Biomass project earns Storey employee of the year title
Years of extensive work on a biomass combined-heat-and-power plant project have earned Brett Storey, project manager for Placer County, Calif., the District 3 County Employee of the Year title. The 2-megawatt plant on the north end of Lake Tahoe will use forest residues to heat schools, businesses and other structures in a 30-mile radius. Besides providing clean energy, it will also be an effective solution to the catastrophic wildfires the region has experienced. Storey was hired in 2006 to help develop a solution to that problem and came up with the biomass plant proposal within one year. If all goes well, the facility could be operational by 2013.
Contractors offer rentals for dust suppression
At a time when contractors and bulk material handlers are finding capital equipment budgets squeezed, many companies requiring high-performance dust suppression are turning to rental options to obtain needed equipment. In response to the current trend toward leasing over purchasing, Dust Control Technology has announced an expansion of its program. The company now has 30 to 40 DustBoss machines in its fleet at any given time, ensuring ready availability. With a variety of different-sized machines available for short- or long-term lease, the company has units to suit virtually any project size.
Martin Engineering to open business unit in India
Martin Engineering plans to open a business unit in Pune, India. The company has been active in the Indian market since 2004, establishing a solid presence through its licensee, Thejo, to distribute and support select bulk material handling technologies. Already incorporated in India, Martin Engineering completed a market study and entry strategy in 2010, finding huge potential in further developing its business there. The company expects to have full operating capabilities by the second quarter of 2011. In addition to the Pune facility, Martin Engineering will have sales and service offices and staff in three other areas of India: Calcutta, Delhi and Chennai.
HRE forms Homeland Biogas Energy
Homeland Renewable Energy, the agricultural-waste-to-energy specialist, announced the establishment of its new division Homeland Biogas Energy, which is focused on turning animal agriculture waste and other organic waste streams into usable energy for America. The new division develops, owns and operates anaerobic digestion plants capable of producing various forms of renewable energy. HB Energy has an initial pipeline of eight projects, with an estimated total capital cost of over $150 million.
New software available for trigeneration, district cooling
The energyPRO V4.1 software package from EMD has been expanded with new features allowing users to prepare detailed techno-economic modeling of trigeneration projects. These types of projects have so far been difficult for engineers to model precisely due to their complexity. With the newest energyPRO V4.1 software release, modeling of trigeneration projects can now be made on an hourly basis throughout the year. Based on the inputs, energyPRO can produce a full feasibility study for the proposed project for its whole project period. The software package allows users to include the benefits of using thermal energy storage when modeling cogeneration, trigeneration or integrated energy schemes. For information about energyPRO V4.1 and to download a demo version, go to www.emd.dk/energyPRO.
NEF to supply miscanthus rhizomes to North American farmers
New Energy Farms announced the opening of two large-scale facilities to supply miscanthus rhizomes in Canada and the U.S. From these sites NEF has the capability to produce tens of thousands of acres of miscanthus rhizomes from 2011 onward. The U.S. NEF site is in Tifton, Ga., and the Canadian site is in Ontario. NEF, which has more than 10 years experience in the supply of propagation material, also operates an affiliate program, providing technical support for growers, to support on-farm propagation to establish miscanthus for $500 per acre excluding Biomass Crop Assistance Program support.
Mott MacDonald expands renewable energy presence
Mott MacDonald, a global management, engineering and development consultancy, is expanding its renewable energy presence in North America with the opening of a dedicated office in Boston, and the appointment of Tremain Tanner, an international renewable energy and utility infrastructure project adviser. Tremain has been appointed vice president, renewable energy, and brings a wealth of experience in the development of private-sector renewable energy projects in wind, hydro, wave and tidal, biomass and landfill gas. He also has a successful track record in strategic consultancy in the North American power sector, and has extensive project-based transaction experience closing investments valued at more than $5 billion.
CKade expands to Southeast Asia
CKade BV has opened an office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to establish a direct connection between the biomass markets in Southeast Asia and Europe, and to strengthen the development of secure and sustainable biomass supply chains. Security of supply of renewable raw materials is of critical importance for a new economy that will be less dependent on crude oil. CKade is an expert consultancy that is headquartered in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The CKade office in Kuala Lumpur reinforces existing relations with parties in the region and provides detailed insight in local market developments.
Bioprocess Control launches AMPTS II
Sweden-based Bioprocess Control AB originally launched AMPTS I in 2009 and sold it to customers in more than 25 countries. AMPTS is used by universities, private research institutes and biogas operators around the world interested in understanding how much methane gas or energy different raw materials contain, and how the gas is produced in a digester. Building on the success of the first-generation model, the AMPTS II provides users with improved stability and functionalities such as built-in pressure and temperature sensors, integrated embedded data acquisition, and a new embedded Web server allowing for, among other things, automatic real-time pressure and temperature compensation, real-time gas flow and volume normalization, the possibility of multiplexing and remote access.
Jansen hires LeBel as senior consultant
Jansen Combustion and Boiler Technologies Inc. announced that Mark P. LeBel has joined the company. LeBel will be working in the Atlanta area as a senior consultant. He has had a long career with Combustion Engineering/ABB/Alstom Power Inc., most recently as manager of boiler engineering services. He has broad experience in design and operation of power, waste-to-energy and chemical recovery boilers as well biomass-fired circulating and bubbling fluidized bed boilers.
Morbark Introduces 3800XL Horizontal Grinder
After more than a year of design review and in-field testing, Morbark released its new 3800XL Horizontal Grinder to the market. The new grinder contains significant changes and improvements in feeding technology, which increase production capacity and operating efficiency. The primary difference between this unit and others is its redesigned reverse-pivot feed system which minimizes space between the feed wheel and the hammermill. There is no place for material to hide in this unit, which keeps debris moving forward with uninterrupted, steady production.
PCI newest Bandit dealer in the Northwest
Bandit Industries of Remus, Mich., has added PCI Waste & Recycling Equipment of Portland, Ore., to its family of dealers. Serving the entire Pacific Northwest including Washington, Oregon and Idaho, PCI’s full line of industrial refuse and recycling equipment will be home to Bandit’s comprehensive offering of chippers and stump grinders.