RunGreenPower.com

Small wind energy systems can be used in connection with an electricity transmission and distribution system (called gridconnected systems),or in stand-alone applications that are not connected to the utility grid.

A grid-connected wind turbine can reduce your consumption of utility-supplied electricity for lighting, appliances, and electric heat.

If the turbine cannot deliver the amount of energy you need, the utility makes up the difference. When the wind system produces more electricity than the household requires, the excess can be sold to the utility.

With the interconnections available today, switching takes place automatically. Stand-alone wind energy systems can be appropriate for homes, farms, or even entire communities (a co-housing project, for example) that are far from the nearest utility lines.

Either type of system can be practical if the following conditions exist.

Conditions for Stand-Alone Systems

• You live in an area with average annual wind speeds of at least 9 miles per hour (4.0 meters per second).

• A grid connection is not available or can only be made through an expensive extension. The cost of running a power line to a remote site to connect with the utility grid can be prohibitive, ranging from $15,000 to more than $50,000 per mile, depending on terrain.

• You have an interest in gaining energy independence from the utility.

• You would like to reduce the environmental impact of electricity production.

• You acknowledge the intermittent nature of wind power and have a strategy for using intermittent resources to meet your power needs.

Conditions for Grid-Connected Systems

• You live in an area with average annual wind speeds of at least 10 miles per hour (4.5 meters per second).

• Utility-supplied electricity is expensive in your area (about 10 to 15 cents per kilowatt hour).

• The utility’s requirements for connecting your system to its grid are not prohibitively expensive.

• Local building codes or covenants allow you to legally erect a wind turbine on your property.

• You are comfortable with long-term investments.

Additional Considerations

In addition to the factors listed previously, you should also:

• research potential legal and environmental obstacles,

• obtain cost and performance information from manufacturers,

• perform a complete economic analysis that accounts for a multitude of factors

• understand the basics of a small wind system, and

• review possibilities for combining your system with other energy sources, backups, and energy efficiency improvements.

You should establish an energy budget to help define the size of turbine that will be needed.

Since energy efficiency is usually less expensive than energy production, making your house more energy efficient first will likely result in being able to spend less money since you may need a smaller wind turbine to meet your needs.

Potential Legal and Environmental Obstacles

Before you invest any time and money, research potential legal and environmental obstacles to installing a wind system.

Some jurisdictions, for example, restrict the height of the structures permitted in residentially zoned areas, although variances are often obtainable (see “Wind System

Basics,” which follows).

Your neighbors might object to a wind machine that blocks their view, or they might be concerned about noise. Consider obstacles that might block the wind in the future (large planned developments or saplings, for example).

If you plan to connect the wind generator to your local utility company’s grid, find out its requirements for interconnections and buying electricity from small independent power producers.

Pricing a System

When you are confident that you can install a wind machine legally and without alienating your neighbors, you can begin pricing systems and components.

Approach buying a wind system as you would any major purchase. Obtain and review the product literature from several manufacturers. Lists of manufacturers are available from the American Wind Energy

Association (AWEA, see Source List); however, not all small turbine manufacturers are members of AWEA. Manufacturer information can also be found at times in the periodicals listed in the Reading List.

Once you have narrowed the field, research a few companies to be sure they are recognized wind energy businesses and that parts and service will be available when you need them. Also, find out how long the warranty lasts and what it includes.

Ask for references of customers with installations similar to the one you are considering. Ask system owners about performance, reliability, and maintenance and repair requirements, and whether the system is meeting their expectations.

The hydrogen-generation (Hygen) market has to be with the early adopters who can see the value in producing energy from their on-site generated waste. This energy from waste systems use natural gas as a backup only to augment any waste shortfall.

The Plug Power front-end reformer can be way to get started, but buyers should be aware that huge increases in natural gas prices are likely within 3–4 years.

Figure 14.3 shows the front end of a small-scale steam reformer that converts waste into hydrogen-rich syngas.

Although the author has designed and built prototype commercial units for waste conversion, they are not yet available in the marketplace for residences. So fuel cells converting the energy in the hydrogen feedstream to heat and electrical energy should be noted.

With fuel cells of today, half the feedstock energy is used to drive the fuel cell to produce electricity at 50% efficiency, while the remaining 50% can generate heat.

A check on the waste quantity to supply a home’s energy needs can be done assuming 1 ton/person-year (Curlee, 1994)

Energy from waste for houses

The hydrogen-generation (Hygen) market has to be with the early adopters who can see the value in producing energy from their on-site generated waste. This energy from waste systems use natural gas as a backup only to augment any waste shortfall.

The Plug Power front-end reformer can be way to get started, but buyers should be aware that huge increases in natural gas prices are likely within 3–4 years.

Figure 14.3 shows the front end of a small-scale steam reformer that converts waste into hydrogen-rich syngas.

Although the author has designed and built prototype commercial units for waste conversion, they are not yet available in the marketplace for residences. So fuel cells converting the energy in the hydrogen feedstream to heat and electrical energy should be noted.

With fuel cells of today, half the feedstock energy is used to drive the fuel cell to produce electricity at 50% efficiency, while the remaining 50% can generate heat.

A check on the waste quantity to supply a home’s energy needs can be done assuming 1 ton/person-year (Curlee, 1994)

Figure 14.3 Residential prototype steam reforming of waste.

of general garbage including sewage solid waste plus about 5 tons/year per household for green yard waste. If 5 persons/ household were assumed, the total is 10 tons/year per household.

So it can be assumed that this makes 10 tons/year of syngas (see Glossary) or 4.8 kWh/kg (7500 Btu/lb at 300 Btu/dscf with a density of 0.04 lb/dscf) or 22 MWh/year

(75,000 MBtu/yr). (A sanity check for municipal solid waste (MSW) shows its heating value as 3.9 kWh/kg (6000 Btu/lb) in an inefficient furnace).

With 50% electricity by the fuel cell and 50% heat for the building, the electricity would be 11,000 kWh/year and the thermal energy would be the same number. This is more than the most inefficient houses consume.

For example, the Berkeley house with a pool uses only 2400 kWh/year electricity.

A check can be made also on space heating requirements of a house. An efficient European house needs 15–30 kWh/m2-yr. So a 150m2 house in Europe will consume 2250–4500 kW/year (7–15,000 MBtu/yr). Therefore, in this energy from waste scheme, it is possible to generate more thermal energy than is used in an efficient house for space heating.

Now consider using this extra thermal energy to steam reform the waste to produce hydrogen for vehicles. Assuming they are driving 8000 km/year (5000 miles/yr at 20 mpg gasoline base) that is 950 L of petrol/year (250 gal of gasoline/yr).

With gasoline at 9.63 kWh/L (125,000 Btu/gal), this is 9.6 MWh/year (33,000 MBtu/yr) – comparable to the number calculated above at 11,000 kWh/year (75,000 MBtu/yr) as the extra heat available from waste.

This generates enough hydrogen providing the same amount of energy to the vehicle as gasoline, which shows that the concept can work to use the extra heat to steam reform waste into hydrogen on-site. So in conclusion, this is really a pretty good match all around. So why aren’t we considering local energy from waste more seriously?

The price could be worked out by going backward and assuming that the system has to pay for itself through savings over, say, 15 years. The fuel cell qualifies for $4500/kWh rebate or 50% of the capital cost of the equipment, which ever is less, through the California Energy Commission Buy-down program.

Only fuel cells that use renewable fuel qualify for this rebate. There is also a Federal Tax credit for fuel cells used in homes. Though the author has not developed a detailed design for costing, it is crudely guessed that $50,000 budget would work for a 2.5kWe fuel cell – steam reformer system.

So the rebate is $11,250 and assuming the IRS tax credit to be 25% or $12,500, the balance of $26,250 is amortized over  15 years or $3500/year interest plus principal. The savings in electricity of 2.5 kWh/h is $2847/year at 13¢/kWh and in heating of 4.4 MWh/year (15,000 MBtu/yr at 60¢/therm) is $900/year, which totals to $3747/year. Garbage, plastics, paper, and yard waste bills are eliminated at about $300/year.

So there is a saving of about $4047/year, which would payback the initial investment plus interest in less than 15 years. So even the economics work out.

Now the question is, can this waste steam reformer be built for $50,000–60,000 retail price? Not sure precisely, but it is a great business goal for a future technology high volume business.

Figure 14.3 Residential prototype steam reforming of waste.

of general garbage including sewage solid waste plus about 5 tons/year per household for green yard waste. If 5 persons/ household were assumed, the total is 10 tons/year per household.

So it can be assumed that this makes 10 tons/year of syngas (see Glossary) or 4.8 kWh/kg (7500 Btu/lb at 300 Btu/dscf with a density of 0.04 lb/dscf) or 22 MWh/year

(75,000 MBtu/yr). (A sanity check for municipal solid waste (MSW) shows its heating value as 3.9 kWh/kg (6000 Btu/lb) in an inefficient furnace).

With 50% electricity by the fuel cell and 50% heat for the building, the electricity would be 11,000 kWh/year and the thermal energy would be the same number. This is more than the most inefficient houses consume.

For example, the Berkeley house with a pool uses only 2400 kWh/year electricity.

A check can be made also on space heating requirements of a house. An efficient European house needs 15–30 kWh/m2-yr. So a 150m2 house in Europe will consume 2250–4500 kW/year (7–15,000 MBtu/yr). Therefore, in this energy from waste scheme, it is possible to generate more thermal energy than is used in an efficient house for space heating.

Now consider using this extra thermal energy to steam reform the waste to produce hydrogen for vehicles. Assuming they are driving 8000 km/year (5000 miles/yr at 20 mpg gasoline base) that is 950 L of petrol/year (250 gal of gasoline/yr).

With gasoline at 9.63 kWh/L (125,000 Btu/gal), this is 9.6 MWh/year (33,000 MBtu/yr) – comparable to the number calculated above at 11,000 kWh/year (75,000 MBtu/yr) as the extra heat available from waste.

This generates enough hydrogen providing the same amount of energy to the vehicle as gasoline, which shows that the concept can work to use the extra heat to steam reform waste into hydrogen on-site. So in conclusion, this is really a pretty good match all around. So why aren’t we considering local energy from waste more seriously?

The price could be worked out by going backward and assuming that the system has to pay for itself through savings over, say, 15 years. The fuel cell qualifies for $4500/kWh rebate or 50% of the capital cost of the equipment, which ever is less, through the California Energy Commission Buy-down program.

Only fuel cells that use renewable fuel qualify for this rebate. There is also a Federal Tax credit for fuel cells used in homes. Though the author has not developed a detailed design for costing, it is crudely guessed that $50,000 budget would work for a 2.5kWe fuel cell – steam reformer system.

So the rebate is $11,250 and assuming the IRS tax credit to be 25% or $12,500, the balance of $26,250 is amortized over  15 years or $3500/year interest plus principal. The savings in electricity of 2.5 kWh/h is $2847/year at 13¢/kWh and in heating of 4.4 MWh/year (15,000 MBtu/yr at 60¢/therm) is $900/year, which totals to $3747/year. Garbage, plastics, paper, and yard waste bills are eliminated at about $300/year.

So there is a saving of about $4047/year, which would payback the initial investment plus interest in less than 15 years. So even the economics work out.

Now the question is, can this waste steam reformer be built for $50,000–60,000 retail price? Not sure precisely, but it is a great business goal for a future technology high volume business.

With the increasing costs of electricity, people are looking for alternative means to meet their daily energy requirement and to save on energy expenses. A do-it-yourself or DIY solar power kit can be the best option for this purpose. A DIY solar power kit can reduce your electricity bill amount to a considerable extent.

The current energy sources are non-renewable and give out harmful emissions in the environment. On the other hand, a DIY solar power kit proves to be an eco-friendly option, as it does not emit any greenhouse gases and does not contribute to global warming.

Due to these benefits, many people have started using solar powered equipments. Earlier, the installation costs of solar-powered devices were too much to afford for an average householder. However, at present, companies have now started publishing guides informing about the installation process, so that it becomes affordable and easy.

You can install a DIY solar energy kit in less than a week’s time. With DIY solar power kits, you do not have to worry about frequent power cuts, as they provide you with unlimited energy source and uninterrupted power supply. The best thing is they use solar energy, which is a clean source of energy.

Things To Consider Before Buying A DIY Solar Power Kit:

Firstly, check the kit’s cost and the amount of energy that it can generate. Next, you need to check the amount you will be saving after installing that solar power kit.

It is good to install the solar panels in a suitable place. Install the home solar panels appropriately, so that they can absorb maximum amount of solar energy. For this, you will have to check the space available on the roof of your house for installing DIY solar panels.

For maximum power generation, install the DIY solar power system at a place, where it receives direct sunlight for a minimum of 6 hours per on a daily basis. If your roof does not have sufficient space or if there is a tree beside your roof, the DIY solar power kit may not work efficiently.

In fact, the government provides many incentives in the form of tax and grants for people using solar-powered equipments. Therefore, it will be beneficial for you to be aware of such rules, as it may compensate the cost and the installation charges of your DIY solar kit.

How To Assemble?

You can assemble DIY solar energy kits by referring the guides that offer installation instructions and videos too. These books are comprehensive guides containing systematic instructions along with blueprints that you need to follow for proper installation. By following the information provided in these books, you can install home solar panels on your own.

In addition, ensure that the guide you choose has all the required information and contents such as photos, videos, diagrams, clear illustrations and technical support to assist you in the best possible way.

As the technology keeps advancing with each day, it is wise to not purchasing a printed guide, as it may not contain latest information. It will be better for you to refer online guides for better results.