“If you build schools like they have always been built, kids will be graduated solving problems like they have always been solved…”

An article in The Economist makes a potent point: The sum of all carbon mitigation strategies worldwide will still not limit the rise in average global temperatures by 2 degrees above pre-industrial times. The article notes that 101 out of 116 climate change models assume that greenhouse gases will somehow be sucked out of the air…  creating negative emissions. According to an Oxford University professor, “It is built into the assumptions of the Paris agreement.”

Scientists believe that two-thirds of the gap can be fulfilled with tree planting and changing agricultural practices, such as shallower tilling of soil. The remainder will have to be done with more expensive mitigation strategies, such as carbon capture and sequestration at power plants and algal conversion.

Agriculture will play a large role in lowering emissions

An MIT Technology Review article is both alarming and motivational: “Unless we start cutting carbon dioxide emissions soon, it’s going to cost today’s young people as much as $535 trillion to clean the atmosphere by 2100. If we start in earnest, reducing emissions by 6% per year by 2021, it will only cost $8 – 18.5 trillion to extract enough carbon dioxide to avoid the worst dangers of climate change.” Hmmm.

The world’s first facility to suck GHGs from thin air is near Zurich, Switzerland. The $23 million Climeworks project is the first commercial CO2 capture plant. Funded by Bill Gates and the European Space Agency, it now removes and captures emissions at a cost of $600/ton with a goal to drop this to $100/ton, and an ambition to capture 1% of global emissions by 2025. Other companies are also in the space: Carbon Engineering in Canada, Global Thermostat in the United States, and Skytree in The Netherlands. Then there are riskier geo-engineering such as dimming the world’s sunshine (a Harvard geo-engineering project) and dumping iron into the oceans to soak up carbon.

CO2 Capture Plant in Zurich (Climeworks YouTube)

In related news, “Drawdown” is a new book by Paul Hawken written in lay language that is an educational tool on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Tor Allen of the Solar Schoolhaus, calls it “the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming.”  In the book, Hawken and his “Drawdown Fellows” delineate and then calculate the impact of 80 global climate change solutions. Drawdown refers to the specific goal of lowering carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere and bringing carbon back to Earth. Fully eight of the top 20 solutions are in the food sector, including “reducing food waste” and “eating a plant-rich diet.” Energy solutions are key, as are means to empower women through “educating girls (#6)” and “family planning (#7).”

Sweden is not only committed to net zero carbon emissions, but recently lawmakers passed a bill to speed up the timeline to do so from 2050 to 2045. The law takes effect January 1, 2018 and establishes an independent Climate Policy Council and four-year cycle for updating the national climate action plan.

Rendering of the Malmo-Lund Bicycle Superhighway

While the United States backslides from commitments in Paris, Sweden is the first Scandinavian country to step up its commitment. Sweden’s Deputy prime minster gloated about the Swedish bill’s passage with an all-woman leadership photo. Given Sweden’s rather emissions-free power sector, dominated by hydro and nuclear, much of the country’s focus will be on greening its transportation sector.

The new law stipulates that 85% of the emissions reductions to be attained in Sweden, with no more than 15% from abroad. One of the most far-reaching climate mitigation steps is a bicycle superhighway planned between Malmo and the college town of Lund.  The superhighway will be ten miles long, with two bike lanes in each direction. In Lund, 60% of the public bikes or takes public transport.

Seaweeds sequester CO2 as they grow

A study funded by the U.S. Department of Energy suggests that up to 10% of all U.S. transportation fuel could be harvested from kelp. While nearly all biomass production up to this time is onshore, kelp production – and a new round of funding for “macroalgal” developments — takes biomass to sea. The impetus is national security.

Several things are relevant: Kelp can grow 2 – 3 feet a day. These macroalgae are among the fastest growing organisms on Earth. Researchers are considering how best to grow kelp, to stimulate its growth. There is advanced research in farm design and autonomous operation.

When harvested, thermochemical liquefaction takes kelp and converts it a fuel feedstock for domestic transportation fuels. The DOE is currently funding 18 “seaweed to fuel” projects now through the Macroalgae Research Inspiring Novel Energy Resources (MARINER) program.

BYD buses line up in Shenzhen

E-Buses for Shenzen: So far, 12 major cities have committed to buying only electric buses from 2025 onwards. One is leading the pack: Shenzhen, a city of 11.9 million residents in the Guangdong Province of China, will have entirely electrified its fleet of more than 14,000 buses by end of 2017. That’s soon! Shenzhen is home of BYB, an international leader in electric vehicles and buses. Shenzhen began its e-bus transition in 2011. Smog is demonstrably impacting solar output in China, so ebuses provide the two benefits of helping to clean the air while generating more photovoltaic power.

The Hydrail

Hydrogen-Powered Trains: Meanwhile, Canadians are considering a different form of electric propulsion: hydrogen-powered trains. This after the French company Alstom performed successful tests and sold 14 trains to the German State of Lower Saxony.  Now the Province of Ontario is exploring how to get off diesel and go electric, and is looking at hydrogen. One of its challenges is fundamental: Hydrogen is a tiny molecule that is hard to keep bottled. In fact, hydrogen is not a fuel but an “energy carrier.” Combined with fuel cells, hydrogen-based systems have no combustion, created through electrolysis of water powered by baseload resources such as hydro and nuclear.

There are additional benefits of a transition to hydrogen, versus electricity: Hydrogen would allow Ontario’s Metrolinx to run clean trains while avoiding the expensive and disruptive work of erecting overhead wires along hundreds of kilometers of track. Similarly, conversion to electric would require significant infrastructure enhancements such as rebuilding bridges that are not high enough for catenary wires and the pantographs on roofs of the trains.

Hybrid Planes: The European Commission’s Flightpath 2050 Vision for Aviation is a catalyst. It aims to reduce GHGs by 75%, NOx emissions by 90%, and noise pollution by 65%. Making this vision a reality is a partnership of Airbus, Rolls Royce, and Siemens… testing electric motors and battery storage on a Airbus jet, dubbed “E-Fan X.” It will initially have one of its four turbines replaced by a 2 MW electric motor; the next step (enabled by advanced and lighter batteries) will be two electric motors. Ultimately, Airbus plans for the E-Fan X to evolve into a hybrid, single-aisle commercial aircraft.

The Copenhagen Wheel (SENSEable City Lab)

The Copenhagen Wheel: The Boston Globe called it “a two-wheeled Tesla.” Others call it “reinventing the wheel!” The Copenhagen Wheel is a sleek red hub that turns almost any bicycle into a smart electric hybrid. Each Copenhagen Wheel contains a custom motor, advanced sensors, control systems, and a battery. Bluetooth connectivity enables riders to personalize their cycling experiences from smartphones. Simply replace the rear wheel of your bike with the Copenhagen Wheel and… “Distances shorten, hills flatten, and the experience becomes uniquely you, ride by ride.”

Electric Highway Notes: The West Coast Electric Highway is a network of electric vehicle DC fast-charging stations located every 25 – 50 miles on Interstate 5, Highway 99, and other major roadways in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California. Initiated by the Washington State Department of Transportation, it commissioned an “alternative fuels corridor.” The West Coast Electric Highway allows EV drivers to make longer trips, giving EV drivers “range confidence.”

DC Fast Charger being installed in Bend, OR

To support the West Coast Electric Highway, the California Energy Commission (CEC) recently awarded $8.8 million to ChargePoint and other EV charging companies, to complete the California section of the project that connects British Columbia and the Baja. The new stations will include 50 kW Express DC Fast charging – in which the average electric vehicle battery from 0 – 80% charge in 20 minutes – as well as Level 2 charging stations that give drivers 25 miles of range per hour of charging.

In related news, a new form of electric highway made the news this month: An electric highways demonstration in Los Angeles uses “dynamic charging,” a system based on using overhead wires and extending arms on trucks – like streetcars – to get power. Set up by Siemens, this first-of-a-kind electric highway in the United States is now available for specially fitted hybrid trucks moving between the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The prototype ehighway is a one-mile stretch — easy on, easy off – using a catenary system. SCAQMD reports that heavy-duty trucks are the number one source of smog-forming emissions in Southern California.

Qunli Stormwater Park (ASLA)

Flooding has become deadly in China, especially in cities. The country’s urban land has more than doubled in twenty years. Sometimes this expansion has been right on flood plains. China’s rapid urbanization has been a massive exercise in laying concrete. In fact, China used more cement in three years (2011-2013) than the United States did over the entire 20th century.

China has been widely criticized for water-related projects. The Three Gorges Dam caused the relocation of a million people. Fatal floods come as regularly as monsoon seasons. Reportedly, “…water has become the nemesis of China’s 680 million urbanites whose concrete landscape was not built adequately to withstand forces of nature.” China has more than 87,000 dams, but they have yet to prove that they can keep cities safe from flooding.

The rate of flooding in China has become a national scandal. Flooding in Beijing killed 79 people in 2012. Then there are sunken highway “underpasses.” They were deemed more aesthetically appealing to overpasses, and were cheaper too, until it rained. Beijing has 149 sunken underpasses, many without adequate drains or pumps.

In an attempt to reduce flooding and infiltrate storm water runoff, China has spent $12 billion so far between federal and local governments and private developers in about 30 different cities. This work has included permeable pavements, bioswales, green roofs, and wetlands. And a new term has arisen for cities that provide such “green infrastructure.” They are called “sponge cities.” One such city is Lingang near Shanghai, a planned city with an integrated design of permeable pavement, green roofs, and other water-retaining features. “A sponge city is one that can hold, clean, and drain water in a natural way using an ecological approach.” Tianxu Garden in Beijing, and early test site for storm water management, proved its sound design during the floods there.

Now China plans a new approach to flood control with aggressive stretch goals. By 2020, China plans for 80% of its urban areas to absorb and reuse at least 70% of rainwater. In September, the government approved and funded the development of 16 “sponge cities” to demonstrate these ecologically friendly alternatives to conventional urban design. The central government wants to radically switch the urbanization model from gray to green. Each “sponge city” received $63 million for its storm water management projects.

Canadian scientist next to a Tubular Photobioreactor

A photobioreactor is a bioreactor that utilizes a light source to cultivate phototrophic microorganisms. These organisms use photosynthesis to generate biomass from light and carbon dioxide… including plants, mosses, macroalgae, microalgae, cyanobacteria, and purpose bacteria. Special conditions can be controlled to grow specific species. These reactors allow for growth rates much higher than found in nature. Phototrophic biomass can be derived from nutrient-rich wastewater and flue gas carbon dioxide from power plants.

CO2 capture and recycle using microalgae has been demonstrated at the Duke Energy East Bend Station in Kentucky. Using a closed loop piping system, a “vertical tube photobioreactor,” the algae scenedesmus acutus was cultivated using flue gas as the CO2 source. Algal productivity of 39 grams/square meter/day was achieved, resulting in production of 18,000 liters of diesel fuel per day after conversion of algal lipids to diesel-range hydrocarbons. The cost of this form of algae-based CO2 capture is ~$1,600 per ton of CO2 captured/recovered.

A more recent project has been awarded a grant by Duke Energy to the Indiana University at Bloomington. There, a photobioreactor will be built and attached to the university’s power plant using CO2-rich flue gases to create fertilizer.

A photobioreactor made of PVC pipes will be housed on the roof of Indiana University at Bloomington’s Central Heating Plan and will convert emissions into fertilizer via photosynthesis. In its first year, the demonstration system is expected to return 200 pounds of black carbon back to the earth. Completion is slated for the spring of 2018.

Workers installing the inverters and batteries

School, other institutions, and even our homes can attain energy resilience – or be “self-contained” – in a number of ways. Diesel-powered generator sets with a tank of fuel in reserve are common and relatively inexpensive, and have been a favored option given the low probability of an outage on any given day. They’ve been used for decades for “mission-critical installations.” But the Santa Rita Union School District wanted batteries, and needed to get them with no money down. Its limited Prop 39 monies were ultimately used for campus efficiency and system controls.

One of the project’s greatest barriers was that it had never been done before. Solar PPAs are common. Power Efficiency Agreements for storage are not uncommon, based on avoiding ratcheting demand charges. But what EcoMotion recommended for SRUSD was novel… to wrap solar and long-term storage together in one PPA, held by one financier. Ultimately, Generate Capital in New York City saw the value of the PERC concept and how it address campus resilience in a new way, and provided project financing. Remarkably, the deal was done at parity, on par with the price that SRUSD currently pays for grid power, and likely less over time.

According to Kirk Stokes of Sharp Energy Solutions, the lead implementer and asset manager, first and foremost, everything is on track. Getting the interconnection agreements through PG&E clearly has been the most challenging part of the project. Sharp chalks this up to “the first-time syndrome.” SRUSD is building systems, PERCs, that haven’t been built and operated before.

Solar Carport at Gavilan Middle School

The interconnection applications were filed in June of 2017. After five months of back and forth, all were accepted last week after some control system changes. The systems have been approved for both grid-tied (normal) and “islanded” operations during outages. Islanded operations will be tested in January prior to final permission to operate.

At the heart of the microgrids are three-port, DC coupled inverters. The systems are based on net energy metered solar (green power), and storage that is designated as “non-export.” Solar is used to fulfill onsite load, charge the batteries, or feed back into the grid for net energy metering credit. Storage, on the other hand, can be used to only fulfill campus needs, providing energy and frequency control in the event of grid outages. PG&E will not allow CUHSD to buy brown power at night, store it, and then to sell it at a profit during the day. And of course, that is not the District’s intent.

SRUSD intends to fill up the batteries with solar and to then use the solar on a daily basis to fulfill campus needs, keeping full batteries in reserve at each site for deployment in the event of an outage. Black and Veatch, the system engineers was required to add hardware that will open DC contacts to physically prevent back-feeding into the grid from the batteries and to assure non-export of brown electrons during outages. Stay tuned; there’s more to come!

The group at stop one, Occidental College

For those that missed it, join us next year. Second year participant James Finlay noted that when he got the announcement about the tour, it took him about eight seconds to sign up! He’s ready for next year too. In fact, we’re all ready for next year!

Thanks so much to our Second Annual Energy Innovation Tour host sites: Occidental College, Tesla Regional Distribution Center, Proterra electric bus manufacturing, Cal Sate Long Beach and Advanced Microgrid Solutions, the Los Angeles Clean Tech Incubator, and the Olympic by Windsor net zero energy apartments.

Four tour photos, see the EcoMotion website.

This year we added storage and mobility to the tour. Participants thirsted on the program… from “Dr. Dan’s” genesis of a contoured megawatt of hillside solar at “Oxy;” to the performance of Powerwalls and Model X Teslas; to Proterra’s impressive electric bus manufacture; then Powerpacks at Cal State; LACI’s new, interpreted microgrid; and the first net zero apartment complex in Los Angeles. Some found this year’s bus full of valuable networkers to be the highlight. And per two-year tradition, we all toasted the day and the pace of the clean energy revolution at the Bunker Hill Bar and Grill.