Sustainable Transportation Fuels From Off-Peak Wind Energy, CO2, and Water

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura L. Holte ◽  
Glenn N. Doty ◽  
David L. McCree ◽  
Judy M. Doty ◽  
F. David Doty
Keyword(s):  
Wind Energy ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Sustainable Transportation ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Process Conditions ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Transportation Fuels ◽  
Carbon Neutral

Doty Energy is developing advanced processes to permit the production of fully carbon-neutral gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, ethanol, and plastics from exhaust CO2 and off-peak clean energy (wind and nuclear) at prices that can compete with fossil-derived products. Converting CO2 into fuels will eliminate the need for CO2 sequestration, reduce global CO2 emissions by 40%, and provide a nearly insatiable market for off-peak wind. It has long been known that it is theoretically possible to convert CO2 and water into standard liquid hydrocarbon fuels at high efficiency. However, the early proposals for doing this conversion had efficiencies of only 25% to 35%. That is, the chemical energy in the liquid fuels produced (gasoline, ethanol, etc.) would be about the 30% of the input energy required. The combination of the eight major technical advances made over the past two years should permit this conversion to be done at up to 60% efficiency. Off-peak grid energy averaged only $16.4/MWhr in the Minnesota hub throughout all of 2009 (the cheapest 6 hours/day averaged only $7.1/MWh). At such prices, the synthesized standard liquid fuels (dubbed “WindFuels”) should compete even when petroleum is only $45/bbl. A more scalable alternative for transportation fuels is needed than biofuels. It is in our economic and security interests to produce transportation fuels domestically at the scale of hundreds of billions of gallons per year. WindFuels can scale to this level, and as they are fully carbon-neutral they will dramatically reduce global CO2 emissions at the same time. Switching 70% of global transportation fuels from petroleum to WindFuels should be possible over the next 30 years. WindFuels will insure extremely strong growth in wind energy for many decades by generating an enormous market for off-peak wind energy. WindFuels is based largely on the commercially proven technologies of wind energy, water electrolysis, and Fischer Tropsch (FT) chemistry. Off-peak low carbon energy is used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. Some of the hydrogen is used to reduce CO2 into carbon monoxide (CO) and water via the Reverse Water Gas Shift (RWGS) reaction. The CO and the balance of the hydrogen are fed into an FT reactor similar to those used to produce fuels and chemicals from coal or natural gas. The processes have been simulated, and key experiments are being carried out to help optimize process conditions and validate the simulations.

Securing Our Transportation Future by Using Off-Peak Wind Energy to Recycle CO2 Into Fuels

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. David Doty ◽  
Laura Holte ◽  
Siddarth Shevgoor
Keyword(s):  
Wind Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Wind Farms ◽  
Water Electrolysis ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Process Conditions ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Rwgs Reaction ◽  
Order Of Magnitude

Simulations have shown that it should be possible (within a relatively short time frame) to profitably synthesize high-purity carbon-neutral ethanol, gasoline, jet fuel, propylene, and many other hydrocarbons, in volumes that cannot be matched by any other renewable avenue, from captured CO2, water, and cheap off-peak low-carbon energy, notably form wind farms. The process, dubbed WindFuels, requires no biomass, and it is expected to solve the grid stability and energy storage challenges of wind energy. The process is based largely on the commercially proven technologies of wind energy, water electrolysis, and Fischer Tropsch Synthesis (FTS) chemistry. Wind energy is used to electrolyze water into hydrogen and oxygen. Some of the hydrogen is used in a process, the so-called reverse water gas shift (RWGS) reaction, that reduces CO2 to carbon monoxide (CO) and water. The CO and the balance of the hydrogen are fed into an FT reactor, similar to that commonly used to produce fuels and chemicals from coal or natural gas. Improved sub-processes have been simulated in detail, and key experiments will soon be carried out to help optimize process conditions. Conversion efficiencies (from input electrical to output chemical) are expected to approach 60%. Putting renewable hydrogen into liquid fuels solves the distribution and storage problems that have beset utilization of hydrogen in vehicles. Converting CO2 into fuels can eliminate the need for CO2 sequestration and reduce global CO2 emissions by 40% by mid-century. The amount of water needed for the renewable FTS (RFTS) process is an order of magnitude less than needed for biofuels. The atmosphere will eventually provide an unlimited source for CO2, though initially the CO2 would come from ammonia plants, biofuel refineries, cement factories, fossil power plants, and ore refineries. When the input energy is from off-peak wind and reasonable monetary credit is included for climate benefit, WindFuels could compete when petroleum is as low as $45/bbl.

Put a Coalatom in Your Tank: The Compelling Case for a Marriage of Coal and Nuclear Energy

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott R. Penfield ◽  
Charles O. Bolthrunis
Keyword(s):  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Transportation Fuels ◽  
Energy Applications ◽  
Domestic Security ◽  
Process Energy ◽  
Technical Basis ◽  
And Storage

Increasing costs and security concerns with present fossil energy sources, plus environmental concerns related to CO2 emissions and the emergence of new technologies in the energy and transportation sectors set the stage for a marriage of convenience between coal and nuclear energy. As the price of oil continues to increase and supply becomes increasingly constrained, coal offers a secure domestic alternative to foreign oil as a source of liquid fuels. However, conventional technologies for converting coal to liquid fuels produce large quantities of CO2 that must be released or sequestered. Advanced nuclear technologies, particularly the High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR), have the potential to produce hydrogen via water splitting; however, the transportation and storage of hydrogen are significant barriers to the “Holy Grail”, the Hydrogen Economy. In a coal/nuclear marriage, the hydrogen and oxygen provided by nuclear energy are joined with coal as a source of carbon to provide liquid fuels with negligible CO2 release from the process. In combination with emerging hybrid vehicles, fuels based on a coal/nuclear marriage promise stable prices, increased domestic security and a reduction in CO2 emissions without the need to completely replace our transportation fuels infrastructure. The intent of this paper is to outline the technical basis for the above points and to show that process energy applications of nuclear energy can provide the basis for answering some of the tougher questions related to energy and the environment.

scholarly journals Impact of Clean Energy on CO2 Emissions and Economic Growth within the Phases of Renewables Diffusion in Selected European Countries

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 812
Author(s):  
Mariola Piłatowska ◽  
Andrzej Geise
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Annual Data ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Renewable Energy Consumption ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
The Impact

This study explores the impact of clean energy and non-renewable energy consumption on CO2 emissions and economic growth within two phases (formative and expansion) of renewable energy diffusion for three selected countries (France, Spain, and Sweden). The vector autoregression (VAR) model is estimated on the basis of annual data disaggregated into quarterly data. The Granger causality results reveal distinctive differences in the causality patterns across countries and two phases of renewables diffusion. Clean energy consumption contributes to a decline of emissions more clearly in the expansion phase in France and Spain. However, this effect seems to be counteracted by the increases in emissions due to economic growth and non-renewable energy consumption. Therefore, clean energy consumption has not yet led to a decoupling of economic growth from emissions in France and Spain; in contrast, the findings for Sweden evidence such a decoupling due to the neutrality between economic growth and emissions. Generally, the findings show that despite the enormous growth of renewables and active mitigation policies, CO2 emissions have not substantially decreased in selected countries or globally. Focused and coordinated policy action, not only at the EU level but also globally, is urgently needed to overhaul existing fossil-fuel economies into low-carbon economies and ultimately meet the relevant climate targets.

Systems Integration for Cost Effective Carbon Neutral Buildings: A Masdar Headquarters Case Study

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey L. Boyer ◽  
Mehdi Jalayerian ◽  
Andrew Silverstein ◽  
Mohamad T. Araji
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Natural Ventilation ◽  
Cooling System ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Carbon Neutral

Essential to the development of a low carbon economy will be the advancement of building product and process to reduce the capital and whole lifecycle cost of low, zero and net-positive energy buildings to allow these structures to be realized at a greater rate. On the whole, the built environment is responsible for one of the largest fractions of global energy consumption and thus anthropomorphic climate change, a result of the greenhouse gas emissions from power generation. When one also considers the energy required to design, fabricate, transport and construct the materials necessary to bring new building stock online, keeping pace with the rapid trend towards urbanization, the importance of the built environment in the energy sustainability equation is clearly evident. Yet, while technologically feasible, the realization of carbon neutral buildings is encumbered by the perception of increased annualized costs for operation and a greater upfront investment. This paper will review the design case of the Masdar International Headquarters, the flagship building of the net-zero carbon emission Masdar city currently being developed within the Abu Dhabi Emirates. Specifically, how an integrated approach enabled by computer simulation early within the design process allowed for improvements in economy and efficiency, setting a model for future high performance buildings. The five-story, 89,040-square-meter office building will incorporate eleven sculpted glass environmental towers to promote natural ventilation and introduce daylight to the interior of the building. These towers will also serve as the structural support for one of the world’s largest building integrated photovoltaic arrays, sized to supply 103% of the building’s total annual energy requirements while protecting the building and roof garden from intense heat and solar gains. Moreover, by integration into a separate structural trellis system, clean energy can potentially be generated to offset construction requirements while dually shading workers below during the heat of the day. This, along with other key sustainability design strategies such as a solar powered central district cooling system, thermoactive foundation piling, underfloor air distribution, desiccant dehumidification, a nanotechnology enabled building envelope and smart grid enabled facilities management infrastructure will allow the Masdar Headquarters to reach carbon neutrality within a decade, allowing for the remaining century of its operation to serve as a platform for clean energy generation.

scholarly journals Impacts of Clean Energy Substitution for Polluting Fossil-Fuels in Terminal Energy Consumption on the Economy and Environment in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (22) ◽  
pp. 6419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Chen ◽  
Ling He ◽  
Jiachuan Chen ◽  
Bo Yuan ◽  
Teng Huang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Computable General Equilibrium ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy Utilization ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Energy Transformation ◽  
Energy Substitution

China has initiated various dedicated policies on clean energy substitution for polluting fossil-fuels since the early 2010s to alleviate severe carbon emissions and environmental pollution and accelerate clean energy transformation. Using the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) regression, we project the potentials of substituting coal and oil with clean energy for different production sectors in China toward the year 2030. Based on the projections, a dynamic multi-sectoral computable general equilibrium model, CHINAGEM, is employed to examine: the impacts of future clean energy substitution on China’s energy production, outputs of non-energy sectors, macro-economy, and CO2 emissions. First, we found that most production sectors are projected to replace polluting fossil-fuels with clean energy in their terminal energy consumption in 2017–2030. Second, clean energy substitution enables producing green co-benefits that would enable improvements in energy production structure, reductions in national CO2 emissions, and better real GDP and employment. Third, technological progress in non-fossil-fuel electricity could further benefit China’s clean and low-carbon energy transformation, accelerating the reduction in CO2 emissions and clean energy substitution. Furthermore, the most beneficiary are energy-intensive and high carbon-emission sectors owing to the drop in coal and oil prices, while the most negatively affected are the downstream sectors of electricity. Through research, various tentative improvement policies are recommended, including financial support, renewable electricity development, clean energy utilization technology, and clean coal technologies.

scholarly journals Study On the Potentiality of Power Generation from Exhaust Air Energy Recovery Wind Turbine: A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 148-171
Author(s):  
Ainaa Maya Munira Ismail ◽  
Zurriati Mohd Ali ◽  
Kamariah Md Isa ◽  
Mohammad Abdullah ◽  
Fazila Mohd Zawawi
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Wind Energy ◽  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Energy Recovery ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Renewable Energy Resources

Presently the worldwide lockdown from Covid-19 give a huge effect on different sectors across the board, notably on energy consumption. Lockdowns have fuelled the intensification of low-carbon resources in terms of electricity production, yet a drastic upswing in electricity use in residential districts during the pandemic. By exploring economic renewable energy resources, the world is trying to overcome the crisis and one of them is wind energy, where this sustainable energy system is highly demanded, thus reducing global CO2 emissions. Researchers have carried out several findings on wind energy obtained from wind turbines at various potential locations, but most of it used natural sources as a wind stream. Therefore, a revolutionary concept on extracting clean energy from manufactured wind resources with wind turbine system for power generation is introduced in recent studies. The main goal of this review paper is to emphasize the performances of power generation through Exhaust Air Energy Recovery Wind Turbine. The potentiality of wind extractions is reviewed to achieve the clear overview of this new progressive ideas and the important configurations is accentuated. Most findings indicated that this energy recovery device converts wasted energy to a more profitable form by converting it to electricity, resulting in a rapid return on investment. Moreover, the enclosing the output area of wind turbines for recovering energy enhances overall efficiency.

scholarly journals Assessing CO2 Emissions from Passenger Transport with the Mixed-Use Development Model in Shenzhen International Low-Carbon City

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
Xianchun Tan ◽  
Tangqi Tu ◽  
Baihe Gu ◽  
Yuan Zeng ◽  
Tianhang Huang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Travel Demand ◽  
Development Model ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Passenger Transport ◽  
Transport Accessibility ◽  
Mixed Use ◽  
Mixed Land Use ◽  
Low Carbon City

Assessing transport CO2 emissions is important in the development of low-carbon strategies, but studies based on mixed land use are rare. This study assessed CO2 emissions from passenger transport in traffic analysis zones (TAZs) at the community level, based on a combination of the mixed-use development model and the vehicle emission calculation model. Based on mixed land use and transport accessibility, the mixed-use development model was adopted to estimate travel demand, including travel modes and distances. As a leading low-carbon city project of international cooperation in China, Shenzhen International Low-Carbon City Core Area was chosen as a case study. The results clearly illustrate travel demand and CO2 emissions of different travel modes between communities and show that car trips account for the vast majority of emissions in all types of travel modes in each community. Spatial emission differences are prominently associated with inadequately mixed land use layouts and unbalanced transport accessibility. The findings demonstrate the significance of the mixed land use and associated job-housing balance in reducing passenger CO2 emissions from passenger transport, especially in per capita emissions. Policy implications are given based on the results to facilitate sophisticated transport emission control at a finer spatial scale. This new framework can be used for assessing the impacts of urban planning on transport emissions to promote sustainable urbanization in developing countries.

scholarly journals Adsorption for efficient low carbon hydrogen production: part 2—Cyclic experiments and model predictions

Adsorption ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Streb ◽  
Marco Mazzotti
Keyword(s):  
Hydrogen Production ◽  
Carbon Capture And Storage ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Separation Performance ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Solution Theory ◽  
Feed Composition ◽  
Ideal Adsorbed Solution Theory ◽  
Adsorbed Solution ◽  
Adsorbed Solution Theory

Abstract Hydrogen as clean energy carrier is expected to play a key role in future low-carbon energy systems. In this paper, we demonstrate a new technology for coupling fossil-fuel based hydrogen production with carbon capture and storage (CCS): the integration of CO2 capture and H2 purification in a single vacuum pressure swing adsorption (VPSA) cycle. An eight step VPSA cycle is tested in a two-column lab-pilot for a ternary CO2–H2–CH4 stream representative of shifted steam methane reformer (SMR) syngas, while using commercial zeolite 13X as adsorbent. The cycle can co-purify CO2 and H2, thus reaching H2 purities up to 99.96%, CO2 purities up to 98.9%, CO2 recoveries up to 94.3% and H2 recoveries up to 81%. The key decision variables for adjusting the separation performance to reach the required targets are the heavy purge (HP) duration, the feed duration, the evacuation pressure and the flow rate of the light purge (LP). In contrast to that, the separation performance is rather insensitive towards small changes in feed composition and in HP inlet composition. Comparing the experimental results with simulation results shows that the model for describing multi-component adsorption is critical in determining the predictive capabilities of the column model. Here, the real adsorbed solution theory (RAST) is necessary to describe all experiments well, whereas neither extended isotherms nor the ideal adsorbed solution theory (IAST) can reproduce all effects observed experimentally.

scholarly journals A Review of Hydrogen Purification Technologies for Fuel Cell Vehicles

Catalysts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 393
Author(s):  
Zhemin Du ◽  
Congmin Liu ◽  
Junxiang Zhai ◽  
Xiuying Guo ◽  
Yalin Xiong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Cells ◽  
Fuel Cell ◽  
Carbon Emission ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Impurity Content ◽  
Fuel Cell Vehicle ◽  
Research Progress ◽  
Hydrogen Purification ◽  
Fuel Cell Vehicles ◽  
Low Carbon

Nowadays, we face a series of global challenges, including the growing depletion of fossil energy, environmental pollution, and global warming. The replacement of coal, petroleum, and natural gas by secondary energy resources is vital for sustainable development. Hydrogen (H2) energy is considered the ultimate energy in the 21st century because of its diverse sources, cleanliness, low carbon emission, flexibility, and high efficiency. H2 fuel cell vehicles are commonly the end-point application of H2 energy. Owing to their zero carbon emission, they are gradually replacing traditional vehicles powered by fossil fuel. As the H2 fuel cell vehicle industry rapidly develops, H2 fuel supply, especially H2 quality, attracts increasing attention. Compared with H2 for industrial use, the H2 purity requirements for fuel cells are not high. Still, the impurity content is strictly controlled since even a low amount of some impurities may irreversibly damage fuel cells’ performance and running life. This paper reviews different versions of current standards concerning H2 for fuel cell vehicles in China and abroad. Furthermore, we analyze the causes and developing trends for the changes in these standards in detail. On the other hand, according to characteristics of H2 for fuel cell vehicles, standard H2 purification technologies, such as pressure swing adsorption (PSA), membrane separation and metal hydride separation, were analyzed, and the latest research progress was reviewed.

scholarly journals Effects of Production of Woody Pellets in the Southeastern United States on the Sustainable Development Goals

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 821
Author(s):  
Keith L. Kline ◽  
Virginia H. Dale ◽  
Erin Rose ◽  
Bruce Tonn
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Southeastern United States ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Responsible Consumption ◽  
Development Goals

Wood-based pellets are produced in the southeastern United States (SE US) and shipped to Europe for the generation of heat and power. Effects of pellet production on selected Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) are evaluated using industry information, available energy consumption data, and published research findings. Challenges associated with identifying relevant SDG goals and targets for this particular bioenergy supply chain and potential deleterious impacts are also discussed. We find that production of woody pellets in the SE US and shipments to displace coal for energy in Europe generate positive effects on affordable and clean energy (SDG 7), decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), industry innovation and infrastructure (SDG 9), responsible consumption and production (SDG 12), and life on land (SDG 15). Primary strengths of the pellet supply chain in the SE US are the provisioning of employment in depressed rural areas and the displacement of fossil fuels. Weaknesses are associated with potential impacts on air, water, and biodiversity that arise if the resource base and harvest activities are improperly managed. The SE US pellet supply chain provides an opportunity for transition to low-carbon industries and innovations while incentivizing better resource management.

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