Texas student emphasizes his education and research program on the electrical properties of polymers. …
… “He has focused on polymers used in semiconductors, among other applications. His research includes measuring electronic properties of semiconducting polymers for use in solar cells.” …
Via University of Texas at Dallas: Research Track.
Prakash Sista, UT Grad student.
The installation of five million smart meters have been concentrated in specific states according to update from the Dept of Energy. …
… “Nearly 90 percent of the meters installed to date are in Florida, Texas, California, Idaho, Arizona, Oklahoma, Michigan, and Nevada.” …
Via Department of Energy: Smart grid modernization efforts.
Visibility in the US smart grid initiatives.
University of Texas now has the largest solar system in town as it celebrates the completion of photovoltaic power on its J. J. Pickle Research Campus. …
… “Consisting of two arrays of solar panels, the photovoltaic system is the largest completed solar project at one location in Austin.” …
Via University of Texas at Austin: Largest Solar Installation.
Solar Energy Project (PDF): The project consists of two grid-tied solar power systems. One system will be a ground-mounted array of solar panels in a field south of the Microelectronics & Engineering Research Center building. The other system will be an array of panels over a newly constructed carport west of the Bureau of Economic Geology Administration building. A monitoring system will track the energy generated at each installation.
University Facilities Services (PDF).
University of Texas President William Powers offers his insights into the future and the leadership in education and research necessary to confront society’s challenges. …
… “The public research university of the future must solve global problems, expand knowledge, and improve lives throughout society.
Our faculty are working on energy sustainability through research initiatives in carbon capture, large-scale alternative energy storage, and solar energy.” …
Via University of Texas at Austin: President’s Report.
This year’s Superbowl achieves green status through renewable energy certificates. …
… “Just Energy, North America’s largest competitive green energy retailer, will offset all direct and indirect carbon emissions associated with power generation at major Super Bowl XLV venues.
This includes energy consumed at Cowboys Stadium for the entire month leading up to Super Bowl XLV, electricity used at NFL Super Bowl headquarters, the Super Bowl Media Center, the AFC and NFC team hotels, and the electricity used at the NFL Experience Football Theme Park – the largest public event at Super Bowl.” …
Via Just Energy: Green energy at Super Bowl XLV (PDF).
UT Dallas professor Babak Fahimi develops smart grid interface device for renewable energy generation. A research prototype electronic interface switches power
intelligently from renewable sources to the grid or to electrical storage. The unit is being readied for field testing in California and Texas. …
… “This converter utilizes an adaptive controller to optimally increase efficiency and reliability for each operational condition while performing energy management algorithms to ensure the best performance.
Five years in development, the converter would be perfect for use by small to medium-size businesses, large residential buildings and shopping centers that decide to make an investment in renewable energy.” …
Via University of Texas: Electric Interface Device.
Babak Fahimi Renewable Energy Lab.
Here is a chgecklist (pdf format) from the University of Texas at Austin. lf, your team, your home, whatver.
While there is no scale or rating given the checklist offers a wide range of things to look at in your quest to be greener ... in your daily life.
Assess yourself now as a baseline and then in a few months to see what kind of progress you have made.
" ... self-assessment form covers offices, conference rooms, common areas, etc. "
Via: University of Texas at Austin Office of Sustainability LINK
West Texas has lots of wind and wind farms - and no good way to get this energy to the South East US. Pattern Energy is looking to build a 400 mile transmission line to the Atlanta area from " ... the nation's No. 1 wind state." " ... West Texas total 9,300 megawatts of capacity, ... trapped in Texas due to the state's grid configuration."
The project is not cheap - expected to cost more than $1 billion.
Via: Reuters LINK
In June of 2009 Dell announced that they source over 1/4 of their global energy needs from renewable sources.
" ... powers nine ... facilities in the United States and Europe with 100 percent renewable energy. ... Round Rock, Texas; Twin Falls, Idaho and Oklahoma City, Okla. ..."
In addition to using a significant amount of renewable energy sources they " ... plan to reduce ... greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2015. ... "
Dell follows a simple 3-step model where they work efficiently (energy-wise), use renewable energyand offset with carbon credits from verified sources.
" ... only company in the computer industry to achieve operational carbon neutrality in August 2008 ..."
Via: DELL LINK
Remote West Texas town deploys large scale batteries to manage power fluctuations. This is a pre-cursor to the infrastructure required to spread solar power across the day. …
… “If they work out, they may point the way toward large-scale storage that could even out the electrical highs and lows in a future power system that depends more on wind and solar energy than now. ” …
Via Texas A&M: Big Batteries (Link).
"Air Products ... conduct an engineering study and project plan to capture, concentrate and purify carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from industrial operations for use in enhanced oil recovery work. ... will be among several to be evaluated in 2010 by DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory for potential additional funding of the overall project."
" ... design and construct a state-of-the-art system to capture CO2 from Air Products’ steam methane reformers (SMR) located at a refinery in Port Arthur, Texas. ... recover and purify the CO2 for delivery via pipeline for enhanced oil recovery in Texas. ..."
" ... Air Products has been involved in several carbon capture demonstration projects around the world, ...information on Air Products’ CO2 purification technologies can be found at: www.airproducts.com/CO2_capture "
University of Texas team receives grant to develop smart grid tools for solar power generation. …
… “Led by engineering professors Brian Kelley, Mo Jamshidi and Hariharan Krishnaswami with assistance from undergraduate student Gerardo Trevino, the project will produce a wireless smart grid to monitor the energy and cost savings from utilizing the solar panels. The solar-energy grant is one of four that will enable solar panel installations in San Antonio. ” …
Via UT at San Antonio: Smart Energy Project.
... "Utilizing an outdoor light collector, the apparatus, dubbed Horizontal Hybrid Solar Light Pipe: An Integrated System of Daylight and Electric Light, funnels sunlight from the collector through a pipe of highly reflective material into a simulated office space built within a rail car container. " ...Via Texas A&M University: Sustainability Competition
... "Stefan’s funding will advance research into new semiconducting polymers – plastic electronics – with adjustable, or tunable, energy levels. The use of semiconducting polymers in solar cells is a promising avenue of research aimed at achieving less expensive, more efficient solar cells. Stefan expects to improve the efficiency of organic solar cells by developing and testing new semiconducting polymers with tunable opto-electronic properties. " ...Via Univ of Texas at Dallas: NSF Award
are smaller, efficient models to draw a lower load on the electrical system, which is powered by 4KW solar panel array.
Continue reading "Solar Decathlon Rice University ZeROW House Designed for Affordability" »
Baylor chemistry professor Kevin Chambliss discusses the university's research efforts to improve the conversion of biomass into ethanol. Current investigations are funded by grants from the USDA and NREL. ...
... "These compounds could have two potential roles in the whole biomass to bio-fuel conversion. One is they could be inhibitors to enzymes or microbes that ultimately help us get to ethanol. If we could identify them and subsequently understand their role in inhibition and you could get around it, you could improve efficiency. " ...Via Baylor University: Bio-fuel Research
Cell phones that can convert the sound of your voice into energy to run the phone may be coming ... Research at Texas A&M by Tahir Cagin is getting closer to self powered devices like cell phones "... converts sound waves ... into the energy it needs to keep running. ...Utilizing ..."piezoelectrics," ... a certain type of piezoelectric material can covert energy at a 100 percent increase when manufactured at a very small size – in this case, around 21 nanometers in thickness.
" ... piezoelectrics are materials (usually crystals or ceramics) that generate voltage when a form of mechanical stress is applied. "
Via: Texas A&M Chemical Engineering LINK
It is time to inject some "smarts" into the nations energy grid. A consortia to be based in Austin, Texas plans to do just that. The smarter grid will be much more efficient and possibly delay / eliminate the need for additional power plants.
Read on for more >>>> " ... nonprofit organization, the Center for the Commercialization of Electric Technology ...made up of investor-owned utility companies, a high tech firm, and six public universities ... has set out to apply the latest in communication and information technology to the grid in the form of a "smart energy network," ... will make the grid more reliable and more efficient ..."
Via: AustinChronical.com Link
... "Another project will deal with the challenges of creating better batteries that can store energy over long periods of time. Such storage is needed to maximize the utility of renewable energy sources, such as wind farms and solar panels that intermittently generate electricity. The Welch Foundation grant is part of a larger, longer-term vision to establish an Institute for Green Chemistry and Sustainability at The University of Texas at Austin. The institute would help push the university to the forefront of electrochemical research into the development of technologies such as fuel cells, solar energy and electrical energy storage. " ...Via University of Texas: $5 Million Grant to Fund Research
Continue reading "Green Research in Electrochemical Science" »
... "Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) selected a transmission scenario that will eventually transmit a total of 18,456 megawatts of wind power from West Texas and the Panhandle to metropolitan areas of the state. The PUC selected scenario 2, which is estimated to cost $4.93 billion, or approximately $4.00 per month per residential customer once construction is complete and costs are reflected in rates. It is expected that the new lines will be in service within four to five years. " ...Via Texas Public Utilities Commission: Wind Transmission Plan
Steelcase manufactures furniture. They also sponsored a windfarm?!?
Read on for more >>>>
Operations are planned to start in the spring of 2008; the "farm" is near Panhandle, Texas, Steelcase is the "sole
sponsor of this farm, Steelcase will be the largest buyer of wind power in the furniture industry."
"Steelcase is making a tangible contribution to a wind farm before it’s operational and will support it after it’s up and running. ... a much closer relationship with this project than a typical renewable energy investor ...,”
The turbines " ... standing 243 feet high will produce enough power for nearly 3,000 homes in the Panhandle area without using any fuel and without producing any emissions or pollution.... plenty of room for wheat and grain sorghum to grow underneath the quietly turning blades. The stars will remain easy to see over Panhandle, Texas."
For Steelcase " ... the wind farm is a natural evolution of its commitment made nearly a century ago to be stewards of the environment. ... complements its on-going energy reduction efforts. In North America alone, the company has cut electricity usage by over 30% in the past 5 years."
Via: Steelcase Link
"Wal-Mart ... [NYSE: WMT] ...will open ... [Jan. 18, 2007] in Kansas City, Mo. the first ...High-Efficiency stores that will use 20 percent less energy than a typical Supercenter. ... will help the retailer move one step closer to achieving its environmental goals, which include using less energy and producing less waste."
"In 2005, Mal-Wart opened two experimental stores in McKinney, Texas, and Aurora, Colo., to test several different environmentally friendly technologies, ranging from wind power to pervious pavement, from waterless urinals to light-emitting diodes. ... plans to open the next High-Efficiency store in Rockton, Ill., this spring."
"To achieve the 20 percent energy reduction ... the company will target two main energy-consuming units: the heating and air conditioning system (HVAC), and the refrigeration system. ... the new HVAC and more efficient refrigeration systems are fully integrated so that 100 percent of the heat rejected by the refrigeration system is reclaimed into the HVAC. The reclaimed heat is then converted into usable energy. By incorporating a loop-piping design, the ... system also reduces the amount of installed copper and the total refrigerant charge required."
"Other energy-saving technologies ... include the installation of ultra-efficient case fans, glass doors on medium temperature grocery cases, RollSeal® quick response doors to seal air in areas such as the Garden Center, and a top-of-the-line dehumidification system. ... a daylight harvesting system, which uses skylights to refract daylight throughout the store and light sensors ... During periods of higher natural daylight, the system then dims or turns off the store lights when they aren’t needed, ..."
"... also features GE’s energy-saving light-emitting diode (LED) refrigerated case lighting. LEDs have a longer life span than fluorescent bulbs, produce less heat and use significantly less energy than typical grocery case lighting. ... motion sensor-driven LED lights have been installed in all freezer and medium-temperature refrigerated cases. ... the lights in these cases automatically turn off, and quickly turn back on when a customer approaches."
"...is committed to selling products that sustain our resources and our environment. As part of this store’s grand opening events,...donation of 21,000 compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), Wal-Mart will aid the city’s campaign to distribute CFLs to low-income and senior citizen households in Kansas City, Mo. ..".
Via: Wal*Mart.com Link
Yahoo picked 10 Cities that "in no particular order -- ... putting residents first. That means they're obsessed with clean air and clean water, renewable energy, reliable city buses, trams, streetcars and subways, a growing number of parks and greenbelts, farmer's markets and, very important, opportunities for community involvement."
"Portland, Oregon - ... More than 30 years ago, ... tore down a six-lane expressway to make room for a waterfront park. ... set an urban growth boundary to protect 25 million acres of forest and farmland, started a solid-waste program that recycles more than half of the city's trash and erected more than 50 public buildings that meet tough standards set by the United States Green Building Council. ..."
"Austin, Texas - Home to the first Whole Foods Market ... 205 parks, 14 nature preserves, and 25 greenbelts. ... plans to meet 20 percent of its energy needs with renewable energy and energy efficiency by 2020. ... a recycling center that dates back to 1970, a dozen outdoor farmer's markets, city buses that offer free rides on 'high ozone' days and an innovative "pay-as-you-throw" trash collection program that rewards residents for being less wasteful ..."
Minneapolis, Minnesota - ... more than 60 percent of downtown workers use public or alternative transportation ... Free parking for registered van and car pools, an extensive bike path and bike lane system and employer-sponsored showers ... Minnesota State Department of Commerce nudging businesses and residents to hook solar systems up to the city's grid, ..."
"Boulder, Colorado - ... city planners started preserving parkland in 1898. ... more than 90 percent of residents recycle, where new water meters are not allowed above certain elevation, thus protecting ridgelines and peaks, and where, when recent federal tax cuts gutted city budgets, residents voted themselves a third sales-tax hike to raise $51 million to buy and protect even more open land."
"Burlington, Vermont - ... More than one-third of all energy used in the city comes from renewable resources, ... laws don't allow the use of pesticides on public parks, land or waterways. ... residents formed an extensive network of citizen-based groups that take on everything from environmental programs to clean up toxic sites to watchdog groups to monitor pollution in Lake Champlain. ..."
"Madison, Wisconsin - ... first city in the United States to offer curbside recycling ... 15,000 acres of lakes and 6,000 acres of parkland ... recycling program gets a whopping 97 percent participation, with 265 tons of material... collected each week.... bike-friendly city with more than 100 miles of bike paths ...a place where there are three bikes for every car."
"New York, New York - ... More than 80 percent of NYC residents use public transportation,... New Yorkers burn gasoline at the rate the U.S. did in the 1920s. ... ... Per capita, New Yorkers use fewer resources and put less pressure on their surroundings than any other city of its size. ..."S
"San Francisco, California - ... bus, subway and ferry services that reach throughout the Bay Area, .. . more than half the city's residents use public or alternative transportation to get to work. ... Prevailing winds ... help keep pollution at bay. ... leader in green building, with more than 20 building projects registered for official green certification. And city residents are willing to tax themselves. Voters said yes to allowing the city to sell $100 million in revenue bonds to support renewable energy."
"Santa Monica, California - ... Three of every four of the city's public works vehicles run on alternative fuel, ... among the largest such fleets in the country. All public buildings use renewable energy. ... the city has cut greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 10 percent, ... an urban runoff facility catches 3.5 million gallons of water each week that would otherwise flow into the bay. ..."
"Chicago, Illinois - ... has 42 green-certified building projects, with more to come. ... city's nine museums and the Art Institute ... converted to run partially on solar power. ... one-third of all residents use public transportation to get to work. ...energy goals, likely to be met, is buying 20 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources this year. ... give tax incentives to homeowners who invest in Chicago's many historic homes and retrofit them with energy efficient heating and cooling systems, as well as water-saving plumbing. ..."
Via: Yahoo.com Link