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New Small Turbines, 600 Watts to 2 MW

As distributed generation continues to evolve (technically and politically), microturbines continue to be one of the main technologies in the mix. Capstone, of course, is the only one with a truly commercial product and sizeable installed base. The collapse of the Honeywell Parallon program is well known. (Less well known–or so the story goes– to avoid any future liability for performance or maintenance, the company bought back and destroyed every unit they’d sold.) Meanwhile, other companies entering or about ready to enter the field with commercial units, such as Turbec, Ingersoll, Elliott, etc.

This note reviews a number of other contenders. Some are startup companies at various stages, actively engaged in fundraising. Others, less visible, have been built for defense applications with no active effort to pursue commercial uses. Two of these companies have aggressive near term plans to sell components for turbines, either replacement parts or OEM.

*available information at:
http://www.ufto.com/clients-only/turbines/ [password required]

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M-DOT Aerospace http://www.m-dot.com

M-DOT is an engineering and manufacturing company in Phoenix, specializing in turbine technology, primarily for military/aerospace. With funding from DARPA, they have demonstrated the world’s smallest operating gas turbine and are developing a soda-pop can size gas-turbine driven 600-watt alternator intended to be a compact, carry-able power source for the soldier. They’re about to launch a development program for a 6 KW turbine with the requisite light weight and performance characteristics for commercial applications, particularly in portable power.

Bryan Seegers, CEO, 408-752-1911 x13, bseegers@m-dot.com

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IHI Aerospace

Originally built for military and civilian use, IHI’s Dynajet 2.6 KW microturbine genset is selling commercially in Japan is 1.2 million Yen (about $9000) "for use in Japan only" (kerosene fuel). There are no plans for export. They don’t have a natural gas version. Very little information is available, though I do have a 2-page product description and spec sheet (*available). The unit measures 30"x10"x11" and weighs 140 lb.
[The contact at IHI prefers not to be listed.]

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ALM Turbine http://www.almturbine.com/

The Company is developing a new "Dual Stream Engine" (DSE) mini-turbine for small-to-medium size power generation and automotive applications. The DSE can be scaled to generate power between 25kW and 300kW, with efficiencies of 37 – 40%. The engine recirculates the exhaust–the intake is 5/6 exhaust and 1/6 makeup air.

Certain parts and components will upgrade existing installed turbines to make them cleaner and more and efficient. One of these replacement parts is a revolutionary combustion system for large, medium and small turbines (5kW ? 250MW) with NOx levels of 3ppm or less, without the use or need of a catalyst. ALM’s combustion system prevents the creation of emissions as opposed to after treatment or clean-up technologies such as SCR.

ALM is working with a number of companies to develop aftermarket combustors for the existing installed base of large heavy-duty turbines (i.e. GE Frame 7EA) and for other size turbines. (Utilities want an alternative to the GE monopoly on replacement parts.) ALM is seeking partners to develop combustors to retrofit Solar, Rolls Royce and GE LM series turbines. The combustor uses external premix with no dilution zone, and has no pilot nozzle. ALM has developed technology to run significantly leaner than conventional DLN combustors.

ALM, then, is addressing two goals; 1. to make and sell their small engines (preferably with a strategic partner), and 2. to sell parts for existing large turbines, which should begin to generate significant revenues in the near term.

ALM recently signed a $3 million contract with the California Energy Commission to deploy a number of miniturbine beta units in the field. They’ve presented at several venture conferences, and are actively seeking additional funding. An executive summary is available.*

Contact MartyKalin, CEO 202-778-8538, x134 mkalin@almturbine.com

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OPRA http://www.opra.nl/

The 1.6 MW all radial OPRA OP16 is a new engine evolved from operational and design experience of an earlier engine developed in Norway more than thirty years ago by a team led by Jan Mowill, the CEO of OPRA.

The old Kongsberg engine demonstrated high reliability and endurance in applications ranging from backup power for hospitals and banks to auxiliary power supply for merchant ships, off shore platforms and combined heat and power (CHP) applications for process industries. More than a thousand generating packages were delivered worldwide and some eleven million operating hours amassed.

Key features of the new engine include single stage highly efficient rotor components, and a unique burner design using a lower temperature lean burning flame.

Most of the combustion development on the engine was made with diesel fuel, significant for customers without access to natural gas infrastructure, for marine installations, and for dual fuel applications. Achieving low emissions on liquid fuels is also considered the most difficult by the turbine industry. Recent engine testing on natural gas demonstrated NOx levels as low as 5 ppm. Emission levels with diesel fuel #2 of 20 ppm NOx, 5 ppm UHC and 2 ppm CO is now well established. Even the typical "diesel smell" has disappeared from the exhaust of the OP16 engine.

Simple cycle shaft efficiency is 26%. A recuperated OP16R is under design and will yield an efficiency of 38%. Utilization of the exhaust heat will provide hot water and/or air conditioning, boosting the overall fuel utilization efficiency to nearly 90%.

The company, now in the Netherlands, is expanding to the US. There are currently investment opportunities in OPRA.

Contact Jan Mowill, rjm@opra.nl
tel +31 (011) 74 245 2125 fax +31 (011)74 245 2139

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Wilson TurboPower

Wilson TurboPower’s first product, a rotary regenerator, is based on MIT-patented technology (US Pat RE37,134). It raises the efficiency of microturbines from 30% to 35%.

Turbines typically use recuperators, or "air-to-air" heat exchangers, that recover heat from the exhaust to preheat incoming air. Because of the extremes of temperature and temperature cycling which are a challenge to materials, recuperators are high in cost if they are to be reliable. Effectiveness (efficiency) is typically 88-91%. (Heat must travel through the barrier separating the hot and cold sides.)

Another approach is a "regenerator", where a material is heated directly, and then the same material surface is exposed to the cold side. Effectiveness can reach 95-97%. A typical system (e.g. an air heater) has a ceramic honeycomb of porous disk which rotates slowly between openings to the hot and cold sides. In a high performance application, sealing against leakage is a problem that hasn’t been solved before. Wilson’s innovation consists of "stepping" the disk’s rotation. Seals are released momentarily when the disk moves, and clamped again when it stops.

Microturbine companies that represent Wilson’s customer base include GE, Ingersoll-Rand, Pratt & Whitney, Turbec (a Volvo/ABB joint venture), Elliott, and Capstone. The regenerator will be prototyped and tested in 2002 and field tested by prospective customers in 2003. Wilson will ship in 2004 and/or license manufacturing rights to one or more of its customers.

Wilson’s next product will be a microturbine (MIT patent applied for) that will be the first distributed power generation product with efficiencies at about 50% and costs at about $500/KW. This performance is possible with the regenerator, which in turn permits a lower pressure ratio and lower rpm, so cheaper ceramics can be used compared with "high-performance" turbines. The ceramic regenerator also operates at higher temperatures than turbines using stainless steel recuperators.

The company believes it can reach profitability in 2 years with a total investment of under $3 million, which they are now raising.

Contact Bruce Anderson, 617-290-9913, brucenanderson@alum.mit.edu

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Candent Technologies

"Turbine in a turbine" –The engines being developed by Candent Technologies do not require a recuperator, but will use instead a high pressure ratio (> 16 atm), simple cycle turbine to achieve the desired performance.

The engine has two spools, low pressure and high pressure; one sits "inside" the other one.
— LP Spool: centrifugal compressor (single stage) and axial turbine (2-stage), with the shaft directly coupled to an alternator
— HP Spool: centrifugal compressor (single stage), combustor (Catalytic), and turbine (radial inflow)

The LP compressor supplies pressurized inlet air to the HP spool, whose output is directed back to the LP turbine and then exhausted. The HP spool thus acts as a kind of supercharged combustor for the LP spool.

Based on detailed design modeling, this simple cycle system is expected to have lower production costs than an equivalent recuperated system, as well as lower operating cost and higher reliability (lowest reliability component is typically the recuperator itself). The cost of the additional spool will be less than the cost of the recuperator (in a 750 kW system, $25K for the additional turbomachinery versus $75K for a recuperator). Operating life will increase to around 30,000 operating hours, versus less than 10,000 hours.

The engine configuration, while unique, does not push performance, cost, or design envelopes. The company’s plan relies on simplicity and proven technology imported from the aero engines, which routinely run at pressure ratios much higher than current power generation turbines. The operating temperatures have been kept low in order to prolong component life and allow utilization of common and less expensive materials, while the choice of higher pressure maintains quite competitive thermal efficiencies for the system. They expect their "alpha" will essentially be the "beta", since the modules and subsystems used are substantially similar to thousands already in service in many engines.

The team has deep experience in all aspects of the turbine industry, and has designed dozens of aircraft and land-based turbines using proven design codes and components.

The company needs partners and capital.
Contact: Hernando Munevar, 317-442-0624, hmunevar@comcast.net
Mark Bobbi, 203-758-7702, WaldoBobbi@aol.com

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Rolls Royce

Rolls is developing a 1 MW hybrid SOFC-Turbine system. The company is now satisfied that its IP-SOFC possesses the necessary performance characteristics for commercialisation, and is starting to bring the technology out of the lab. Rolls is beginning to develop a low cost production process, and has designed a hybrid 1MW power plant, which combines an 800kW SOFC with a 200kW turbine, which will be developed very specifically for this application. Rolls expects to have prototype systems in place in 2004-5, and to begin selling units in 2005-6. Initially, it plans to target US power generation markets, and with this in mind it is not at present developing a CHP system. Rolls-Royce says that its stack cost target of US$300 per kW is already achievable. It is aiming for a maximum system efficiency of 65%.
[source: Fuel Cell Today, http://www.fuelcelltoday.com/

A detailed presentation on the program (found it with google)
http://www.h2net.org.uk/PDFs/EndUse/H2net%20RAL%20Sep01.pdf

Colin Berns, 011-44-1332-248382, colin.berns@rolls-royce.com

Microturbine Test Programs

Edison Technology Solutions is offering a subscription program to test microturbines. It will involve actual testing on a uniform basis of up to 8 “pre-commercial” and commercial units from different manufacturers. Two units will commence testing early in January.

Subscribers will have timely access to detailed test data and analyses of performance and interconnection issues. While some of this information may eventually become available elsewhere, subscribers will not only receive timely information, but will gain access to technology briefings, operations assessments, and lessons-learned. It will be important to have such information before beginning any kind of commercial installations.

EPRI is cofunding this work (along with CEC and DOE), and will receive general test results under this arrangement. ETS’ program, however includes additional detailed analyses and reports, summarized conclusions, and presentations throughout the testing program that will not be available through other sources.

Contact: Jaime Medina, 626-815-0516, jmedina@edisontec.com
http://www.edisontec.com

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In ’99, EPRI is continuing a microturbine field test program (which began in 1996 with the testing of Capstone early prototype units at Northern States Power and Southern California Edison). Participating host utilities will test one or more microturbines at either laboratory or actual end-user sites. The program will cover all available vendor products (e.g., Capstone, Elliott, Allied-Signal, NREC) and provide information on unit performance as well as interconnection, siting and permitting issues. The data from all of the tests will be shared within the group of host companies. Members of either of the two EPRI DR targets can use tailored collaboration money. Nonmembers can also participate by co-funding. Participants will participate in a user’s group where they will share experiences and insights obtained from operating their units with others in the program.

Contact: Doug Herman, 650-855-1057, dherman@epri.com

Additional information on EPRI’s $5 million/yr DR program (2 targets), including the microturbine tests, can be found at http://www.epri.com/gg/newgen/disgen/index.html
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Bulletin #18

UFTO Bulletin #18

February 2, 1996

To: UFTO Members:

. . in this issue: . . . . . . . . .

Filemaker progress Cold Fusion Tech Nuggets

Where has January gone?

1. Enclosed is an updated UFTO roster. Note some new/changed email addresses. Also, a page from the current version of the new Subscriber Briefing, listing the key themes of UFTO in Year #2.

2. Update on the “By-Topic” mission:

– The Filemaker database is taking shape. We should have virtually all of our information to date loaded in an “alpha” version this month, which will enable me to do topical cut & pastes on request. Still a few bugs to work out, but it’s looking good. If anyone wants a copy of the database, we can do that, so long as it’s clearly understood that it won’t be “commercial grade” software.

– “Breakthrough Technology Conference” (Electrotechnology) in Tampa, April 24-6 —
See enclosed ad from Electrical World. I hope you and someone from your marketing group will attend. We’ll hold an UFTO group meeting in conjunction with this event. See attached questionnaire, and encourage your industrial technology/customer rep types to send someone.

— 2nd Topical Conference — PNL has offered to work with us on arranging some kind of a meeting–and even to host it. Please indicate any prefences about time, place and topic — see questionnaire. [How about Delivery — T&D? Or Environment?]

[PLEASE– fill out the attached questionnaire and fax it back to me, if you haven’t already. Thanks.]

3. I attended a one day conference in Cambridge MA in January, onCold Fusion and related developments, and am making a number of contacts as a result. This is in the category of “early warning radar”, though there are indications this whole business may be farther along than we think. See the enclosed “UFTO Comment.” (Also see UFTO Faxgram, March 25, 1995, for another discussion of “way out” technology.)

4. The Capstone turbogenerator story is moving very fast. They’re in contact with literally 100’s of utilities world wide, and signing up several a week as distributors. The usual utility industry time scales don’t apply. This situation will not wait for people watching from across the action gap who plan to look into it “soon”.

5. I have additional info on the PNL/Viatec waste acid detox and reclamation process, for metal-bearing spent acids in iron and steel, electroplating, galvanizing, and semiconductor industries. Any size of operation can be accommodated. They report paybacks of 6 months to 2 years. The company can be reached at 509-375-3268

6. I plan to attend the Technology Partnering workshop in Washington, February 26-27, sponsored by McGraw Hill, and featuring a number of high level government and industry speakers. Let me know if you or anyone from your company might be there.

7. You will get a copy of the Sandia U.S.-Russian Fuel Cell Conference proceedings sent directly to you in another month or two. I’ve given Sandia your name and address. Also, I’ve obtained some interesting material on fuel cell work in Europe. Let me know if you’d like copies.

Quote of the day: “To ask permission is to seek denial” Scott Neally, CEO, Sun Microsystems
 

UFTO Technology Nugget

February 2, 1996

• The International Utility Efficiency Partnerships (IUEP) is an industry wide initiative of the Climate Challenge, which is the partnership between utilities and the DOE to promote reductions in CO2 and greenhouse gases. The IUEP is overseen by EEI, and now has a WWW page at http://www.ji.org.

Contact: Michael Rucker, 202-508-5510, michree@eei.org.

• The United BioEnergy Commercialization Association (UBECA) encourages the development of biomass resources. Membership includes electric utilities, power producers, EEI, APPA, NRECA, EPRI and DOE. They are currently developing a national and international initiative to be cofunded by federal and private money. (One UFTO member is already participating.)

Contact: Amy Van Horn, UBECA, 202-296-8663

• The Reliability Analysis Center (RAC) in Rome NY is sponsored by the DOD Defense Technical Information Center and is operated by the IIT Research Institute. They provide an extensive array of publications, training courses and technical support. RAC is a focal point for reliability, maintainability and quality of components and systems, serving both the the DOD and commercial industry. They collect, analyze and publish databases on quality and reliability and evaluates and publishes information on engineering techniques and methods.

Contact: Michael Rossi, RAC Deputy Director, 315-339-7087

WWW home page is at: http://iitri.com/RAC/

A Product Catalog available. Call Gina Nash at 800-526-4802. Also ask for their video, and get their free quarterly “RAC Journal” sent to the right people in your company.

• A partnership consisting of American Superconducting, Lockheed Martin, Southern California Edison, and Los Alamos National Laboratory have demonstrated a 2.4-kilovolt high-temperature superconducting (HTS) current limiter prototype. The demonstration was funded by DOE’s Superconductivity Partnership Initiative program (described in the 9/94 UFTO reports on Argonne and Oak Ridge National Lab). American Superconductor expects to commercialize HTS current limiters by the end of the decade.

Tests performed at SCE indicated that all performance goals for this device were met. In addition, tests of the prototype demonstrated two other attractive features for utilities — this new, fully automated device can be used as an extremely fast circuit breaker and can interrupt multiple faults. One of the unique components of this new fault current limiter is its high temperature superconducting coil that is connected into the electric power grid using a solid-state switch.

Contacts: Gary Dishaw, Southern California Edison
Eddie Leung, Project leader, Energy & Power Systems (E&PS),
Lockheed Martin, San Diego, CA

• The state of the art in home insulation has advanced considerably in recent years. A comprehensive overview appears in the current issue (Feb/March 1996) of Fine Homebuilding magazine. It was written by Alex Wilson, editor of Environmental Building News, a bimonthly newsletter, $127/year, on environmentally sustainable design and construction. May be a good complement to E-Source and materials from the National Labs. 802-257-7300.

Bulletin #16

UFTO Bulletin #16

December 18, 1995
To: UFTO Members:

. . in this issue: . . . . . . . . .

Happy Holidays

Just a few items for now, with much more to come early in the New Year:

1. I made visits to Brookhaven and Savannah River Site in early December. SRS was a surprise. Most people don’t know anything about the place (I sure didn’t). They’ve got some tremendous capabilities and facilities, and they’re motivated. They emphasize that they solve problems, and they’re “not a national lab” and they don’t do R&D. As a no longer secret (tritium production facility), they’ve come late to the tech transfer industrial/partnering game, and are making up for lost time.

2. We’re very close to announcing a new member utility in UFTO, and one or two others are strong possibilities. I’ll let you know as soon as it’s official.

3. Plans are proceeding nicely for the “Breakthrough Technologies Conference”, April 24-6, Tampa. Did you make any suggestions for moderators or technologies? We’ll plan for an UFTO group meeting, so please be sure it’s on your calender, and line up someone from your industrial marketing group to attend (and to be a moderator?).

4. Tech Nuggets — one update and one new item:

• Turbogenerator — I mentioned finding this at the NASA Tech 2005 conference, and have learned more about it (24 kw; 165 lb; $2000; natural gas, gasoline or diesel fuel). It appears to be as good as it sounds. — rugged and reliable, low emissions, excellent part load performance, and cogen ready. Well funded company poised for takeoff and looking for distributors. A number of utilities are already lining up. Southern Calif Edison has ordered a number of units for test. This may turn out to be the distributed generator of choice. I have a flyer I can send you, or call:

Capstone Turbine Corp., Tarzana CA, tel 818-774-9600, Mike Irvine, VP of marketing.

• Nickel Hydrogen Batteries have been used in space for decades ,and are known for extreme reliability. Ergenics Inc. has basic patents for a “segmented Ni H battery” concept that should make it practical for terrestial uses. They’re building a prototype for ARPA for a military hybrid vehicle, and can make them as small as a laptop computer battery.

– It uses metal hydride to store the hydrogen outside the battery cell, thus eliminating self-discharge, most if not all safety concerns, and heat transfer issues. Most important, it’s low pressure, unlike usual Ni H batteries, which require a high pressure tank. A key advantage over Ni metal-hydride batteries is long life because the hydride is isolated from corrosion producing chemicals of the battery cell. Also, the hydrides materials are cheaper. Overall, costs should be competitive, especially on a life-cycle basis.

– The company is also developing hydride-based heat pumps, auto air conditioners, and an instant heater for auto emissions catalyst. They need capital, and haven’t yet focused on applications in UPS and utility storage systems. This may turn out to be quite competitive with the other forms of storage that everyone is working so hard on, and it could be an opportunity for a strategic technology edge. Call me for more info.

Have a wonderful Holiday. See you next year, all fired up with New Year’s resolve to bridge the Action Gap and make great things happen at your company.

EdB