The ReEnergy Chateaugay facility has an operating capacity of 20MW and is capable of producing enough electricity to power almost 17,000 homes. The biomass materials that are used as fuel for the facility are primarily green forest residue that would otherwise be left to decompose on the forest floor. However the facility is also allowed to use other types of wood such as treated wood as fuel if necessary.

The Chateagay biomass facility is located near the Canadian border in Franklin County, New York and sells the electricity that is produced to customers such as utilities, energy services companies and municipal co-ops. The electricity that is produced forms a reliable base-load energy that is supplied at a reasonable price.

In February 2012 there was speculation that the facility would be shut down between February and May because of poor market conditions. ReEnergy Holdings made no such announcement.

At this time the Chateaugay Biomass facility is part of a ReEnergy biomass portfolio that includes other facilities across 4 states including other biomass power plants in New York – Black River and Lyonsdale, Maine – Ashland, Fort Fairfield, Livermore Falls and Stratton, Connecticut – Sterling, New Hampshire – Gateway ERRCO Recycling and Gateway LL&S Facilities in Epping and Salem.

The design and construction of the power plant has been awarded to Argan Inc through its wholly owned subsidiary Gemma Power Systems. It is expected that the power plant will be completed and operational by December 2014.

The length of the construction period of the power plant is anticipated to be 30 months and during that time around 250 construction jobs will be generated in the area. When the power plant is fully operational it is projected to require 25 full-time employees at the plant with more than 3 times that figure required to produce and deliver the wood chips that will be required to fuel the plant.

The biomass fuel will operate a biomass-fired stoker boiler and steam turbine-generator. The plant will also be equipped with start of the art air quality control systems, fuel storage and handling equipment, a cooling tower and switchyard. The steam that is produced by the boiler will be used directly to drive the steam-driven turbine-generator.

The water that will be used to convert into steam will come primarily from treated recycled water from the City of Woodville. Two three-mile pipelines will be built by ETEC between the power plant and the city wastewater plant.

The problem of possible emissions from the power plant is being addressed with tight combustion controls. The utilization of start of the art equipment should ensure that any emissions will be kept to an absolute minimum.

The woodchip fuel will come from local sources and will consist of residual and unsellable timber such as forestry thinning and debarking. It will be turned into woodchips locally and then will be trucked to the power plant.

At this point the project has received its air permit from the State of Texas which is required for construction to commence.

The treatment plant reduces its pollution output by up to 90% thanks to the combination of a clever treatment system as well as the use of the methane that comes from the sludge that is produced within the plant.

Up to 16 million gallons of wastewater can be processed in the plant each day. The plant takes in the wastewater from southwest Little Rock where it is treated through a biological treatment process using three sets of aeration basins and clarifiers.

The sludge that is produced at the end of the treatment process is stored at the Fourche Creek plant is thickened, digested and stored. The storage process takes place in an oxygen-free chamber over a 30 day period during which time naturally occurring bacteria consume over half of the organic solids and produces water and a number of gases, one of which is methane.

The methane gas is captured and piped to a Generator Building where it is used to produce electricity. Enough methane gas is produced to generate enough electricity to meet up to 60% of the plant’s operational needs.

Here is yet another way in which the renewable energy that comes under the broadly descriptive term of biomass can be used to benefit the community and the environment.

Listed on this page are US biomass power plants producing commercial levels of electricity. Where possible more information about the power plants have been provided on a separate page. It will be possible to read about those projects by clicking on the links provided.

This list is by no means complete and more projects will be added as they come to our notice. Ultimately it is envisaged that this page will provide as complete register as possible of biomass power plants that are either in operation or are in the process of being developed.

The biomass plant will use plasma gasification technology supplied by AlterNRG of Calgary to process more than 1200 tons of municipal and industrial waste per day. The technology that will go into this particular power plant has been in use in facilities that are already operational around the world. One such power plant is located in Japan and it is successfully producing electricity on a daily basis.

The site will be located on a 25-acre industrial site and it will be AFE’s first project. The design and fabrication of the power plant was originally going to be conducted by CorVal-Ryan which is based in St. Paul. In December 2010 a Joint Development Agreement was signed between AFE and Air Products and Chemicals which would see Air Products acting as advisors on the design of the project.

It is anticipated that the project will cost $225 million to complete and it will create more than 250 jobs during the construction phase. When the construction has been completed and the plant moves into operational mode it will require 45 full-time positions.

A leading waste management services company in the region, Badger Disposal of Wisconsin has already committed to supply around 30 per cent of the waste feedstock for the facility.

Plasma Gasification

Alliance Federated Energy has provided an explanation of the process of plasma gasification, how it works and what it isn’t. The explanation is as follows:

Plasma is a highly ionized or electrically charged gas. An example in nature is lightning, capable of producing temperatures exceeding 12,600°F. A gasifier vessel utilizes proprietary plasma torches operating at up to 10,000°F (the surface temperature of the Sun) in order to create a gasification zone of up to 3,000°F to convert solid or liquid wastes into a syngas. When municipal solid waste is subjected to this intense heat within the vessel, the waste’s molecular bonds break down into elemental components. The process results in elemental destruction of waste and hazardous materials.

Plasma gasification is NOT incineration. Unlike incineration, gasification creates an energy-rich syngas comprised primarily of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, which is then cleaned of impurities prior to utilization for steam or electric generation, or other forms of power.

Renewable energy developer Enel Green Power has brought the world’s first hybrid power plant that combines the continuous generation capacity of binary-cycle, medium-enthalpy geothermal power with the peak capacity of solar power online. The Stillwater hybrid power plant is located in Churchill County, Nevada and it has a grid-connected photovoltaic power capacity of 26MW. Add to that the geothermal component of it’s energy creation which stands at 33MW and the power plant has a capacity of 59MW.

By combining the two forms of energy creation techniques in the one location the power plant makes use of multiple forms of renewable energy that will increase the level of zero-emission energy that is produced. It is estimated that the power plant will produce enough clean energy to avoid the emission of around 140,000 metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere each year. The added advantage of creating this hybrid mix is that the infrastructure is laready in place reducing costs and the transmission connection has also already been made.

The geothermal plant has been in operation since 2009 and the solar panels have been installed on 240 acres of land next to it. The installation consists of 89,000 photovoltaic solar panels. It will provide the power plant with peak electricity when the thermal efficiency of the geothermal unit is at its lowest helping to meet base load power demands.

The energy that is produced by this new type of power plant will be bought by utility NV Energy and it will be used to meet the power needs of roughly 40,000 homes.

Enel Green Power has now raised its total installed capacity in North America to over 1,000MW with the commissioning of this power plant.

Many of us have witnessed the phenomenon ourselves when we run our air conditioners. Indeed, the founder of Eole Tech, Marc Parent, came up with the possibility of building such a device when he began collecting water from his air conditioner while living in the Caribbean.

The process involves a wind turbine and the act of condensation which, when the conditions are right, can produce over a thousand litres of water per day. We will discuss the exact process of how these devices work as well as the prospects for their installation in the future.

It is still early days as far as bringing the first Eole Water wind turbine to commercial use, although a test installation has been set up in Abu Dhabi that has been reportedly producing 500 litres or more per day.

There are a number of important factors that will affect the rate at which the water can be produced. They are:

• Wind speed
• Ambient temperature
• Humidity

The test turbines that have been in operation in Abu Dhabi have been capable of producing an average of around 62 litres per hour through conditions of 45 per cent humidity and temperatures of 24C.

The WMS1000 Wind Turbine

The model of wind device that has been in development for almost 15 years is the WMS1000 wind turbine. This current version has an installed capacity of 30kW and because the device only needs the power of the wind to produce water it is possible that it can be installed in remote locations and operate without the need for accompanying infrastructure.

The proposed lifespan of the WMS1000 has been quoted as being 20 years and, when the conditions are right can produce as much as 1200 litres of water per day. Because the device does not require any other resources to operate there is minimal impact on the environment into which it is placed.

For the WMS1000 to be capable to begin producing water it requires winds of at least 15 km/h to be blowing. When the wind does blow it is equipped with three levels of wind protection that will protect it from winds as strong as 180 km/h.

1. A centrifugal pitch control to regulate the rotor speed.
2. A mechanical and electrical rotor braking system to prevent damage from the blades spinning overly quickly.
3. A tilting mast that integrates double-acting telescopic cylinders with thrust capacities of 115 Tonnes. In case of weather conditions such as hurricanes the WMS1000 wind turbine can be tilted and secured.

Due to the locations into which the WMS1000 will be most desperately needed it is also necessary to protect it from sandstorms and the presence of a great deal of sand, which could potentially affect the mechanics of the device. It is also crucial that it is capable of withstanding high desert temperatures up to 50C and this is why the decision to test it out in Abu Dhabi was a good move.

How the Process Works

The process of converting air to water may seem quite an incredible “trick” but it really is a straightforward scientific process. After all, it happens naturally almost every day in the form of dew.

The process uses condensation to transform a humid atmosphere into its liquid state. The WMS1000 does this by pulling the moving air of the wind into the turbine where it passes over a humidity condenser. When the air is cooled to dewpoint and is transformed into its liquid form it is collected and passed through a filtration system to purify it. The purified water is put through a re-mineralization process and then stored in a storage tank located at the unit’s base.

An important fact about the components that come in contact with the water such as the condenser is that they are made from a special stainless steel alloy that will continue to operate without the risk of corrosion.

Below is a look at the inner components of the WMS1000 wind turbine.

But Remember…Wind Turbines Have Another Use

While the primary purpose of this particular wind turbine is to provide drinking water by using the moisture in the air, it is still a wind turbine. The wind power that is harnessed to produce water may also be used to generate electricity. The WMS1000 wind turbine operates using the wind power that also supplies the moisture that is extracted but it is capable of generating at least 25% more electricity than it needs for its operation. This means that it could be used to provide additional electricity to the local area.

Technical Specification of the WMS1000 Wind Turbine

There are still some unanswered questions about the Eole Water Wind Turbine technology that will be important in deciding whether it is going to be a commercially viable option. Naturally, these questions relate mainly to money and the price of the devices themselves as well as the installation and ongoing maintenance.

At this stage, because the first on-site test project is still in progress the company is unable to release any possible figures with regard to costs. However, it is possible to make an educated guess based on the costs connected to installing similarly sized turbines.

According to the Wind Industry website a wind turbine under 100 kilowatts will cost anywhere in the region of $3,000 to $5,000 per kilowatt of  capacity.

The installation of the wind turbine is going to be dependent on many factors including the accessibility of the location, the cost of transporting to the site, and the actual process of siting the turbine.

Constant Wind Supplies Are Not Necessary

One of the big variables with the reliability of using the WMS1000 turbines to produce drinking water is the wind. Winds of 15 km/h are not always going to be available, particularly in some of the hotter and drier desert regions that boil under the sun most days of the year.

The answer is the WMS-30kW Solar Panel that has been devised and developed as a water production device that is solar powered. This solar panel has been made to be fully self-sufficient which means that it won’t have to be hooked into any external grid system for it to be fully operational. The WMS-30kW Solar Panel can be used in conjunction with a wind turbine either as a complementary piece of equipment or as a backup system that will continue to produce water in completely still conditions. It would be the perfect solution for desert regions where the sun shines brightly for the vast majority of the year.

The customers of the wind turbines and solar panels are expected to be government from around the world. The prospect of providing a consistent and reliable water source for the residents of some of the more isolated and arid parts of the world must provide huge motivation for any government body and it is expected that many will be more than interested in investing in the technology.

The essential mechanics of the WMS-30kW Solar Panel water generator is similar to the wind powered device in that the air is passed through a humidity condenser and cooling compressors to extract the moisture from the air. The difference is in the way the energy is created to power the process. When the unit is connected to solar panels it is able to trigger the required air flow into the heat exchanger.

The image below illustrates the main components of the water device.

The Non-Renewable Energy Option

There are parts of the world where an ample power supply is not a problem while a reliable water source is. In this case it might be a preferable solution to simply hook a unit up to the electrical network for a 24 hour water generator.

This is the 3rd option provided by Eole Water with the WMS-30kW Grid Tie. Effectively, this is a 20’ container that can be placed in the desired location and connected to the local electricity network. Rather than hooking the unit to a solar power panel system the power comes from the external electricity supply but the results are the same and a constant water supply will be available while ever the unit remains connected to the power.

Is It Commercially Viable?

This is the critical question that must be answered – and it will be over the coming months and years as more data is gathered from these early tests. Water is an essential element of life and while it is scarce in some parts of the world, man has been able to locate and use it to stay alive.

Installing a water producing wind turbine is only going to be attractive to government bodies if the price remains low enough to justify it. When Eole can come up with some definite indications as to the likely cost to install a 30kW device that is capable of supplying a significant amount of water to an area we will get more of an idea as to whether the technology will attract the buyers.

To Learn More About This Technology

There is a lot more to find out about the Eole Water Wind Turbines and the accompanying devices and the Eole Water website can provide you with much of it. You will also find contact details there.

Not only will the solar power generated from the panels provide clean energy for the local residents, it will be saving an incredible amount of land. When the canal is covered over there is the additional benefit of saving huge quantities of water that would otherwise be lost from the irrigation canals through evaporation. That’s three benefits gained through the installation of solar panels and a significant saving of some of our most important natural resources.

The project has been set up as part of an experimental process by the State-owned Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited (SSNNL) and the Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited. This small-scale experiment covers a 750 meter stretch of canal to generate 1MW of electricity from the panels. It has also been indicated that the solar panels are capable of producing power at a 15% premium to the power that might be generated on land thanks to the cooling effect of the water running beneath them.

This trial project suggests that there is enormous potential for large scale solar energy generation through the use of the canals considering the Narmada dam project in Gujarat consists of 85,000 kilometres of canals when you take into consideration the main, branch and sub-branch canals. Figures floated around suggest that if 10 per cent of the canal network were to be covered by solar panels the generating capabilities would be around 2,200MW. Using the canals to produce this much solar energy would save 11,000 acres of land and would eliminate the loss of millions of litres of water per year.

Naturally, whether or not the replication process is carried out over a larger expanse of the canals will come down to money and whether it is considered cost effective. The project, which was completed by Sun Edison, was completed at a cost of Rs 17.71 crore. Gurdeep Singh, managing director of Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited (GSECL) has pointed out that this cost was higher than normal because of it was the first of its kind and indicated that similar sized projects could be completed at a lower cost of around Rs 12 crore.

At this point it is only feasible to place the solar panels on the narrower sub-branch parts of the canals. But according to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, work is being done on finding a way to engineer a solution for putting the solar panels up over the wider main canals. The limitation comes down to working out a way to support the panels without affecting the water flow underneath.

part of the savings for the government that are realised by using the canal system to locate these solar panels is the elimination of the expense of procuring the land that would otherwise be required.

This is a model that holds a lot of promise, not only for the rest of the Narmada canals in India but for other similar sites around the world.

This power plant is now a 44MW biomass energy power plant that now uses renewable resources to deliver energy to the California grid. The converted power plant operates on biomass fuel that comes from wood waste like the tree trimmings, agricultural waste and construction waste.

The construction of the converted power plant began in November 2010 and this construction continued until the plant began producing clean energy in November 2011.

Water is supplied to the power plant from an oil field that is operated by a subsidiary of Macpherson Energy. It is this water that is heated to produce the steam that drives a turbine generator unit creating the electricity.

As well as producing electricity through renewable sources the power plants emissions will be greatly reduced too compared to the emissions produced by the previous coal-fired plant.

A long term contract of 15 years has been secured by the Mt Poso cogeneration facility with Pacific Gas and Electric.

Element Power has advanced the project via one of the most rigorous state-level permitting processes in the country. The project is located in Crawford and Richland Counties on around 15,000 acres of agricultural land. The approved permit permits Black Fork Wind to choose from many turbine technologies giving the project the flexibility to use the most competitive technology & supply the finest value to the end consumer.

The project now moves one step closer to construction with a commercial operations date as early as 2013 and is being actively marketed to buyers all through Ohio and PJM. Extension of the federal Production Tax Credit (PTC) and securing a energy sales contract are key for the project to move to construction.

Throughout project construction, roughly 200 men and women will be employed, providing a substantial financial enhance to the region, which has knowledgeable a major loss of tasks from plant closures in recent years. During operation, the project is expected to provide eight-12 full-time tasks over its 20- year duration & provide $1.8 million per year to the local communities in tax income. Moreover, the project will have the capacity to generate enough clean electricity for just about 55,000 households.

Consistent with its focus on delivering electricity generated from both solar & wind at a competitive charge, Element Power is improving utility-scale photovoltaic solar work in Ohio as well.