NYT: The Energy Challenge: It’s Free, Plentiful and Fickle

[RedEarth]

Wind, almost everybody’s best hope for big supplies of clean, affordable electricity, is turning out to have complications.

Engineers have cut the price of electricity derived from wind by about 80 percent in the last 20 years, setting up this renewable technology for a major share of the electricity market. But for all its promise, wind also generates a big problem: because it is unpredictable and often fails to blow when electricity is most needed, wind is not reliable enough to assure supplies for an electric grid that must be prepared to deliver power to everybody who wants it — even when it is in greatest demand.

In Texas, as in many other parts of the country, power companies are scrambling to build generating stations to meet growing peak demands, generally driven by air-conditioning for new homes and businesses. But power plants that run on coal or gas must “be built along with every megawatt of wind capacity,” said William Bojorquez, director of system planning at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

The reason is that in Texas, and most of the United States, the hottest days are the least windy. As a result, wind turns out to be a good way to save fuel, but not a good way to avoid building plants that burn coal. A wind machine is a bit like a bicycle that a commuter keeps in the garage for sunny days. It saves gasoline, but the commuter has to own a car anyway.

Xcel Energy, which serves eight states from North Dakota to Texas and says it is the nation’s largest retailer of wind energy, is eager to have more. Wind is “abundant and popular,” said Richard C. Kelly, the chairman, president and chief executive, speaking at a recent conference on renewable energy.


http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/28/business/28wind.html?ei=5089&en=1d1b15b2f612232c&ex=1324962000&partner=rssyahoo&emc=rss&pagewanted=print

[Deja Q]

1. Thank you Xcel! That truly is Xcellent!

:thumbsup:

'tis a good start! :D

[SCDem]

2. An effective energy policy will encompass more than 1 technology

An effective energy policy will encompass more than 1 technology

Wind is but one alternative - a plethora of energy sources is to the advantage of all of us including our environment. I appreciate the article but am concerned that only negative press is released about alternative energy sources. Wind, solar, waves, hydro, nuclear - the all have negative sides I am sure but they are all essential in cutting the carbon we release into the air.

The true cost (environmental, health, etc.) of the natural resources we use now (coal and oil) are never given as much srutinizing.

[spag68]

3. This article is off the mark

There are many ways to store the energy produced when the wind blows, so that argument is another straw man. All forms of alternative energy should be used where each is most applicable. We need to get to a future where no fossil fuels ae burned.

[amandabeech]

5. Do you have sites to some good articles or bibliographies on this

topic.

I am only aware of a couple methods.

[Porcupine]

4. So precisely when rooftop solar panels work best......

power planners sit around and complain that wind power is infeasible for power problems. Of course nobody from the conservation-first side of things was let into the room.

If they were they could have pointed out that a combination of covering roofs with reflective materials and insulating attics would give the greatest reduction in load demand for the dollar. Then some way of subsidizing the replacement of old AC units with new energy efficient ones would work. If they switched as many of those units to ground loop or zone chillers as possible even greater savings could be made.

Then we could install a whole lot of rooftop, carport and parking lot solar panels all over Texas. Imagine all those Texans coming out of Wallyworld to a nice cool car courtesy of mr solar panel. That would even reduce gasoline demand as their engines would not labor so much to cool jet black SUV's left in the Texas sun.

It's a dream, but it's doable.

[JohnWxy]

6. My, it's amazing what passes for professional reporting these days - VRB Power sells

vanadium redox storage systems which are the cheapest means of storing electrical power and easily scalable. These storage systems eliminate the concerns re variability of wind power. Anyway, the variability of wind power only becomes an issue when wind power reaches 20% of the total supply within a portion of the grid. A recent study done in Minnesota concluded you can reach 25% of the total power supply without needing any back-up.

www.vrbpower.com

The VRB Energy Storage System (VRB-ESS) is an electrical energy storage system based on the patented vanadium-based redox regenerative fuel cell that converts chemical energy into electrical energy. Energy is stored chemically in different ionic forms of vanadium in a dilute sulphuric acid electrolyte. The electrolyte is pumped from separate plastic storage tanks into flow cells across a proton exchange membrane (PEM) where one form of electrolyte is electrochemically oxidized and the other is electrochemically reduced. This creates a current that is collected by electrodes and made available to an external circuit. The reaction is reversible allowing the battery to be charged, discharged and recharged.

http://www.vrbpower.com/applications/renewable-resources.html

The VRB-ESS serves as a buffer between a variable supply sources and the firm competitive requirements of a power contract and can add capacity value to non-firm resources such as wind and Photo-voltaic (PV). Wind generation systems have a fluctuating power output due to the variability of the wind speed. A one to one response time makes the VRB-ESS capable of charging and discharging over the same duration and can provide stabilization of wind turbine output and is a source of reactive energy. Additionally, voltage can be regulated and in off grid networks, system frequency can be controlled.

Economically, the consequence of unknown power output is a reduction in the capacity payment or capital credit of fluctuating power generation. Applying the VRB-ESS in conjunction with a wind generator removes the fluctuations and can provide a "firm" supply to the utility. This in turn increases the price of capacity to the wind generator.

White Papers & Case Studies
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VRB-ESS Wind Application - (PDF document)
VRB-ESS - Wind Energy Case Study - (PDF document)
King Island Case Study - (PDF document)
RAPS Brochure - (PDF document)

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