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CSNOx: 3-in-1 emission abatement system

Low-cost system reduces harmful greenhouse gas emissions from ships, power plants and other sites, with no secondary pollutants or emissions

Singapore-based research and technology company, Ecospec Global Technology, has introduced a low-cost system capable of dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions from ships, power plants, refineries, and other fossil fuel-burning sites.

The system, called CSNOx, is the first of its kind in the world capable of significantly reducing carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxide (NOx), all in a single system and by a single process. The CSNOx technology not only effectively removes emissions that contribute to climate change but does so without producing secondary pollutants or generating further CO2 emissions. Its compact size and low cost strengthen even further its potential for widespread implementation and positive impact on the environment on a global scale.

Masdar, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Mubadala Development Company focused on renewable energy and sustainability, and 1Malaysia Development Berhad (“1MDB”) have signed a cooperation agreement to explore clean technology projects and investments, including the possibility of building Malaysia’s first carbon-neutral city.

Masdar and 1MDB also intend to cooperate and invest in carbon reduction projects, under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (“CDM”) and clean technology venture capital. If fully implemented the cooperation agreement would lead to the development of new catalytic projects, with an estimated value of USD100 million.

619 free charging points to be installed by 2011 in North East England

Regional Development Agency One North East and car manufacturer Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., today entered the next phase of their partnership on the development of zero emission mobility in North East England. The two parties have signed a definitive agreement which sets out a road map for the roll-out of electric vehicles and infrastructure in North East England and cements the region's status as the national centre for the development of ultra low carbon vehicles.

United States Postal Service vehicle advertising its use of w:E85 fuel, Winter Carnival parade, Saint Paul, Minnesota.Photo:Michael Hicks/WikimediaEthanol, often promoted as a clean-burning, renewable fuel that could help wean the nation from oil, would likely worsen health problems caused by ozone, compared with gasoline, especially in winter, according to a new study led by Stanford researchers.

Ozone production from both gasoline and E85, a blend of gasoline and ethanol that is 85 per cent ethanol, is greater in warm sunny weather than during the cold weather and short days of winter, because heat and sunlight contribute to ozone formation. But E85 produces different byproducts of combustion than gasoline and generates substantially more aldehydes, which are precursors to ozone.

Photo: Sebastian Pflaum, TU MuenchenDiesel's alma mater drives engine technology toward green extreme

Just three months after the Euro 5 Norm for exhaust emissions went into force for all new car models, researchers at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) have demonstrated an engine that is already close to meeting the more stringent Euro 6 emissions standard. A research team headed by Prof. Georg Wachtmeister from the Chair of Internal Combustion Engines has succeeded in reducing the pollutants in exhaust emissions to barely measurable levels.

The Western Australian Geothermal Centre of Excellence (WAGCOE) will focus on developing technologies designed to help establish sustainable, low-emission, geothermal cities. Photo: iStockphotoA new research centre dedicated to developing technologies designed to help establish sustainable, low-emission, geothermal cities, was launched in Perth today by the Western Australian Minister for Mines and Petroleum, the Hon Norman Moore.

The Western Australian Geothermal Centre of Excellence (WAGCOE) is a joint venture between CSIRO and The University of Western Australia, in conjunction with Curtin University of Technology, and supported by the WA State Government.

A greener way to get electricity from natural gas

Proposed system uses solid-oxide fuel cells to produce power without sending greenhouse gases into the atmosphere

A new type of natural-gas electric power plant proposed by MIT researchers could provide electricity with zero carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere, at costs comparable to or less than conventional natural-gas plants, and even to coal-burning plants. But that can only come about if and when a price is set on the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases – a step the U.S. Congress and other governments are considering as a way to halt climate change.

Developing 'green' tyres that boost mileage and cut carbon dioxide emissions

A new generation of "green" automobile tyres that can boost fuel efficiency without sacrificing safety and durability is rolling their way through the research pipeline. The new tyres could help add an extra mile or two per gallon to a car's fuel economy. That's the topic of the cover story of the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News, (C&EN) ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

C&EN Senior Editor Alexander Tullo explains that rolling resistance – the friction that tyres encounter when rolling – are a major factor in a vehicle's fuel economy. It can determine up to 20 per cent of fuel economy. Overcoming it accounts for 4 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels.

Photo: University of California, IrnvineUCI computer model foresees effects of alternative transportation fuels

It's the year 2060, and 75 per cent of drivers in the Greater Los Angeles area have hydrogen fuel cell vehicles that emit only water vapour.

Look into Shane Stephens-Romero's crystal ball - a computer model called STREET - and find that air quality has significantly improved. Greenhouse gas emissions are more than 60 per cent lower than in 2009, and levels of microscopic soot and ozone are about 15 per cent and 10 per cent lower, respectively.

Customising electric cars for cost-effective urban commuting

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute have converted a 2001 Scion xB into an electric commuter vehicle that will serve as a test bed for a new community-based approach to electric vehicle design, conversion and operations.

The vehicle is part of a new research project, ChargeCar, headed by Illah Nourbakhsh, associate professor of robotics. The project is exploring how electric vehicles can be customised to cost-effectively meet an individual's specific commuting needs and how an electric vehicle's efficiency can be boosted and its battery life extended by using artificial intelligence to manage power.

USD500 million Clean Tech Fund for South Africa

Developed and developing countries endorsed a Clean Technology Fund (CTF) funding envelope of USD500 million for South Africa’s CTF Investment Plan (IP). This paves the way for South Africa to move closer to its vision of generating four percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2013, improving energy efficiency by 12 percent by 2015, and providing 1 million households with solar water heating over the next five years.

South Africa’s Long Term Mitigation Scenarios (LTMS) have allowed for the development of a national climate policy based on what is required by science to limit temperature increase to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In response to the LTMS, the Government has adopted mitigation strategies that focus on accelerated energy efficiency across all sectors, ambitious low carbon technology research and development, new clean energy sources and behavioral change, as well as regulatory mechanisms and economic instruments.

As a result of these strategies, South Africa’s emissions would grow at a reduced rate in the short term, plateau by 2030, and decline thereafter. In support of the Government’s strategies, the CTF co-financed IP will focus on scaling up grid-connected solar thermal power, utility-scale wind power development, solar water heaters, and demand-side energy efficiency. A Phase 2 of the IP is expected to include substantial investment in low carbon transport, on the basis of a transport sector greenhouse gas inventory that the Government is undertaking.

“We are delighted to receive this financial support and signal of endorsement of our clean energy plans,” said Buyelwa Sonjica, South African Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs. “Many of our citizens struggle to get access to the most basic of energy services. This plan allows us to help them move directly into a new era of energy access, based on the principle of low-carbon growth and development. In this way, South African citizens can serve as models of a new way of life based on clean energy.”

The priority areas to be funded under the CTF-funded IP are:

Conversion of a half million households from electric to solar water heating (SWH) over the next five years, by providing support to municipalities and the private sector to deploy solar water heaters. This helps move the country half-way to the Government’s ambitious goal of converting 1 million households from electric to solar water heating over the next five years. CTF support would accelerate SWH market penetration and development of a domestic SWH industry by buying down high installed cost, market development, and demonstrating business models.
An Eskom (South African electricity public utility) 100 MW-capacity Upington Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plant, which will be the first-ever commercial scale CSP plan in Sub-Saharan Africa. The IP will include final design and risk mitigation review followed by plant construction and operation, creating the transformational effect of promoting CSP deployment, particularly in the private sector, by proving the technology in operation and establishing cost and performance benchmarks. The promise of CSP is as a realistic alternative to coal power plants for base load capacity.
Eskom’s Western Cape Province Wind Energy Facility (Phase 1 100 MW wind farm), which will be the first utility-scale wind power plant. CTF support would transform the nascent wind sector with a robust pipeline of large-scale wind power projects, along with an increased understanding of the bankability of wind development projects. Investments in transmission capacity to connect Independent Power Producers to the grid would catalyze substantial private sector investment in wind power.
Increasing potential energy efficiency investments through expansion of bank lending to commercial and industrial sectors through lines of credit to commercial banks, contingent financing to foster energy service companies (ESCOs), and financial incentives or risk products to market leaders. The CTF-funded IP will address barriers to energy efficiency investments, such as high preparation and other transaction costs, perceived risk of energy efficiency projects on the part of commercial lenders, and organizational biases against investing in cost reduction.

“The governments on the CTF Trust Fund Committee welcomed the South African initiative, and appreciate the Investment Plan’s path-breaking approach,” said Zaheer Fakir, Chief Director of the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and co-chair of the CTF. “We look forward to the lessons which will emerge from this new Investment Plan, and to new clean development approaches and technologies which South Africa will help bring to the forefront.”

The CTF investments will mobilize financing of about USD1 billion from bilateral and multilateral funders, as well as the private sector. Partners in the CTF IP include the Government of South Africa, African Development Bank, World Bank, and International Finance Corporation.

The South African Investment Plan is the fifth plan endorsed by the CTF. It was endorsed together with a Moroccan Investment Plan at last week’s Trust Fund Committee meetings. Three other plans, for Turkey, Mexico, and Egypt, were approved earlier in 2009.

Renault to produce core-range zero-emission vehicle in France

Zoé Z.E. Concept car. Photo: RenaultRenault has decided to produce its future zero-emission electric city car at the Flins plant in the Paris region. Zoé Z.E. Concept, presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show, is a forerunner of this new vehicle.

Renault has chosen Flins to produce this future electric vehicle (EV) owing to the plant’s expertise and performance. The site was selected because it is specialised in the production of B segment cars (Clio Campus and New Clio).

The Flins choice is also based on Renault’s objective to produce cars as close as possible to the markets in which they will be sold, namely Europe, to optimise logistics flows. The Flins site will thus become a central hub in Renault's EV activity, producing the company's core-range electric model as well as manufacturing and recycling batteries.

Flins will begin production in 2012. The urban, versatile model is expected to account for two-thirds of the Group’s EV sales in Europe. France will be at the centre of Renault's zero-emission strategy.

The Group is currently developing future EVs at the Technocentre in Guyancourt, will produce its first zero-emission city car at Flins, and has signed a letter of intent with Nissan, the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) and France’s Strategic Investment Fund (FSI) to set up a French joint venture focused on EV battery advanced research, industrialisation and recycling.

Fully aware of the issues involved in sustainable mobility, Renault has decided to mass market a complete range of affordable zero-emission electric vehicles starting in 2011.

MIT team finishes fifth overall in solar electric vehicle race

Photo: Chris Pentacoff, MIT Solar Electric Vehicle TeamThe MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team completed the recently held World Solar Challenge in Australia, finishing in second place in the Silicon category — cars racing with off-the-shelf, terrestrial-grade silicon solar cells — and fifth place overall among 25 competitors.

The team raced their newest vehicle, Eleanor, a total of 3,021 kilometres from the northern city of Darwin to Adelaide in South Australia, in five days. Eleanor is the 10th solar vehicle that the MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team has built and raced since 1984. The vehicle’s performance in this year’s competition ranked among the team's best finishes.

Designed and built by the SEVT in 2008 and 2009, the car, weighing 430 pounds without a driver, is a fully solar-powered electric vehicle built from high-tech composites and containing the state-of-the-art in power electronics.

Power is provided by an array of six square meters of silicon solar cells that outputs a maximum of 1200 watts — less than most hairdryers. Despite this, the car with a driver can maintain highway speeds throughout the day. The array charges a battery pack designed by Genasun, a company founded by a SEVT alumnus, composed of 551 extremely high energy density lithium-ion cells donated by Panasonic. The pack is able to power the car without recharging from Boston to New York.

The MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team is a student-run organisation that designs, builds, tests, and races a solar vehicle on a two-year design cycle. Consisting mainly of undergraduates, the team competes in domestic and international competitions. The SEVT operates with the support of its sponsors, including Infinesse Corp., MIT's Edgerton Centre, Ford, and Panasonic Corp.

Recipe to design a better type of fuel cell

New formula helps increase the efficiency and decrease the cost

Fuel cells are often touted as one method to help decrease society's addiction to fossil fuels. But there is still a lot of work to be done before fuel cells will be ready for mass market to be used in transportation, home heating and portable power for emergencies.

U of C chemists Jeff Hurd and George Shimizu have taken the science behind a specific type of fuel cell towards a higher level of design. They have discovered a new material that allows a PEM fuel cell, known as a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell, to work at a higher temperature. This discovery is extremely important in terms of increasing the efficiency and decreasing the cost of PEM fuel cells.

"This research will alter the way researchers have to this point perceived candidate materials for fuel cell applications," says Shimizu a professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Calgary.

A research paper by Shimizu, Hurd, Ramanathan Vaidhyanathan and Venkataraman Thangadurai of the University of Calgary, and Christopher Ratcliffe and Igor Moudrakovski of the Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, National Research Council, has just been published in Nature Chemistry online. Shimizu filed a patent with the US patent office last year.

A fuel cell is an electrochemical energy conversion device which converts the chemicals hydrogen and oxygen into water and electrical energy. Water usually carries the ions (protons) in a hydrogen fuel cell but this research uses higher boiling molecules trapped in a molecular scaffolding.

Currently, PEM fuel cells can produce energy from hydrogen below 90 °C, just under the boiling point of water. With Shimizu's material, energy can be produced at a higher temperature, up to 150 °C. This could ultimately make the fuel cell cheaper to produce because at a higher temperature less expensive metals can be used to convert hydrogen into energy. Currently, platinum is used which is extremely expensive. Also, reactions at a higher temperature would be faster thus increasing efficiency.

"Ours is an entirely new approach that strikes a balance between having a regular molecular structure and mobile components all while showing genuine promise of application," says co-author Hurd, a PhD candidate studying chemistry at the University of Calgary.

Kevin Colbow, director of research and development at Ballard Power Systems, a company that designs and manufactures clean energy hydrogen fuel cells, calls the work significant. "We believe that further improvement on conductivity and robustness of these materials could provide next generation membranes for PEM fuel cells."

All-in-one computerised scheduling will make airports greener and more efficient

Aerial view of London Heathrow airport. Photo: Mario Roberto Duran Ortiz/WikimediaA new computerised approach to airport operations is being developed that will reduce delays, speed up baggage handling and decrease pollution.

The project is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and led by researchers at The University of Nottingham.

The research work aims to computerise and co-ordinate four key areas of airport operations: scheduling of aeroplanes taking-off and landing, gate assignment and baggage handling. The end result will be a prototype search engine capable of analysing the many billions of possible scheduling combinations so as to provide the best advice to the controllers, who decide where in the airport to send planes.

Currently these four aspects of airport operations are, in most cases, organised manually by highly skilled staff making decisions based on observations, reports and their experience. Furthermore, each activity is run in isolation from the others, which allows the potential for any difficulties in operations in one area to affect another. This can lead to delays snowballing.

As well as enhancing the experience for passengers, crucially, the improvements in scheduling will reduce pollution by minimising the time planes are on the ground with engines running. This could save thousands of litres of aviation fuel every year, a vital improvement given the growth in air travel predicted in the coming years.

A consortium of researchers from four universities are involved in the project, assisted by Manchester and Zurich Airports which will provide crucial advice and expertise from the user's point of view.

The project will see development of computational models for each of the four airport operations which, ultimately, will be run on regular PCs. Key to the research will be examining how to run them all together to streamline overall operations.

Principal investigator on the project and Dean of the Faculty of Science at The University of Nottingham, Professor Edmund Burke, says the limitations of the current systems are widely acknowledged: "Many people in the industry recognise that automating just one of these aspects could improve the efficient running of airport operations, so integrating all four would be a huge step forward."

"We'll be developing a computer system that will work its way through the many billions of permutations created daily in each of these operations, to provide a much higher level of computer-aided decision support than is currently available," says Burke. This will provide the best possible advice to runway controllers and other airport staff to inform their decisions regarding where planes and baggage are moved to.

Among the crucial issues being tackled is the matter of how long an aeroplane needs for preparation on the ground before take off. This has to include enough time for the passenger safety briefing, which is a legal requirement, and for the engines to warm up. If sent to the runway without incorporating enough time for these activities, it will mean a delay at the runway before take off. This can lead to unnecessary congestion on the runway, aircraft unnecessarily using up fuel while waiting for take off, and, potentially, delays to other flights.

Burke adds that the involvement of the two airports will also provide invaluable assistance to the multi-disciplinary team of scientists and engineers: "Working closely with Manchester and Zurich airports will ensure access to real world expertise that should help us achieve the best possible result."

The academic team in the consortium consists of representatives from: The University of Nottingham, University of Salford, Loughborough University and University of Liverpool.

Improved redox flow batteries for electric cars

The test vehicle into which researchers are integrating a redox flow battery. Photo: Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften OstfaliaA new type of redox flow battery presents a huge advantage for electric cars. If the rechargeable batteries are low, the discharged electrolyte fluid can simply be exchanged at the gas station for recharged fluid – as easy as refilling the petrol tank.

Electric mobility is becoming increasingly important. The German government’s ambitious plan envisages one million electric cars being sold in Germany by the year 2020. Until then, however, researchers still have to overcome some hurdles, such as the question of energy storage.

Lithium-ion batteries offer a possible solution, but it takes hours to charge them – time that an automobile driver doesn’t have when on the road. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT in Pfinztal near Karlsruhe see an alternative in redox flow batteries.

“These batteries are based on fluid electrolytes. They can therefore be recharged at the gas station in a few minutes – the discharged electrolyte is simply pumped out and replaced with recharged fluid,” says engineer Jens Noack from ICT. “The pumped-off electrolyte can be recharged at the gas station, for example, using a wind turbine or solar plant.”

The principle of redox flow batteries is not new – two fluid electrolytes containing metal ions flow through porous graphite felt electrodes, separated by a membrane which allows protons to pass through it. During this exchange of charge a current flows over the electrodes, which can be used by a battery powered device.

Until now, however, redox flow batteries have had the disadvantage of storing significantly less energy than lithium-ion batteries. The vehicles would only be able to cover about a quarter of the normal distance – around 25 kilometres – which means the driver would have to recharge the batteries four times as often.

“We can now increase the mileage four or fivefold, to approximately that of lithium-ion batteries,” Noack enthuses. The researchers have already produced the prototype of a cell. Now they must assemble several cells into a battery and optimise them. This further development is being carried out with colleagues from the University of Applied Sciences, Ostphalia, in Wolfenbüttel and Braunschweig. They are testing electric drives and energy storage units on model vehicles that are only a tenth of the size of normal vehicles.

The research team has already built a traditional redox flow battery into a model vehicle. A vehicle on a scale of 1:5 can be seen in action on a test rig set up at the eCarTech in Munich (Hall C3, Stand 424) from 13 to 15 October. In the coming year the researchers also want to integrate the new battery, with four times greater mileage, into a model vehicle.

Ion Tiger fuel cell unmanned air vehicle completes 23-hour flight

This photo shows the Ion Tiger in flight. The 550-watt fuel cell is show in the box in the lower left corner. Photo: Naval Research LaboratoryThe Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL's) Ion Tiger, a hydrogen-powered fuel cell unmanned air vehicle (UAV), has flown 23 hours and 17 minutes, setting an unofficial flight endurance record for a fuel-cell powered flight. The test flight took place on October 9th through 10th at Aberdeen Proving Ground. The Ion Tiger fuel cell development system team is led by NRL and includes Protonex Technology Corporation, the University of Hawaii, and HyperComp Engineering. The program is sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR).

The electric fuel cell propulsion system onboard the Ion Tiger has the low noise and signature of a battery-powered UAV, while taking advantage of hydrogen, a high-energy fuel. Fuel cells create an electrical current when they convert hydrogen and oxygen into water, with only water and heat as byproducts. The 550-Watt (0.75 horsepower) fuel cell onboard the Ion Tiger has about 4 times the efficiency of a comparable internal combustion engine and the system provides 7 times the energy in the equivalent weight of batteries. The Ion Tiger weighs approximately 37 pounds and carries a 4 to 5 pound payload.

Small UAVs are growing in importance for naval missions, as they provide capabilities ranging from surveillance collection to communication links. Electric UAVs have the additional feature of being nearly undetectable from the ground. Due to the high energy in the fuel cell system onboard the Ion Tiger, it is now possible to do long endurance missions with an electric UAV, thus allowing a larger cruise range and reducing the number of daily launches and landings. This provides more capability while saving time and effort for the crew.

In 2005, NRL backed initial research in fuel cell technologies for UAVs. Today, says NRL's Karen Swider-Lyons, "the long endurance flight was made possible by the team's research on high power, efficient fuel cell systems, lightweight hydrogen-gas storage tanks, improved thermal management, and the effective integration of these systems."

Fuel cell technology is being developed to impact the operational spectrum of technologies including ground, air and undersea vehicles and man-portable power for Marine expeditionary missions. "The Ion Tiger successfully demonstrates ONR's vision to show how efficient, clean technology can be used to improve the warfighter's capabilities," comments ONR's Michele Anderson.

Helping hybrid electric cars keep cool

Purdue University doctoral student Tannaz Harirchian holds up special chips provided by Delphi Electronics and Safety that she and Professor Suresh Garimella used to simulate what happens in a real chip. Photo: Andrew Hancock

Understanding precisely how fluid boils in tiny "microchannels" has led to formulas and models that will help engineers design systems to cool high-power electronics in electric and hybrid cars, aircraft, computers and other devices.

Allowing a liquid to boil in cooling systems dramatically increases how much heat can be removed, compared to simply heating a liquid to below its boiling point, said Suresh Garimella, the R. Eugene and Susie E. Goodson Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University.

However, boiling occurs differently in tiny channels than it does in ordinary size tubing used in conventional cooling systems.

"One big question has always been, where is the transition from macroscale boiling to microscale boiling?" said doctoral student Tannaz Harirchian. "How do you define a microchannel versus a macrochannel, and at what point do we need to apply different models to design systems? Now we have an answer."

Findings will be detailed in a research paper by Garimella and Harirchian and a keynote address to be presented by Garimella on Oct. 8 during the conference Thermal Investigations of ICs and Systems, or Therminic, from Oct. 7-9 in Leuven, Belgium. The researchers also have published several related papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Indiana's 21st Century Research and Technology Fund has provided USD1.9 million to Purdue and Delphi Corp. in Kokomo, Ind., to help commercialise the advanced cooling system using microchannels for electronic components in hybrid and electric cars. The research also is funded by the Purdue-based National Science Foundation Cooling Technologies Research Centre, a consortium of corporations, university and government laboratories working to overcome heat-transfer obstacles in developing new compact cooling technologies.

The new type of cooling system will be used to prevent overheating of devices called insulated gate bipolar transistors, high-power switching transistors used in hybrid and electric vehicles. The chips are required to drive electric motors, switching large amounts of power from the battery pack to electrical coils needed to accelerate a vehicle from zero to 60 mph in 10 seconds or less.

The devices also are needed for "regenerative braking," in which the electric motors serve as generators to brake the vehicle, generating power to recharge the battery pack; to convert electrical current to run accessories in the vehicle; and to convert alternating current to direct current to charge the battery from a plug-in line.

The high-power devices produce about four times as much heat as a conventional computer chip.

The researchers studied a "dielectric liquid," a fluid that doesn't conduct electricity, which allows it to be used directly in circuits without causing electrical shorts.

"We have finally made sense of boiling in small-scale channels and now have a nice understanding of the physics," said Garimella, director of the NSF Cooling Technologies Research Centre.

Researchers used special test chips fabricated by Delphi that are about a half-inch on each side and contain 25 temperature sensors.

"Right under each of these sensors is a little heater, so we can adjust the amount of heat we apply to specific locations on the chip and simulate what happens in a real chip," he said.

Too much heat hinders the performance of electronic chips or damages the tiny circuitry, especially in small "hot spots."

"In order to design these systems properly you need to be able to predict the heat-transfer rate and how much cooling you will get," he said.

Conventional chip-cooling methods use a small fan and finned metal plates called heat sinks, which are attached to computer chips to dissipate heat. Such air-cooled methods, however, do not remove enough heat for the advanced automotive electronics, especially because of hot air under a car's hood, Garimella said.

The microchannels are etched directly on top of the silicon chips. Because both the channels and the chip are made of silicon, there is no dramatic difference in expansion from heating, which allows chips to be stacked on top of each other with the cooling channels between each chip.

This stacking makes it possible to create more compact systems, since the chips do not have to be laid out horizontally on a circuit board as they ordinarily would.

"We can fit a lot more chips in much less real estate using this approach," Garimella said.

Unlike boiling liquid in larger cooling systems, spherical bubbles sometimes don't form in the smallest channels. Rather, one long continuous "liquid annulus," or oblong "slugs" of vapor in liquid form.

Harirchian developed formulas that allow engineers to tell when different kinds of flows occur and how to design the systems accordingly. The specific "flow regimes" -- whether the fluid is bubbly, annular or in slugs - must be known before the proper formulas can be used to predict the performance of certain channel designs.

She also determined that it's not the width or the depth of the channels that most influence the boiling behavior but the cross sectional area of each channel, said Garimella, who began the microchannel research about 10 years ago.

"I am very proud of this work," Garimella said. "We have come a long way."

Researchers used a high-speed camera to capture the behavior of the circulating fluid, studying channels as small as 100 by 100 microns and as large as 100 microns deep by about 6 millimeters wide.

"We wanted to test a wide range of channel sizes," Harirchian said.

Delphi has taken the work further, creating prototypes and commercialising the cooling technology, said Delphi's Bruce Myers, principal technical fellow.

The researchers have created a database of movies accessible on the NSF centre's Web site to demonstrate the boiling behavior in microchannels. They also have created a "complete test matrix" that enables engineers to determine how a particular system would perform given a range of channel dimensions, amount of heating and fluid flow.

"You can basically mix and match different design specifics and see the result," Garimella said.

The cooling systems also are being developed to cool the electronic controls in aircraft, military systems and for other applications.

"We hope to be able to use the new models to help us in designing vapor cycle system evaporators for aircraft thermal management," said Hal Strumpf, senior technology fellow and chief engineer for thermal systems at Honeywell International Inc. "These evaporators typically operate over the full range of flow regimes studied by Garimella's team, and each individual flow regime must be accurately modeled to predict evaporator performance."

Future research is concentrating on creating additional heat-transfer models for designing the cooling systems.

Some of the research was conducted at the Birck Nanotechnology Centre in Purdue's Discovery Park.

Give your car an eco-friendly wash

Photo: Clean Burn

40,000 gallons. That’s how much used motor oil Cloister Car Wash & Lube in Pennsylvania recycles each year using Clean Burn Used-Oil Coil Tube Boilers. How do they use the free energy created from the boilers? To generate hot water for radiant floor heating and to use in the car wash along with hot air that’s pumped back to heat the company’s quick lube operation.

“Clean Burn products help our company play a responsible environmental stewardship role in the communities where we operate,” says Mike Mountz, owner, Cloister Car Wash & Lube.

“Transporting used oil from our facilities to disposal areas is an expensive effort that always contains the potential for spills and environmental contamination. By having our own used-oil recycling systems on site, we eliminate this liability while doing something positive with the used motor oils that are generated in our daily operations.”

In addition to the positive environmental aspects, Cloister Car Wash & Lube has found that the energy generated from the Clean Burn units provides inexpensive hot water for its car wash operations and snow melt.

“We’ve invested in Clean Burn units for the past 11 years because they’re a critical part of our successful operations,” says Mountz.

“As we’ve grown in locations, we’ve added in used-oil coil tube boilers and hot air units as part of our standard practices. These units are an economical way for us to dispose of our used motor oils, transmission fluid and other fluids while gaining back on-site energy recovery. This makes a great deal of economic and environmental sense. I believe the return-on-investment is strong for any facility with oil change operations.”

Clean Burn products are used widely in the truck fleet industry, by fast lube service centres, in automobile dealerships and in the heavy construction industry. In addition, the RV, home building and marine industries are also finding valuable uses for Clean Burn products to offset rising energy costs.

Clean Burn holds numerous industry certifications and works with the U.S. government, the Environmental Protection Agency and various associations to help coordinate the establishment of standards and regulations related to heat recovery and recycling efforts involving used motor oils.

Home-based CHP plants in Germany

A Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant. Photo:Thomas Leibig

European automobile giant Volkswagen AG and renewable energy company Lichtblick AG have announced plans to jointly launch mini home-based power plants in Germany by the spring of 2010. The combined heat and power (CHP) generating units, which will provide a flexible and decentralised supply of power, are expected to open new avenues in the intelligent energy systems market.

Volkswagen will act as the technology partner, while Lichtblick will handle marketing and distribution activities.

The CHP plants will be based on Volkswagen's Ecoblue technology, which is also used in the company's Golf car model in Europe and other models sold in North America. Lichtblick will market the power generating units under the name of Zuhause-Kraftwerk in Germany.

Lichtblick, a privately funded energy company, addresses the energy requirements of 15,000 commercial establishments and about 500,000 households in the country. Established in 1998, the company is a fully owned subsidiary of Turina Holding GmbH & Company (Hamburg).

What is CHP?

Cogeneration (also combined heat and power, CHP) is the use of a heat engine or a power station to simultaneously generate both electricity and useful heat.

Conventional power plants emit the heat created as a by-product of electricity generation into the environment through cooling towers, flue gas, or by other means.
CHP or a bottoming cycle captures the by-product heat for domestic or industrial heating purposes, either very close to the plant, or – especially in Scandinavia and eastern Europe – as hot water for district heating with temperatures ranging from approximately 80 to 130 °C. This is also called decentralized energy.

In the United States, Con Edison distributes 30 billion pounds of 350 °F/180 °C steam each year through its seven cogeneration plants to 100,000 buildings in Manhattan – the biggest steam district in the world. The peak delivery is 10 million pounds per hour (corresponding to approx. 2.5 GW) This steam distribution system is the reason for the steaming manholes often seen in "gritty" New York based movies.

By-product heat at moderate temperatures (212-356°F/100-180°C) can also be used in absorption chillers for cooling. A plant producing electricity, heat and cold is sometimes called trigeneration or more generally: polygeneration plant.

Cogeneration is a thermodynamically efficient use of fuel. In separate production of electricity some energy must be rejected as waste heat, but in cogeneration this thermal energy is put to good use.

Source: Wikipedia

A Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant, which will operate on the Ecoblue natural-gas-fired turbine system, will also be configured to run on biogas in the future. The units can produce electricity on demand within 60 seconds, and can store the heat produced during electricity generation.

The heat will be used for warming water and providing centralised heating for the household. The unit will also consist of a computerised smart-metering system, which will link the household to the energy utility and the grid.

In case of a power shortfall, this feature will enable the household to transfer any surplus electricity back to the grid at short notice. Industry experts say that the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units will be a big advantage in harnessing the huge renewable energy potential in Germany and also offset the possible unpredictability of power supply from these sources.

The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plants are expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions up to 60 per cent. Energy experts are optimistic that this technology will help Germany gradually phase out coal-based and nuclear power plants. The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant will have an efficiency of about 94 per cent, compared to 30 per cent to 40 per cent efficiency of nuclear reactors.

There are plans to pay a small rent to households that install the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units and also provide a year-end bonus to homes, based on the revenues generated by Lichtblick. A feed-in tariff system will also be implemented to decide on the payment for surplus electricity purchased by the energy utility from households.

Lichtblick plans to launch the units in Hamburg, followed by other locations in the country in a phased manner. Volkswagen's Salzgitter plant, which will manufacture equipment for these mini plants, is expected to add 160 new jobs. The company has initially targeted power generation of approximately 2,000 megawatts through these units.

The Ecoblue system can only be installed in households that are linked to Germany's gas pipeline network. About 50 per cent of German households receive gas through the pipeline system, while the rest use oil to fulfil their energy needs. The cost of a Zuhause-Kraftwerk power generating system will be about 5,000 Euros (USD7,300). In the coming years, Lichtblick plans to install about 100,000 such power plants in the country.

Volkswagen has prior experience in energy generation. The company operates cogeneration power plants in Mlada Boleslaw in the Czech Republic, and Emden, Hanover, Wolfsburg and Kassel in Germany.

The company, which is the largest carmaker in Europe, operates 61 production facilities and employs 370,000 people worldwide. In a recent development, Volkswagen and Porsche entered into an agreement to merge their businesses by 2011. As part of the deal, Volkswagen will purchase a 42 per cent stake in Porsche at a reported 3.3 billion Euros (USD4.7 billion) by the end of this year.

Germany's energy-generation sector is dominated by oil, which accounts for 38 per cent of the power produced in the country. Coal, gas, nuclear power and hydropower account for 26 per cent, 24 per cent, 11 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively. Germany has set a target to generate at least 45 per cent of its energy demand from renewable sources from 2030. Energy sector analysts have observed that the distribution of Zuhause-Kraftwerk units, which should be fairly commonplace by this time, will contribute significantly toward achieving this target.