Clean Coal A Water Hog

 

It's well documented that clean coal technologies (aka "New Generation Coal") require increased coal consumption to produce the additional energy required for processes related to reducing emissions, but often overlooked in the clean coal controversy is the issue of water.
  
A report entitled Water and the electricity generation industry: Implications of use, prepared for Australia's Water Commission and the Australian Government Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism warns that water-cooled, low-emission thermal power plants are likely to be significantly more water intensive than current coal-fired power plants. 
  
The report states coal-fired power plants incorporating carbon capture and storage (CCS) could be one-quarter to one-third more water intensive. 
  
Furthermore, as solar thermal and geothermal power plants are likely to operate at lower thermal efficiencies than conventional coal-fired steam turbines, they are also likely to have a higher water intensity.
  
Water is already a precious resource in Australia and accounts for about 1.4 per cent of total national water consumption. In coal fired power stations water is used for generating steam to drive steam turbines, for cooling the exhaust steam and for other operations including ash disposal.
  
The report recommends that in light of the need to reduce carbon emissions and the impact on water demand for cooling in power stations, priority should be given to focusing research and development in Australia on water management and efficiency in electricity generation.
  
Dry cooling can reduce water consumption of thermal power stations by more than 90 per cent, but reduces the sent-out efficiency (the ratio of fuel consumed to energy sent out from a power station) of power plants by around two to three per cent and increases carbon dioxide emissions of coal-fired power plants by up to six per cent. This would also see an increased consumption of coal to make up for the shortfall in energy output.
   
Part of the solution to the water issue is already available - solar panel based solar farms, as these require no water whatsoever be consumed in the process of generating electricity.

ACT Greens Push For Mandatory Solar Hot Water

 

The ACT Greens are tabling a bill to make it mandatory for all new houses in the nation's capital to have solar hot water, heat pump or efficient gas hot water systems. Similar legislation is already in place in many places around the world, including Hawaii and some parts of India.
  
The bill will come up for debate in the Legislative Assembly in the next fortnight. According to Greens MLA Caroline Le Couteur, the requirement for such systems will not only save people money over the long term in respect to energy costs, but will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
  
Electric and gas hot water systems are responsible for around 20% of an Australian household's carbon emissions. Installing a solar hot water system households water heating related reduce carbon emissions substantially, but also allows for savings of up to 75% on water heating costs.
  
Currently, Australian households can benefit from substantial Federal and state solar hot water rebates that in some cases reduce the price of a solar hot water system to a point comparable with standard systems.
  
In other ACT Greens news relating to solar energy, Greens MLA for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury has called on the ACT Government to extend the territory's feed-in tariff to include larger grid connect solar power installations. 
   
The ACT already has the most generous feed in tariff program in the nation; allowing owners of home solar power systems the opportunity to profit from their investment. Mr Rattenbury says that for an extra 65 cents a week on electricity customers' bills,  and additional 10 megawatts of generation could be added to the ACT grid.
 
The extension of the feed in tariff would encourage the development of more solar farms in the ACT.
 

News for Tuesday 11 August, 2009

 

• USA's First Solar Tower Unveiled
  


• North Carolina Wind Power Controversy
  

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