Industry publication, December 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

Plentiful,‘Green’ Resources Seen s Dream Energies of the Future New focus is on fuel cells, wind turbines and biomass H 1^^ espite decades of research |||m I land many government incentives, renewable- energy technologies still struggle on “organic” biomass, defined as combustible cropland and forest materials, wood-processing and agriculture wastes and urban with technical challenges and wood wastes. Organic biomass high costs. But the lure of non- produces lower carbon dioxide polluting, infinite energy re- emissions than fossil fuels and sources keeps attention focused contains negligible amounts of on making the dream a reality. sulfur compared to its solid-fuel Leading the field in alternative counterparts coal and petcoke. technologies today are fuel cells, I 5 Organic biomass fuels about wind turbines and biomass-based B 350 U.S. powerplants totaling gasification. K 7,500 Mw, in direct-fired or Fuel-cell researchers seek cost- “mass-fired” conventional boil­ effective ways to convert or “re­ ers. The 1978 Public UtUity Reg­ form” natural gas, propane, ulatory Policies Act spurred a methanol and diesel oil into the s construction boom but many hydrogen that cells require. 1980s-era plants shut down when Another hurdle is fuel cells’ lucrative PURPA deals expired or own capital cost, nearly $4,000 were bought out by local utili­ per kw. Research to reduce the ties. Many direct-fired biomass cost of solid-oxide fuel cells got a plants also suffered from high big push in 1999, when the U.S. O&M costs, a consequence of Energy Dept awarded grants to high moisture and contami­ four firms: McDermott Technol- nants in biomass fuel. o^ Inc., Alliance, Ohio; Allied ■I Newer technologies are being Signal Inc., Torrance, Calif.; developed. These include co-fir- NexTech Materials Ltd., Wor- I ing biomass in existing coal­ thington, Ohio; and Technology based powerplants, firing it in Management Inc., Cleveland. fluidized-bed boilers and gasify­ One of the world’s largest ... ing it to create a low-Btu syn­ fuel-cell projects, 1 Mw, was in­ thetic gas capable of fueling a stalled in 2000 at an Anchorage gas turbine, a reciprocating gas by Chu- engine or a fuel cell. Six U.S. Electric Association it powerplants are now co-firing five fuel coal and biomass commercially. cells and was driven by the need The issue is whether fuel savings for power reliability in “the high SLOWIN’ IN THE WIND 2,000 Mw of capacity came on line In 2001. with biomass coal-firing can off­ nines,” or 99.99%. ~ set capital costs needed to mod- Windpower may be the fastest growing electronic controls, in sizes ranging from ify a plant and labor and maintenance alternative. About 2,000 Mw of new U.S. 250 kw to more than 1 Mw. Despite wind- costs to operate the co-firing system. windpower capacity came onlinein2001, turbine improvements, low capacity, cata­ Gasification technology may be the mostly in the Midwest, Texas and the strophic storm damage and premature best hope for the future. The two most Northwest. The American Wind Energy turbine failures feed doubts about wind- advanced biomass-gasification projects, in Association says there are now 175 sup­ farm reliability and equipment durability. Maui, Hawaii, and Burlington, Vt., both pliers offering wind-based products to Interest in biomass-fueled technology aim to produce biogas that can be fired in customers. Proponents attribute growth is being driven by global climate change a 5-Mw to 10-Mw gas turbine and are at a to steady technical improvements, which concerns. Broad definitions of biomass in­ similar development stage. Gasifiers have have cut costs by nearly 80% since the clude methane gas produced by landfills successfully gasified biomass fuel, but first modem wind farms started up in the and wastewater-treatment plants, as well exhaust-gas cleanup system testing and early 1980s. There are now more robust as municipal solid waste burned in con­ actual firing in a gas turbine await □ turbines, lighter blades and varied-speed ventional boilers. Current interest focuses By Robert Swanekamp

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