"Net Zero" manufacturing plant built in Casa Grande AZ by Frito-Lay

Frito-Lay has been making some nice moves towards environmental responsibility such as buying electric delivery trucks.  We should remember however that their main product lines aren't exactly environmentally friendly, especially not their typical packaging choices.  In this case they've built a new factory, in Casa Grande Arizona, they claim is "near net zero" .. meaning, nearly produces net zero waste given the inputs to the factory.  This is a sort of milestone some companies are trying to reach, to reduce the negative environmental impact of their businesses.

The summary is - massive reduction of greenhouse gasses, massive reduction in water use, massive reduction in natural gas use.  Nice.

So let's look at and ponder what they've done:-

Water recycling: using membranes and reverse osmosis whatever gizmos they're able to recycle their "process water" to where it meets EPA guidelines for primary and secondary drinking water.  Check.  Cool.  I hope.

Electricity production:  The press release below says "10 million kilowatt-hours" which has to be referring to expected total electricity production per year, and doesn't refer to the rated capacity of the installation.  They've covered "36 acres of the facilities agricultural property" with solar panels (what? converting farm land to other uses? uh?), solar panels over the parking lot, and sterling engine electricity production gizmos.  Sounds way cool.

Natural gas reduction: This is about replacing natural gas as the fuel to run the plants steam boilers, and instead burn "wood and agricultural waste" as biomass in a boiler.  They need to produce steam for whatever purpose, question is how.  It's nice to not burn natural gas for this purpose.  But is it good to divert biomass from other uses to do this?  I keep hoping that agriculture would return to proper organic principles and use the biomass for compost rather than see it as "agricultural waste" that's only fit for burning.  As compost it would help the ground to be rich and lively.  But treating it as agricultural waste it's part of the process that's stripping the ground of nutrients.

Zero landfill: It's cool that they're recycling so much that only 1% of their stuff gets sent to the landfill.  Extensive recycling is good.  But they say they're using "food waste" as "cattle feed" .. uh .. and those cattle they're feeding food waste become our hamburgers don't they?  Uh?  This is good?

LEED certified factory:  Cool.  I hope.

 

 

Frito-Lay Unveils "Near Net Zero" Manufacturing Facility

Casa Grande facility leveraging renewable energy and recycled water to reach company milestone

PLANO, Texas, Oct. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo's Frito-Lay North America division today celebrated the success of its most ambitious environmental sustainability project to-date by announcing that its Casa Grande, Arizona, facility has reached "near net zero."  The "near net zero" vision was to transform an existing facility so that it would be as far "off the grid" as possible and run primarily on renewable energy sources and recycled water, while producing nearly zero landfill waste.

"As a company that relies on key natural resources like water and fuel, Frito-Lay has developed strategies to ensure our business remains sustainable, even if there are constraints on those resources," explains Al Carey, past CEO and president, Frito-Lay North America. "Frito-Lay and its parent, PepsiCo, are committed to finding innovative solutions that are right for the business and right for the environment. The 'near net zero' project is an industry-leading example of how the two successfully intersect."

Buildings in the United States are responsible for 39% of CO2 emissions, 40% of energy consumption and 13% of water consumption, making environmental sustainability initiatives for new and existing buildings a significant opportunity. In fact, greater building efficiency can help meet 85% of future U.S. demand for energy.

Frito-Lay invested in and implemented a combination of technologies to enable the Casa Grande plant to significantly reduce the use of key natural resources and reduce the site's overall environmental footprint. Using innovative technologies, the Casa Grande facility is generating 2/3 of all energy used from renewable sources and is working toward significant reductions:

• 50% reduction of greenhouse gases
• 75% of water is recycled
• 80% reduction of natural gas usage

"Frito-Lay set out to create an environmental learning lab in our Casa Grande plant that would try to make the plant 'near net zero,'" said Al Halvorsen, senior director of environmental sustainability, Frito-Lay North America.  "Our approach to significantly reduce the use of natural resources and the environmental impact of a manufacturing site has been cutting edge and today marks a major milestone for Frito-Lay and PepsiCo."

• Water Reduction: The Casa Grande facility installed a water recovery and reuse system that combines Membrane Bio Reactor (MBR) and Low-Pressure Reverse Osmosis (LPRO) technologies to recycle from 50% to 75% of water.  The recycled process water meets Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) primary and secondary drinking water standards.
• Electricity Reduction:  Five separate and distinct solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, installed throughout the property, produce nearly 10 million kilowatt-hours (KWHs) of electrical power. Two solar fields of single axis tracking PV systems with more than 18,000 solar panels were installed on 36 acres of the facility's agriculture property. The three additional PV fields installed by the plant include a dual axis tracking system, a single axis covered parking lot and 10 sterling engine dual axis tracking systems.
• Natural Gas Reduction: The newly installed 60,000 pounds per hour (lb/hr) biomass boiler, which uses wood and agricultural waste as its combustion energy source, will produce all the steam needed for the manufacturing plant and will reduce natural gas usage by over 80%.
• Zero Landfill: As of 2010, the Casa Grande facility sends less than 1% of its overall waste to landfill through extensive recycling and using food waste for cattle feed.
• LEED: During the course of implementation, the Casa Grande facility became the first existing food manufacturing site to achieve LEED® Existing Building (EB) Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council in 2009.

Moving forward, Frito-Lay will leverage key learnings from the Casa Grande plant and apply them to other facilities where appropriate.  Every Frito-Lay plant is identifying projects and approaches to get closer to "near net zero" and to significantly reduce its environmental footprint.

For more than a decade, Frito-Lay North America has been committed to reducing the use of key major resources and the company's overall environmental footprint.  The company has nearly reached or exceeded its aggressive conservation goals, based on 1999 levels, to reduce water use by 50%; natural gas by 30%; and electricity by 25%.  In addition, the company created an environmental strategy for its fleet to reduce fuel use by 50% by 2020.

Frito-Lay Casa Grande has been part of the Pinal County community for more than 25 years. The nearly 188,000-square foot building sits on 202 acres of land. Frito-Lay Casa Grande's more than 350 associates make some of America's favorite snack chips, including Lay's and Ruffles potato chips, Fritos corn chips, Tostitos and Doritos tortilla chips, and Cheetos cheese-flavored snacks.

About Frito-Lay

Frito-Lay North America is the $13 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY. Learn more about Frito-Lay at the corporate Web site, http://www.fritolay.com/, the Snack Chat blog, http://www.snacks.com/ and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/fritolay.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales each. Our main businesses -- Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi Cola -- also make hundreds of other enjoyable foods and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world. With net revenues of approximately $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment, including by conserving energy and water usage, and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support, and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

SOURCE  Frito-Lay North America
CONTACT: Aurora Gonzalez, Frito-Lay North America, +1-972-334-3821
Web Site: http://www.pepsico.com

Solar power at the cost of coal?

Among the recent awardees of DoE funding for transformational energy projects is a small company, 1366 Technologies, who is making a mighty big claim. That photovoltaic panels will soon become the largest manufacturing industry in the history of mankind. This is due to development of photovoltaic panels costing the same as coal fired power plants. What's held the solar electricity industry from broad acceptance is cost competitiveness against dirty old coal. Coal has a zillion problems with it that harm our health and the environment around us, any sane society would have banned coal use long ago, but it's just as insane to ban a critical technology for which there's no replacement no matter how bad is the technology. Renewable energy like wind and solar have held a lot of interest but the cost has kept them from being widely adopted. Fortunately the cost of both is dropping, and 1366 Technologies points to a cost reduction curve which predicts that by 2020 photovoltaics will have a price equal to the price of coal fired power plants.

1366 Technologies has developed technology to decrease cost of production while increasing solar panel efficiency. Over time decreasing the cost while increasing efficiency will improve the cost per kilowatt figures to enable greater adoption.

Their website describes two technologies. The "Self Aligned Cell" textures the surface of a photovoltaic cell to improve efficiency. The texturing process creates a geometrically optimized cell surface for better light capture and trapping. The "Light Capturing Busbar" is an improvement on the wires embedded in photovoltaic cells that allows energy capture from the cell area behind the wires. The grooved surface of the busbar reflects light in a way that it bounces around inside and is absorbed by the photovoltaic cell, unlike conventional busbars that simply block light. Together these allow multi-crystalline cells that typically have lower cost but also lower efficiency to have efficiency equal to monocrystaline cells. A third technology, Direct Wafer, is mentioned in some press releases without being described on the website.

The honeycomb texturing technique by itself, increases overall solar cell efficiency by 1 percent, while making the metallization lines thinner boosts efficiency by another 1 percent or more, according to announcements released by 1366.

“The way we see it, the right technology and materials are available now to help PV reach grid parity, but the challenge for our industry is to simultaneously deliver high efficiencies and low costs,” said Dr. Emanuel Sachs, co-founder and chief technology officer for 1366 Technologies. “Our Self-Aligned Cell architecture addresses this challenge head-on. We believe our technologies, combined with further advancements in manufacturing, will help solar power satisfy 7% of global electricity demand over the next decade and inspire one of the largest manufacturing revolutions in history.”

In Feb 2009 they were awarded an 18-month $3 million subcontract with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the “Self-Aligned Cell: Scaling up manufacture of a cost effective cell architecture for multi-crystalline silicon photovoltaics” Project. 1366 Technologies will use the Solar America Initiative Agreement funds to further develop its Self-Aligned Cell technology which allows cost-effective, scalable manufacturing of multi-crystalline solar cells. In October 2009 they were awarded four million dollars in federal funding from the Advanced Research Projects Agency -- Energy (ARPA-E) of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This funding is to go towards development of their Direct Wafer technology which promises to solve the wafering problem with a breakthrough manufacturing solution that is compatible with today's supply chain. "This funding will allow us to accelerate the development and scaling of Direct Wafer, which will have strong implications for the competitiveness of the U.S. PV industry and provide a basis for future economic growth and jobs" said Frank van Mierlo, co-founder and president of 1366 Technologies.

The company's goal is to make and sell texturing and metallization machines that solar cell manufacturers can incorporate into their existing assembly lines. Indeed in July 2009 they received their first order to build a prototype machine. Machine construction is expected to require 10 months. If all goes well this will open the doors to further machine sales.

1366 Technologies Signs Solar America Initiative Agreement with U.S. Department of Energy

1366 Technologies Awarded Four Million in ARPA-E Funding

MIT Spinoff, 1366 Technologies, Reaches Efficiency Goal, Shines More Light on its Solar Cell Design

1366 Technologies scores its first order

More-Powerful Solar Cells: A new solar cell is 27 percent more efficient without being more expensive to make.

Making solar cheaper than coal

Open Solar

URL: 

Open Solar

Description: 

Helps to connect current and potential customers of, and providers of, solar electricity systems. Solar electricity businesses can list themselves, providing information about their services, etc.

One block off the grid - solar power in the urban environment

"1 Block Off the Grid is a nationwide community-based purchasing program for residential Solar energy. We drive large savings by aggregating groups of residents and negotiating discount pricing with installers and manufacturers." They aim to bring the U.S. to the forefront of using and deploying solar energy technology. They aim to remove 'cost' as a hurdle by using group purchasing power.

The program is open to all residents that: a) Own their home or investment property (if you’re a renter click here); b) Are listed on their electrical utilities bill; c) Are willing to make energy conservation changes such as installing compact fluorescent lights, running the dishwasher at night, etc.

Solar on Renters and Landlords - How It Works: "Why can’t the landlord recoup his or her investment in solar energy from then tenant who is typically paying for the electricity? Why can’t you work something into the lease so that the tenant gets stabilized, clean energy instead of dirty grid power for the same price or even cheaper, and the landlord gets a bump in rent to pay for his or her system that they just bought."

The program is open to people who wish to be field organizers.

Links: 

http://1bog.org/

External Media

Solar Princess Receives Double Crown

Nicole Kuepper, a 23 year old solar cell scientist, has been voted Australia's favourite scientist in the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes People's Choice Award. Kuepper, a PhD student and lecturer at the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering at the University of New South Wales, the Eureka Prizes People's Choice Award was her second Eureka prize. She also won the British Council Eureka Prize for Young Leaders in Environmental Issues and Climate Change. Nicole was awarded both Prizes for her work in developing and patenting a revolutionary solar cell that can be manufactured at low temperatures using everyday items like a pizza oven, nail polish and an inkjet printer. Nicole hopes that her technology will mean cheap, clean and green energy for developing countries, providing electricity to 2 billion of the world's poorest people.

Article Reference: 

Solar Princess Receives Double Crown

School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering

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Suniva, a solar photovoltaic maker, readies for production with $50M

Suniva is a company spun off from Georgia Tech's Center for Excellence in Photovoltaics. They have developed solar panel technology which today is 18% efficient, over 50% more efficient than normal solar panels, and they have a clear roadmap leading to 20% efficiency Real Soon Now. Further they claim an inexpensive cost, under $1 per watt, again Real Soon Now. They are just entering mass production with funding for a production facility capable of producing 25 megawatt's of panels per year.

Article Reference: 

Suniva, a solar photovoltaic maker, readies for production with $50M

http://www.suniva.com

U.S. solar company Suniva gets $50 mln in funding

Thin-film solar cell maker Suniva hauls in $50 million

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RENEWABLES.com

URL: 

RENEWABLES.com

Description: 

Solar Design and Renewable Energy Products - Information, products, and services related to sustainable and renewable building design, solar energy, permaculture, and transportation.

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Nanosolar Powersheet The New Dawn of Solar

"Cost has always been one of solar’s biggest problems. Traditional solar cells require silicon, and silicon is an expensive commodity ... Nanosolar’s cells use no silicon, and the company’s manufacturing process allows it to create cells that are as efficient as most commercial cells for as little as 30 cents a watt. In San Jose, Nanosolar has built what will soon be the world’s largest solar-panel manufacturing facility. CEO Martin Roscheisen claims that once full production starts early next year, it will create 430 megawatts’ worth of solar cells a year..."

Article Reference: 

Nanosolar Powersheet The New Dawn of Solar

Nanosolar

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Why does First Solar stand alone?

"First Solar, which makes cadmium-telluride solar cells, is having one of those years that corporate managers and investors dream about." They're having great sales etc but the article asks why there aren't competitors coming into the market to make cadmium-telluride solar panels. They discuss several aspects but it appears there are two.

One is their process. "In a sense, the entire thin film solar industry is a competition around who can build a better machine. The CIGS solar cell companies will all have similar products. The difference between them lay in how they produce those cells..."

The second is that Cadmium can be toxic. Nickel-Cadmium batteries are generally banned for the same reason. This can scare people away.

Article Reference: 

Why does First Solar stand alone?

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Innovalight

URL: 

Innovalight

Pour yourself a silicon solar panel

Description: 

focused on bringing ultra low-cost solar power modules to the marketplace. Innovalight is harnessing a proprietary silicon-ink process, developed by the company to print thin-film solar power modules. Leveraging the advantages of solvent-based processing, Innovalight will help accelerate the promise of more affordable solar power solutions for residential and commercial applications.

Innovalight has developed a silicon nanocrystalline ink that holds the promise to bring flexible solar panels to cost that could be as much as ten times cheaper than current solar cell solutions. Using proprietary methods, Innovalight has developed a solvent-based silicon process that lends itself to a low cost production and high throughput manufacturing.

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Solis Energy

URL: 

Solis Energy

Description: 

Their products deliver power where it would otherwise be unavailable such as rooftops, light poles and remote locations. They build stand-alone solar generators and outdoor uninterruptible power supplies are rugged and reliable enough to power your critical devices. Solis Energy’s unique monitoring solution is ideal for customers requiring real-time remote SNMP monitoring.

SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) is a network protocol for use over the Internet to manage devices on the Internet. Solar powered Wi-Fi? Solis Energy says 'why not?' discusses a hybrid application of Solis Energy's power system along with WiFi routers to build a city-wide network built on regular light poles.

The next chain outlet concept: Energy experts

The article discusses two businesses, Conergy and Standard Renewable Energy who are offering expertise to help businesses and homeowners through the confusing terrain of alternative or renewable energy technologies. Rather than a business or homeowner becoming an expert in the technology, they would rely on a company who's developed that expertise to do the work. I suppose this is like calling the plumber when you have a leaking pipe or want to replace the hot water heater, but in this case you call the solar power system technologist.

e.g: Standard Renewable, through a division called NewPoint Energy Solutions, sends a representative into a commercial building or home, conducts an audit, and then compiles a list of recommendations--put in new insulation; install a new water heater; and so on--for cutting energy bills. The audit is free, but the company then bids on the contract. Some of the products to be installed are made by third parties and resold by Standard, but other products come from Standard itself.

Article Reference: 

The next chain outlet concept: Energy experts

New Flexible Plastic Solar Panels Are Inexpensive And Easy To Make

Researchers at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) have developed an inexpensive solar cell that can be painted or printed on flexible plastic sheets. "The process is simple," said lead researcher and author Somenath Mitra, PhD, professor and acting chair of NJIT's Department of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences.

Harvesting energy directly from abundant solar radiation using solar cells is increasingly emerging as a major component of future global energy strategy, said Mitra.

...Mitra and his research team took the carbon nanotubes and combined them with tiny carbon Buckyballs (known as fullerenes) to form snake-like structures.

..."Using this unique combination in an organic solar cell recipe can enhance the efficiency of future painted-on solar cells," said Mitra.

..."Fullerene single wall carbon nanotube complex for polymer bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells," published June 21, 2007 in the Journal of Materials Chemistry by the Royal Society of Chemistry, details the process.

Article Reference: 

New Flexible Plastic Solar Panels Are Inexpensive And Easy To Make

UDelaware-led team sets solar cell record

Using a novel technology that adds multiple innovations to a very high-performance crystalline silicon solar cell platform, a consortium led by the University of Delaware has achieved a record-breaking combined solar cell efficiency of 42.8 percent from sunlight at standard terrestrial conditions.

...The research was led by Allen Barnett, principal investigator and UD professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Christiana Honsberg, co-principal investigator and associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. The two direct the University's High Performance Solar Power Program and will continue working to achieve 50 percent efficiency, a benchmark that when reached would mean a doubling of the efficiency of terrestrial solar cells based around a silicon platform within a 50-month span.

...The highly efficient VHESC solar cell uses a novel lateral optical concentrating system that splits solar light into three different energy bins of high, medium and low, and directs them onto cells of various light sensitive materials to cover the solar spectrum.

Article Reference: 

UDelaware-led team sets solar cell record

Solar Power at Half the Cost

Soliant Energy, Inc. has developed a solar panel system using a simple concentrator to increase the amount of light hitting the solar panel. This is said to increase the efficiency of the overall system.

The innovation here is called the 'heliotube.' It's a tube of glass that concentrates the sun's rays onto a very thin strip of silicon solar panels at the base of the tube. The tube is then connected to a frame in blocks, and the frame uses the power coming off the panel to tilt the tubes to track the sun. These panels use 88% less photovoltaic material, but are almost as efficient per square foot as traditional solar panels.

Article Reference: 

Solar Power at Half the Cost

40% Efficient Solar Cells: They Are Being Used Back On Earth

The usual efficiency for solar panels is 10-20%. Efficiency is the conversion rate of capture, comparing the potential energy that strikes an area of ground with the energy (electricity) captured by the solar panel. This relatively low efficiency is one reason why solar electricity hasn't caught on. In December last year, a company called Spectrolab has achieved a new world record in solar cell efficiency. By using concentrated sunlight, Spectrolab demonstrated the ability of a photovoltaic cell to convert 40.7% of the sun’s energy into electricity. Multijunction cells perform at higher efficiencies than conventional single-junction silicon solar cells, because they convert more of the solar spectrum into energy by breaking it up into chunks. For example, the first layer of Spectrolab's record-breaking triple-junction cell is composed of gallium indium phosphide, which converts short-wavelength portions of the spectrum, such as blue and UV. The second layer, made of gallium arsenide, captures the middle part of the spectrum. The third germanium layer does a good job with IR light.

Article Reference: 

40% Efficient Solar Cells: They Are Being Used Back On Earth

Juwi International

URL: 

Juwi International

Description: 

Juwi develops renewable energy projects worldwide. Working with landowners, local communities, financial institutions and utility companies, they evaluate sites, lease land, design, build and operate wind farms as well as large scale photovoltaic systems on rooftops and open-space installations.

First Solar

URL: 

First Solar

Description: 

First Solar has made the Promise of Thin Film a Reality and has become one of the fastest growing manufacturers of solar modules in the world. First Solar manufactures PV modules with an advanced thin film semiconductor process that Lowers the Cost of Solar Electricity. FS Series PV modules are designed for use in large scale, grid-connected solar power plants and are sold to leading solar project developers for use in commercial PV projects. First Solar application engineers work closely with our project development partners to design the optimal balance of systems solutions for use with First Solar PV modules, ensuring high performance and long term reliability.

EI Solutions

URL: 

EI Solutions

Description: 

EI Solutions is one of California's fastest growing providers of large-scale solar power systems. We deliver clean, reliable, cost-effective energy solutions to business, government and institutional clients.

Our solar energy systems empower environmentally conscious customers to achieve utility independence and save money on energy. Founded in 2001, EI Solutions brings together the engineering, construction, capital financing, and project management skills needed to deliver today's large-scale grid-tied renewable energy systems on time and on budget.

Solar electric farm tractor

Solar electric farm tractor: is a news report about a retired "Engineer" who has developed a solar powered farm tractor. Yup, a farm tractor.