Princeton Carbon Mitigation Initiative

Sup interweb im back with some more goodness.  On this beatuiful HOT California afternoon I was thinking how perfect a day it was and how the temperature is only going to continue to rise during the rest of my life.  The Bay Area is great and if it someday had LA weather that would be a shame!  So the name of the post today is Carbon Management.  I know there are plenty of skeptics out there so I'll just throw down some straight FACTS foo!

This is a graph derived from the Vostok Ice Cores.  They are drilled in Antarctica, and the gases and chemicals trapped inside the ice gives a definitive view into the past four interglacial periods, going back about 420,000 years.  This graph show atmospheric CO2 levels compared to the temperature.  As you can see there is a correlation; higher CO2 levels are linked to higher temperatures and lower temps lower CO2 levels.  That data point far to the right is where we are today, at around 380 ppm CO2, which is about 100 ppm higher than any point in the Vostok history.

Also I'd like to adress the argument that I hear regularly from people in Carbon denial.  

Whatever Apillies, even if we are producing so much CO2, volcanoes and cows farting produces much more than we ever will!

LOL!  Everytime I hear this it gets me.  Cuz its such bullshit.  

"A lot of climate skeptics claim that volcanoes emit more CO2 than humans do," Gerlach said. "They never give any numbers, but the fact is you will never be able to find the volcanic gas scientist that will agree to that,"

-Terrence Gerlach, retired Volcanologist

Volcanoes on average produce about .15-.26 Billion tons of CO2 yearly.  Humans emit more than 35 billion tons yearly.  More than 120 times than volcano emissions.  So please next time anyone tries to make this argument take em to the cleaners and at least google a couple of legitimate sources to prove it!  Just take a look at the Vostok Cores.  All of the last 400,000 years of data show includes all of the volcano eruptions that happened during that period.  It would seem that Mount Helena has erupted every three hours for the past 30 years if that outlier point on the graph is to be explained without human interaction.

Apillies you are getting heated over nothing!  I mean all of those scientists out there taking air sample have flawed data, and they  are LYING to us!  They have a political agenda to push!  I mean COWS FARTING is a bigger cause of global warming than we could ever be....

This global warming rejection is also false, but it actually has a grain of truth in it.  Cows produce 80 million metric tons of methane a year, which is about 30% of human methane emissions.  So yes.  Cow farts are causing global warming.  But NO they are not producing near as much methane as humans nor are they the problem.

Secondly scientists rarely have any political power whatsoever, nor would they want to put their reputations on the line by producing any false data.  In competition to have the most accurate in depth data in their fields.  

What scares me more than how high the CO2 levels today is the Carbon debt that we are in.  When you release 35 Billion Metric tons of Carbon into the atmosphere every year (on top of the Earth's natural processes that is) it takes awhile for the Carbon to really affect the temperature.  Thats because the oceans are the temperature regulator of the Earth, and it takes a long time for the heat trapped in the atmosphere to permeate the surface and reach the depths.  Specifically it takes about 50 years for the Ocean to experience 2/3s of the heat gain.  This fact makes the race to reduce Carbon emissions even more critical, because its almost to the point of no return (which most climate scientists point out to be about 450 ppm).  When 450 ppm cue the extreme weather systems rising ocean levels and general catastrophe.  But Im not even trippin cuz my pops is a TV Repairman and has the ultimate set of tools, so I can fix this thang.  JK here are the tools though.

Princeton Carbon Initiative.  http://cmi.princeton.edu/

 These are the findings of the Princeton Carbon Initiative, a must see for anyone interested in the Carbon crisis.  If we continue at current emissions levels we will be at critical Carbon levels by 2050.  If we can flatten our emissions rate and maintain a constant level then we should be alright!  Keeping emissions flat for 50 years will require trimming projected Carbon output by roughly 8 billion tons per year by 2060, keeping a total of 200 Billion tons from entering the atmosphere.  This is referred to as the Carbon Stableization Triangle.  Each of the eight wedges in the graph has the power to remove about 1 Billion tons of Carbon per year.


Here are the eight wedges from the websitem
1. Energy Efficiency
2. Fuel Switching
3. Carbon Capture and Storing
4.Nuclear
5.Wind
6. Solar
7.Biomass Fuels
8. Natural Sinks


Ill add some more about my favorite parts of the CMI later on.

Ive got some other work to do now but I'll add a bit on a couple of my favorite strategies from the CMI.  They are all important but not exactly equal in my eyes.  And as usual some G-Shit to end the post.

slappin

Cogenra: Solar PV and Solar Thermal Co-Generation


 Cogenra is a young new company funded by the alternative energy juggernaut Khosler Ventures. The basis of Cogenra is that it combines two current alternative energy solutions, solar PV electricity production, and solar thermal hot water production. Current solar PV panels are grossly inefficient in three ways: first of all they only harness 15% of the sun’s energy, with the rest being released from the panel in heat energy. Secondly, there is no way to store the extra energy that is being produced. Thirdly, solar PV panels are less efficient when they are overheated, and the black PV units used in hot areas can reach temperatures above the critical point, causing the PV units to break down faster and produce less energy. By combining a traditional PV panel with the solar thermal module all of these problems are greatly reduced. 
                 Their new solar technology uses standard PV with concentrating optics and single axis tracking, as wells as a thermal transfer system. Cogenra mounts the solar cells on hot water pipes in the center of trough shaped mirrors. The mirrors focus the energy of the sun by about ten times. The result is electricity and water that is heated up to 158 degrees. The temperature of the water can be adjusted based on how the hot water is going to be used. It would be cooler for a hot shower and hotter for use in a distillery of dairy factory. Five times as much energy is created by using this combined solar attack, reducing GHG emissions by as much three times more than traditional solar PV and 50% more than hot water. Furthermore, Cogenra reduces the amount of VOC (Voluble Organic Compounds) or NOx (Nitric Oxide and Nitrogen Dioxide) from burning natural gas onsite.
       
The economic implications of this new technology are what really make it so attractive. Five times the energy production translates to twice the financial savings power (because NG isn't worth as much as electric at the moment), which cuts the payback time of installing Cogenra products in half. The payback time, estimated from a location in Fresno with an average of 194 sunny days a year, is about five years, and can be faster in combination with performance based incentives in local districts. During 2011 alone, solar cogeneration systems are eligible for a special federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) grant covering 30 percent of total installed cost and a 100% depreciation write-off of the equipment. An additional rebate up to $500,000 is available under the California Solar Initiative’s solar thermal program being.  Further incentives are available for renewable electricity generation under the California Solar Initiative’s performance-based incentives (PBI) for solar PV. The most powerful assets of Cogenra is that functions as a hedge against the volatile prices of electricity and natural gas. Commercial electric utility rates in California have risen 650 percent and natural gas prices have risen 1360 percent since 1970. This hedge is strengthened further by the fact that the cost of silicon has dropped drastically, even over the last year. In 2011, the average selling price for crystalline silicon PV modules was cut in half — falling from $1.80 at the beginning of the year to $0.90 in December, according GTM Research. After a half-decade of silicon demand outstripping supply,we finally have too much cheap silicon. There are currently more than 170 silicon producing companies that will eventually be narrowed down to about ten survivors by the end of the decade. This over-supply could help drop the average price for crystalline silicon solar modules to as low as $0.70 a watt.


Cogenra has a globally scalable worldwide module manufacturing capacity. In an interview with Mercury News, Cogenra founder Dr. Gilad Almogy explained that his company is highly profitable because it passes the “Chindia” test, or its application to China and India. There are a large number of cities with hot water needs that have limited access to the natural gas necessary to heat the water. Even though many countries don’t have alternative energy incentives that make solar PV and thermal technologies more competitive in the market, this need to produce hot water without access to natural gas will create demand for Cogenra’s products. In European countries and the US the great incentives that go along with alternative energy efforts will ramp up the demand for Cogenra technology. Co-generation technology is not something that is viable for standard residences with peaked roofs. Cogenra aims to supply large institutions with flat roofs and a high demand for hot water. This list of businesses includes hospitals, dorm rooms, fitness centers, the miliitary, wineries, dairies among other things. I think that cogeneration will be a vital technology in the years to come.

Death of the Electric Car

I watched this documentary the other day and it was pretty depressing but most definitely illuminating.  There are still 100 Trillion dollars worth of oil to be extraceted from the Earth and you can bet that the oil companies are going to do their best to get every last drop of profit out before they let electric vehicles become the transport of choice.  The death of the EV as well as the death of cheap trolley transportation in LA are both real conspiracies that should get a lot more publicity.  Anyways here it eez for your viewing pleasure (or pain).

On a lighter note here is one of the first commercials for the EV that GM ever put out.  I couldn't stop laughing this is so rediculous.

I donno about you but I would have been stoked to buy this spacewhip and cruise around with these...shadows of aliens?  Lol wtf.

On a brighter note it looks like the EV will be back sooner than later.  During a tour of the Tesla Headquarters a few days ago I got to see some of the projects in their prototype room.  Nope no crazy alien spacewhips...but they did have five or six Rav4's on lifts being fitted with electric batteries and motors.  Im pretty sure the waiting list is already full, and they will be released within the next year or so, WITH the option to actually buy the car.  Hope is on the horizon....

US DOE Solar Decathalon: Washington D.C.

Recently I came across this competition that is held every two years (starting in 2002), hosted by the US Department of Energy. Teams from colleges all across the nation and even the world design energy efficient homes that are powered completely by solar energy. They ship the houses to DC and set them up and live in the houses for two weeks. Once the contest is over the houses return to their place of origin and are setup up to be used. Santa Clara University entered the contest in 2007, and that house is now setup on the campus, open for visitation.  There are some cool houses on the site so take a look around.

Team Alberta

Team Ontario

Team California

Solar Deacathalon Link:http://www.solardecathlon.gov/index.html 


Average US household annually: 14,000 kWh monthly: 1166 kWh daily: 39 kWh 
Solar Decathalon Average house daily use: 22 kWh 
Average energy produced: 13 kWh
 Annual net consumption: 2,880 kWh 


 Only half the entries come in less than $300,000. These numbers may seem affordable in a market like D.C. or the Bay Area, but they are well above average home prices for much of the country.  This is definitely a step in the right direction though and once we can bring construction costs down these energy-efficient homes could become a reality

Bringin Back the Green Blog

Whats up interwebs!  I made this blog awhile ago with the prospect of providing a look into the cutting edge of the greentech world.  Currently im on summer break from school right now hence the extra time to spend on this while Im bored but I'll try to keep it going through the school year too.  The second law of thermodynamics states that matter and energy tend to degrade into an increased state of disorder chaos, and randomness; in the finite and inefficient fossil-fueled world, we are heading each day closer and closer to the end of the line.  Nature and human society can only bring order back by our ability to produce renewable energy.  Finding a sustainable, consistent and unlimited source of energy will cause another great leap in humanity.  Every major milestone in the history of humankind was spurred by changes in our ability to acquire and convert energy for useful purposes.  Global warming is real whether you want to admit it or not.  Science has proven this and if you are still in denial then you are uneducated on the matter.  Anyways Im going to post all kinds of new technologies and anything that has anything to do with saving the world of today for the children of tomorrow....cuz Im Apillies the Great Green Warrior and I will slay the toxic fossil-fuel zombie monster with my sword of cutting-edge shii it.