Best Renewable Energy Stocks in 2021: A Survey by Paul Harmaan

June 20th, 2021 Maria Jones Leave a comment

The global economy nowadays is pivoting towards renewable energy, leaving fossil fuels behind. According to Paul Haarman, the economy is evolving and finding ways to adapt to modern technology, changing the whole world and making it more efficient. The various green energy sources that it was planning to adopt vary from solar energy to geothermal energy, from wind to biomass, and many more.

For the economy to convert to clean renewable, there will be a need for a strong financial back which is possible only when we use the economic prowess of renewable energy, and this is only possible through their stocks. So let us go in-depth to understand a few of those energy stocks.

Stocks for Top Renewable Energy

According to Paul Harmaan, various energy stocks like biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, etc., are present, which could support fast-forwarding the clean energy conversion for the economy. First, however, we will look for two of the best stocks where you should invest your money to get the best returns

First Solar

First Solar is one of the top leaders responsible for developing efficient thin-film solar panels. The company produces low-cost electricity per watt compared to the traditional silicon-based panels. Their solar panels are efficient mainly because they work well in extreme hotness and humidity conditions and work efficiently in shedding snow and debris quickly. These few features make them the most ideally used solar panels for utility-scale applications.

Moreover, the panel manufacturing sector of the first solar acts like a strong balance sheet responsible for making First Solar the number one choice and making it stand out.

NextEra Energy

NextEra Energy is responsible for two businesses which it runs efficiently. One business shows the efficient use of the competitive energy segment and is responsible for generating electricity. Besides this, it also transports natural gas under fix-free agreements that are beneficial for the long run. At the same time, the other one revolves around the rate-regulated electric utilities that NextEra Energy takes responsibility for and distributes that power to various businesses and consumers.

One of the highest credit ratings with the support of the largest electric utilities makes the NextEra Energy-efficient in working its stable operations responsibly. The two efficient businesses conducted by NextEra Energy are solely credited, and why shouldn’t they? The combined powers of both businesses help produce extra units of energy from natural resources like that of the wind and the sun, which any other company in the world is incapable of, making it a unique company.

Future of the Top Renewable Energy stocks

The effective and efficient shift by the world economy from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources or clean energy sources has created a massive opportunity for a variety of investors to look into the profits. At the same time, they understand the concept of how these sources can change the world and turn it into a better place. Suppose there is a need to find the future of these top renewable energy stocks. In that case, the most important thing to look for is the balance sheet of the company and the solar energy-focused growth profile, as these two main factors are highly responsible for generating higher returns in the future both for the world and the investors.

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US Trade Policy – A Tool to Help Combat the Climate Crisis

February 22nd, 2021 Mark Herlach and Emily Rosenblum, Eversheds Sutherland Leave a comment

A climate crisis is upon us—the scientific evidence is overwhelming. The question is how to respond quickly and decisively on all fronts—at both a domestic and an international level. Carbon pricing is a key mechanism that economists believe is essential to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change. With this in mind, we believe the time has come to harness the power of global trade by using international trade laws to create incentives for a global economy in which the price of carbon is considered in regulating international trade flows. A new administration in Washington provides an opportunity for a more creative approach in which trade policy also serves climate policy. Indeed, President Biden explicitly stated in his climate change platform that “[w]e can no longer separate trade policy from our climate objectives.”

The Biden administration can use existing international trade laws—without delay and without legislation—to take action in response to the global climate crisis. By doing so, the US can lead the way and help shape an international regime that will provide an incentive for companies around the world to price carbon in connection with their operations or face economic consequences at the US border.

Two existing trade remedy laws facilitate such an approach: (1) Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and (2) the countervailing duty law. Together or individually, these laws provide a basis for immediate action creating commercial incentives for responsible behavior by US trading partners. Thoughtful use of Section 301 and the countervailing duty law would be consistent with sound climate policy and ensure that US workers are not disadvantaged by competition with foreign industries that ignore the carbon cost of products they export to the United States.

Section 301 authorizes trade retaliation against “an act, policy, or practice of a foreign country” that “is unjustifiable and burdens or restricts United States commerce.” This broad language should be interpreted as including industrial practices that fail to recognize the cost of carbon in the production of products imported into the United States. For example, the production of steel in China benefits from low-cost, carbon-intensive manufacturing. These unpriced carbon costs disadvantage US steel companies, which compete with Chinese steel imports, no less than other Chinese government policies that directly subsidize the Chinese steel industry. The United States could utilize Section 301 to increase pressure on trading partners such as China and, absent a change in behavior, impose duties to offset the negative impact of carbon-intensive production practices on US industries.

Likewise, the US countervailing duty law is sufficiently flexible to facilitate recognition of the cost of carbon, consistent with other efforts to expand the concept of what constitutes an unfair subsidy. For example, just last year the Department of Commerce revised its countervailing duty regulations to permit currency undervaluation to be treated as a subsidy. Under this new approach, Commerce recently determined that Vietnam’s currency practices provide an unfair advantage to Vietnamese exporters and justify the imposition of countervailing duties on Vietnamese imports. The simple point is that US trade officials have now recognized that a broader set of foreign government policies are just as pernicious as the traditional subsidization practices that have long been the basis for imposing countervailing duties to protect US workers from unfair foreign competition.

We anticipate that our suggestions could be met with skepticism on the grounds that we are advocating an expansion of traditional notions of unfair trade practices. So be it. We are in a global crisis and business as usual will not do. Our point is to cut through the red tape and bureaucratic delays that have traditionally characterized the federal government’s response to the climate crisis. If nothing else, these trade tools could serve as forcing mechanisms to incentivize more effective international cooperation to fight climate change. Better to act immediately using the international trade tools we already have at our disposal than engage in a lengthy debate over procedure while the jobs and prosperity of US citizens are threatened by imports from countries unwilling to do their part in combatting climate change. There is no time to wait.

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Mark Herlach, a partner at Eversheds Sutherland, is an international lawyer with a practice focused on energy, international trade and defense matters. Mark represents a broad range of clients, including corporations, advanced-technology companies and governments. Emily Rosenblum, an associate at Eversheds Sutherland, is a member of the Energy Group and international trade practice. Emily advises clients on a wide range of regulatory and commercial issues involving international trade.

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Four Ways Carbon Capture Will Be A Game-Changer for Climate Change

January 13th, 2021 Dan Consie Leave a comment

Climate change is real, and carbon plays a significant role. According to the EPA, about 65 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are carbon dioxide from fossil fuels and other industrial processes. This doesn’t even include other sources of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gas emissions such as methane and nitrous oxide.

Carbon and other greenhouse gasses retain radiant heat from the sun, which causes an insulating effect that raises the atmospheric temperature. This overall temperature increase, also referred to as global warming, has been shown to be a direct cause of numerous negative climate events including the melting of polar ice caps, rising ocean levels, devastating and in some cases irreparable damage to ocean coral reefs, as well as unstable and harsh weather and storm patterns that cause catastrophic damage and loss of life. The use of technology such as carbon capture could be part of a global solution to the world’s carbon emission problem.

What is carbon capture?

Simply put, carbon capture is a means of collecting carbon from exhaust flues when it is produced as a biproduct of fossil fuel combustion (primarily CO and CO²). This carbon is released into the air from sources such as powerplants, manufacturing plants, or various modes of transportation that use carbon-based fuels including coal, natural gas, biomass, oil, and other fuel sources. The idea is to collect the carbon before it is released into the environment, thereby reducing its environmental impact.

Four ways in which carbon capture will be a game-changer

By reducing carbon emissions released into the atmosphere from industrial sources, we can make a significant impact on climate change. Carbon capture has encouraging potential and could radically alter the energy landscape because:

1. It allows the continued use of highly energy-dense and efficient carbon-based fuels (coal, natural gas and oil) without contributing additional carbon gasses to the atmosphere.

2. When applied to biomass-fueled combustion power plants, carbon capture has the potential to result in negative carbon emissions. Since the biomass sources—in the form of forest and agricultural waste—absorb and store carbon dioxide as part of natural lifecycles, capturing and sequestering the carbon dioxide after it is released effectively removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

3. It sustains healthy global economic growth through abundant and affordable energy.

4. It retains billions of dollars in sunk costs in existing carbon-based generation infrastructure by sequestering carbon emissions.

What are the challenges of implementing carbon capture technology?

While carbon capture is incredibly promising, it does come with its own challenges. To date, the technologies that have shown potential have not been demonstrated at scale. By and large, they have only been verified in test environments. More tests in real-life carbon capture situations need to take place to prove that it is truly a viable option. Additionally, the economic tipping point has not been reached to allow carbon capture to compete with traditional thermal, nuclear, or renewable generation due to the intensive capital cost of installation.

Additional innovation and investment would need to take place to develop more cost-effective options, thereby reducing the cost and incentivizing manufacturing and transportation providers to install carbon capture systems. Finally, there exists a reputational barrier as carbon-based fuel combustion has become a target of environmental activists, who may not be receptive to the idea of “clean carbon” or “carbon neutral” initiatives. If we can both scale carbon capture and make it affordable, we can then show positive results that prove the system works. This scientific data is needed to help change the minds of environmental activists and politicians who are making environmental protection laws, to help them see substantial evidence that this type of technology will reduce carbon in the atmosphere.

The future of carbon capture

As carbon capture technology matures and closes scalability and commercial hurdles, it could result in a significant resurgence in carbon-based power generation. This will require time and money to navigate any barriers to entry both technically and politically. The bottom line is that carbon capture is incredibly promising, and as innovators in this area can show that it is good for the environment as well as for industry, it will be more likely to be adopted and supported.

As the goal of carbon reduction remains at the forefront of global concerns, IHI Power Services Corp is deeply interested in the potential advantages of carbon capture. Environmental stewardship and support services are part of its values and it is looking to new and innovative ways to protect the environment while supporting the power industry.

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Dan Consie has 30 years of experience in the power generation industry with skills in business and contract management, engineering, operation and maintenance, and rotating equipment vibration diagnostics and balancing. Consie has held plant engineer, plant manager and asset manager positions and is currently serving as vice president of strategic initiatives at IHI Power Services Corp. (IPSC).

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BYD Takes “Supplier of the Year” Award

December 14th, 2020 GT Staff Leave a comment

Anheuser-Busch confirmed in an announcement this week that the leading electric vehicle provider, BYD (Build Your Dreams) is the official 2020 winner for its “Supplier of the Year” award at this year’s Eclipse Sustainability Summit.

BYD’s 8TT battery-electric heavy-duty trucks were cited as the main driver behind the recognition; however, BYD along with other sustainability-conscious partners including Nikola have been named as official network suppliers dedicated to supporting eco-friendly operations. The 8TT boasts enough energy to work an entire day with zero emissions and a weight rating of 105,000 pounds, air suspension, and CCS1 Charging up to 120kW DC.

As part of Anheuser-Busch’s mission to further advances in sustainable operations, the Eclipse collaboration platform was launched in 2019 to link arms with its partners also aiming to maximize best practices. Additionally, the platform continues to lead Anheuser-Busch closer to meeting its US 2020 Sustainability Goals., including reducing carbon emissions across its value chain by 25%
by 2025.

BYD supplies 25 of Anheuser-Busch’s battery-electric trucks at distribution centers in Sylmar, Pomona, Carson, and Oakland, California.

“BYD sincerely thanks Anheuser-Busch for this award, but more importantly for being a truly great partner,” said Aaron Gillmore, BYD Vice President, Electric Trucks. “We all know it is not easy to shift traditional ways of thinking, and the BYD/Anheuser-Busch team has consistently met challenges of environmentally and socially sustainable transport with patience, innovation, and perseverance.”

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Corporations Boast, But Small Businesses Are Key To Cleaner Environment

November 22nd, 2020 Rajat Panwar, Ph.D. Leave a comment

When major corporations tout their contributions to social or environmental initiatives, the world takes note. As just one example, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, and Google all drew attention at different times this year when they announced plans to work toward becoming carbon neutral.

But, despite the hype that gets associated with these big-business efforts, it may be that small businesses operating in quiet anonymity are the ones that have the greater impact on the environment, both good and bad.

“Large corporations are more motivated to use these initiatives as a means to achieve their financial objectives, whereas small businesses are more serious about making a real difference in their communities,” says Rajat Panwar, Ph.D. (www.rajatpanwar.com), an associate professor of Sustainable Business Management at Appalachian State University.

“Given that smokescreening and greenwashing are big problems in sustainability, we will be better off enabling small companies to own sustainability more so than large companies.”

That’s one reason why government-sponsored environmental initiatives need to include small businesses as critical partners if they hope to succeed, Panwar says. For example, he says, presidential candidate Joe Biden’s $2 trillion climate plan that sets a target for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 should take into account the role small businesses can play in environmental protection.

Panwar says a few facts worth knowing on the issue include:

Small businesses’ impact is a story of numbers. Although large corporations get more attention, the vast majority of businesses are small. “In the United States, about 99% of all firms are classified as small,” Panwar says. “Even though their individual contribution to pollution is small, collectively it is enormous, which is why it should be addressed. In fact, large corporations often pollute through small firms because it is a network of numerous small firms that feed into value-chains and supply chains of large corporations.”

Grassroots initiatives need to be targeted. A tremendous gap exists between large corporations and small businesses in terms of the resources they can allocate for environmental initiatives. “That’s why climate investments like those Biden is proposing should target grassroots initiatives,” Panwar says. That would include local food production, support to small landowners for sustainable forestry, grants for circular economy initiatives, grants for businesses that would promote fixing and repairing things, local recycling, and sustainable food systems.

Small businesses are inspired by different motivations. Panwar has been involved in research into the social and environmental impact of small businesses, and he and his colleagues produced intriguing results with their study, especially as it related to what motivates businesses to be good stewards. “Small businesses are motivated to pursue social and environmental initiatives mainly to be good community citizens and generate local reputation,” he says. “Large corporations are typically inclined to pursue these initiatives to enhance shareholder wealth.”

Some people may argue that climate initiatives need to take a backseat right now while the country focuses on getting people back to work. But Panwar says economic stimulus can easily be aligned with environmental protection.

“The initiatives I am talking about will produce new jobs that would support the local economy,” he says. “If we only focused on giving energy grants, then I can see the rationale in pitting job creation versus climate consequences. But climate investments can be done very strategically so that small businesses, entrepreneurs, and landowners get the money to revamp their operations.”

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Rajat Panwar, Ph.D. (www.rajatpanwar.com), is an associate professor of Sustainable Business Management at Appalachian State University. He previously was an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia. He also has been an Affiliate Faculty member in the College of Forestry at Oregon State University, and with the Governance, Environment, and Markets program at the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University. Panwar holds two doctorate degrees, one in Corporate Sustainability from Grenoble École de Management in France, and one in Forestry from Oregon State University.

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DHL Goes Green with BYD Electric Trucks

November 20th, 2020 GT Staff Leave a comment

Build-Your-Dreams continues to make headlines by adding more options in sustainable fleet solutions for the global and domestic transportation arenas. The world’s leading electric vehicle company announced this week that DHL added four of its Class 8 battery-electric trucks to support operations in Los Angeles.

The four trucks will undergo piloting in the Los Angeles region before hauling goods to and from the DHL LAX Gateway and other facilities. The BYD-manufactured transportation solutions are in addition to DHL’s robust order of 72 total all-electric battery-powered vans with other various vendors, according to information released.

“As a global leader in logistics and express services, DHL has proved that they’re serious about their commitment to transition to zero-emission trucking,” said John Gerra, Sr. Director of Business Development at BYD Motors. “DHL is doing more than just talking about it; they’re actually putting BYD electric trucks into commercial service, today.”

DHL currently utilizes environmentally-conscious fleet options including fully electric, hybrid-electric, and clean diesel, and low-power electric-assist e-Cargo Cycles. As part of the Strategy 2025 initiative, the Deutsche Post DHL Group continues making significant progress in sustainable operations after announcing the goal of net-zero logistics-related emissions by 2050.

“The introduction of these efficient electric trucks is a huge step forward, not only toward achieving our own clean transport goals, but also California’s ambitious goals on the adoption of zero-emission vehicles,” said Greg Hewitt, CEO of DHL Express U.S. “By implementing these electric trucks, we will prevent more than 300 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere per year, as we continue to grow and enhance our clean pick-up and delivery solutions.”

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Old Dominion Confirmed for the 2020 EPA SmartWay Excellence Award

November 15th, 2020 GT Staff Leave a comment

Old Dominion takes leading sustainability efforts in the trucking industry to a new level. Thanks to its role within the SmartWay Transport Partnership, the LTL carrier has contributed to the savings of 279.7 million oil barrels, $37.5 billion in fuel costs, and 134 million tons of air pollutants, according to information released. These successes in addition to consistent efforts in sustainable operations have earned Old Dominion the EPA SmartWay Excellence Award award for the sixth year in a row.

“Sustainability is a critical component of Old Dominion’s operational strategy. We’re committed to being a good corporate citizen and our partnership with the SmartWay Transportation program helps us move towards being a more sustainable carrier,” said Greg Gantt, president and CEO, Old Dominion Freight Line.

The award and 11-year partnership with SmartWay support Old Dominion’s position as a leader in sustainable operations within the freight supply chain arena. Old Dominion represents one of roughly 3,670 companies in partnership with SmartWay. SmartWay partners range from freight shippers to manufacturers, cargo owners, retailers, and more.

Sam Faucette, Old Dominion’s vice president of safety and compliance, received the award on behalf of the company on November 5th during the EPA SmartWay Excellence virtual conference.

“We will continue to look for ways to improve our sustainability practices and ultimately reduce our carbon footprint. We are humbled by this recognition and thrilled to receive this award for the sixth consecutive year,” Gantt concluded.

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Novel Polyester Fiber Technologies to Play a Key Role in Ushering the Textiles Industry Towards Sustainability

September 29th, 2020 Saloni Walimbe Leave a comment

Plant-based polyester fibers are quickly emerging as one of the hottest trends in the textiles space.

From a historical standpoint, textiles have undergone various stages of evolution, from being a small-scale domestic industry to its current supremacy in the global economy. Textiles have transformed dramatically from their first stage, dubbed the ‘cottage stage’, which included the production of natural fibers such as flax, wool, and cotton on a domestic basis, to more innovative operations in the Industrial revolution.

As technologies such as looms, wheels, and spinning processes emerged throughout history, textile production began to shift focus from conventional natural fabrics to synthetic or “man-made” fibers, most notable among them being polyester fibers.

Polyester is among the most common synthetic fibers used worldwide. The early origins of the polyester fiber market can be traced back to 1941 when the first viable version of the material was developed by British chemists J.T. Dickson, and J. R. Whinfield, and named Terylene. However, the material was popularized in the 1950s, by DuPont, under their brand Dacron, which went on to become the most predominantly used fiber across the industrial sector, surpassing even cotton.

Polyester fabric has many beneficial characteristics, including high strength, resistance to stretching, shrinkage, creasing, insects, as well as most chemicals. Specific properties, however, can vary based on the type of polyester fiber, including crush, oil, or flame resistance.

Used primarily for home furnishings and clothing, polyester fibers have gained massive popularity over the years, being used either alone or blended with other fabrics such as cotton, wool, flax, or rayon.

New polyester fabric innovations revolutionizing the apparel sector

Polyester is particularly popular for the production of apparel and clothing. The material, either by itself or in blends, can be found in nearly every type of apparel, from regular loungewear and daily wear to specialized sports apparel. Common polyester fibers blends include polyester-cotton blends for shirts and polyester-wool blends for suits, among others.

Polyester manufacturing technology has undergone significant transitions over the years, with novel solutions making differentiation between synthetic and natural fibers considerably challenging. One of the primary stages of this transition was the emergence of microfibers, facilitated by technology advancements that enabled the extrusion of the material in fine multifilament yarns. This, in turn, enhanced the aesthetics as well as the performance of both the fiber and the fabric.

This transformation further aided in the integration of high-tech polyester fibers in the production of high-performance active sportswear. Also, polyester microfibers came to be considered ideal for creating fabric with characteristics similar to silk.

Another notable transformation in the polyester fibers manufacturing domain was the evolution of the recycling process. Recycled polyester, or rPET fibers, developed using PET or clear plastic water bottles as the raw material, have given apparel manufacturers an innovative and more sustainable source of material, that would otherwise go into landfills. For instance, recycled polyester is used extensively in the production of textiles like fleece, preferred by outdoor clothing brands concerned with their ecological footprint.

According to studies, the apparel industry is aiming towards doubling the use of these polyester fibers by 2030, particularly fabrics derived from the emerging fiber-to-fiber technology, that leverages green chemistry to facilitate the breakdown of used polyester and reform it without sustaining any loss in quality. This concept of “infinite recyclability’ offered by the use of rPET fibers has attracted the attention of many notable apparel brands looking to bolster their growth strategy in a more sustainable way.

Marks & Spencer, Patagonia, alongside myriad other fashion businesses have gained prominence in recent years for their use of recycled polyester in their products. likewise, Japanese company Teijin made considerable progress in this regard, by setting up its own polyester recycling system to recreate the fabrics for use in clothing.

The emergence of plant-based polyester fibers as a key sustainability step in the textiles domain

The textile industry has faced considerable scrutiny over the years, owing to its large carbon footprint. The use of synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, has faced significant backlash due to their adverse impact on environmental health. Studies suggest that polyesters, especially, account for almost 80% of chemically produced fibers across the globe.

As ethical concerns continue to push apparel and fashion companies away from petroleum-based fiber solutions, major industry players are taking targeted steps to adopt more sustainable textile materials in their offerings. For instance, H&M has made a commitment to switch to sustainable materials completely by 2030. Similarly, Fast Retailing, operator of casualwear Uniqlo, has initiated the use of biofibers in its products. Furthermore, in 2020, the company also revealed its participation in the UN’s Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action, designed to bring about a 30% decrease in GHG emissions from the apparel sector by 2030.

Polyester fiber production has historically involved the use of ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid, both of which are derived from petroleum. In an effort to avert the potentially hazardous effects of these materials, various technologies are cropping up, to examine more eco-friendly methods of deriving the raw materials. For instance, extraction of ethylene glycol from sugarcane has been gaining considerable traction in recent years, paving the way for the production of more sustainable, plant-based polyester fibers.

Companies across the globe, such as Japanese materials company Toray Industries have already taken cognizance of this technology, leveraging it to initiate a breakthrough designed to mitigate carbon emissions and reliance on petroleum sources. The company, in collaboration with U.S-based biofuels company Virent, has used the process to develop what is hailed as the first 100% plant-based polyester fiber in the world. The production of this novel material is facilitated by the creation of a biologically derived terephthalic acid version, constituting nearly 70% polyester content, using inedible parts of corn and sugarcane.

The eco-friendly, plant-based polyester fiber demonstrates durability and processing ease similar to that of conventional polyesters and is geared towards use in automotive interiors, sportswear, and many other applications. As similar efforts by numerous polyester fiber industry vendors gain momentum, the textiles market is likely to undergo a major transformation in the years ahead.

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Saloni Walimbe is a Content Writer for Global Market Insights, Inc.

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Reducing Waste and Optimizing Your Supply Chain

August 12th, 2020 Erich Lawson Leave a comment

Waste is, well, it’s a waste; and if you’re trying to optimize your supply chain, it can be an expensive waste. There are a lot of sources, both internal and external, which can create waste in your supply chain, like process inefficiencies, communication gaps, lack of or delayed responses, and even errors in ordering or procurement. Whatever the reason, they often end up becoming an enormous waste of time and money, which can be drastically reduced by making supply chain processes more efficient. In fact, most successful companies focus heavily on decreasing waste and reducing wasteful processes.

One of the most effective methods for reducing waste is developing lean methods for supply chain management.

How to reduce waste and optimize your supply chain

Analyze Product Design

One way of not just reducing waste, but also optimizing your production is to examine and re-evaluate your products’ design. Identify any areas or methods to reduce raw material use or replace expensive materials with cheaper ones. If you can shave off small costs, they might result in substantial savings.

You should also evaluate your product packaging options and see if there’s any way you can use cheaper materials.

Manage Resources

Apart from just looking at just using cheaper materials, you should examine each of your production processes to identify which ones are generating waste. Redesign processes that are creating non-recyclable or non-reusable waste. Even recyclable waste should be assessed and you should take the cost of recycling into account.

When you’re optimizing processes, the cost of implementing changes may seem high, but the cost of the waste, as well as associated handling, disposal and even recycling, can add up over time.

Select the Right Equipment

On the topic of handling and disposing of waste, having the right waste management equipment can save time, money and a lot of hassles. We’ve made a lot of advancements in waste management technology and equipment. Trash compactors are a great example of simple solutions to make managing and handling waste much more efficient and save a lot of money over time.

It’s very important to first know how much and what kind of waste your supply chain produces, so start with that. There are a host of solutions, some with very specific uses which you might benefit from.

Improving Production Quality

Quality control is often focused on finished products, but one of the goals of quality management should be minimizing raw material wastage. If you optimize your manufacturing processes to reduce overall waste, it might have a two-fold advantage of increasing the number of goods that clear quality inspection.

Employee Feedback

The employees who have the task with the actual production will probably have a much better idea of where waste is being produced and the challenges with managing it. They could also provide a lot of feedback on how best to reduce waste and optimize waste management.

You can create focus groups tasked with identifying and optimizing waste since this kind of collaborative approach tends to have effective results.

Inventory Management

Lean approaches like JIT (Just-in-time) logistics can help you get closer to a 100% perfect-order measure. Apart from reducing order errors, it can also help you cut down tremendously on a lot of associated costs of inventory management like warehousing, utility costs rentals, and even insurance and taxes.

However, placing multiple orders may increase transport costs and your vendors might charge higher rates if each order is of a lower value, so weigh the pros and cons carefully.

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Erich Lawson is passionate about saving the environment by effective recycling. He has written a wide array of articles on how modern recycling equipment can be used by industries to reduce monthly garbage bills and increase recycling revenue. You can learn more about environment savings techniques by visiting Northern California Compactors, Inc blog.

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ETW Energietechnik Reports CHP Units with SCR catalysts Overall Efficiency 85 percent+

January 23rd, 2020 ETW Energietechnik Leave a comment

The Rems-Murr waste management company in Backnang-Neuschöntal in Baden-Württemberg has two new energy-efficient combined heat and power plants in which methane from biogas plants is co-incinerated. From 2023 onwards, they will emit five times less nitrogen oxide than today.

On 23 October 2019, two new combined heat and power (CHP) plants of the municipal waste management company Rems-Murr (AWRM) went into operation in Backnang-Neuschöntal. They were built by the company ETW Energietechnik GmbH from Moers in North Rhine-Westphalia. For the renewal, the two old gas engines of the waste management company were replaced after 65,000 operating hours and more than eight years of operation. This resulted in a leap in efficiency, which is essentially based on the installation of the larger, more powerful gas engines as well as the further developed gas engine technology. In addition, fuel savings are achieved by using the residual methane content in the fermentation residue exhaust air.

ETW Energietechnik took a step-by-step approach to this: First, the used CHP engines with 800 kilowatts (kW) each were dismantled. At the same place, the company installed two new larger gas engines with an electrical output of 1560 and 1200 kilowatts. These are each container CHP units, i.e. the power plants fit into a special container measuring 14 by 3.2 by 3 metres.

First, there is the container CHP “ETW 1560 BG” with a gas genset MWM TCG 2020 V16 (electrical output: 1560 kW, thermal output: 1528 kW, fuel input: 3683 kW). The second is the container CHP “ETW 1200 BG” with a gas aggregate MWM TCG 2020 V12 (electrical output: 1200 kW, thermal output: 1153 kW, fuel input: 2804 kW).

Compared with the old gensets, the changeover increases the electrical efficiency by almost 1.6 percentage points: Whereas the used CHP units had an electrical efficiency of 40.4 percent, this now amounts to 42 percent. The overall efficiency of the plant increases slightly to 85 percent.

The heat utilization concept contributes significantly to this high figure. The waste heat from the block-type thermal power stations is used to heat the fermenters and the operating building. The excess waste heat is then made available to the city of Backnang for drying sewage sludge.

A further leap in efficiency is achieved by a special feature of the plant: fermentation residue exhaust air is added to the combustion air of the gas engines. Although this exhaust air has too low a methane content (less than 1.75 percent) for it to be used directly in a gas engine, the plant is able to use it in a gas engine. However, by mixing it into the combustion air, the low methane content is made usable. This has a further advantage: This methane content in the combustion air does not have to be supplied via the biogas pipe and can, therefore, be saved on the biogas side.

“This was the first time that we have equipped an ETW plant in this way,” reports Alexander Szabo. The engineer is the responsible sales manager at ETW Energietechnik.

The municipal waste management company hopes that this exchange will enable it to make CHP operation more variable in the future due to the higher engine output while maintaining the same gas quantities during the day. In addition, the waste management company is expecting an increase in the amount of electricity fed into the public grid.

For the pilot project, the fermentation residue exhaust air extracted from the liquid fertilizer storage tanks and the sedimentation tank of the biogas plant is cleaned by a gas washer-dryer and then fed into the combustion air supply of the gas engines. To avoid an ignitable mixture in the combustion air, the fermentation residue exhaust air freed from hydrogen sulphide (H2S) is continuously monitored by means of gas analysis.

The system update is sustainable in that two expected changes in legislation in Germany are already being fulfilled:

-One is the use of residual methane in the fermentation residue exhaust air to prevent greenhouse gas from escaping. This system was designed by the planning company Ingenieurgruppe RUK GmbH from Stuttgart.

-It has already been decided that CHP plants from 2023 may not emit more than 100 milligrams of nitrogen oxides (NOx) per cubic meter. Currently, this upper limit is 500 mg/m³. These values apply in each case at a residual oxygen content of five percent. This is stated in the Ordinance on Medium-Sized Combustion, Gas Turbine, and Internal Combustion Engine Installations, the 44th Federal Immission Control Ordinance (44th BImSchV), which was updated in June 2019.

In order to avoid later, costly retrofitting of the exhaust system, both cogeneration plants have therefore already been equipped with modern nitrogen oxide catalytic converters. The catalytic elements are mounted on a ceramic carrier. This SCR technology – SCR stands for “Selected Catalytic Reduction” – is the only technology for reducing the amount of sick oxides (NOx) in the exhaust gas of the gas engine. The nitrogen oxides in the exhaust gas are composed of nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).

To reduce nitrogen oxides, Adblue must be injected into the exhaust system – this mixture has a urea content of 32.5 percent. The high exhaust gas temperature converts Adblue into ammonia. The ammonia reacts with the nitrogen oxides on the catalytic surface of the catalyst elements with the following reaction formula: 4NO + 4NH3 + O2 4N2 + 6H2O

ETW Energietechnik has already installed some of the SCR catalytic converter elements. These reduce – even without urea injection – formaldehyde in the exhaust gas. Formaldehyde (CH2O) is converted into water and CO2. The complete SCR catalytic converter system including urea injection will not go into operation until 2023. In order to comply with the stricter limits, only minor retrofitting is then required due to the modern exhaust gas cleaning system (see below).

Following the award of the contract for the new CHP plants, ETW Energietechnik GmbH was also awarded the contract for the extension of the waste fermentation plant. This includes the entire process, measurement, and control technology. The scope of supply also includes the gas wash drying plant for the fermentation residue exhaust air.

Retrofitting for NOx reduction
In 2022, ETW Energietechnik will retrofit the two combined heat and power plants so that they can comply with the limit value for nitrogen oxides of 100 mg/m³ from 2023 onwards:

A urea tank, the stainless steel piping between urea tank and injection, a suction line into the gas engine and a urea dosing device are still needed. This requires an air compressor, pressure and temperature sensors, nitrogen oxide and oxygen sensors upstream and downstream of the catalytic converter. For this purpose, the catalyst housing is completely equipped with catalyst elements.

A container CHP in side view with biological
desulfurization.

The insulated SCR-catalytic converter
housing with demountable insulation elements to replace the catalytic converter
elements.

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ETW Energietechnik GmbH has been developing and producing energy plants in Moers, Germany, since 1997. The company‘s core business comprises the construction and maintenance of combined heat and power (CHP) plants in the output range of 400 to 4,600 kWel. as well as highly efficient Biogas Upgrading plants that produce pure Biomethane out of raw Biogas using a high-end PSA technology.

The company is a one-stop provider: From the transfer of biogas to the feed- in of power into the grid and the provision of heat, ETW also takes care of the construction, commissioning, and maintenance of CHP and Biogas Upgrading plants.

The clientele of ETW Energietechnik GmbH includes large energy suppliers, agricultural plants, municipalities, and industrial businesses of various types and sizes, all of which attach importance to eco-friendly, economic energy generation.

One of the strategic highlights is the implementation of economic, sustainable plant concepts that are planned individually and adapted to the respective requirements. A qualified service team ensures operational reliability and maximum availability of the plants.

The medium-sized, family-owned enterprise employs a staff of nearly 100 and is managed by its founder Helmut Weiss and his two sons Marco and Carsten.