by the Department of Energy and Industry are: photovoltaic cells, concentrating solar power technologies and low temperature solar collectors.

Photovoltaic cells transform sunlight into electricity. These cells are made of a special semiconductors such as crystalline silicon or other thin-film materials. Photovoltaic energy can be used for several small consumer items, to large commercial solar electric systems.

(The nation's lead laboratory for renewable energy efficiency technologies is NREL)

 

 photo source 

 

Concentrating solar power technologies exploit reflective materials in order to concentrate the sun’s heat energy. This energy is used by a generator for the production of electricity. Concentrating solar power technologies include dish/engine systems, parabolic troughs and central power towers.

The following picture illustrates a solar thermal power plant located in the Mojave Desert in Kramer Junction, California.

 

photo source

 

 

 

Solar America Initiative 

SAI is an initiative which is aimed at accelerating the development of advanced solar electric technologies such as: photovoltaic and concentrating solar power systems. By 2015 it will make solar technologies cost-competitive with other forms of renewable electricity. The proposed budget for SAI is $148 million.

 

This initiative will bring many benefits:

●reduction of US dependence from fossil fuels (PV will provide 5-10 GW of new electric capacity (equivalent to the amount of electricity needed to power 1-2 million homes) to the U.S. grid;

●preservation of the environment by avoiding 10 million metric tons per year of CO2 emissions;

●creation of employment with 30,000 new workers employed in the PV industry.

 

 

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technology Program (SETP) will achieve the goals of the SAI thanks to partnerships with industry participants, universities, Federal and state government, and other non-governmental agencies.

The development of decentralized PV diversifies the nation’s electricity portfolio as well as enhances grid reliability. Moreover, the domestic production of PV enables US market to be more competitive in the renewable energy worldwide scenario.

 

 

 

The California Solar Initiative (CSI)

 

 

South America seems to pay more attention than North America to environmental questions, especially those concerning renewable energy resources.

 

Since solar energy provides 0.2 percent of all California electricity (in 2005 about 660 gigawatt hours), the challenge Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to win is included in the Million Solar Roofs Program, which aims to create 3000 megawatts of solar electricity by 2017.

This will allow the state to reduce the costs of solar systems both for private and public consumers, increasing the use of clean energy in California.

 

In these years the California Public Utilities Commission is setting up an incentive-based-system ($350 million project to promote solar energy) for existing and new houses and for commercial, agricultural, and industrial properties.

In 2007 the incentive-based-system has changed a lot because specific quality and quantity standards of the panels are required to enjoy the financial supports. As a matter of fact, this system moved from capacity-based-payments to performance-based-payments, granting incentives in the following cases.

 

  • Starting January 1, 2007, incentives for all solar energy systems greater than 100 kilowatts in size will be paid monthly based on the actual energy produced.
  • Incentives for all systems less than 100 kilowatts will initially be paid up-front based on expected system performance. Expected performance will be calculated based on equipment ratings and installation factors, such as geographic location, tilt, and shading.
  • Starting in 2010, incentives for all systems greater than 30 kilowatts in size will be paid based on actual energy produced. (Retrieved from California Public Utilities Commission, August 24, 2006).

 

Main features of the program

 

  • Facilities, such as incentives and tax credits ($2.50 per watt produced by residential and commercial customers, $3.5 per watt produced by Government and non-profit organizations) will be granted.
  • Incentives will be reduced according to the number of solar energy systems installed.
  • The program will be managed by certain administrators, such as Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Southern California Edison and San Diego Regional Energy Office.
  • In order to monitor and quantify the production of energy, meters might be installed in the solar energy systems.
  • Furthermore, to ensure that California is using its energy in the most appropriate way, all the measures included in this project are to be coordinated with the programs of Public Utilities Commission and Energy Commission.

 

 

 

DOE’s Biomass Program

 

In the past two weeks the President of the USA George W. Bush discussed energy initiatives and took part to a demonstration of alternative fuel vehicles.

Here are some of his words taken from the website ‘Energy Eficiency and Renewable Energy’ of the US department of Energy:

 

"We need to press on with battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles, and expand the use of clean diesel vehicles and biodiesel fuel. We must continue investing in new methods of producing ethanol — using everything from wood chips, to grasses, to agricultural wastes." 1

 
Bush’s main goal is that of “reducing America’s dependence on oil”. To do so he set out a plan called “Twenty in Ten” according to which America’s use of gasoline should reduce by 20 % over the next ten years.2 Instead of gasoline Bush looks forward to using alternative fuels and hybrid technology. Some examples of alternative fuels are biodiesel and ethanol. Both of them belong to the group of biomass materials.
 
Biomass is one of the most important energy resources of the US. It is a renewable energy resource and is the largest used in America since 2000. In 2003 it provided 2.9 Quadrillion Btu of energy and it was the source for 47% of all renewable energy or 4% of the total energy produced in the United States. In the same year ethanol produced from corn reached 2.81 billion gallons.3
 
Today the USA use biomass to produce, together with ethanol and biodiesel, biomass power and industrial process energy.
The Biomass Program of the US Department of Energy consists in the development of some technologies to improve the conversion of biomass into alternative fuels. Some of these processes are shown in the graphic below.

 

 

 
Biomass: Residue Harvesting, Energy Crops Sugar Platform: Enzymatic Hydrolysis, Lignin Products Products: Fuels, Chemicals, Materials, Heat & Power Thermochemical Platform: Pyrolysis, Gasification Sugar & Lignins Intermediates Gas & Liquid Intermediates Biorefineries

photo source 

 
 
The increase in the use of these biofuels (ethanol and biodiesel) is aimed at not only because it means the reduction of America’s dependence on foreign imported oil, but also because it would reduce toxic air emissions and greenhouse gas buildup and also because it would help to support agriculture and rural economies.
 

 

 

 

References

 

  • U.S. Department of ENERGY (2006). Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Retrieved on March, 27, 2007 from http://www.eere.energy.gov/
    
  • U.S. Department of Energy. Clean Energy Technology and a Vision for Victory. Retrieved on 27 March 2007 from http://www.eere.energy.gov/
 

 

 

Sources and Usage of Alternative Energy