New Thermal Window Technology

U.S. Dept of Energy blog post:

Hit the Road, Jack! New Thermal Window Technology Lessens Menace of Jack Frost

January 17, 2012

The frost patterns on your window might be pretty, but they're not helping you save any energy. Energy efficient windows provide an effective barrier from inclement weather. | Photo courtesy of Callie Reed.

Roland Risser

Program Manager, Building Technologies Program

What does this project do?

• This innovation will bring us closer to the Department's goal of improving the energy performance of windows by 60 percent by 2020.

Say what you want about the joys of Jack Frost nipping at your nose, but when it comes to winter wonderlands, I like mine outdoors. Etching icy messages on the insides of my windows is not exactly cozy. Therefore, I'm thankful for technology that provides an efficient and effective barrier from inclement weather.

Traco, a division of Kawneer and window manufacturer since the early 1940s, recently partnered with the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy to utilize funds from the Recovery Act to develop new window technology. These OptiQ™ Ultra Thermal Windows can reduce energy loss by up to 40 percent compared to the efficient, commercially available double-pane low-emissivity windows that are already on the market.

Each year, windows account for an estimated 4 quadrillion Btu of energy lost in U.S. buildings, totaling over $35 billion in heating and air conditioning costs. Future window systems like the OptiQ™ Ultra Thermal Windows will eventually outperform the best-insulated walls or roofs in terms of annual energy performance, peak demand reduction, and costs. This new innovation holds promise to boost both savings and comfort.

What makes these new energy efficient windows really innovative is that they include a thermally optimized frame design, enhanced frame cavities, wider thermal breaks, and high performance glazing. The combination of these and other technologies has allowed an aluminum framed window to achieve more energy savings than ever before, all while maintaining its structural integrity. Also, these windows stand up to moisture and exposure, making them good fits for many applications, such as hospitals and schools, because they won't rot or get moldy.

The fact that windows like these are available today gives me a warm feeling about the advances the industry is making. This innovation brings us closer to meeting the Department’s goal of improving the energy performance of windows by 60 percent by 2020 -- all while keeping Mr. Frost outside.

EV Technology Accelerates in Colorado

From U.S. Dept. of Energy blog:

EV Technology Accelerates in Colorado

January 13, 2012 

  

Arun Majumdar speaks at Idaho National Lab (INL) during a visit to the site earlier this week. | Photo courtesy of INL.

April Saylor

New Media Specialist, Office of Public Affairs

What does this mean for me?

• One of 48 advanced battery and electric drive projects across the country funded by Recovery Act.
• U.S. will have increased capacity to produce electric-drive vehicles batteries from virtually zero in 2008 up to 500,000 per year in 2015.

While the North American International Auto Show began this week in Detroit, ARPA-E Director Arun Majumadar is visiting another town on the cutting edge of vehicle R&D – Longmont, Colorado, home of UQM Technologies.

Beginning with their first all-composite, battery-electric passenger vehicle in the 1970s, the company has been in the electrification business for 35 years, and is no stranger to the benefits of government-industry partnerships.

Over the years, both the Energy Department and the federal government at large have successfully collaborated with UQM – which has received Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards from the Defense Department as far back as 1983 and received SBIR funding from Energy for eight different projects in electric motors and machines. In 2006, UQM received funding from EERE’s Vehicle Technologies Program via the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership to design an advanced permanent magnet motor for use in electric drive vehicles.

In 2009, following the success of the FreedomCAR project, UQM was awarded $45 million in Recovery Act funding to support the development of two types of Electric Vehicle (EV) systems: a propulsion/generator system for battery electric, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid passenger vehicles, and power assist motor/generators for parallel hybrid trucks and buses. As a result of this funding, UQM was able to build the Longmont, CO facility that Dr. Majumdar is visiting today. This site alone has the capacity to produce systems for 120,000 electric drive vehicles a year.

In keeping with emerging EV technologies, last year the Vehicles Technology Program also awarded $3 million to UQM to develop a non-rare-earth permanent magnet motor architecture, which will enable the use of low energy magnet technology. Engineering teams at several national labs will work with UQM’s engineers to develop the technology, which will support more affordable and efficient EV technologies and eliminate the need to utilize rare earth metals in these advanced engines.

It’s partnerships like this that are powering the commercialization of emerging EV technology. In fact, UQM’s recent agreement with Electric Vehicles International (EVI) and UPS to produce systems for 100 all-electric delivery vans is not only a great business success, but will be the largest deployment of a zero-tailpipe delivery fleet in California. As a National Clean Fleets Partner, UPS is a leader in reducing oil use in their fleet, and estimates that the use of these vehicles will displace 126,000 gallons of fuel a year that would have been burned running diesel trucks.

Partnerships like these across the private and public sectors are the kind of investments that are helping America win the clean energy race. Including UQM, the Recovery Act provided $2.4 billion in funding to 48 advanced battery and electric drive projects across the country, funding 30 new manufacturing plants like the one Dr. Majumdar is visiting today. Because of these investments, the U.S. will have increased our capacity to produce electric-drive vehicles batteries from virtually zero in 2008 up to 500,000 per year in 2015.

Library Patrons in New York Check-Out Renewable Energy

The following was gleaned from a December 27 blog post on the U.S. Department of Energy's web site.

Library Patrons in New York Check-Out Renewable Energy

December 27, 2011

 

The public library in Esopus, New York, used Recovery Act funds to install two photovoltaic arrays expected to generate 31,200 kWh of electricity annually -- approximately 30 percent of the library’s electricity use and a savings of nearly $4,000 in energy costs each year. | Photo courtesy of New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).

Julie McAlpin

Communications Liaison, State Energy Program

In a hamlet on the Hudson River in upstate New York, two newly installed photovoltaic arrays at the local library are generating electricity, interest in renewable energy, and community pride.

Recognizing its role as an educator and community leader, the Esopus Library used a $96,790 award from the Recovery Act to install the 22.5kW roof-mounted and 5.5kW ground-mounted photovoltaic systems.

The new solar system is expected to generate approximately 31,200 kWh of electricity annually -- approximately 30 percent of the library’s electricity use and a savings of $4,000 in energy costs each year.

The ninety-six 230-watt Sharp® photovoltaic panels, made in Memphis, Tennessee, along with the PVPowered™ 30 kW inverter and rooftop DPW Solar Mounting System were installed by a crew of eight electricians over a period of three days.

After completing the 22.5kW roof system, the city still had funds to spare. In turn, the library worked with NYSERDA to modify the project contract and spend the remaining money to add the 5.5kW ground system. The unexpected second array will deliver approximately 120 percent of the electricity that the grant was based on, while still staying within the original cost. 

DOE Blog Post: Farming Out Heat & Electricity thru Biopower

Farming Out Heat and Electricity through Biopower

December 16, 2011

 

Cows like these in Skagit County, Washington, supply the biodigester developed by Kevin Maas of Farm Power up to 70,000 gallons of manure per day. The newest Farm Power facility in Washington generates enough electricity to power 500 homes. Photo courtesy of sea_turtle.

Julie McAlpin

Communications Liaison, State Energy Program

Maas' biodigester:

• Creates electricity from the biogas produced through anaerobic digestion.
• Recycles dried, fibrous solids from the process to make cow bedding.
• Returns digested liquid waste back to farms for fertilizer.

Five years ago, Kevin Maas and his brother Daryl started a business producing electricity from what many would consider an unlikely source -- cow manure.

Kevin Maas developed an anaerobic digester and then a company around a biodigester, which heats and processes dairy manure and other organic wastes in an oxygen-free environment designed to induce digestion by bacteria and then collects the bacteria’s output -- methane-rich biogas.

The system, the first-of-its-kind in the state, stores the gas from the biodigester and then feeds it through bright yellow pipes into an engine generator to produce electricity. After digestion, the fibrous solids are separated and dried, then returned to dairy farms for use as cow bedding. The digested liquid is also returned to farms, stored in lagoons, and then spread on fields, providing nutrients for crop production.

A few years later after learning about the State Energy Program, the Maas brothers applied for and received a $1.06 million Recovery Act grant from the Department of Commerce to construct a second digester near Lynden, a small Washington town just south of the Canadian border.

Nearby MJD Farms, a dairy farm with over 2,000 cows, agreed to supply the manure -- 70,000 gallons per day. 

A closed-loop heat extractor at the Lynden facility uses the heat produced by the burning methane biogas for multiple purposes. First, it heats the digester vessel to sustain bacteria growth. Second, it dries the fiber product. Third, it heats water that is piped to a nearby commercial greenhouse for radiant floor heating.

Maas calculates that the greenhouse, owned by Van Wingerden Greenhouses, will save approximately $30,000 per year in energy costs due to its participation in the digester project. The greenhouse employs 15 workers.

Farm Power Lynden generates over 6,000 megawatt hours of electricity per year, 20 times the amount of power to run its own operations, or enough electricity to power 500 homes. The excess electricity is sold to Puget Sound Energy under a 10-year fixed-price contract.

The methane emissions eliminated by the Lynden facility are projected to reduce net annual greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 3,000 cars off the road.

Farm Power is currently working to establish additional digester projects in the state. “The State Energy Program is outstanding,” said Maas. 

Anaerobic digestion of agricultural waste is a proven and rapidly growing source of renewable energy generated at more than 150 other facilities around the country.