Teru Talk Newsletter
Volume II, Issue
19, May 7,
2012
Teru Talk by Michael
Theroux (pronounced
"Terú")
Teru's Trash Talk
Let's consider some of the most
common characteristics for
industrial application of waste
/ biomass-fueled, small-scale
distributed systems for
generation of combined heating,
cooling, power and/or other
commodities. Industries,
institutions and agencies with
most of the following
conditions should be thinking
hard about the sustainability
gains and money to be saved by
implementing high-efficiency,
low-emissions waste and biomass
driven
systems:
-
Operations
regularly
generate
significant
volumes of
degradable
organic wastes
and/or
bi-products
which require
costly
management;
-
Options for
waste/bi-product
recovery as a
resource are
limited, while
incentives
(economic or
otherwise)
would encourage
increased
recovery;
-
The costs of
transport of
waste/bi-product
from the
industrial
operation to
other means of
waste
management
dictate the
need for close
proximity of
feedstock
source to
conversion
system;
-
The generation
of the wastes
and/or
bi-products can
be
characterized
and audited for
variability in
composition and
management
costs;
-
The costs
and/or
availability of
energy
(electricity
and/or heat)
are presently
substantial and
restrictive;
-
Distributed
generation
systems capable
of providing 25
kilowatts to
perhaps one
megawatt of
electricity
from conversion
of organic
wastes and
residuals are
available, and
could be
integrated with
existing
operations;
-
A need for heat
production is
inherent to one
or more stages
of the
industrial
operation, and
the waste
conversion /
power
generation
systems can be
co-located with
demand for this
heat;
-
There exists a
willingness to
investigate
alternative
sources of
energy, fuels
and
commodities.
Think about it: To accomplish
the mechanics of Waste
Conversion, you need to follow
an Input-Process-Output model
... waste feedstock converts to
commodity. But figuring out
how, where and when to apply
that seemingly simple Pathway
takes Market Knowledge. The
above Characteristics can act
as a first-cut filter when we
look over our own business and
agency conditions for possible
applications, and certainly
should be considered when we
start seeking Waste Conversion
Jobs We Can
Do.
Hey
Rube!
Comments are
due 05/14/2012 (before
05/15/2012) to the Roundtable
on Sustainable Biofuels on the
issue of indirect land use
change (iLUC). See our
Action
Item posted 4/17/2012,
the links take you to a
Background Paper and an
easy-to-use comment form.
One topic to address: Option
2 in that backgrounder
mentions that use of Waste
feedstock instead of virgin
materials for conversion to
biofuel is recognized as
resulting in low iLUC, but
we feel more emphasis should
be placed on this factor. If
you do also, say so please,
and add your filed comments
to our own
by the due date.
The
Week's News
UA
Researchers Extract Chitin
from Waste Shrimp Shells for
New
Bandage
The University
of Alabama reports that
researchers have made
significant progress in
extraction of pure long-chain
molecular chitin from waste
shrimp shells to develop a new
type of antibacterial bandage.
05/06/2012
Lignol
Energy Joins Oak Ridge
Carbon Fiber Composites
Consortium
Canadian
biomass fractionation
specialist Lignol Energy
Corporation has announced it is
now a member of the Carbon
Fiber Composites Consortium.
05/05/2012
Solazyme to
Supply Dow with
Algae-Sourced Dielectric
Oil
San
Francisco's heterotrophic algae
company Solazyme announced it
has entered into a four-year
contingent offtake agreement to
supply Dow Chemical Company
with non-vegetable, microbially
produced oils for use as
bio-sourced dielectric fluids.
05/05/2012
OriginOil
and Algasol Partner for
Algal Growth and Harvesting
System
California
based OriginOil has announced
its intent to create a new
collaborative partnership with
the Spanish firm Algasol
Renewables to accelerate both
company's algal cultivation and
harvesting.
05/05/2012
EERC, DenYon
Energy Test Poultry Waste
Gasifier to Energy
System
The University
of North Dakota, Energy &
Environmental Research Center
(EERC) has announced a project
to test the EERC's proprietary
Advanced Fixed Bed Gasification
(AFBG) for conversion of
poultry waste to energy and
products. 05/04/2012
Ribbon Cut
for First Landfill Gas
Fueling Station in
Louisiana
BioCNG, LLC
has completed commissioning of
a turnkey landfill gas
conversion system producing
biomethane compressed natural
gas for vehicle fueling at the
St. Landry Parish Solid Waste
Disposal Landfill, Washington,
Louisiana.
05/04/2012
TMO Moves 2G
Ethanol Produced from
Cassava Stalks to Demo Scale
Testing
The United
Kingdom company TMO Renewables
Ltd has announced progress from
bench to demonstration scale in
use of cassava stalks, a cheap
and abundant agricultural
residue in China, as feedstock
for its proprietary cellulosic
biomass to fuel process.
05/04/2012
APP Licenses
Plasma Green Energy for
Global Construction and
Operation
United
Kingdom-based Advanced Plasma
Power (APP) has announced an
exclusive global licensing
agreement with Plasma Green
Energy LLP (PGE) to construct
and operate Gasplasma® plants
for conversion of certain
industrial wastes.
05/04/2012
Biogas-CHP
Upgrade Starts Up at
Schenectady Wastewater
Plant
The New York
State Energy Research and
Development Authority (NYSERDA)
has announced that the City of
Schenectady has unveiled its $7
million biogas to combined heat
and power upgrade to the city's
wastewater treatment plant
(WWTP). 05/03/2012
Babcock
& Wilcox Receives Full
Notice to Proceed on Florida
WtE Plant
The Babcock
& Wilcox Company (B&W)
has announced that its
subsidiary Babcock & Wilcox
Power Generation Group, Inc.
(B&W PGG) has received Full
Notice to Proceed (FNTP) for
the remainder of the
design/build contract for the
95 megawatt, 3,000 ton per day
municipal solid waste to energy
(WtE) plant in West Palm Beach,
Florida. 05/03/2012
Pratt &
Whitney Advances Biomass
Heat Recovery and Power in
UK,
Canada
Connecticut
based Pratt & Whitney Power
Systems has announced receipt
of a contract award from West
Fraser Timber Company in
British Columbia, Canada to
furnish a 13 megawatt biomass
heat recovery to renewable
power system.
05/02/2012
Core BioFuel
Selects Technip for Biomass
to Gasoline Refinery
Build-Out
Canadian
drop-in biofuel specialist CORE
BioFuel Inc. has announced
selection of Technip to
complete the construction
engineering on its first
commercial scale, 67 million
litre (about 18 million gallon)
renewable gasoline biorefinery.
05/02/2012
ACC Study:
Conversion of Waste to
Energy Offers Environmental,
Cost
Benefits
The
American Chemistry Council
has announced the
release of a study on
emerging technologies for
conversion of waste to energy,
fuels and other commodities.
05/01/2012
Dyadic
Expands Abengoa's Enzyme
License Rights to World
Wide
Florida-based
enzyme specialist Dyadic
International, Inc. has
announced
an
expansion of its license rights
to Abengoa Bioenergy New
Technologies for $5.5 million.
05/01/2012
CH4 and
Synergy Dairy Introduce New
York's Largest Biogas
Facility
The
Florida-based green energy
development firm CH4 Biogas has
announced the May 1, 2012 grand
opening of New York State's
first co-digestion manure/food
processor waste project, which
is also the largest anaerobic
digestion (AD) installation in
the state.
04/30/2012
ENER-G
Generates 2.4 MWe from
Landfill Gas for Nissan
Plant in
Mexico
United Kingdom
based ENER-G Holdings plc has
announced that ENER-G Natural
Power and its sister company
Biogas Technology Limited are
now generating power from
landfill gas under a long-term
supply contract to Nissan's car
manufacturing facility in
Aguascalientes, Mexico.
04/30/2012
The Week's Action
Items
Due
05/02/2012: Comments to CEC
on Draft RPS Guidebook
Changes
(Update)
The California
Energy Commission has released
a Revised Notice regarding the
agency's Business Meeting on
May 9, 2012, including
substantial modification of the
Lead Commissioner's Draft
changes to the
Overall Program Guidebook
for
the Renewable Energy Program
(REP) and the Renewables
Portfolio Standard (RPS)
Eligibility
Guidebook.
05/01/2012
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