The duct system, used in air heating and air cooling your home, is a collection of tubes that distributes the heated or cooled air to the various rooms. The duct system can have an important effect on health of the occupants through the distribution of indoor air pollution. Changes and repairs to a duct system should always be performed by a qualified professional. This brochure is meant to help you understand the problems that can affect the duct system and how you can save money, improve comfort, and protect against potential health hazards.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is promoting the use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs). To support this activity, DOE has directed the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to conduct projects to evaluate the performance and acceptability of light-duty AFVs. A 1999 F-250 bi-fuel propane pickup was run through a series of tests while operating on LPB and gasoline. The tests are explained briefly in this fact sheet.
The Winter 2000 edition of the OIT Times newsletter, a quarterly publication produced by the Office of Industrial Technologies, highlights the 1999 start-up projects, announces the OIT solicitation schedule for FY2000, and features the success of the Ohio diecasting showcase. One of the quarterly highlights was Secretary Richardson's presentation of a Certificate of Partnership to Malden Mills CEO Aaron Feuerstein at the dedication of the plant's new, advanced cogeneration system.
This is a fact sheet written for the Inventions and Innovation Program about a new way to compact and deliver coal and other materials through pipelines.
Fact sheet written for the Inventions and Innovation Program about a new method for stress relief in metalcasting processes that reduces energy consumption and eliminates pollution.
This Fact Sheet is written for the Inventions and Innovations Program about a new technology for sulfide reduction and increased oil recovery. The new technology, called Bio-Competitive Exclusion (BCX), results in greater oil production and prevents the production of corrosive hydrogen sulfide in oil and gas reservoirs. This BCX process is initiated and maintained by a new product, called Max-Well 2000, in which nutrients are custom designed to stimulate targeted beneficial microorganisms that live in every oil and gas reservoir. Rapid growth of these microorganisms excludes activity of harmful sulfide-producing bacteria and produces by-products that serve as effective tertiary oil recovery agents and as sulfide degradation agents. Oil and gas production is both increased and sweetened.
Synchrotron radiation is a very bright, broadband, polarized, pulsed source of electromagnetic radiation extending from the infrared to the x-ray region. Brightness, defined as flux per unit area per unit solid angle, is normally a more important quantity than flux or intensity, particularly in throughput limited applications which include those in which monochromators are used. The authors have attempted to compile the formulae needed to calculate the flux, brightness, polarization and power produced by the three standard storage ring synchrotron radiation sources: bending magnets, wigglers and undulators. Where necessary, these formulae have contained reference to the emittance of the electron beam, as well as to the electron beam size and its divergence. For all three type sources, the source phase space area, i.e. the spatial and angular extent of the effective (real) source, is a convolution of its electron and photon components.
Fact sheet written for the Inventions and Innovation Program about a new method for making steel strapping and strip from rod stock produced from scrap steel. There is a large movement in the American steel industry to utilize more recycled steel. Recycled steel melted in the electric arc furnaces of mini-mills is being used as the source of raw materials for an increasing number of products, largely due to its lower price. However, conventional processes for producing steel strapping and cold-rolled strip steel restrict manufacturers from using more than 50% recycled steel. In addition, steel strapping and cold-rolled strip steel traditionally require many production steps. They are produced from primary steel that has been cast into slab, heated, rolled to achieve the desired thickness, and slit to the desired width. The slitting process produces microcracks along the edge of the strapping or strip, which reduce tensile strength. A new continuous process produces steel strapping and 1/2 inch to 6 inch strip steel from the rod and strip stock made from scrap steel in mini-mills. The new process creates steel strapping and strip with improved strength and quality due to the absence of microcracks caused by the conventional slitting process. The finished product is cheaper because of the lower cost associated with using rod ad lower conversion costs. In addition, the higher tensile strength of the product allows for thinner strapping. The process represents a new approach to producing any steel strapping used for bundling and packaging items for storage or transport. In addition, this innovative new process can be used to produce cold-rolled strip steel, a basic raw material for automobile parts, hardware, office equipment, and many other products.
The importance of aerosol particles in many branches of science, such as atmospheric chemistry, combustion, interfacial science, and material processing, has been steadily growing during the past decades. One of the unique properties of these particles is the very high surface-to-volume ratios, thus making them readily serve as centers for gas-phase condensation and heterogeneous reactions. These particles must be characterized by size, shape, physical state, and chemical composition. Traditionally, optical elastic scattering has been applied to obtain the physical properties of these particle (e.g., particle size, size distribution, and particle density). These physical properties are particularly important in atmospheric science as they govern the distribution and transport of atmospheric aerosols.
This paper summarizes the current scientific and technological knowledge about greenhouse gas emissions from various agricultural practices and the manufacturing of food. The study also provides estimates that compare agriculture-related alternatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Energy Matters is an Office of Industrial Technologies bimonthly publication on energy efficiency opportunities. This issue's focus is on the future of industrial energy efficiency. The issue also contains articles on seven companies that are to receive cost-shared funding for plant-wide, energy efficiency assessments; submitting proposals to assess energy flow and steam system opportunities; partnering to save energy and money; and root cause failure analysis on AC induction motors. Also a special feature by Don Casada ''Lights that Shine Forever.''
This guidance document is a product of the Avian Subcommittee of the National Wind Coordinating Committee (NWCC). The NWCC was formed to better understand and promote responsible, credible, and comparable avian/wind energy interaction studies. Bird mortality is a concern and wind power is a potential clean and green source of electricity, making study of wind energy/bird interactions essential. This document provides an overview for regulators and stakeholders concerned with wind energy/bird interactions, as well as a more technical discussion of the basic concepts and tools for studying such interactions.
This Photovoltaic Program Five-Year Plan is being published today, January 1, 2000. This five-year plan provides a strategy for research and development to advance the technology.
NREL PV Working With Industry is a quarterly newsletter devoted to the research, development, and deployment performed by NREL staff in concert with their industry and university partners. The Third Quarter, 1999 issue focuses on planning activities of the National Center for Photovoltaics (NCPV), including the PV Industry 20-Year Roadmap and the National Photovoltaics Program Plan. The editorialist is Allen Barnett, president of AstroPower, Inc., and a member of the NCPV Advisory Board.
Building America houses in Las Vegas, Nevada, are using state-of-the-art building materials and systems to provide residents with much lower energy bills than standard construction. The houses use unvented roofs, high-performance windows, and combo domestic hot-water and air-conditioning units.
Fact sheet written for the Inventions and Innovation Program about a new composite-reinforced aluminum conductor for utility transmission and distribution. The millions of people affected by a blackout in the western US, Canada, and parts of Mexico in July 1996 had no idea the power outage was caused by overloaded transmission lines sagging low enough to touch trees. Millions of New Englanders affected by power outages during the 1997--98 winter probably weren't aware that accumulations of ice and snow on transmission lines had caused the lines to snap. Yet, these two examples illustrate the urgent need to begin upgrading this country's aging electrical-power distribution systems. A key step in this process lies in improving the weight and conductivity characteristics of utility transmission and distribution lines. Conventional conductors used for overhead transmission and distribution lines are comprised of aluminum strands of wire wrapped around a steel core. The aluminum serves as the electrical conductor, while the steel provides mechanical support. This hybrid design results in an excellent weight-to-conductivity ratio, but it also yields a heavier product, which requires stronger and more costly support structures and limits conductivity. W. Brandt Goldsworthy and Associates, Inc., of Torrance, California, is developing a new composite-reinforced aluminum conductor to replace aging steel-core lines. The new composite conductor is lighter, stronger, and carries a higher current capacity than traditional power lines. The technology has been designed primarily for domestic utility transmission and distribution systems. This application takes the highest priority as utility deregulation continues to increase the demand for direct-power access. Subsequent applications exist through opportunities in the industrial power, building wire, telecommunications and data transmission, and high-temperature superconductor markets. Similar applications overseas also represent tremendous potential, with growth projected at 10 times that of the United States market.
The production of primary metal from ores has long been a necessary, but environmentally devastating process. Over the past 20 years, in an effort to lessen environmental impacts, the metal processing industry has developed methods for recovering metal values from certain hazardous wastes. However, these processes leave residual molten slag that requires disposal in hazardous waste landfills. A new process recovers valuable metals, metal alloys, and metal oxides from hazardous wastes, such as electric arc furnace (EAF) dust from steel mills, mill scale, spent aluminum pot liners, and wastewater treatment sludge from electroplating. At the same time, the process does not create residual waste for disposal. This new method uses all wastes from metal production processes. These hazardous materials are converted to three valuable products - mineral wool, zinc oxide, and high-grade iron.
The Congressional Record contains the records for sessions of the U.S. Congress including summaries of proceedings, letters, and speeches for the Senate and House of Representatives.
The Congressional Record contains the records for sessions of the U.S. Congress including summaries of proceedings, letters, and speeches for the Senate and House of Representatives.
Ambient aerosols play an important role in many atmospheric processes affecting air quality, visibility degradation, and climatic changes as well. Both natural and anthropogenic sources contribute to the formation of ambient aerosols, which are composed mostly of sulfates, nitrates, and chlorides in either pure or mixed forms. These inorganic salt aerosols are hygroscopic by nature and exhibit the properties of deliquescence and efflorescence in humid air. For pure inorganic salt particles with diameter larger than 0.1 micron, the phase transformation from a solid particle to a saline droplet occurs only when the relative humidity in the surrounding atmosphere reaches a certain critical level corresponding to the water activity of the saturated solution. The droplet size or mass in equilibrium with relative humidity can be calculated in a straightforward manner from thermodynamic considerations. For aqueous droplets 0.1 micron or smaller, the surface curvature effect on vapor pressure becomes important and the Kelvin equation must be used.
The alternative fuel industry is heating up. It is a very exciting time to be in the energy business, especially when it comes to transportation. Celebrating of the milestone 75th Clean Cities coalition and kick off of the new Federal Alternative Fuel Vehicle (AFV) USER Program is occurring in cities across the country. Clean Energy for the 21st Century and the events that are happening during Energy Awareness Month are covered in this issue. Spotlighted are niche markets; several airports across the country are successfully incorporating alternative fuels into their daily routines.
The Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) Regional Council initiated the Maricopa Clean Cities Program on June 20, 1995. Its purpose was to encourage the use of alternative fuels in the Maricopa region and to obtain recognition for the steps the region had already taken to support the use of alternative fuels. One key element to Maricopa Clean Cities' success is the strong support it receives from the Arizona legislation. The Maricopa Clean Cities stakeholders are committed to increasing the number of alternative fuel vehicles and developing the infrastructure to support those vehicles.
Designated the 41st Clean Cities coalition in November 1995, the Paso del Norte Clean Cities Coalition (PDNCCC) is the first in the country to gain international participation. Spanning the US-Mexico border; the coalition includes stakeholders from El Paso, Texas; Ciudad Juarez, Mexico; and Las Cruces, New Mexico. PDNCCC developed a comprehensive plan to jump-start its program place, alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) on the road, and eliminate barriers inhibiting alternative fuel market growth. PDNCC raised more than $2.3 million for alternative fuel activities and clean air initiatives in less than 26 months. In 1998, the US Department of Energy (DOE) recognized that PDNCCC accomplishment with its Rainmaker Award for leveraging the most funds from outside sources. PDNCCC is proud of its efforts to drive the alternative fuels and AFV market in the El Paso/Juarez region.
The Technology Cooperation Agreement Pilot Project (TCAPP) is helping developing countries design and implement actions to attract investment in clean energy technologies that will meet their economic development goals, while mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. TCAPP was launched by three US government agencies -- the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and the US Department of Energy (USDOE) -- in August 1997 to establish a model for climate change technology cooperation with developing and transition countries. This report describes the TCAPP approach and the significant progress made by the participating countries.
Making the Most of Residential Photovoltaic Systems, was recently produced by NREL Communications and Public Affairs. It showcases a demonstration project in Florida that produced some remarkable results by incorporating both energy efficiency and photovoltaic systems into newly built housing. The brochure points up the benefits of making wise personal choices about energy use, and how large-scale use of advanced energy technologies can benefit the nation. This is one of a series of brochures that presents stimulating information about photovoltaics, with a goal of helping to push this technology into the power-generation mix in different utilities, communities, and states.
This case study describes the new energy-efficient equipment being installed at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to save nearly $2 million per year in energy and utility costs. The work is being done under a delivery order by Honeywell, Inc., as part of a US Department of Energy ``super'' regional energy savings performance contract, or Super ESPC. These are streamlined contracts that allow Federal agencies to contract with competitively selected energy service companies in their region for a variety of energy- and water-efficient products and services. The service companies pay up-front capital costs and are reimbursed with part of the agency's utility cost savings. In this work, NASA Johnson Space Center will get new energy-efficient lighting and compressed-air systems, water-conserving fixtures, and improved controls.
Our lives are linked to weather and climate, and to energy use. Since the late 1970s, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has invested in research and technology related to global climate change. DOE's Office Fuels Development (OFD) manages the National Biofuels Program and is the lead technical advisor on the development of biofuels technologies in the United States. Together with industry and other stakeholders, the program seeks to establish a major biofuels industry. Its goals are to develop and commercialize technologies for producing sustainable, domestic, environmentally beneficial, and economically viable fuels from dedicated biomass feedstocks.
The Congressional Record contains the records for sessions of the U.S. Congress including summaries of proceedings, letters, and speeches for the Senate and House of Representatives.
The Congressional Record contains the records for sessions of the U.S. Congress including summaries of proceedings, letters, and speeches for the Senate and House of Representatives.
Photovoltaic energy systems, which convert sunlight to electricity, can meet many different needs in Federal facilities. This fact sheet describes how photovoltaic (PV) energy systems can be used to provide electricity for lighting, communications, refrigeration, fans, signs, pumps, drilling equipment, emergency power packs, and cathodic (corrosion) protection, among others. Applications for PV power in Federal facilities include staff housing, parking areas, campgrounds, marinas, visitor centers, roadside communications equipment, ranger stations, underground pipelines, irrigation and disinfecting systems, and disaster response units. PV systems are particularly suitable and cost-effective for facilities that now use diesel power or that are in remote areas far from electric power lines.
The report discusses the perspectives on the evolving U.S. electricity future, the renewable electric technology portfolio, the regional outlook, and the opportunities to move forward. Renewables are at a critical juncture as the domestic electricity marketplace moves toward an era of increased choice and greater diversity. The cost and performance of these technologies have improved dramatically over the past decade, yet their market penetration has stalled as the power industry grapples with the implications of the emerging competitive marketplace. Renewable energy technologies already contribute to the global energy mix and are ready to make an even greater contribution in the future. However, the renewables industry faces critical market uncertainties, both domestically and internationally, as policy commitments to renewables at both the federal and state levels are being reshaped to match the emerging competitive marketplace. The energy decisions that we make, or fail to make, today will have long-lasting implications. We can act now to ensure that renewable energy will play a major role in meeting the challenges of the evolving energy future. We have the power to choose.
A geothermal heat pump (GHP) system has three major components: a ground loop (buried piping system), the heat pump itself (inside the house), and a heating and cooling distribution system. GHP's are efficient and require no backup heat because the earth stays at a relatively moderate temperature throughout the year.
Installing a ''solar wall'' to heat air before it enters a building, called solar ventilation preheating, is one of the most efficient ways of reducing energy costs using clean and renewable energy. A solar wall can be designed as an integral part of a new building or it can be added in a retrofit project.
Using the sun to heat domestic water makes sense in almost any climate. Solar water heaters typically provide 40 to 80{percent} of a building's annual water-heating needs. A solar water-heating system's performance depends primarily on the outdoor temperature, the temperature to which the water is heated, and the amount of sunlight striking the collector.
Auxein Corporation is demonstrating for commercial use an organic acid phytochelate, derived from what would otherwise be a discarded portion of sugar cane, that could increase the domestic sugar industry's profit margin from near zero to 7%. Along with helping a struggling industry, the phytochelate will bring substantial improvements to crop and tree production and greatly reduce the environmental threat posed by nitrogen-based fertilizers. Currently, the amount of fertilizer used produces harmful levels of run-off that contaminates ground water with unwanted nitrogen. By utilizing organic acid phytochelates, which assist plant growth by unlocking minerals stored in soil, fertilizer use can be dramatically reduced. This would improve crop yields, remove environmental threats to ground water, and cut fertilizer costs by as much as 50%.
Reynolds Metals Company (RMC), with assistance from a NICE{sup 3} grant, is developing for commercialization a closed-loop control process that greatly reduces chlorine emissions and increases plant efficiency while maintaining metal quality. The process still utilizes chlorine to remove impurities during aluminum processing, but is more effective than current methods. With the new technology chlorine in the stack is monitored and input chlorine is adjusted continuously. This optimization of chlorine use results in substantially less waste because less chlorine has to be bought or produced by aluminum manufacturers. This innovation is a significant improvement over conventional aluminum treatments, in which chlorine is injected in a more costly and wasteful manner. By the year 2010, the new technology has the potential to reduce the energy it takes to create chlorine by 8.4 billion Btu per year and to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 1,377 tons per year.
Fact sheet on curing aluminum can coatings written for the NICE3 Program. Coors Brewing Company has been using ultraviolet (UV) light curing technology on its aluminum beverage cans for 25 years. The company is now looking to share its cost-saving technology with other aluminum can producers. Traditional curing methods for creating external decorations on cans rely on convective-heat ovens to cure ink and over-varnish coatings. These thermal-curing methods require large amounts of energy and money, and can have unintended environmental impacts. Coors' technique uses coating materials that cure when exposed to UV light, thereby eliminating the expensive heat treatments used by conventional coating methods. Additionally, the UV-coating process creates much lower emissions and a smaller pollution waste stream than rival thermal processes because it requires much less solvent than thermal processes. This technology can be used not only in the aluminum can industry, but in the automotive, airline, wood, paper, and plastics industries, as well.
Fact sheet on manufacturing filler during paper manufacturing written for the NICE3 Program. With its new fiber loading process, Voith Sulzer, Inc., is greatly improving the efficiency of paper production and recycling. Fiber loading produces precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) filler in the pulp recycling process at costs below conventional means. Fiber loading allows papermakers to use as much filler, like PCC, as possible because it costs 80% less than fiber. In addition, increased filler and fines retention due to fiber loading reduces the quantity of greenhouse gas emissions, deinking sludge, and other waste while substantially lowering energy costs. Currently, the most efficient way to produce PCC as filler is to make it in a satellite plant adjacent to a paper mill. Satellite plants exist near large scale paper mills (producing 700 tons per day) because the demand at large mills justifies building a costly ($15 million, average) satellite plant. This new fiber loading process combines the PCC manufacturing technology used in a satellite plant with the pulp processing operations of a paper mill. It is 33% less expensive to augment an existing paper mill with fiber loading technology than to build a satellite plant for the same purpose. This technology is applicable to the manufacturing of all printing and writing paper, regardless of the size or capacity of the paper mill.
Fact sheet on an analysis system for dyebath processes in the carpet manufacturing industry written for the NICE3 Program. The Georgia Institute of Technology (G.I.T.) has developed an effective automated dyebath analysis and reuse system that improves the energy, environmental, and economic performance of dyehouse batch operations. The new system enables dyeing solutions to be accurately monitored and adjusted for reuse. According to industry estimates, 160 pounds of water are used to produce each pound of textile product. The current wasteful batch dyeing process requires all water and residual chemicals, as well as the energy required to heat the mixture for dyeing, to be dumped after one application. Spent dyebaths can only be reused after they are sampled, analyzed, and reconstituted, a process requiring labor and expertise that are unavailable in the dyehouses. Therefore, successful commercial reuse depends on an automated analysis system that precisely analyzes dyebath samples in real-time and provides for reconstitution and reuse. If fully implemented throughout the carpet industry, this innovation is expected to reduce energy consumption by 3.6 trillion Btu/year. Waste and cost savings will also be substantial. Though this project was developed for nylon carpet dyeing, the technology holds promise for widespread implementation in carpet manufacturing. In addition, it offers several opportunities involving other textile products, fiber types, dye classes, and dyeing equipment.
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