World?s largest advanced gasification waste energy plant in the works

Air Products will build and operate the world’s largest renewable energy plant in the UK using advanced gasification energy-from-waste (EfW) technology. The Tees Valley plant, located at the New Energy and Technology Business Park, near Billingham, Teesside, will be the first of its kind in the UK, and the largest of its kind anywhere in the world with an approximate capacity of 50 MW. The plant is expected to produce enough reliable, controllable, and renewable electricity to power up to 50,000 homes. Situated in a location with good access and connectivity to the local and national electrical distribution infrastructure and in close proximity to landfill disposal facilities, it will divert up to 350,000 metric tons of non-recyclable waste from the landfill per year – helping to meet the UK’s waste diversion targets. The Westinghouse advanced gasification technology provided by AlterNRG, is a leading next generation of EfW technologies. It offers a more efficient, cleaner conversion of waste-to-power than traditional EfW technologies and has the potential to generate a wider range of useful products, including heat, hydrogen, chemicals and fuels, the company said. Longer term, the potential generation of renewable hydrogen could be deployed for commercial use, such as fuelling public transport. “Our investment in advanced gasification EfW technology is a natural extension of our onsite business model. Offering an innovative growth opportunity, it allows us to further extend our leading position in the global energy market and continue to deliver on Air Products’ commitment to sustainability,” said John McGlade, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Air Products. “The UK is committed to diversifying its sources of energy, strengthening its energy security and reducing carbon emissions," he continued. "This pioneering clean energy technology model is well-suited to these requirements, offering a sustainable solution to the UK’s waste management strategy. The facility will also create skilled jobs in the area and we are hopeful it will provide an indirect boost to the local economy through the use of local service companies, hotels and other businesses.” Air Products has secured the necessary environmental and planning approvals and the renewable energy facility is scheduled to enter commercial operation in 2014. Work has already begun to prepare the site. Full-scale construction activities will begin ramping up in the coming weeks. The plant is expected to create up to 700 construction jobs and over 50 permanent jobs once operational. “Advanced gasification has a key role to play in delivering renewable energy and I warmly welcome the decision by Air Products to proceed with its Tees Valley Renewable Energy Facility. Air Products' announcement reflects the UK’s commitment and support for clean energy, combined with our stable and transparent environment for investors,” said UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. "With the world's spotlight on the UK this summer, we are working hard through the British Business Embassy program to help UK and international companies to capitalize on new trade and investment opportunities to deliver safe, secure, sustainable and smarter energy ‘ecosystems’, from extraction through to the end user,” Clegg added. Source: Renewable Energy Magazine

Read More........→January 21, 2013

New biofuel process dramatically improves energy recovery

A new biofuel production process created by Michigan State University researchers produces energy more than 20 times higher than existing methods. The results, published in the current issue of Environmental Science and Technology, showcase a novel way to use microbes to produce biofuel and hydrogen, all while consuming agricultural wastes. Gemma Reguera, MSU microbiologist, has developed bioelectrochemical systems known as microbial electrolysis cells, or MECs, using bacteria to breakdown and ferment agricultural waste into ethanol. Reguera’s platform is unique because it employs a second bacterium, which, when added to the mix, removes all the waste fermentation byproducts or nonethanol materials while generating electricity. Similar microbial fuel cells have been investigated before. However, maximum energy recoveries from corn stover, a common feedstock for biofuels, hover around 3.5 percent. Reguera’s platform, despite the energy invested in chemical pretreatment of the corn stover, averaged 35 to 40 percent energy recovery just from the fermentation process, said Reguera, an AgBioResearch scientist who co-authored the paper with Allison Spears, MSU graduate student. “This is because the fermentative bacterium was carefully selected to degrade and ferment agricultural wastes into ethanol efficiently and to produce byproducts that could be metabolized by the electricity-producing bacterium,” Reguera said. “By removing the waste products of fermentation, the growth and metabolism of the fermentative bacterium also was stimulated. Basically, each step we take is custom-designed to be optimal.” The second bacterium, Geobacter sulfurreducens, generates electricity. The electricity, however, isn’t harvested as an output. It is used to generate hydrogen in the MEC to increase the energy recovery process even more, Reguera said. “When the MEC generates hydrogen, it actually doubles the energy recoveries,” she said. “We increased energy recovery to 73 percent. So the potential is definitely there to make this platform attractive for processing agricultural wastes.” Reguera’s fuel cells use corn stover treated by the ammonia fiber expansion process, an advanced pretreatment technology pioneered at MSU. AFEX is an already proven method that was developed by Bruce Dale, MSU professor of chemical engineering and materials science. Dale is currently working to make AFEX viable on a commercial scale. In a similar vein, Reguera is continuing to optimize her MECs so they, too, can be scaled up on a commercial basis. Her goal is to develop decentralized systems that can help process agricultural wastes. Decentralized systems could be customized at small to medium scales (scales such as compost bins and small silages, for example) to provide an attractive method to recycle the wastes while generating fuel for farms. Source: Renewable Energy Magazine,

Read More........→December 17, 2012

New technology can produce 'petrol from air'

A small British firm claimed to have developed a revolutionary new technology that can produce petrol using just air and electricity. A company in the north of England has developed the "air capture" technology to create synthetic petrol which experts have hailed as a potential "game-changer" in the battle against climate change and a saviour for the world's energy crisis. The technology, presented to a London engineering conference this week, works by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, The Telegraph reported. The 'petrol from air' technology involves taking sodium hydroxide and mixing it with carbon dioxide before 'electrolysing' the sodium carbonate that it produces to form pure carbon dioxide. Hydrogen is then produced by electrolysing water vapour captured with a dehumidifier. The company, Air Fuel Syndication, uses the carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce methanol which in turn is passed through a gasoline fuel reactor, creating petrol. Company officials claimed to have produced five litres of petrol in less than three months from a small refinery in Stockton-on-Tees, Teesside. The fuel that is produced can be used in any regular petrol tank and, if renewable energy is used to provide the electricity it could become "completely carbon neutral". The company hopes to build a large plant, which could produce more than a tonne of petrol every day, within two years and a refinery size operation within the next 15 years. Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) officials admitted that while the described technology is "too good to be true but it is true", and said that it could prove to be a "game-changer" in the battle against climate change. Stephen Tetlow, the IMechE chief executive, hailed the breakthrough as "truly groundbreaking". "It has the potential to become a great British success story, which opens up a crucial opportunity to reduce carbon emissions," he was quoted as saying by the paper. "Air capture technology ultimately has the potential to become a game-changer in our quest to avoid dangerous climate change," Dr Tim Fox, the organisation's head of energy and environment, added. Peter Harrison, the company's 58-year-old chief executive said that he was "excited" about the technology's potential, which "uses renewable energy in a slightly different way". "People do find it unusual when I tell them what we are working on and realise what it means. It is an opportunity for a technology to make an impact on climate change and make an impact on the energy crisis facing this country and the world, said Mr Harrison, a civil engineer from Darlington, County Durham. "It looks and smells like petrol but it is much cleaner and we don't have any nasty bits," he said. Source: Indian Express

Read More........→October 29, 2012

Space bugs offer new source of power

Bacteria normally found 30km above the earth have been found to be efficient generators of electricity. Bacillus stratosphericus and B. altitudinis are microbes found in high concentrations in the stratosphere -although the Newcastle University team rather more prosaically, isolated them from a nearby river after they were brought down to earth as a result of atmospheric cycling processes. Microbial fuel cells use bacteria to convert organic compounds directly intoelectricity by a process known as bio-catalytic oxidation. A biofilm – or 'slime' – coats the carbon electrodes of the MFC and as the bacteria feed, they produce electrons which pass into the electrodes and generate electricity. The team tested the power-generation of 75 different species of bacteria using a Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC). And by selecting the best, they were able to create an artificial biofilm, doubling the electrical output of the MFC from 105 Watts per cubic metre to 200 Watts per cubic metre. While still relatively low, this would be enough power to run an electric light, they say, and could provide a much needed power source in parts of the world without electricity. "What we have done is deliberately manipulate the microbial mix to engineer a biofilm that is more efficient at generating electricity," says professor of marine biotechnology Grant Burgess. "This is the first time individual microbes have been studied and selected in this way. Finding B. altitudinis was quite a surprise but what it demonstrates is the potential of this technique for the future – there are billions of microbes out there with the potential to generate power."Source: The Ultimate Update

Read More........→September 22, 2012

Poo powered motorcycle kicking up a stink in Japan

The bike runs on bio-fuel from the discharge of livestock or waste water (Picture: AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

An eco-friendly motorbike powered by poo has been kicking up a stink across Japan after being unveiled this week. Created by Japan's leading toilet makers TOTO, the energy efficient bike certainly meets the motor industry's demand for more climate friendly vehicles. Talks to turn the ambitious project into reality have been on-going since 2009, with the latest version of the 'Toilet Bike Neo' making its debut at s showroom in Fujisawa, near Tokyo, on Thursday. The environmentally friendly three-wheel 250cc motorcycle features a specially customised toilet-shaped seat that runs on bio-fuel from the discharge of livestock or waste water. Despite the eye-catching seat, TOTO is keen to point out that the motorcycle does actually not run on the rider's waste. 'Toilet Bike Neo' does not have the mechanism to run on the rider's waste,' explained the company in a blog post. 'It runs biogas fuel (fertilised, purified and compressed livestock waste and household wastewater) provided by Shika-oi Town in Hokkaido and Kobe city. 'Therefore, the Neo rest seat does not function as a toilet, and has been created for promoting TOTO's environmental efforts. 'TOTO has set up the project to inform everyone about what we have done in the past, and what we will do in the future. 'Source: SAM Daily Times

Read More........→August 25, 2012