reportonbusiness.com: Radler sentenced to 29 months: "Mr. Radler, 65, helped build Hollinger with Lord Black over more than three decades. At its peak the company operated newspapers across Canada, the United States, Britain and Israel. However, when prosecutors began probing allegations of fraud in 2004, Mr. Radler quickly cut a deal. He co-operated with investigators for months before reaching a plea agreement in September, 2005.
He instantly became the prosecution's star witness against Lord Black and the others. During the trial last spring, Mr. Radler testified for eight days, offering details about two key phone calls he had with Lord Black in which they hatched the scheme to defraud the company. However, under fierce cross examination by defence lawyers, Mr. Radler's credibility suffered and he was constantly labelled a liar. By the end of the trial, lead prosecutor Eric Sussman told jurors that they could ignore Mr. Radler's testimony.
In court filings, Mr. Radler's lawyers have said that he has faced public scorn and suffered extreme hardship as a result of his co-operation. They also said Mr. Radler acknowledges that what he did was wrong and he is sorry.
Today's ruling by Judge St. Eve comes a week after she sentenced Lord Black to 6.5 years in prison and fined him $125,000 on fraud and obstruction of justice charges. Co-defendants Peter Atkinson and John Boultbee received 24 and 27 months respectively for fraud. The other defendant Mark Kipnis received six months under house arrest for fraud. All four are also on the hook for $6.1-million in forfeiture. Judge St. Eve is expected to rule soon on how much each man must pay. Mr. Radler is not included in the forfeiture order."
The rat is sorry - tsk tsk how hard to believe PR
"Skim over the existing hot political air". Innovation is the life blood of every nation. We encourage an idea exchange on any topics that is break through technology-simple or complex.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Innovation Predictions 2008
Innovation Predictions 2008: "Innovation Predictions 2008
Get ready for … anything. As companies, governments—indeed, entire countries—confront an array of dilemmas, the only constant will be change
by Bruce Nussbaum"
Get ready for … anything. As companies, governments—indeed, entire countries—confront an array of dilemmas, the only constant will be change
by Bruce Nussbaum"
Friday, December 14, 2007
Why high-velocity makes innovation THE word for 2007 .... - Weblog of futurist, trends and innovation expert Jim Carroll#000800
Why high-velocity makes innovation THE word for 2007 .... - Weblog of futurist, trends and innovation expert Jim Carroll#000800: "Why high-velocity makes innovation THE word for 2007 ....
Here's a reality that you need to think about: 2007 is the year in which most every organization and individual will begin to focus all their energies on innovation.
As someone who spends a lot of time helping some of the world's largest organizations adapt to and understand the new high-velocity economy, I've long realized that there are big, creative-stumbling-blocks that have restricted the type of thinking that is necessary to 'doing-things-differently.'
Yet, I am encountering a new group of leaders who know that the emergence of the high-velocity economy means that they must have a a team that can constantly adapt and evolve, coming up with a regular stream of new ideas on how to better run the business, grow the business and transform the business."
the key is to plug in with the right like minded people SHT
Here's a reality that you need to think about: 2007 is the year in which most every organization and individual will begin to focus all their energies on innovation.
As someone who spends a lot of time helping some of the world's largest organizations adapt to and understand the new high-velocity economy, I've long realized that there are big, creative-stumbling-blocks that have restricted the type of thinking that is necessary to 'doing-things-differently.'
Yet, I am encountering a new group of leaders who know that the emergence of the high-velocity economy means that they must have a a team that can constantly adapt and evolve, coming up with a regular stream of new ideas on how to better run the business, grow the business and transform the business."
the key is to plug in with the right like minded people SHT
The Google Car -- Futurist, trends & innovation expert Jim Carroll - Keynote speaker, author, columnist
The Google Car -- Futurist, trends & innovation expert Jim Carroll - Keynote speaker, author, columnist: "Business models today change at a furious pace. Since 2004, Jim has predicting that perhaps even Google will get into the car business ..... and the car will arrive with a party in a box! At one time, that seemed like a far fetched scenario."
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Power trends for 2007/8
A Power Shift- review from Business Week
Of course, given the wealth that was generated overseas in countries ranging from Russia to Dubai, the U.S. could be on the verge of a seismic shift, where it is possible to envision a time when it will no longer be the dominant economic superpower. True, it still has the world's largest economy, but others are catching up. China is clocking in its fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth, with gross domestic product expected to grow more than 11.5% in 2007. A swelling trade surplus has contributed to massive foreign exchange reserves of more than $1.4 trillion. India is seeing 9% growth. Russia and the Middle East, even Venezuela, are basking in the reflected glow of vast oil reserves, and they are using that wealth to assert their own economic independence and national direction. But there are hopeful signs. In addition to the blossoming of green technology, Led Zeppelin, the Police, and Van Halen all got back together to the delight of millions of fans around the world. Too bad about Britney, though.
Click here to see the most important trends of 2007, click here to see the most important people of 2007, and click here to see the most important products of 2007. "
Of course, given the wealth that was generated overseas in countries ranging from Russia to Dubai, the U.S. could be on the verge of a seismic shift, where it is possible to envision a time when it will no longer be the dominant economic superpower. True, it still has the world's largest economy, but others are catching up. China is clocking in its fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth, with gross domestic product expected to grow more than 11.5% in 2007. A swelling trade surplus has contributed to massive foreign exchange reserves of more than $1.4 trillion. India is seeing 9% growth. Russia and the Middle East, even Venezuela, are basking in the reflected glow of vast oil reserves, and they are using that wealth to assert their own economic independence and national direction. But there are hopeful signs. In addition to the blossoming of green technology, Led Zeppelin, the Police, and Van Halen all got back together to the delight of millions of fans around the world. Too bad about Britney, though.
Click here to see the most important trends of 2007, click here to see the most important people of 2007, and click here to see the most important products of 2007. "
Monday, December 10, 2007
Wood-the new energy
Last Thursday, Pelosi used the phrase again. And to emphasize her point, she actually held up a baseball signed by Bobby Thomson as she said it.
Pelosi's new "shot heard around the world" is a law called the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, it passed through the House of Representatives last week. This law – if stamped by the Senate – will have huge consequences on our investments.
Let me give you the details:
1. Fuel economy standards for both cars and light trucks will be raised to 35 miles per gallon by 2020. Fuel economy standards for cars haven't been altered since 1975. That's such a big change, I wonder if it's even possible. Right now the fuel economy standard is 27.2 mpg for cars and 22.2 mpg for light trucks.
2. Twenty-one billion dollars will be revoked in tax breaks to oil companies.
3. Electric utilities will be required to get 15% of their energy from renewable sources by 2020.
4. The United States will have to use 36 million gallons of biofuel per year by 2022, up from 9 million today. It can't be just ethanol either. Twenty-two million gallons must come from other "advanced biofuels," not ethanol.
5. Nine billion dollars in tax incentives will be offered to the biofuel and renewable energy industries like wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, small irrigation hydropower, ocean tides, landfill gas, and trash combustion energy.
This bill still has to pass through the Senate. Frankly, it probably won't pass in its current form. Also, President Bush has said he'd veto this bill. So there's a long way to go before it becomes law. Nevertheless, it does show the direction this country is heading in. And I want to profit from this new direction.
My favorite "green energy" investment is wood.
Most people don't realize that wood is an important source of energy. Solar, wind, and ethanol get all the attention. But the fact is, wood was the world's main source of energy until the mid-1800s. And even today, wood waste still fills about 2% of the United States' energy needs.
Last month, the Minister of Energy in Great Britain announced he was going to build the largest bio-energy power plant in the world. They will build the plant in Port Talbot, in Wales. The plant will generate 350 megawatts of power. That's enough electricity to power half the houses in Wales. This plant will run on wood chips. North America will supply these wood chips.
Producing energy from wood chips is also a priority for the U.S. democratic party. Representative Edward J. Markey, a Massachusetts democrat, specifically mentioned wood chips as a destination for the subsidies the democrats want to take away from the oil companies.
Right now, there are millions of dead pine trees all over Colorado and British Columbia as a result of the massive infestation by the Mountain Pine Beetle. This wood is useless to the forestry industry, but it's a huge fire hazard if it's left standing in the forests.
If you can figure out how to move this dead wood from the forest to the wood-fired power plants in Europe, you'll make a fortune... especially if you get Nancy Pelosi and her new "shot heard around the world" legislation to subsidize you...
Pelosi's new "shot heard around the world" is a law called the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, it passed through the House of Representatives last week. This law – if stamped by the Senate – will have huge consequences on our investments.
Let me give you the details:
1. Fuel economy standards for both cars and light trucks will be raised to 35 miles per gallon by 2020. Fuel economy standards for cars haven't been altered since 1975. That's such a big change, I wonder if it's even possible. Right now the fuel economy standard is 27.2 mpg for cars and 22.2 mpg for light trucks.
2. Twenty-one billion dollars will be revoked in tax breaks to oil companies.
3. Electric utilities will be required to get 15% of their energy from renewable sources by 2020.
4. The United States will have to use 36 million gallons of biofuel per year by 2022, up from 9 million today. It can't be just ethanol either. Twenty-two million gallons must come from other "advanced biofuels," not ethanol.
5. Nine billion dollars in tax incentives will be offered to the biofuel and renewable energy industries like wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, small irrigation hydropower, ocean tides, landfill gas, and trash combustion energy.
This bill still has to pass through the Senate. Frankly, it probably won't pass in its current form. Also, President Bush has said he'd veto this bill. So there's a long way to go before it becomes law. Nevertheless, it does show the direction this country is heading in. And I want to profit from this new direction.
My favorite "green energy" investment is wood.
Most people don't realize that wood is an important source of energy. Solar, wind, and ethanol get all the attention. But the fact is, wood was the world's main source of energy until the mid-1800s. And even today, wood waste still fills about 2% of the United States' energy needs.
Last month, the Minister of Energy in Great Britain announced he was going to build the largest bio-energy power plant in the world. They will build the plant in Port Talbot, in Wales. The plant will generate 350 megawatts of power. That's enough electricity to power half the houses in Wales. This plant will run on wood chips. North America will supply these wood chips.
Producing energy from wood chips is also a priority for the U.S. democratic party. Representative Edward J. Markey, a Massachusetts democrat, specifically mentioned wood chips as a destination for the subsidies the democrats want to take away from the oil companies.
Right now, there are millions of dead pine trees all over Colorado and British Columbia as a result of the massive infestation by the Mountain Pine Beetle. This wood is useless to the forestry industry, but it's a huge fire hazard if it's left standing in the forests.
If you can figure out how to move this dead wood from the forest to the wood-fired power plants in Europe, you'll make a fortune... especially if you get Nancy Pelosi and her new "shot heard around the world" legislation to subsidize you...
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Stem cell promising developments
Study: Stem cell transplant holds promise STANFORD, Calif. (UPI) -- U.S. researchers said they found a way to transplant blood-forming stem cells into the bone marrow of mice, effectively replacing their immune systems. The discovery is a small but significant step in mouse studies aimed at transplanting adult stem cells to create a new immune system for people with autoimmune or genetic blood diseases, Stanford University researchers said in a news release. Many aspects of the technique must be adapted before testing can begin on humans, said Dr. Irving Weissman, a co-senior author of the study and director of the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Weissman said the work was done on mice that offered a poor mimic for the human immune system. Still, he suggested the remaining hurdles could eventually be overcome. 'It is essentially a surgical strike against the blood-forming stem cells,' Weissman said of the technique his team studied. The team injected mice with molecules that latch on to specific proteins on the surface of the blood-forming stem cells, effectively destroying the cells. The study was published in the latest issue of Science. "
Monday, December 03, 2007
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Proposal
Hydrogen Proposal - Google Docs
Conceptual Proposal for a Wind-Hydrogen System Pilot
R. J. Patrick P. Eng.
Introduction Why we need new fuel cell technology
The age of oil has been the single most important contributing factor in the development of our modern world. The reserves of black gold have allowed us to have unprecented travel potential, unprecented employment potential and took the industrial revolution into the space age.
Unfortunately, there is no free lunch. Not only have we seriously polluted the atmosphere of the planet, but also we are using up the oil infinitely faster than nature can replenish it. We need to do something to limit the flow of oil from the ground. In addition, our greed for oil has allowed the rise of unstable and dangerous political regimes and terrorist groups that now threaten both our economy and our security. In fact, some pundits feel that the quest to preserve access to Middle Eastern oil reserves may cause the war in Iraq to be a war that never ends.
Quite simply, we must do something to get off oil and onto another fuel
What follows is an unsolicited proposal to begin the process. For a minimal level of investment, a well-targeted corporate project can establish world-leadership in the off-oil movement and in restabilizing the Middle East.
What Is The Answer? Hydrogen fuel cells
The interim answer, quite simply said (but not so simply done) is hydrogen. Hydrogen gas H2 is abundant, available and burns cleanly. The combustion product is water. In addition, hydrogen can be used in conventional gasoline engines with a conversion similar to the conversion for natural gas. Hydrogen can also be used in fuel cells - if and when a reliable hydrogen cell is developed.
Hydrogen is generated using electricity, which heretofore has made its use as fuel uneconomical. However, there is an economical electrical resource that is ideally suited for the hydrogen slant on things. Wind generated electricity is a very reasonable answer to the question. The fuel is free, and hydrogen storage allows for the use of the system during times of low wind availability.
Hydrogen can also be used in a conventional engine, an electro-mechanical diesel engine or a fuel cell to generate electricity. CLEAN ELECTRICITY!! Wind energy alone is only partially suitable for direct generation of electricity. When the "fuel", wind, is diminished or absent, something else has to be used to take up the slack in energy. If conventional fossil fuels are used, pollutants are generated which defeat the purpose of using the clean wind energy in the first place. If hydrogen is used to take up the slack, the result is clean energy.
Again, there is no free lunch. This system does not come without a price. The overall efficiency of the system is low. Therefore, sufficient wind generation resources must be provided to overcome this.
Why Are We Concerned? Conventional Energy is beoming more expensive with outages expected
There is an excellent video on the market called "The End of Suburbia" The producer, a man named Barry Silverthorn from Paris, Ontario, has gone to great lengths to examine the suburban way of life and the impact of dwindling oil and natural gas reserves. Some of the experts featured (one in particular from Iran) feel that the world oil production has peaked now . Peaking means that the rate of oil recovery from the ground has reached its maximum and can only decline. With increasing consumption from the Chinese, this means that the western way of life is seriously threatened and that western economies cannot grow. In point of fact, natural gas production has already peaked. Currently, the United States consumes fully 50% of Canadaian gas production. Fixing the worldwide problem is daunting and virtually impossible. The only viable alternative is to live more "locally".
What this means is that we must adjust our way of life to consume much less energy. It also means that we have to consider smaller local energy solutions to take up the slack when the larger more environmentally damaging systems fail.
In addition, we must consider our stewardship of the planet. Existing energy solutions are very damaging to the environment. There are some who have postulated that this damage was a contributing factor in the increasing fury and frequency of hurricanes in the Southern United States. The polar ice caps are receding creating fears of large land mass loss on the coastal areas of North America and Europe. Nunavut Territory, for instance, relies completely on oil for its energy needs (both electrical and heat) and emits more greenhouse gas per capita than any other jurisdiction in the world. We can't continue with this mentality!
Why Not Just Wind?
When wind energy is used, it is cheap, and the fuel is free. You can generate electricity. Wind, however is rarely constant. When the wind doesn't blow, you don't produce energy. This requires other forms of generation to take up the slack. The Danes have managed to get an 18% penetration of their power generation through wind energy. That is about the limit. I recall an installation in Nunavut in Kugluktuk. The penetration was about 50% in that case. When the wind varied, the fossil fired generation could not react to the load and the system collapsed. This was virtually a daily occurrence. It would seem, therefore, that wind alone is not much of an answer.
The Proposal- New generation Fuel cells
This system has been implemented in other jurisdiction as a demonstration project. Each part has also been done before, but the business model has not. In addition, since Fuel cells are desirable, there does not appear to be PEM fuel cells available on today's market for either single dwelling or community use. Therefore, some modifications might be required to allow a natural gas reformer to be removed from another type of fuel cell in order to allow for the use of straight hydrogen. This is a conceptual proposal for evaluation. We will supply a detailed proposal if there is an interest by the client.
Wind energy is a very old technology. It has been used for everything from flour making to water pumping. Recently, more sophisticated wind turbines have been designed to allow for the generation of electricity. In conventional wind-diesel systems, sophisticated control systems and battery backup systems have been used to allow the system to perform seamlessly. In point of fact, the control systems used (noteably in Alaska) do not provide 100% reliability and outages still ensue. The cause of the outage is the inability of the fossil fuelled backup to respond to the failure of the wind turbine within a reasonable period of time, which would prevent a system trip as a result of undervoltage or underfrequency conditions. The control systems are far better than wind-diesel without control, but the overall savings in diesel fuel was only 25%
The proposal at hand is to create a business opportunity to stimulate the wind hydrogen alternative and commercialize it to the point that it can be sold internationally.
First, some details of the technical system:
Wind turbines are mature technology. There are some issues when operating them in colder climates and this is one of the reasons for a pilot scale system. Many turbines have been tried in the Arctic, but only one survived the initial trial and even it required extensive modification. Therefore, there would have to be a monitored trial period for the turbine before commercialization could occur. In addition, solar panels would probably be required for summer use when the wind levels are traditionally lower.
The hydrolyser, unit, which makes the hydrogen gas from water, is a very mature technology and requires no trial period.
If a fuel cell were desired for the production of electricity, this would require the bulk of the work. Conventional fuel cell systems of any decent size are designed to operate on natural gas. The natural gas is "reformed" into hydrogen using the heat from the fuel cell. If straight hydrogen fuel were to be used directly, the reformer would have to be removed from the unit and a suitable heat exchange system to remove the heat designed.
The system, however, can run quite happily with conventional internal combustion engines or electro-mechanical diesels with spark injectors. In point of fact, the most realistic configuration from a repair and system planning perspective might be the use of conventional engines coupled in tandem running a reasonably sized generator (say, 300 KW). This configuration would allow for local resources to maintain the engines and for the replacement of one engine without shutting down the entire generator. Even diesel systems would require some specialized maintenance expertise In either the community or single dwelling model, vehicles could be run by hydrogen as part of the system
The wind system would have to be over provisioned to take the efficiency into account and to allow for the use of hydrogen as a fuel. Hydrogen gas can be used as a fuel in converted vehicles. This would allow for the use of existing vehicular infrastructure in preclude the need for the purchase of new, more technologically advanced vehicles by people who probably couldn't afford them. In addition, the existing natural gas infrastructure could also be used to provide hydrogen as a heating fuel (assuming a suitable accommodation with the gas company could be reached). In the single residence model, the internal systems could be tapped directly.
This system is both technically feasible and could quite easily get a small community or even just a single residence completely off grid power and conventional fuels.
The Scalable Business Model
Why would a client invest in the order of $10 million more or less- to do this (community model)? What we are proposing is just that - an scalable investment to the small or large community. This system is considered as a demonstration and as a marketing vehicle.
Test Market needed
If the client were to invest the money and get a small community or single residence off conventional energy, the project could be used to market the system internationally. Small communities in the Arctic, around the globe could benefit greatly and be potential customers. This would include Alaska and the former Soviet Union. It is quite likely that the United States and/or the World Bank would buy systems to install in these and other underdeveloped areas as a way to increase their access to oil and reduce pollution. In addition, the Chinese might be avid customers. Again, these systems might allow an oil greedy Chinese economy to stop sharing with residential users.
What we are suggesting is a return on investment for the system. In addition, the Federal Government, currently in election mode, would most probably underwrite the costs. We are suggesting Port Rowan, or a similiar small community for this trial because it is a tourist town that would give the project a high profile.
Resources are available to bootstrap this innovation project
For more information or expressions of interest please contact the hydrogen project group
Technical project consultants and development team presentaly available
The Role of R. J. Patrick
What we are proposing is a relationship with the client as project managers for the initial construction, and operation of the project. In addition, we have resources that are very experienced in marketing and product development when the product goes to the market.
Who is R. J. Patrick? A PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER with extensive experiene .
Over 20 years of Electrical, I&C design and multidisciplinary hands-on project management and a skilled communicator with the ability to facilitate.
Conceptual Proposal for a Wind-Hydrogen System Pilot
R. J. Patrick P. Eng.
Introduction Why we need new fuel cell technology
The age of oil has been the single most important contributing factor in the development of our modern world. The reserves of black gold have allowed us to have unprecented travel potential, unprecented employment potential and took the industrial revolution into the space age.
Unfortunately, there is no free lunch. Not only have we seriously polluted the atmosphere of the planet, but also we are using up the oil infinitely faster than nature can replenish it. We need to do something to limit the flow of oil from the ground. In addition, our greed for oil has allowed the rise of unstable and dangerous political regimes and terrorist groups that now threaten both our economy and our security. In fact, some pundits feel that the quest to preserve access to Middle Eastern oil reserves may cause the war in Iraq to be a war that never ends.
Quite simply, we must do something to get off oil and onto another fuel
What follows is an unsolicited proposal to begin the process. For a minimal level of investment, a well-targeted corporate project can establish world-leadership in the off-oil movement and in restabilizing the Middle East.
What Is The Answer? Hydrogen fuel cells
The interim answer, quite simply said (but not so simply done) is hydrogen. Hydrogen gas H2 is abundant, available and burns cleanly. The combustion product is water. In addition, hydrogen can be used in conventional gasoline engines with a conversion similar to the conversion for natural gas. Hydrogen can also be used in fuel cells - if and when a reliable hydrogen cell is developed.
Hydrogen is generated using electricity, which heretofore has made its use as fuel uneconomical. However, there is an economical electrical resource that is ideally suited for the hydrogen slant on things. Wind generated electricity is a very reasonable answer to the question. The fuel is free, and hydrogen storage allows for the use of the system during times of low wind availability.
Hydrogen can also be used in a conventional engine, an electro-mechanical diesel engine or a fuel cell to generate electricity. CLEAN ELECTRICITY!! Wind energy alone is only partially suitable for direct generation of electricity. When the "fuel", wind, is diminished or absent, something else has to be used to take up the slack in energy. If conventional fossil fuels are used, pollutants are generated which defeat the purpose of using the clean wind energy in the first place. If hydrogen is used to take up the slack, the result is clean energy.
Again, there is no free lunch. This system does not come without a price. The overall efficiency of the system is low. Therefore, sufficient wind generation resources must be provided to overcome this.
Why Are We Concerned? Conventional Energy is beoming more expensive with outages expected
There is an excellent video on the market called "The End of Suburbia" The producer, a man named Barry Silverthorn from Paris, Ontario, has gone to great lengths to examine the suburban way of life and the impact of dwindling oil and natural gas reserves. Some of the experts featured (one in particular from Iran) feel that the world oil production has peaked now . Peaking means that the rate of oil recovery from the ground has reached its maximum and can only decline. With increasing consumption from the Chinese, this means that the western way of life is seriously threatened and that western economies cannot grow. In point of fact, natural gas production has already peaked. Currently, the United States consumes fully 50% of Canadaian gas production. Fixing the worldwide problem is daunting and virtually impossible. The only viable alternative is to live more "locally".
What this means is that we must adjust our way of life to consume much less energy. It also means that we have to consider smaller local energy solutions to take up the slack when the larger more environmentally damaging systems fail.
In addition, we must consider our stewardship of the planet. Existing energy solutions are very damaging to the environment. There are some who have postulated that this damage was a contributing factor in the increasing fury and frequency of hurricanes in the Southern United States. The polar ice caps are receding creating fears of large land mass loss on the coastal areas of North America and Europe. Nunavut Territory, for instance, relies completely on oil for its energy needs (both electrical and heat) and emits more greenhouse gas per capita than any other jurisdiction in the world. We can't continue with this mentality!
Why Not Just Wind?
When wind energy is used, it is cheap, and the fuel is free. You can generate electricity. Wind, however is rarely constant. When the wind doesn't blow, you don't produce energy. This requires other forms of generation to take up the slack. The Danes have managed to get an 18% penetration of their power generation through wind energy. That is about the limit. I recall an installation in Nunavut in Kugluktuk. The penetration was about 50% in that case. When the wind varied, the fossil fired generation could not react to the load and the system collapsed. This was virtually a daily occurrence. It would seem, therefore, that wind alone is not much of an answer.
The Proposal- New generation Fuel cells
This system has been implemented in other jurisdiction as a demonstration project. Each part has also been done before, but the business model has not. In addition, since Fuel cells are desirable, there does not appear to be PEM fuel cells available on today's market for either single dwelling or community use. Therefore, some modifications might be required to allow a natural gas reformer to be removed from another type of fuel cell in order to allow for the use of straight hydrogen. This is a conceptual proposal for evaluation. We will supply a detailed proposal if there is an interest by the client.
Wind energy is a very old technology. It has been used for everything from flour making to water pumping. Recently, more sophisticated wind turbines have been designed to allow for the generation of electricity. In conventional wind-diesel systems, sophisticated control systems and battery backup systems have been used to allow the system to perform seamlessly. In point of fact, the control systems used (noteably in Alaska) do not provide 100% reliability and outages still ensue. The cause of the outage is the inability of the fossil fuelled backup to respond to the failure of the wind turbine within a reasonable period of time, which would prevent a system trip as a result of undervoltage or underfrequency conditions. The control systems are far better than wind-diesel without control, but the overall savings in diesel fuel was only 25%
The proposal at hand is to create a business opportunity to stimulate the wind hydrogen alternative and commercialize it to the point that it can be sold internationally.
First, some details of the technical system:
Wind turbines are mature technology. There are some issues when operating them in colder climates and this is one of the reasons for a pilot scale system. Many turbines have been tried in the Arctic, but only one survived the initial trial and even it required extensive modification. Therefore, there would have to be a monitored trial period for the turbine before commercialization could occur. In addition, solar panels would probably be required for summer use when the wind levels are traditionally lower.
The hydrolyser, unit, which makes the hydrogen gas from water, is a very mature technology and requires no trial period.
If a fuel cell were desired for the production of electricity, this would require the bulk of the work. Conventional fuel cell systems of any decent size are designed to operate on natural gas. The natural gas is "reformed" into hydrogen using the heat from the fuel cell. If straight hydrogen fuel were to be used directly, the reformer would have to be removed from the unit and a suitable heat exchange system to remove the heat designed.
The system, however, can run quite happily with conventional internal combustion engines or electro-mechanical diesels with spark injectors. In point of fact, the most realistic configuration from a repair and system planning perspective might be the use of conventional engines coupled in tandem running a reasonably sized generator (say, 300 KW). This configuration would allow for local resources to maintain the engines and for the replacement of one engine without shutting down the entire generator. Even diesel systems would require some specialized maintenance expertise In either the community or single dwelling model, vehicles could be run by hydrogen as part of the system
The wind system would have to be over provisioned to take the efficiency into account and to allow for the use of hydrogen as a fuel. Hydrogen gas can be used as a fuel in converted vehicles. This would allow for the use of existing vehicular infrastructure in preclude the need for the purchase of new, more technologically advanced vehicles by people who probably couldn't afford them. In addition, the existing natural gas infrastructure could also be used to provide hydrogen as a heating fuel (assuming a suitable accommodation with the gas company could be reached). In the single residence model, the internal systems could be tapped directly.
This system is both technically feasible and could quite easily get a small community or even just a single residence completely off grid power and conventional fuels.
The Scalable Business Model
Why would a client invest in the order of $10 million more or less- to do this (community model)? What we are proposing is just that - an scalable investment to the small or large community. This system is considered as a demonstration and as a marketing vehicle.
Test Market needed
If the client were to invest the money and get a small community or single residence off conventional energy, the project could be used to market the system internationally. Small communities in the Arctic, around the globe could benefit greatly and be potential customers. This would include Alaska and the former Soviet Union. It is quite likely that the United States and/or the World Bank would buy systems to install in these and other underdeveloped areas as a way to increase their access to oil and reduce pollution. In addition, the Chinese might be avid customers. Again, these systems might allow an oil greedy Chinese economy to stop sharing with residential users.
What we are suggesting is a return on investment for the system. In addition, the Federal Government, currently in election mode, would most probably underwrite the costs. We are suggesting Port Rowan, or a similiar small community for this trial because it is a tourist town that would give the project a high profile.
Resources are available to bootstrap this innovation project
For more information or expressions of interest please contact the hydrogen project group
Technical project consultants and development team presentaly available
The Role of R. J. Patrick
What we are proposing is a relationship with the client as project managers for the initial construction, and operation of the project. In addition, we have resources that are very experienced in marketing and product development when the product goes to the market.
Who is R. J. Patrick? A PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER with extensive experiene .
Over 20 years of Electrical, I&C design and multidisciplinary hands-on project management and a skilled communicator with the ability to facilitate.
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