A 'thinking' New Year to all of you

This blog has been a new experiment we at Enzen have undertaken this year - to make the world at large aware of a life-essential area that will determine how nations fare in the future, and where we leave our planet.

We have been attempting to bring to the table some of the issues and challenges that require fresh thinking. We believe everyone of us can contribute, expert or no expert. For, it is not the technology as much as what it holds out, that has been our focus.

In this effort, we would like to thank some of the energy blogs and green sites we have come to rely on for the latest news in the field. These are listed on our homepage as our Must Reads.

Feeling our way in a new open space, we have been learning how to blog better, from our peers and fellow bloggers. Sometimes it becomes a bit disappointing to see no responses. At other times, a single brief response has been enough to set the spirit soaring. Somebody is reading, so we can hope for an impact somewhere. We believe in the power of the individual to drive change. All it needs is for each of you to pass on this blog id to a friend who you think is concerned about these issues.

We do realise there are many of you who read the blog and have sent in your appreciations. We would like your comments too, on the posts. Do NOT hesitate to voice your opinion or even questions, however basic they be. We need to think and ask questions like never before.

It is time all of us exert our collective influence on our policy makers and this can be done best by active participation in such forums. We cannot afford to leave our nation and planet in the hands of a few. Energy can build or destroy. We must channelise it in the most productive, environmentally friendly ways so that a majority benefits.

If somewhere along the way, the discussions we ignite here help steer our policies in the right direction, that would be the capital we are paid in.

Wishing all of you a productive, peaceful, joyous and 'thinking' new year.

(The picture has been sourced from TreeHugger site, one which we have been following keenly with its rich diversity topics on all things green. )

The mantra is efficiency

The integrated policy report drafted by Planning Commission committee was approved last week by the Union government. The report addresses various challenges in the way of energy security and availability. It gives recommendations on issues like open access, power tariff, renewable energy, etc.

But one of the notable points in it is the importance it gives to energy efficiency. The report advocates merging of PCRA and BEE into one body which should ‘force the pace of improvisation in energy efficiency’ and the use of ‘golden carrot incentives’ for the same.

‘Lowering the energy intensity of GDP growth through higher energy efficiency is important for meeting India’s energy challenge and ensuring its energy security.

It may be noted that a unit of energy saved by a user is greater than a unit produced, as it saves on production losses as well as transport, transmission and distribution losses. Thus a “Negawatt”, produced by a reduction of energy need has more value than a Megawatt generated. The Committee feels that with an aggressive pursuit of energy efficiency and conservation, it is possible to reduce India’s energy intensity by up to 25% from current levels.’

It goes on to cite areas where efficiency can play a big role. It also calls upon the need to reduce energy requirements to increase energy security.

On renewables while calling upon a 40 percent increase by 2030, it recommends incentives to outcomes and not just outlays.

The report also acknowledges the lack of energy related R&D in the country and noting that it has not been allotted the resources that it needs, it advocates a National Energy Fund (NEF) be set-up to finance energy R&D.

For a detailed look at the report, download from http://planningcommission.nic.in/reports/genrep/rep_intengy.pdf

Meanwhile, the Union government has finally empowered the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to set fuel efficiency standards for the country’s automobile industry. Voluntary labels on vehicles will give mileage details. Mandatory standards are expected to be imposed by 2010. However not much is known whether this will impact costs.

There had been confusion over who should implement this, the BEE or the transport ministry. The latter had plans to base the standards on emissions and not mileage. But BEE felt emissions was something the common man would not be able to relate to.

That’s good news on the eve of a New Year. The nation is turning in the right direction. How soon the speed will pick up, let us see.

DO let us have your suggestions on what we need to do to become energy secure.

Can energy efficiency do it?

Shortfall of 200 MW in the state will bring back power cuts, say latest news reports. While this can be temporarily solved by borrowing from surplus areas, in the long run this will not be enough. Already the nation is importing coal (around 20 million tones during 2007-08) and this figure will grow, according to analysts.

Without energy, forget sustaining the growth, let alone boosting it. Do we need a crisis (worser than the present recession!) to take bold initiatives, to think in different ways?

Why not declare 2009 the year of energy efficiency? It does not require drastic technology, but merely calls upon ways to extract more out of less.

Global recession is the time to cut short on excesses, but more so on waste. While renewable energies will eventually become cost effective, for now they continue to be a slightly higher on production costs than fossil fuels. It is clear that recession will not be the time for them to flourish.

Energy efficiency helped US oil consumption fall by 5 percent this year. The coal and gas demand was the same as in the previous year. In total, it meant a reduction in emissions over the previous year by 2.5 percent. Since the 1990s this has been the lowest net emissions.

Energy efficiency is not about cutting down on requirements, but about how stringently these can be met. It can be done with a combination of punitive measures and incentives. Give substantial incentives on power savings by individuals and institutions, and a bigger one to those who go off the grid.

To begin with, get energy audits done on homes, offices, and manufacturing plants. Give tax credits for conservation. Next, provide cost-effective efficiency upgrades like CFL and LED lighting, region-specific air-conditioning norms, building materials with low embodied energy, etc. So much of heat generated in industrial units is wasted. If this can be captured and put to use, energy demand will be lower.

A body of engineers can be entrusted with the job of monitoring the changes, and perfecting the system. We already have experienced accredited groups doing such work on a voluntary basis.

The savings accrued for such an exercise can be deployed in other crucial areas.

There have been spurts of initiatives but not many have succeeded beyond creating the initial hype.

It was almost two years ago that the AP state government issued a circular to all its departments on strict measures to conserve energy. This included lighting, use of lifts, water heating by solar, etc. It was to appoint inspectors to check on the implementation of the same. But down the months, things have gone back to square one. Besides a few CFLs distributed in places, not much is visible!

Just last month, in the face of power crisis, the Tamil Nadu government announced energy conservation measures in all its offices and educational institutions and industries. Government offices, including local bodies and public sector undertakings, have been directed to reduce their overall power consumption by 10 per cent by the end of current billing cycle or one month, whichever was earlier and by 20 per cent within six months.

All new buildings to be constructed by the government, local bodies and government undertakings are to incorporate energy efficiency measures. The TNEB would monitor the power consumption in all government buildings in the state.

But again, how effective this will be, and for how long, seems to be seen.

It stands to reason that if waste of energy is minimized, there will be infusion of new energy into the system. Load shedding may not be required.

If you disagree about the crucial role of energy efficiency, and believe that this alone is not enough, do let us know.

Securing energy independence

New technologies will move the world economy away from coal and other fossil fuels very rapidly, according to a new study by the Worldwatch Institute. Most of the technology needed for this is available. This contradicts the opinion of the coal industry advocates who see carbon capture playing a big role.

Full scale commercial systems for carbon capture and storage are a way off, it says in its 49 page report. This pace will not be adequate to keep up with climate change mitigation plans.
The steps it advocates for a quick transition to a low carbon economy are making buildings and power plants more efficient, expanding wind energy, etc.

Given the relative abundance of coal and the plants in place, it is obvious why the coal industry does not want to let go. But coal not only releases globe warming carbon dioxide, but other pollutants like arsenic, mercury, etc with health impacts for populations. Sometimes, accidents can impact habitations severely. Like the one last week.

A retention pond holding toxic coal ash slurry in Roane County, Tennessee, burst from its confines and released over half a billion gallons of potentially toxic sludge that swept into the nearby town of Harriman and contaminated tributaries of the Tennessee River. The resulting flood damaged 15 homes, injured one man as it knocked his house of its foundations, and has left over 400 acres of land covered by several feet of coal ash, mud and contaminated water.

Whether it is coal, oil or gas, it is clear from recent indications that energy security will play a big role in the future of nations.

Britain was given a sharp reminder of the dangers to its energy supplies last week when Gazprom warned that western Europe could be hit by gas shortages. The Russian gas provider blamed it on a long-running row with Ukraine that could disrupt supplies. Russia will be hosting a meeting of the world's major gas suppliers to set up an Opec-style production cartel that could push up the price of energy. While there are two arguments to this, it is proof of how energy dependency is not a very advisable policy.

Oil and gas producers are already debating on the wisdom behind exports as against using surplus energy at home to spur development!

Renewable energy and energy efficiency could play crucial roles for nations thinking seriously about self-reliance. But for renewable energy to gather steam, subsidies on fossil fuels will have to go. This is not happening. Even in the US, the oil price crash is seeing sales of SUVs picking up! Never matter the recession, the oil is cheap, right?

Is it any different here in India? When grid power is cheap, so cheap that discoms can hardly hope to break even, will renewable energy be able to compete?

The jewel under our feet

As yet another year comes to a close, it is time for a look back to examine the ways we went wrong and right, and carry the lessons forward. The buzzword like never before is, green and clean tech. Opinions and research keep vying with each other to come up with the perfect solution for an energy hungry populace, a solution that will be amenable to the planet.

Whether you believe in human-induced climate change or not, there is no escape from the fact that we are mining the planet beyond sustainability. From oil to water to minerals, human demand is outstripping availability.

It is not that the planet cannot cater to our needs. It can. It is our relentless desires that it cannot meet - for new toys and gadgets even as we mindlessly discard old ones; for food, even as we increase our waste; for water, as we don’t bother to manage and conserve.

Can we rise above national and international politics to see the big picture? That, even as we quibble, our time on the planet as a race may be fast coming to a close. Unless, we stop in our tracks and scan our lives.

Can we stop pointing fingers at each other and arrive at some fair means of ensuring comfortable lives for everyone? Do we care enough for the next generations to ‘forego’ some of our cravings?

Can we think about implementing a carbon tax, for instance? Can our political parties rise to the occasion, at the cost of votes?

Carbon tax is being considered by the US, UK and some European nations to wean away its citizens from the carbon path. Hansen (of the global warming fame!) has suggested a novel way of carbon tax that takes away from its burden. In an approach that distributes the tax collected in this way, through a dividend back to the people as personal tax cuts, etc it gives people a reason to cut down consumption of carbon intensive goods and foods!

This may be a better way than the cap and trade mechanism, which does not actually encourage carbon cuts as much as offering ways to trade. Of course, carbon tax, like any other tax will also see evaders!

Why not, for instance, impose a luxury cess on luxury goods that are high on power consumption? Surely the lower and middle class votes will not be lost! Why not actually offer some tax rebate on power consumption reduction?

News reports of higher tax on a second vehicle have been late in coming.

So much can be done. And not all of them are about climate change, as they are about learning to live within our means.

For those who aren't convinced, there is an interesting video posted on Dot Earth, which shows what an earthrise looks like from the moon. If nothing else convinces us, perhaps a look at the lonely blue jewel standing out against the cold, dark space, should send a twinge of guilt and a thrill down the spine. That is our planet there, the only home we have.

How about a different kind of new year resolution this time?

Roadblocks on the power highway

Clean energy is the much-bandied term today. Much as its proponents are an excited lot, they are also worried about some lacunae. One is that of interface technologies for converting AC to DC seamlessly, to achieve inter-operability. When talking of smart grids, etc the control and monitoring of the same is not easy, especially as a sizeable energy is lost in delivery.

Storage is yet another problem. Research keeps throwing up an occasional ‘new generation of lithium ion batteries that provide high-power, high energy and extended life-cycles.’ But while promises of high performance and low carbon emissions sound attractive, there is a long way to go.

But one thing above all is the lack of skilled manpower. Even in the US a large gap exists in the requirement and availability of power engineers. This is especially so in India, where a recent Crisil-Ficci study spoke of the need for over 20 lakh engineers for the power sector.

Achieving such numbers would be a challenge, the study said. "Although Indian educational institutions generate a large number of engineers, it is a challenge to attract them to the power generation sector given the multiple options available in other lucrative areas," it said.

Meeting manpower requirement of this magnitude, the study said, would require creation of more specialised training institutes. Specialised training programmes for generation, transmission and distribution also need to be introduced along with a programme on IT-enabled applications.

If there is to be a significant renewable energy contribution, even more will there be a need for specialized manpower. Are we ready for that? What kind of institutes are providing that kind of courses, and to how many? What about the existing specialized personnel?

Survival fears

As the nations of the world get more close-knit, dependent on each other, there is also fear growing out of this dependency. Consumables are no more assured, not even essential commodities. All it requires is one cyclone to turn a metro into a flooded cesspool with snakes and rats dropping in home! No wonder survivalism is rearing its head again.

Barton M. Biggs, the former chief global strategist at Morgan Stanley says this: People should “assume the possibility of a breakdown of the civilized infrastructure. Your safe haven must be self-sufficient and capable of growing some kind of food,” It should be well-stocked with seed, fertilizer, canned food, wine, medicine, clothes, etc. Think Swiss Family Robinson. Even in America and Europe there could be moments of riot and rebellion when law and order temporarily completely breaks down.”

Kitchen gardens, car-pooling, community living, waste reduction, growing local, green homes that lap up solar and wind energies, walking over to the grocer instead of taking the car, etc are some measures we can see as response to scarcity arising out of a skewed growth. Already there is a dearth of skilled labour to address emergencies at home. Plumbers and carpenters seem to be all but extinct. Electricians too. As the gadgetry gets more and more complicated, the more tougher to find someone to repair.

It is not just natural calamities, increasing in their intensities, which can cause such situations. But energy crisis too. A much-expected thing as Peak oil could have cascading effects.

As TreeHugger notes, this need not be a bad experience. It can call collective action into the foreground. Working together for the optimum solutions that help a community survive can be more forthcoming.

How prepared is our system to tackle such situations? Any guesses? Let us know.

Meanwhile for some good news for those who like to get self-reliant! Rainbow Solar’s (RSi) new transparent photovoltaic-glass window generates 80 to 250 watts of electricity.

The new window has proven energy savings greater than 50 percent. RSi’s window can be built up to 9×9 ft in size, and uses battery technology with a lifespan of 55 years.

Even if large warehouses and manufacturing units adopt this kind of unit on their roof-tops it could mean a big relief for the grid in terms of load taken off. The initial costs could easily be paid back in a couple of years. The panels could easily take on the lighting load and more.

Why hasn’t this happened in our country? A simple answer perhaps is: subsidized power from the grid.

Let us know if you have heard of large-scale deployment of solar panels.

Road power!

A pat on our backs! It was just a day or two back that in our comments to the post on 'One question, 5 answers' that we suggested piezoelectric roads to generate electricity, and what do we see now?! They actually have made one such road in Israel. For more click on http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/12/16/energy-generating-roads-by-innowattech/

Now, as suggested in our comment, the cost of this material is not so cheap that we lay them all over our roads, but at least this is one thing that can be adopted in bits and pieces, maybe with some sponsors.

Again, let us send out the same question. We have the materials that can generate electricity from movements. So folks, let us come up with some commonly noticed movements. Just think.

Out with polluting autos!

Cities in India with the massive traffic jams have perhaps inspired students at San Jose State University. They have created a new type of ‘tribrid’ that makes use of human pedal-power, solar panels, and a strong battery. They’ve dubbed the car the ZEM, or Zero EMissions Vehicle, and say it could be mass-produced for a ‘mere $4,000’.

The vehicle gets moving with pedal power for the first 30 seconds until reaching 5 mph, when the battery kicks in to bring it to its top speed of 35 mph within another 30 seconds. The car, which requires two people to pedal, carries silicon batteries which can be charged by the four solar panels—three on the roof and one on the hood—or by AC outlet.

The car’s four batteries can run up to 40 miles. In cities of Mexico, China, and India, the crawling traffic would make pedal-power alone sufficient to get around most days, the team believes.

In the long-terms there can be savings too, given that it runs on solar and leg power.

Any guesses if there will be takers for this in India?!

Best to worst

The best to worst electric power sources are in the order:
1. wind power
2. concentrated solar power (CSP)
3. geothermal power
4. tidal power
5. solar photovoltaics (PV)
6. wave power
7. hydroelectric power
8. a tie between nuclear power and coal with carbon capture and sequestration (CCS).

Prof Jacobson from Stanford has conducted the first quantitative, scientific evaluation of the proposed, major, energy-related solutions by assessing not only their potential for delivering energy for electricity and vehicles, but also their impacts on global warming, human health, energy security, water supply, space requirements, wildlife, water pollution, reliability and sustainability. His findings indicate that the options that are getting the most attention are between 25 to 1,000 times more polluting than the best available options.

He was not funded by any organization!

Regarding the popular argument that renewable energy is infirm, Jacobson has evidence otherwise. Even otherwise, places like Massachusetts and neighbouring states have been adding green power to local utility companies. The amount of that available power nearly doubled from more than 940,000 megawatt hours in 2006 to about 1.6 million megawatt hours in 2007. Renewable power is neither too expensive nor too hard to develop.

Any reason why India should not adopt renewables aggressively? Besides wind power where India is the fifth leading nation, there is a lot of unexplored potential in solar and geothermal, as also offshore wind farms.

Today’s news reports talk of the climate change action plan making some recommendations to the government taking note of some of the points raised by organizations like CSE. There is a move to bring in congestion charges and making parking costly in a move to discourage private vehicles. Alarmed by the growth of private vehicles, (which has exceeded the population in six cities!) it is looking at ways to strengthen public transport like a dedicated lane, removal of duty on public transport, etc.

More investment in renewables is the need. Our NAPCC does put on paper some very noble intentions in this direction, but sceptics are not convinced. More binding norms, more substantial incentives, and the removal of fossil fuel subsidies will be required.

While India’s per capita emissions are far lower than many others, the cumulative emissions cannot be ignored. It adds up to no less than 1.5 billion tonnes, which is a quarter of the US' current levels of emissions. Even if India grows only six per cent faster than the US, its total emissions will equal those of the US over the next two decades.

Can we afford to overlook this? Especially, when the consequences of climate change, like droughts and falling food production, will impact the poor at the earliest.

What do you think?

Energy conservation day

Besides some progress on an adaptation fund to help developing nations, the Poznan meet on climate change has not achieved much. National delegates pointed fingers at each other and called alternately for collective action or equitable rights.

Expectedly so. Because this was more of a political gathering, and as Al Gore notes, climate change is not a political issue as it is an ethical or moral one. In his words, whether we act or not will decide whether human civilisation will survive or not.

It is therefore an imperative for every one of us to act and call upon our governments to behave in a responsible manner. And this is happening in small, but many places. But perhaps is not enough.

Hansen predicts we will have to bring down emissions to 350 ppm while current figures are already 385. This will require a 5 percent cut every year till 2050. Is it possible?

Some like Hansen And Gore believe it can be done with existing technologies, others are doubtful. Nobel physicist Steve Chu has pointed out to the need to develop newer technologies even as he believes that 500 ppm will be the achievable figure.

But technology aside, there are experts who believe energy efficiency alone can bring emissions down substantially. The die-hards go one step ahead and talk of energy conservation, or plugging wasteful energy practices and devices.

Can we do it? We can. Will we? That is the doubtful question.

It is easy to convince people to take any action if there is a reward attached to it. Something as long-term as 'saving the planet for future generations' doesn't hold much promise to many. Between a choice of buying the latest fuel-guzzling trendy car or saving the resources for the next generation, how many will select the latter? Hardly any.

Finally, whether one believes in climate change or not, there is no escape from the truth that resources are limited (but 'enough to cater to our needs, not greed') while human population and its wants are unlimited. Our material desires cannot be fulfilled for too long. Is it better to minimise consumption and save for tomorrow, or be a glutton today and starve tomorrow? Today is a good day to start, being Energy Conservation Day.

Our politicians seem to miss the point everytime. It is up to us to make them think. Can we? Will we?

Post in your comments on what needs to be done to save the human race. Because in the long run, the planet will survive, but we won't.

California shows the way, again

The California Air Resources Board has unanimously approved a sweeping plan for reducing the state’s greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels — an average cut of four tons of annual emissions per person — by 2020.

With rules for nearly every sector of California’s economy, the scheme will encourage investment in energy efficiency and renewables while creating hundreds of thousands of green jobs in California.

It includes strategies to enhance and expand proven cost-saving energy efficiency programs; implementation of California’s clean cars standards; increases in the amount of clean and renewable energy used to power the state; and, implementation of a low-carbon fuel standard that will make the fuels used in the state cleaner. More fuel-efficient cars and plug-in hybrids on showroom floors; better public transportation; housing nearer to schools and businesses; and utility rebates to make homes more energy-efficient are what the average Californian can expect.

San Jose is working hard on its Green Vision, part of which is recycling 100% of its used water by 2022. Well underway is expansion of the South Bay Water Recycling, a program that ensures water is cleaned and reused for industrial purposes to help take the load off the water table so drinking water is always available.

One way to prevent water shortages is to reduce use, and the city is providing big monetary incentives for businesses willing to cut back on water consumption. By 2020, serious water shortages in the South Bay are expected unless things change. The goal for water included in San Jose's Green Vision sets a target for 100% water recycling and reuse by 2022.

News reports talk of plunging water table levels in Bangalore. What else can one expect with the number of industries and high-rise apartments that have mushroomed in the last decade. With no action taken yet on the draft bill on mining groundwater, it’s merry-making time for racketeers who dig borewells and sell water to the residents.

Our question is: what prevents our governments from taking proactive action like the state of California? Why not link incentives to cut-backs in consumption, both of water and power? And make it real big. Why not? Why can't a Karnataka take the lead?

Isn't that a better, and cleaner way of managing demand than announcing new coal-based thermal plants? Agreed, we cannot dump coal for now but why isn't there a push for energy conservation where it is possible?

One question, 5 answers

Anything that moves was once hunted and consumed. Nowadays, anything that moves is still hunted for consumption. But, with a difference. Power consumption.

The cosmologists look for ‘Dark energy’ or the missing energy that has to be accounted for, given the accelerating cosmos. The nature of this energy is a mystery, even if it accounts for more than 70 percent of what constitutes the universe!

More mundane perhaps is the search for the more familiar energy, lurking in nooks and corners of our homes. Every new study these days seems to talk of harnessing energy from some or the other kind of movement. If one gadget traps the energy as you walk, another picks it from the pedal to light a bulb! Another transforms your voice to electricity!

The latest example of this is the world’s first energy-generating revolving door located at Natuurcafe La Port in the Netherlands. The door, which will generate about 4600 kWh each year, is part of a larger sustainable refurbishment of the railway station.

Natuurcafe’s door uses a generator that is driven by the energy applied when people pass through. Super-capacitators store the generated energy and provide a power supply for the ceiling’s LED lights. Where would you find more footfall than at a restaurant? A subway! That is where Tokyo has put piezoelectric floors to catch the energy from every step that passes by.

Now here is an exercise for our visitors. How about coming up with five new motions that can generate energy? Hint: Motions that are repetitive, or continuous.

Do come up with the answers, however bizarre. We need to get the ideas whirring. Do not hesitate to voice it.

Let's do it for the Blue Dot

The news from Poznan is bleak, going by reports. Despite evermore evidences of warming and growing emissions that indicate a rise in temperatures even within the next decade, government spokespersons are in no mood to commit. National interests are being cited to hold on to carbon economies.

In such a scenario, it falls upon individuals and institutions, including corporates, to think up ways to help the planet. Let us all think up ways in which to make our homes and workplaces sustainable. It can be simple ideas, or grand ones but let us hear them all out. Let companies organize contests where the best ideas are rewarded handsomely. As the EnergyCollective blog says, video and podcast interviews with winners. They are after all the heroes in the war to save the planet.

Going a step ahead, town authorities should invite people to come up with radical designs for sustainable cities. Last week in Dallas, a group of experts across domains met to discuss a plan for a sustainable block in the city and prepare guidelines for an international design competition called Building Blocks Dallas, which will kick off in January.

The model could then be replicated anywhere.

A radical idea of a sustainable city is that it liberates itself of automobiles. Ville-Marie in Montreal has joined the ranks of a burgeoning global pedestrianization movement, one that imagines the liberation of the street from the supremacy of the automobile as the sustainable city’s declaration of independence. The movement's proponent Danish architect Jan Gehl calls these as “reconquered” cities.

Whether at workplace or at city level, people can be drawn in by incentives. BIG prizes! It can be done with involvement of companies with a stake in such projects. Anyway, the money is there for the asking! After all, if we can throw crores of rupees as prize money for a meaningless reality show where people get paid for being nasty and surviving in isolation, why not for nobler causes?

Norwegian author of bestseller Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder in his engaging book Ringmaster’s Daughter (as usual with delightful sub-stories in the ‘story’) talks of a concept, which ought to be picked by Big Boss organizers. If you need to get rid of that money, get something useful out of it. Let the group kept in isolation come up with earth-saving ideas, and unless this idea is approved as truly innovative, they stay in isolation. Akshay Kumar, how about that for something really useful?

So, come on folks, let us start. Come up with ideas that all of us can adopt at work and home. Do NOT hesitate.

Bol India, bol.

Green mobile phone made from plant waste, mostly hay, is a new sustainable design to come up. Cell phones are the most disposable gadgets with an average phone staying in the hands of an owner for about 18 months before it is replaced. Compressed hay, as the post says, is strong but there are many points associated with the idea that needs to be studied before we start stacking up hay!

Mobile phones eat power but do it so silently that it is not noticed. We made some calculations that charging of mobile sets in the country draws a power of 600-800 MW and that is on the conservative side! Multiply that by the number of hours each phone is charged daily, and you can arrive at the energy expended.

A new energy efficient charger claims to be the first "green" cell phone charger to hit the UK, and also says it has what it takes to end wasted power during cell phone charging. O2 has launched a universal cell phone charger that claims to cut energy consumption by 70% over Energy Star standards.

No rocket science here. The charger has a control system that cuts off power once the battery is charged. It is well known how phones stay hooked to the power, simply forgotten or because we don’t think it is a big deal. It is this phantom power that is saved, and as per the company it can save UK phone users over £30 million each year in wasted energy.

Right now the O2 Universal Charger is available in the UK and compatible with Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson device. Compatibility with the ubiquitous iPhone and BlackBerry will happen in early 2009, says the post.

Motorola has become the first cell phone company in the US to make all of its cell phone chargers Energy Star certified. In essence it adds up to over 1 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions reduced!

But what can be better news than a study that talks of converting sound waves to energy to keep the phone running! The recent work of Tahir Cagin, a professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University uses piezoelectrics to convert energy at an efficient 100 percent when substantially scaled down to the nanoscale.

Piezoelectrics develop a voltage across them when a mechanical stress is applied to them (or vice versa) and have been known for some time. They are used in quartz watches, cigarette lighters, etc. But the latest work was all about reducing them to nanoscales where materials undergo change, and gold is no more gold, or iron not iron!

India is already plugged to the mobile phone in irrevocable ways. And once it is established that talking more is the best way to charge your phone, what will happen? Bol India, bol! Louder, and longer?

If you have heard of innovative research from any of our institutions, let us know. Or if there are ways in which power consumed by mobile phones can be reduced, do write in.

Who speaks for the planet?

Dateline, Poznan. 'This is a climate change conference at which nothing is expected to change. No one anticipates anything positive from the Americans or (naturally) the Canadians, but even the European powers that once showed admirable leadership on this issue are backing away from action,' says Richard on the DeSmogblog.

He notes how Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose German government has been a world leader in climate change policy, said that she would fight any EU climate deal that jeopardised German jobs. Protectionism in the times of globalisation.

India and China want ‘equal rights to atmospheric resources’ when anyone talks of climate change. Equal rights to pollute, rather.

CSE leads the fight to win per capita emissions for India, a large window made possible by that remarkable capability to reproduce! When you have the time, check out http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover.asp?foldername=20081215&filename=news&sid=33&page=1&sec_id=9&p=

True, we MUST get the polluters like US and Canada (who believes it is rich in resources and hence can pollute, as witnessed by increase in its emissions) to stop polluting. And we must also force the advanced countries to part with clean technology that helps us mitigate climate change at a faster rate. But insisting that we will continue to pollute as it is our ‘right to atmospheric resources’??? Let us know what you think.

Planet Earth sadly seems to have no citizens.

Technology per se

A smart garbage can that can carry five times its normal load, thanks to a compactor, it is among Bigbelly Solar’s inventions. Powered by the sun, some 2000 units have been sold. Now the company plans to add a wireless system that tells waste-removal crews when the cans are full and need to be emptied. The text messages go via an online Google map.

This is all about reducing the amount of time, money, and fuel, say the company. Garbage truck trips can be cut by 80 percent, saving enough fuel to pay for the $3,000 to $3,900 units within a year or two.

Not exactly what we need here in India, where there is always garbage overflowing!

Elsewhere, Intel has unveiled a new generation of tiny sensors that continuously analyze air quality in an effort to further understand and combat air pollution. The corporation is also developing devices that can tap energy from sunlight, body heat and television signals and store small amounts of energy. When the energy build-up is high, they can be used to run a built-in data transmitter!

Can these be up-scaled?? Are these mere flights of fantasy?

Meanwhile, street sweepers in San Francisco have already been outfitted with the chip-sized sensors that continuously monitor and relay air pollution information. The sensors are linked to GPS enabled Nokia N95 cellphones and allow scientists to access air quality readings worldwide in real time. (Needless to say, our sweepers could do with a pair of gloves and footwear!)

These are all examples of what one may call loosely as grassroots technology that directly impact people, whether garbage or air pollution.

But sometimes, one wonders if we are witnessing meaningless deployment of technology anywhere and everywhere. Using technology for the sake of technology? Could we end up with a waste problem here when the sensors run out of their lifetime?

True, they draw power from renewables but still they make us more energy dependent, right? It is ‘free energy’, ok but they tie us down, more than they free us.

As one of our blog visitors commented, 'we do not need more technology' that enslaves us.

Should we look at lifecycle assessments before deploying new technologies?

Community computing

The world is in a hurry for cheap, abundant energy. This means newer technologies, newer materials. One area that holds promise is solar. Technologists are looking at every which way to tap this abundant energy. They are succeeding but clearly it all depends on what material you use to trap solar energy.

Material science keeps coming up with exotic stuff that combines the strength of steel and lightness of a feather. But it’s a tough grind as models crunch various combinations of chemicals and elements to arrive at the right one. Again, when tested it may not exactly deliver. Then the search starts all over again.

And so, now we have researchers at IBM and Harvard who want to use the power of community to create cheap, efficient solar cells. The Clean Energy Project will use small amounts of computing power from volunteers to run calculations on compounds so that the wining combination could be found sooner than later. In all, reduce the time by 20 years.

The search is for materials to make cheap, flexible solar cells that could be used on walls and window, clothes or vehicles.

The solar power project will use IBM’s World Community Grid— a large network of volunteer computers that connects computers in homes via the Internet to run calculations that feed back to the data base. The Grid software runs in the background of volunteer computers as a screensaver when the computer is on but not being used.

The program will process over 1 million configurations of atoms in the next two years.

Any work in this area being done in India? Do let us know. Meanwhile it would be interesting to see other ways, than computing, in which communities could be brought together to develop new technologies.

More is to come

Around 61 inches of water flooded Venice early this month, in what has been the highest figure since 1986. Scientists have indicted global warming for this incident.

It has been officially declared that this decade has been the warmest in the last 2000 years!

Ongoing at Poznań, Poland, is the 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Climate Change Conference where UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer has expressed satisfaction with the serious discussions emerging.

Delegates from 190 countries are deliberating on negotiations for a climate change treaty expected to be finalized in Copenhagen next year. Last week, delegates focused largely on adaptation, or helping developing countries take steps to withstand severe drought, extreme storms, and other events expected to become more frequent as a result of climate change.

By 2030, poor countries will need $130 billion each year for adaptation and emissions-reduction projects, about six times the amount now available. The Developed Countries Fund and strategies for streamlining it and feeding it into sustainable development were debated.

It is also expected that the Poznan talks will see the launch of the Adaptation Fund, which will provide developing countries with real money for them to adapt to the inevitable impact of climate change. It is generally being recognised that a global response to climate change should have four building blocks: mitigation, finance, technology and adaptation.

Meanwhile, two major new studies, in Nature and Science, sharply increase the projected sea level rise (SLR) by 2100 to as high as 2 metres, and not just 60 cms as predicted by IPCC. The inference was based on analysis of the observations. The first metre would flood 17 percent of Bangladesh, creating thousands of environment refugees. At the other end, hurricanes getting fiercer would see Florida and Louisiana eventually abandoned.

The Science article explained what the IPCC did wrong. Basically, taking into account the water added when ice breaks off from glacial flows, hitherto not included by IPCC which found it hard to model this loss. Warming glaciers raise sea level in two main ways.

We in India too have seen fiercer storms and cyclones off the coast. Under the blitzkrieg of the terrorist attack in Mumbai, Chennai was going through one of its worst cyclones. Floodwaters entered several homes causing loss of property and some lives.

Do we still want to cling on to adaptation, and put off mitigation to when we are rich? Our policies don’t seem to indicate informed policies.

Let us know what you think. What do we need to do, or not do?

Swimming over submerged NY!

Before we capture the latest news over the weekend, some bleak, some with cheer, let's begin the day with some 'amazing' news.

HSBC Bank hired advertising agency Oglivy & Mather in Mumbai to create a campaign for their website, http://www.globalwarmingsolutions.co.in/, designed to call the public’s attention to the reality of global warming.

The campaign entailed placing a bird’s eye view of New York City’s skyline at the bottom of a pool located in India’s financial capital, Mumbai. Aimed to capture the attention of unsuspecting swimmers, the stunt is an elegantly simple idea of what climate change could mean for some of the world’s coastal cities.

It brought 300 percent more traffic to the website, according to O&M. But will any of these site visitors change their lifestyle to make it less carbon intensive? Remains to be seen.

Still, seems like a good idea to generate maximum impact.

An earlier post showed a public square where sat a group of melting men! Reminding one of Salvador Dali’s Melting Clock, this one had nothing abstract about it. Brazilian artist Nele Azevedo’s art installation was meant to bring home the message of Arctic ice melt due to global warming. Similar to the army of melting penguins from 50graus.org, these ‘men’ sat in contemplation as the midday heat slowly eroded their bodies.

It is somewhat similar to all of us, waiting for the melt?!

Art can sure talk in ways that mere words cannot.

Have any of our artists found the theme of global warming a challenging topic to explore?

Can thorium save the world?

In an earlier post, we had spoken of CSP or concentrated solar power as an emerging area with much potential. Costs are not as high as PVs and storage problem is solved. The only problem is with land, we had cited. But while water is an issue in CSP, those in the field have been increasingly using air to cool the systems instead of water.

As Joe Gelt points out that water use in concentrated solar is greater than that of coal and similar to nuclear per MWh generated: a coal fired plant uses 110 to 300 gallons per megawatt hour; a nuclear plant uses between 500 and 1100 gallons/MWh; and a solar parabolic trough plant uses 760-920 gallons/MWh.

While noting that air is being used for cooling, he points out how this would greatly increase building costs because enormous cooling towers would need to be constructed. Also relying on air to cool would not cool the water circulating through the plant to a low enough temperature for peak performance, decreasing the efficiency of the plant.

This is the issue in the the thoriumenergy blogspot. The writer has been advocating Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor as a sustainable energy source on two counts mainly, that of energy efficiency and waste.

Here’s how: Thorium is a sustainable energy source, with the potential to provide people all of the energy they need for millions of years. There is already a great deal of Thorium above ground in the form of mine tailings, enough to supply human demands for hundreds of years. Thorium energy conversion is 100 to 200 time more efficient, than current uranium reactor technology.

Recycling of existing coal fired power plants sites for LFTR use has the potential to create energy savings of 50% to 75% compared to start from scratch power plant construction.

LFTR Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor produce little to no nuclear waste, thus greatly diminishing energy inputs into waste control. Material outputs from nuclear daughter products would be an energy savings, that would be unique to LFTR technology.

There is little unused byproducts, he says, while concluding the technology has potential to be 100 percent pollution free.

So, thorium wins against Helium (solar energy's source!). Can anybody who is a nuclear expert clear the doubts, or rather, claims? After all, Indian scientists had protested before the nuke deal that fast breeder reactors working on thorium can do it for the country.

Coming with the wind

3Tier has unveiled a 5-kilometer resolution global wind map based on one of the most accurate and comprehensive datasets ever created of global wind resources and their spatial and temporal variability.

3Tier unveiled its map and dataset at the 14th UN Climate Change Conference in Poznań, Poland, as part of the Global Wind Energy Council's (GWEC) "Wind Power Works" campaign.
“This map is intended to accelerate the development of wind energy by quantifying the value of the wind resource at any location around the world,” said Kenneth Westrick, CEO and founder of 3Tier.

“The underlying dataset provides the information developers, financiers and governments need to target the best regions in the world for data collection and higher resolution studies.”

A lot is happening in the wind sector by way of innovation to increase efficiencies.
Presently wind turbines use a mechanical transmission to smooth out the speed at which energy is delivered to an internal generator. Mechanical transmissions work well but are both expensive and somewhat inefficient.

ExRo's design does away with the old gearboxes and replaces them with a generator that can electronically adapt to different wind speeds. The resulting system can harness wind at both higher and lower speeds than traditional designs and may boost energy output by up to 50 percent while lowering costs.

Wind turbine design has also learnt a lot from the whale. Curved surfaces acting as a lens to concentrate wind, or a shroud to capture more of the wind which usually gets lost…

Well, wind is going places, actually! Catch the action on 3Tier’s map. Can wind do it for India's powerless millions?

Quantum of fear!

While on fuel cells, does anyone know how inflammable these are? The fear seems palpable wherever there is talk of new technology like this. Storage batteries that pack a solid amount of energy throw out questions of explosions. Just check some of the well-read sites and blogs. There is so much lack of information or misinformation.

Those who have seen Bond in action in Quantum of Solace will not forget too soon the picture of exploding fuel cells that power a green building in the climax. The film did bring fuel cells to popular notice but did it do damage to the image of fuel cells? Remember, the baddie Green is a environmental poser in the film!

Anyone who can tell us if hydrogen powered cells explode, and if so, under what circumstances?

Regarding another fast developing field, thin film solar, IBM has predicted very thin solar film cells which could be easily printed and pasted on walls, roofs, embedded into clothing, anywhere.

And now, going steps closer to the prediction, researchers at MIT have unveiled a new type of silicon solar cell that could be much more efficient and cost less than currently used solar cells. Their prototype solar cell is 15 percent more efficient at converting light into electricity than commercial thin-film solar cells. Thin-film silicon solar cells could be cheaper than conventional devices because they use hundreds of times less material.

OK, these are really, really thin and apparently cheap (or cheaper?). But how long will they last? Will they weather the rain? Any answers?

Hydrogen for Boeing

Boeing is developing an unmanned plane that would use liquid hydrogen to reach altitudes topping 60,000 feet and stay there for days at a time.

The plane is one of several alt-fuel aircraft that Boeing, which earlier this year tested a hydrogen fuel cell airplane, is working on. It uses an internal combustion engine which burns hydrogen. It has been tested on the ground in the lab under the high altitude conditions.

As it gives out mostly water vapour, which is also a greenhouse gas, but does not have carbondi oxide’s staying power and only has a minor direct warming effect, hydrogen could be considered a better fuel than the normal aviation fuel. It is also light.

Liquid hydrogen is used in rockets where it is mixed with oxygen and burns. The problem with liquid hydrogen needs much more volume than other fuels to store the same amount of energy. It takes roughly four liters of LH2 to match the energy content of one liter of jet fuel. The fuel cannot be carried in the wings as it will have to be large and will affect the lift. Boeing plans to try the fuselage for storing the fuel.

Combustion of fuel in aeroplane engines results in emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides, (termed NOx), as well as water vapour and particulates. Aviation emissions have a greater potential for mischief as they can instigate various chemical changes at that height. It is the emission of NOx, water vapour and particulates at altitude that account for the extra impacts of aviation emissions. Nox also combines with sunlight to form ozone.

Aviation is the fastest growing cause of global warming. The amount of carbon dioxide emitted by air travel doubled between 1990 and 2004. That is totally incompatible with the need to reduce carbon emissions by 60% by 2050.

But it is not possible to ask people not to fly or to make it a costly option just to cut down on flights. A better solution touted is to improve fuel efficiencies, the air traffic control gets smart, routes get straighter, etc. All these with a proper implementation of emissions trading on aircrafts and research on friendlier fuels can bring down fuel used and emissions.

Six degrees of connection...

... on the path to sustainability!

As we see the end of cheap debt, energy, food, labour and raw materials, it makes sense to go in for co-operation. Not only at the business level, but at community levels too.

Business leaders should see sustainability as an opportunity, act now and prepare for radical change despite the recession, according to a report released by sustainable development group Forum for the Future and sponsored by the IT consulting and outsourcing firm, Capgemini.

Peter Madden, chief executive of the Forum, said: “It is in companies’ best interests to be leaders in the move to a more sustainable world. Climate change and shortages of food, energy and other resources will not go away just because there’s a recession. Companies which adapt now will reap dividends in the future.”

The report, Acting now for a positive 2018, looks at the trends which will shape the future of business over the next decade.

It draws up four scenarios from a moderate globalised one to a bohemian ‘me and mine, online’ one! All of them look at sustainability in core businesses but achieve the same differently. An appealing, and perhaps, inevitable scenario is the globalised interest one which speaks of an ‘interconnected world’ where there is enough for all and a need to work together with investors, customers, suppliers and competitors(!). It is time for impact of society on business, instead of vice versa, it says.

Another post on The Energy Bulletin blog talks of community living in the coming days of energy scarcity. Efficiency is not enough in technology alone, but also in technique. While considering eco-friendly stoves, it could make as much sense to have a small business owner using an earth oven to bake bread for his neighbours, instead of all of them using an oven!

Following peak oil there will be increased pressure to cut trees and use for fuel. Instead of talking of forestation, the post talks of sustainable harvesting, through regular pruning, which it says is a good practice and lets the trees flourish even as we harvest biomass. Coppicing, a forest management tactic of cutting some branches in turns, allows fresh sprouts that grow rapidly in a year.

What is your opinion on efficiency of techniques? Do you see such a radical change happening? Are we prepared to accept six or more degrees of connection?

Let's be smart

Nokia has just announced it is developing a smart home platform to offer consumers new ways to control their homes with a mobile device. The platform is opening a new era for networked home services and solutions.

All solutions based on the platform can be used through a smart phone or PC locally or remotely. Consumers can monitor and control their electricity usage, switch devices on and off, and monitor different objects, such as temperature, camera, and motion. In a second step, Nokia and RWE are planning additional services in connection with smart meters beyond 2009. These services will provide consumers with real-time information about their energy consumption and allow them to control their energy bill remotely.

Meanwhile, the UK and Europe recognise the need to modernise and liberalise an ageing electricity grid, create economies of scale for renewable energy and promote consumer efficiency. All this would require a smart grid, smart meters. As energy demand goes up and supply falls woefully behind, smart metering is expected to revolutionise energy management and grid reliability across the globe.

A recent study suggests that meters are capable of delivering a 10 per cent cut in annual energy use. Another estimates that dynamic demand-side response in the EU could save electricity equivalent to the domestic consumption of Germany and Spain.

A flexible and dynamic grid is the need of the hour.

The article goes on to note that smart metering alone will not bring a 20 per cent increase in energy efficiency, a 20 per cent increase in renewable energy or a 20 per cent reduction in carbon emissions. But none of these targets are possible without a functional smart grid underpinned by smart meter infrastructure.

Smart metering allows the consumer to know in real time the power consumed from every gadget within his home. With a time of the day billing system, he/she will know when best to do the chores at home.

Going one step ahead is the smart grid. Smart grids will allow two-way communication between homes and utilities and the ability to remotely control appliances and power consumption, which leads to accurate real-time pricing by utilities, and accurate monitoring and conservation. Utilities can send response demands to homes during peak hours, homeowner energy use habits can be tracked and adjusted, etc.

An ageing gridline can be vitalised by smart meters, networking software and hardware, energy storage, etc. IBM, Google, and many other players have entered the field, seeing an opportunity. Reducing losses, increasing efficiency from generation, distribution to end-use will be aided by smart technology.

The concept is just catching wide attention in the west. But given that we have the technical IT prowess, any reason why we cannot be a leader? The initial costs are going to be high but eventually it will bring in savings.

Rank holders stand tall

A soaring sustainable skyscraper, 632 metres tall, is set to become the tallest tower in China. To come up in China’s rapidly developing Luijiazui Finance and Trade Zone, the skyscraper will feature a high-performance façade that shelters nine sky gardens, a rainwater system and a series of wind turbines on its parapet.

It will be composed of a set of nine cylindrical buildings stacked on top of each other and surrounded by an inner façade. The carefully considered structure and texture work together to reduce wind loads on the building by 24%, saving building materials and construction costs. It will be completed in 2014.

Impressive.

There sure is a scramble for the label of ‘sustainable’ but how authentic are these claims? In many cases, there are the lip services paid to renewable energy. The embodied energy of materials used is ignored. Out of this world design threatens to dislodge practicalities.

Are architects adding eco-bling (hype) to their buildings? And not dealing with fundamentals? Seems so going by Dubai’s proposed Anara building which actually houses people inside the wind turbine atop! ‘It is an energy nightmare, it is terrifying!’

Compounding the problems in the area of buildings and architecture are the rating systems. Builders would like to boast of the US LEED rating, but many critics have pointed to the lack of relevance to local conditions in the way the rating has been designed and is followed religiously.

It is to plug this lacuna that the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) took the initiative to adapt the rating to Indian conditions. CII with Godrej GBC are the sole licence holders to offer LEED India rating programs.

How satisfactory are the changes in the rating system? Do we need a rating system at all? If you have an opinion let us know.

Gimme more!

Stampede at a mall in New York resulted in one death last week. The crowds had started thronging the street during the early pre-dawn hours, for holiday bargains at Wal-Mart!

As Andrew Revkin of the New York Times says in his post on Dot Earth, titled ‘the endless pursuit of unnecessary things’, how many people will inhabit earth in the next few generations, and how much will they consume?

He cites a paper in the journal Science on sustainability which showed that, afflictions related to affluence take away as many years of life, as do ills associated with poverty.

A sociology paper proposes that the best way to lessen consumption for its own sake is to reduce how much people work. ‘Industrialized economies have generally translated productivity gains in the workplace into making more stuff (and money to buy stuff) instead of making less work (reducing work hours).’

Quoting Adam Smith, the father of economics, who said 250 years ago: “An investment is by all right-minded people to be commended, because it brings comforts and necessities to the citizenry. But, if continued indefinitely, it will lead to the endless pursuit of unnecessary things.”

This brings to mind a popular story: Greek philosopher Socrates used to be in the habit of going to the city shopping centre and gazing for long at the items displayed there. He inevitably returned empty-handed. When one of his students ventured to ask him why he went there, his reply was that he did so to look at all the things he didn’t need!

Socrates subscribed to the opinion that ‘the true and healthy constitution of the state is the one in which only the basic needs of all members are satisfied. But if you wish to take a look at a society at fever heat, I have no objection. For I suspect that many will not be satisfied with the simpler way of life. They will be for adding sofas, and tables, and other furniture; also dainties and perfumes, and incense, and call girls, and cakes, all these not of one sort, but of all varieties.’

Today as we mine the earth for resources which are fast vanishing, perhaps it would be a wise thing to remember these words from pundits of economy, and philosophers.

Gadgets take over

Like it or not, gadgets are invading every part of our life. Not all of them are useful in the real sense. For jobs that could well be done by our grey cells, we now rely on PDAs and calculators. For dusting homes, we now have vacuum cleaners which end up in corners gathering dust, simply because using them is time consuming! Not least ridiculous and dependent, is how to hop over to the next street, we now need cars!

Gadgets run on power. So, as we deplete our fossil fuel reserves, we are adding up items that now draw power from the grid.

TreeHugger recently had a post on a very unique group that originated in San Francisco two years ago with a handful of people and now has 8000 members. Called the Compact, the ‘un-consumer’ group members pledge to buy nothing new for a year, except for a few essentials.

The group’s founder John Perry had this to say: Before, my family—me, my partner and two kids—probably spent $200 a month on things we bought without thinking. When we stopped doing that, we freed up money for other things. Now we overpay the mortgage every month, and we give more to charity.

It was once believed that the US economy (or any other free market one) stood on the solid pillars of public spending (or splurging) but not anymore. ‘Runaway consumption and depletion of natural resources is going to have a worse impact than some middle-class people deciding they are going to stop buying things!’

But, the interesting and funny point is the last line in the post where the writer speaks of ecological footprint having dire eco consequences. His concern, as is that of many in the developed world, is the picture of the billions in China and India ‘consuming the way we do’!!!

That annoying point aside, how about ‘un-consuming’ for a month? We are generating a lot of unnecessary waste, aren’t we? A recent news report threw the question of what do we do with our old chargers as we keep buying new mobiles?

Any thoughts?

Solar cells in your clothing?

Solar technology embedded in our sidewalks, driveways, siding, paint, rooftops, and windows, and just in the next five years! Solar energy will be an affordable option for you and your neighbors. Until now, the materials and the process of producing solar cells to convert into solar energy have been too costly for widespread adoption.

But now this is changing with the creation of flexible “thin-film” solar cells, a new type of cost-efficient solar cell that can be 100 times thinner than silicon-wafer cells and produced at a lower cost. These new thin-film solar cells can be “printed” and arranged on a flexible backing, suitable for not only the tops, but also the sides of buildings, tinted windows, cell phones, notebook computers, cars, and even clothing.

That is part of IBM’s 5-point technology revolution in the coming half-decade based on some technologies emerging from its labs. The Web will talk back to you, and you will not forget things!! Click on link above to know details but coming to solar tech, some basic doubts.

We have been hearing of efficiencies of PVs improving even as new thin film materials make it possible to blend into any kind of material, from buildings to clothes, as IBM sees it.

Can someone tell us what kind of research is happening in India, on renewable technologies?

They do it with mirrors!

To paraphrase from one of Agatha Christie's books, 'they do it with mirrors'. Not murder foul, but power clean!

Much of the argument against solar energy is about its costs and storage. But emerging from the shadow of PVs is a technology that avoids the common problems.

In the Andalucian desert of southern Spain, more than 1,000 mirrors, each about half the size of a tennis court, and with a collecting area of 120 sq km, are being carefully positioned. In January, when switched on the plant will start generating 20 MW of electricity. The power will be enough for 11,000 Spanish homes.

Part of the world's biggest solar tower plant, this uses the simple technology of reflecting sunlight to superheat water at a 160 metre high central tower. Here the concentrated light heats water to more than 260C, producing steam that can turn a turbine and generate electricity.

When switched on, the new plant will be the world's largest commercial CSP plant feeding electricity into a national grid.

This solar tower is part of a 300 MW solar farm which will supply power for 700,000 homes by 2013. It will include solar trough collectors and PVs.

The costs are high, double that of conventional power generation but as the project becomes larger, costs are expected to come down. In Spain, the feed-in tariff assures investors of a return for the power generated and fed into the grid.

Regarding the storage, solar thermal has an advantage over PVs as the excess heat can be stored in the form of molten salt from which the heat can be obtained when required. Almost 8 hours of solar energy can be stored by 28,000 tonnes of salt heated to 220 deg C.

In a country like India which recieves plentiful sunlight, CSP is a good option. But besides the parabolic trough system used to cook food, not much has been done. Why for instance can’t be vast expenses of Rajasthan’s deserts be used? Of course, water availability is a criteria but new technologies use air to cool the system. Maintenance is a bit intensive but labour should be no problem here.

Is there a clause for tax exemptions, subsidies only for proven technologies as in the US? Why haven’t entrepreneurs taken CSP here? Why can’t we adopt the feed-in tariff system?

Any answers?

Under siege

Vandalised! Decapitated! Choice words for a planet under siege. In this case, we are the hostages and we are the terrorists too.

Climate models have repeatedly underestimated the speed and scale of major climate change impacts. One of the highest glaciers in the Himalayas is losing mass at an alarming rate, according to a new study. ‘Decapitated like a west Virginia coal mountain’, says the Energy Collective site. If Naimona’nyi is characteristic of other glaciers in the region, alpine glacier meltwater surpluses are likely to shrink much faster than currently predicted with substantial consequences for approximately half a billion people.

New report by the Public Interest Research Centre (Pirc) shows, climate scientists are now predicting the end of late-summer Arctic sea ice within three to seven years. This means more warming of the waters and permafrost begins to be exposed. Already is. Releasing huge quantities of carbon.

In a typical hard-hitting article, Monbiot says: As the Pirc report suggests, the years of sabotage and procrastination have left us with only one remaining shot: a crash programme of total energy replacement.

A paper by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research shows that if we are to give ourselves a roughly even chance of preventing more than two degrees of warming, global emissions from energy must peak by 2015 and decline by between 6% and 8% per year from 2020 to 2040, leading to a complete decarbonisation of the global economy soon after 2050.

The 80% cut by 2050 which Brown and Obama suggest means reducing emissions by an average of 2% a year, which would still mean an average rse of 4-5 degrees, Monbiot calculates and concludes as a ‘collapse of human civilisation’.

Total energy replacement alone will do, he says. The costs are high but he notes how a similar amount has been deployed in response to the financial crisis, amounting to more than that spent in the second world war!

For the change to renewables, enormous new infrastructure is required which calls for a huge front-load of fossil fuels. So, can we afford that or is it a better option to ask people to ‘sacrifice’ comforts by cutting 50 percent of energy consumption, as advocated by American thinker Sharon Astyk?

Monbiot believes such a cut would lead to further depression of the economy leading to collapse. Besides the fact that it is a highly idealistic proposal.

Hear Sharon on that: I do not believe is that the self-indulgence has driven out the capacity for sacrifice -instead, they are sides of the same coin. We indulged because our collective definition of goodness was defined by consumer culture. But the vast void and emptiness of this has left people literally longing for something richer and deeper. Service to community, nation and family is likely to be bread and meat to many who have been starving for something other than the empty calories consumer culture has served them.

There are people like Sharon and Arnold Schwarzenegger who belive that despite the economic downturn, the shift must happen. If we cannot address climate change while managing a massive economic decline, there is a good chance that we cannot manage it at all.

The question to ponder over is: Will voluntary cuts work? Anywhere? Can poor nations afford a total energy replacement?

Creative flows

Terrorists now unleashed on streets, gunning down people at random. New evidence of glaciers in the Himalayas melting even faster than predicted. Lot of doomsday scenarios closing in!

Let’s take a break from serious stuff and see what creative innovation is doing in the world of sustainable architecture.

It looks like a huge bubble or a big blob of mercury perched on the alpine slope but is a retreat for nature lovers who want to feel the environment and still enjoy safe comforts! Powered by solar panels and a vertical axis wind turbine, the off-grid alpine retreat features a shimmering glass skin with a reflective coating that allows individuals to sleep under the stars while admiring a 360-degree panorama of the beautiful landscape.

The capsule is designed by Ross Lovegrove, a Welsh architect. The Alpine Capsule is an 8-meter wide structure with a double-glass skin that is covered with a special reflective coating. The coating meant to reflect the structure’s surroundings and blend in with the environment. Focussing on sustainability and self-sufficiency, it will be off-grid and powered by a “power plant,” which integrates a vertical axis wind turbine and solar panels.

Lovegrove’s has come up with unique ideas for travel and lighting. Like a four passenger vehicle, another transparent bubble in which the four passengers sit in a circular fashion. There is no driver, as the vehicles are controlled by satellite and GPS navigation. The vehicles are powered by solar panels installed in the roof. The innovation comes in his proposal to stick each vehicle at night on top of a pole in order to both save space at the ground level, and to illuminate! It looks like a UFO as you can see from the picture.

Some call it neat, others call it impractical with no front or back to the cars posing dangers, besides the problem of space for many of these on the lamppost!

Solar plant like trees for illumination designed by Ross were inaugurated at Vienna recently.
Are these meant for the drawing board? Are they really sustainable? Or mere hype? While they use natural lighting and renewable sources, what about the materials used? How much of embodied energy do they carry?

Climate friendly gadgets

Wonder how many consumers in the country realize there are products coming out with energy labeling? Even if they are only a few handful! Like some CFLs, refrigerators, etc. Wonder how many realise what it means... Wonder how stringent the conditions are for obtaining a label…

In the US, recently, a big company found the price high for misleading consumers. It has been asked to compensate owners, modify its inventory and remove the five models mistakenly labeled under the Energy Star program.

The DOE announced that the immediate removal of the Energy Star label was required for LG fridges. According to both parties, LG rated the refrigerators on the basis of a standard test procedure that has been widely used for nearly 30 years. LG said it didn’t take into account different applications of the testing rules for newer technologies used in the latest energy-efficient products.

In what is seen as efforts to meet energy efficiency standards, the US will soon see some models of televisions and computers come out with the energy label showing the lesser consumptions.

Going by a recent MGI study, through a variety of measures ranging from better building efficiency and low-energy lighting to more fuel-efficient vehicles, there is potential to cut world energy-demand growth by more than 64 million barrels of oil a day (equivalent to one and a half times current annual U.S. energy consumption).

Increasing energy efficiency ‘dramatically’ would require annual investments of $170 billion over the next 13 years. But these investments would generate a return of well over $900 billion annually by 2020 through lower energy costs, it says.

Unlike misconceptions that equate such efficiency measures to abstinence and denial of comforts, the study goes on to say that as carbon productivity increases, GDP goes up while emissions go down.

But such changes do require education. There has to be a whole new way of thinking which focuses on maximizing output from devices and structures rather than indulge in largesse and waste. This won’t happen on its own and will have to be driven by incentives. Like reduction tax credit for using technologies that lower power consumption and curb peak power.

Can we hope our government can think new? Think bold?

Nuclear ambitions

India inked a deal with Russia wherein the latter will help build four new reactors in addition to the two already under construction at Kudankulam in TN. Two of the reactors will be 1,000 MW and two additional units will be 1,200 MW.

When completed, the complex at Kudankulam will be the single largest nuclear power station in India with a combined generation capacity of 6,400 MW. The first 1,000 MW reactor is reportedly nearing completion. Russia has shipped the first fuel loading containing enriched uranium for the unit to India.

The deal is the first major nuclear reactor trade deal with India since the NSG cleared the country to receive nuclear fuel from member countries. French nuclear giant Areva, Canada's AECL, and U.S. firms including Westinghouse and General Electric all have representatives working on similar deals with India.

While India has an installed base of 4 GW, none of its plants are bigger than 500 MW, and are less efficient in design thanks to the nuclear isolation. Fuel shortage has been another problem.

Nuclear fuel costs have risen even more rapidly, as environment expert Lester Brown noted. At the beginning of this decade uranium cost roughly $10 per pound. Today it costs more than $60 per pound. The higher uranium price reflects the need to move to ever deeper mines, which increases the energy needed to extract the ore, and the shift to lower-grade ore.

In the United States in the late 1950s, for example, uranium ore contained roughly 0.28 percent uranium oxide. By the 1990s, it had dropped to 0.09 percent. This means, of course, that the cost of mining larger quantities of ore, and that of getting it from deeper mines, ensures even higher future costs of nuclear fuel.

But above the costs, safety and disposal problems, the immediate ones are that of manufacturing bottlenecks in engineering, construction and management skills. Not here in India, but in the US believed to be the leader in the area! World over a lack of expertise has seen long delays in new plant launches.

How equipped are we in India? And how are we planning the cost economics of nuclear?

When we begin building on a large scale, and relying on external fuel supplies, what does that do to our security?

There are a growing number of people who believe that nuclear has to be part of the clean, renewable energy adoption. Nuclear can provide the base load power, solar can provide the peaking power, and we can begin to retire the fossil fuels, they say. But bringing the two groups together is often a problem. Because, the nuclear people all think the solars are a bunch of hippies and the solars think the nuclears are a bunch of Nazis.!!!

Can the two be made to sit at the same table?

Rising dragon, sleeping giant!

An increase of 1.5 billion in population, which will see increased competition for resources, a shift in power from west to east and a rising China are some of the main projections of Global Trends 2025, a report from the US National Intelligence Council. China will be a leading military power, largest importer of natural resources and biggest polluter.

Amidst its obsessive worries of conflict in the Middle East spurred by a nuclear arms race in the region, the report offers a positive hope that economic growth will become ‘rooted and sustained’.

In 2025, the world will be in the midst of a fundamental energy transition—in terms of both fuel types and sources. The number and geographic distribution of oil producers will decrease concurrent with another energy transition: the move to cleaner fuels. The prized fuel in the shorter term likely will be natural gas. By 2025, consumption of natural gas is expected to grow by about 60 percent, according to DoE/Energy Information Agency projections.

India will ‘scramble to ensure access to energy by making overtures to Burma, Iran, and Central Asia. Pipelines to India transiting restive regions may connect New Delhi to local instabilities.’

Beijing will want to offset its growing reliance on Riyadh by strengthening ties to other producers. Iran will see this as an opportunity to solidify China’s support for Tehran, which probably would strain Beijing’s ties to Riyadh. Tehran may also be able to forge even closer ties with Russia.

These as the report says are not determinative but based on trends and hence can be proven wrong if policies change substantially. Nothing like self-reliance in the long run!

Solar-powered plane

From housetops to deserts to mausoleums in cemeteries, solar panels are coming up in nooks and corners. Perhaps the ultimate would be as fuel for air flight, something known to contribute increasingly to global warming.

The first solar-powered plane trip around the world is now one step closer to reality. A 1500 kilogram solar plane will complete its first test flight next April. The plane, which has a 61-meter wingspan, will attempt to travel around the world in May 2011. It will go into commercial production the same year.

Solar is raring to go, with efficiencies picking up, even as innovations in cheaper materials keep pouring in. It would be tempting to go for a ‘solar-wash’.

But, as one of our blog visitors Gopal notes, most of the demand from rural areas is not so much for electricity as it is for heat for cooking. Solar still has the problem of storage and it is prudent to go for requirement-based resources.

There is no one-size-fits-all in the energy area as anywhere else. No one source can be touted as better than the other, unless seen in context. The requirement and availability of sources have to be mapped to get the best mix. Rushing into implementing new ideas without proper research has bogged down many excellent projects.

Let us know if you come across innovative use of energy. It is time to spread the word, wouldn’t you agree?

Mercury pollution

Not only do they spew carbon dioxide, but most of our thermal plants are giving out mercury which is highly toxic and has a negative effect on children’s growth.

A study has found that coal-fired plants in the US have put out more mercury into the environment now than in 2006. Twenty tons of mercury, a neurotoxin that affects brain development in fetuses, were released into the air by these top fifty offenders. Coal-fired plants account for 40% of all mercury emissions, the largest single source of mercury in air.

The 600 plus coal-fired power plants in the United States, which produce over half of the country’s electricity, burn 1 billion tons of coal and release 98,000 pounds (44 metric tons) of mercury into the air each year. Power plants yield an additional 81,000 pounds of mercury pollution in the form of solid waste, including fly ash and scrubber sludge, and 20,000 pounds of mercury from “cleaning” coal before it is burned. In the US alone, coal-fired power plants pollute the environment with some 200,000 pounds of mercury annually.

Low-level mercury poisoning is so prevalent, it is estimated that six percent of woman have enough mercury in their bodies to cause neurological damage to their unborn fetuses. The more coal gets burned, the more mercury is released into the environment.

The mercury given out is deposited on land and water. Biological processes change much of the deposited mercury into methylmercury, a potent neurotoxin that humans and other organisms readily absorb. Methylmercury easily travels up the aquatic food chain, accumulating at higher concentrations at each level.

According to the EIP report, mercury removal at coal-fired plants is possible with current technologies. Activated carbon injection, a sort of mercury-hungry sponge placed in the smokestack, can reduce mercury pollution by ninety percent in some instances. Combined with other technologies—sulfur dioxide scrubbers, selective catalytic reduction, fabric filters—the mercury output can be even further reduced.

(But the inescapable fact is that even if pollution scrubbers in modern smokestacks do reduce air pollution, they do nothing to help the coal miners who die each year in mine accidents or from diseases brought on by breathing hazardous coal dust.)

The scary part is that mercury pollution is not bound by regions and can travel as far as from China to Oregon. Airborne mercury emitted by these facilities is deposited anywhere from within a few hundred kilometers of the smokestacks to across continents, far from its source.

Wouldn’t it make more sense for nations to go for safe and abundant renewable sources?