Conservation and Alternative Energy

These are notes for similar energy presentations made for the Men's Breakfast Group at Lenox Community Center on 3/4/2008, and for the Minnesota Futurists on 4/5/08. The first was re-broadcast on community TV.

Abstract: Starting with the big picture, the US Energy Flows for 2002 and 2006 were compared and contrasted. A link for the DOE energy forecast through 2030 is included. A few home conservation experiments over a 30 year period were described, some with unexpected, or unintended consequences. Examples of local alternative energy sources were described, including successes and failures. Conclusion was a SWOT discussion (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats).

The big energy picture

Newest US Energy Flow Charts and Archives - Source: US DOE LLNL
Note electrical distribution and transportation losses and waste.
Xcel comments about losses.
Energy Projections to 2030 - Source: US DOE Energy Information Administration
PBS charts - Small temperature rise, small ocean level rise, larger CO² rise.

Energy Conservation - Home Experiments

RECENT EVENTS
8/19/08 Changed XCEL account to 'Wind-source'. We will pay a wind surcharge, but no fuel surcharge.
8/20/08 Replaced kitchen incandescents with motion detecting fluorescents. Between the LEDs and the fluorescents, there are few incandescents left.
8/29/08 Replaced last 2 moderate usage incandescent lamps with CFLs.

Home laboratory: 32 years of natural gas and electricity usage data.
What I discovered was surprising.
Some conservation efforts provide more benefits than others.
What works, what does not:
Energy drivers: Structure design, furnace, insulation, set-back, pilot-less ignition, number of residents, teenagers.

Lighting comparison of various lamps, cost, efficiency. Pictures and comparisons below.
Home CFL Experiment details: Installing 13 CFLs in the late fall of 2006. Electical usage went down 4.4%, Natural gas usage went up 9%, because my furnace had to work harder because of reduced 'waste' heat. Also, 2007 was a little colder than 2006.
My energy costs in 2007:
Electrical $594.39 $34 per million BTUs.
Natural gas $941.56 $12 per million BTUs.
EPA Broken CFL cleanup instructions.
City of St. Louis Park traffic light LED success story.
Hennepin County traffic light LED success story.
City of St. Louis Park LED pilot street light.
DOE LED Research.

Typical Home Electrical Load: Devices with motors top the list. I used 5,249 kilowatt hours in 2005. That's about 600 watts/hour, average. A typical home lighting load is 8%. Before the CFL experiment, turning off all my lights for a year would save only $48.
Lamp Examples: Incandescent flood lamp Incandescent 100 watt Halogen Capsulite 72 watt CFL 24 watt LED 4 watt EPA Broken CFL cleanup instructions.
Lamp efficiency and life (hours).
Standard 4 watt LED. Equivalent to 40 watt incandescent. I like these, but they aren't bright enough yet, and are too expensive. Cost was $14.95, 11/2007.
Led color problem. The Queen Bee didn't like it. Returned for credit. Distributor is discontinuing this style because of inconsistent color. Way too expensive: Cost was $67.95, 11/2007. 8/20/08 Replaced fixture with motion detecting fluorescents.
CFL PAR (Parabolic aluminized reflector) are not suitable for outdoor applications in Minnesota. At temperatures below 32° F, they come on very dim. Below 0° F, they may not come on at all. Also, CFLs, like other fluorescent lamps, are defined as hazardous waste, because of the mercury content, and must be disposed of like other hazardous waste. Disposed of at HC site, 3/26/08. Replaced with LEDs 7/16/08. 4 watts each!
LED PAR are bluish, but less noticeable by themselves. One was half as bright as the other, but is working ok now. I like these! I bought more when the cost came down. Cost was $59.80 each, 11/2007. 3/17/08 $69 because of weaker dollar. 7/02/08 Found a $20 source. 5 of 6 worked. 2nd of 6 failed 10/2/08. Made in Spain, I think.
LED Traffic Lights. City of St. Louis Park: An LED success story, since 2003. Wasn't entirely credible. Hennepin County also claims to use LEDs. If lamps were incandescent, this site would use about as much power as my house. With LED lamps, the power requirement would be 1/10. Hennepin County claims to be relamping traffic lights with LEDs.
LED Street Light. City of St. Louis Park: Test site. North of Hwy 7, West of Ottawa, North of the pedestrian overpass.
Green LED traffic light going bad. (4 lamps) LED traffic lights fail gracefully. The green ones seem to fail a lot here in MN, either because of the temperature extremes, or the poor quality of the materials purchased. Southbound Ridgedale Drive, east of Ridgedale, Minnetonka, MN, 4/12/08.
Energy saving tractor on Winnetka Avenue. How would you like to be a grandchild here? There are more pictures below.

Local Alternative Energy Examples

Solar Energy - Hot air, passive thermal & solar electric cells. Pictures below. New technology coming.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell - Hennepin County Library, Eden Prairie - Picture below.
Matsushita Home Fuel Cell
Mitubishi Home Fuel Cell - 1 kilowatt for $6000.
Wind and Hydro-electric Power in Minnesota.
Wind Generation Residential cost: $6,000-26,000
Small Wind Power Generators
Wind Assisted Cargo Ships
Geo-thermal - Southdale, since 1956.
Electric stand-by generator cost: $6,000+
Corn Ethanol - A bad deal for many reasons:
Brazil cane sugar, switchgrass, and $0.54/gallon import tariff.
NY TIMES BLOG, 9/24/2007
Papers - Berkeley & Cornell Report - Patzek and Pimentel
USDA 2008 version. - Shapouri, Duffield, and Wang.
MN Auditor's Report 97-04
Fusion power remains a far off dream.

Solar project during the second energy 'crisis' in 1982: These were home-made hot-air collectors. In Minnesota, at 45° north latitude, the primary benefits were shade on the south side, and protection from the rain and snow. While it produced thermal energy, the electricity for the fan and second generation water pump probably exceeded any thermal benefit.
A passive solar house in South Minneapolis. I found this house by accident, because of a construction detour. This house is in deep shade in the summer time.
Solar cells(75)(9500 watts) on West Lake Street, in St. Louis Park, MN.
The fuel cell at Hennepin County Library, Eden Prairie Branch: There is an excellent description and explanation inside the library, on the south wall. 1/28/2008: Picture updated. Snow is on top. Power switch is off. There are still no fan or pump noises. Hennepin County has some other excellent and innovative pilot energy projects. Update, 8/28/08: Still not working.
Fuel cell module, showing plates. This is part of the excellent display inside the EP library.
Hydro-electric generation in Minnesota: St. Anthony Falls, (only Xcel facility) Ford Motor Co., Ramsey County St. Cloud Hydro, Sherburne County Rapidan Hydro Plant, Blue Earth County Hastings Utilities Dept., Dakota County Byllesby, Dakota County
Wind Power. Macalester College, St. Paul, MN. (10kw) Wasn't turning 1/9/08.
Wind Power. Great River Energy HQ in Maple Grove. (225 kw) Wasn't turning 3/26/08.
Geo-thermal heat pump. Southdale - Since 1956 Edina, MN
"... government's only true interest in ethanol production lies in placating its agricultural lobby, which in turn is seeking to cash in on forced legislative mandates for domestic ethanol production." NY TIMES BLOG, 9/24/2007. The Great Ethanol Scam, Business Week 5/09
Energy Content, per gallon: Energy Required. I could not find credible numbers for energy required. There is no consensus. There is, however, a high water requirement for corn ethanol.
Molecular formulas for various hydrocarbons, hydrogen, and carbohydrates.

Home Solar Energy

A personal research project the summer of 2007 was solar energy. I found a local business site with a 9.75 kw, grid-tied system. I was able to see this system close-up, and study the system manual. I also spent many hours collecting information on the internet.

The project proved to be shorter than I expected. During due diligence, I discovered my available sites did not have enough hours of direct summer sun light per day.

My home used 5,249 kilowatt-hours of electrical power in 2006 (about 600 watts per hour average), which cost less than $600. The smallest commercially available "approved" residential system produces 1 kilowatt, and has a minimum installed cost of $13k. It appears there is a $2k federal credit, a $2k state credit, a sales tax exemption, and some lesser benefits. In my case, the payback is just not there.

There is a picture above, of my first solar energy project, during the second energy crisis in 1981. These 2 home-made hot-air collectors were 4 ft by 8 ft. I operated them for 2-1/2 years. The final year, I installed a hot-air to hot-water converter, to preheat water for our hot water heater. The economic benefit of the project was marginal. Still, it was interesting and educational.

Energy Reference Links

Home Fuel Cell

Matsushita Home Fuel Cell
Mitubishi Home Fuel Cell - 1 kilowatt for $6000.

Wind

Solar

Ameresco Colar - Solar power map
Innovative Power Systems - Local solar contractor
First Solar
Wikipedia - Solar Energy
Federal tax credit
Minnesota tax credits and grants
Build it Solar - Check new content.

Suppliers, cells & inverters

nanosolar - $1/watt. Total production is sold out to a German company until 2009.
Sunwize
Silicon Solar
Plastecs
Northern Tool
Power from Sun
Solar Path 1
Grid Synchronized Power Inverters

Retail Suppliers, LED lamps

2009 Menard's began stocking a selection of better Feit LED lamps. Bought 2 in August.
6/24/2009 Walmart began stocking a selection of LEDs made by Lights of America. Bought 3 in June. Two of the 3 failed at 9 months, with extremely low usage. 4/9/2010 Exchanging them was a BIG hassle at Walmart.

Other Suppliers, LED lamps

LightingOnTheNet - Lower cost. Responsive. Bought 6 July 08. 5 worked. But, appears to be out of business 4/09
Best-Home-LED-Lighting - First test order November 07. Great customer service. Expensive.
CleanLightGreenLight
BetterLifeProducts
EarthTechProducts
Super Bright LEDs - 115 VAC lamps

Suppliers, Other

P3 Kill-a-watt - Power consumption measuring device.
Blueprintforgreen.com