Cogeneration technology is not the latest industry buzz-word being touted as the solution to our nation's energy woes. Cogeneration is a proven technology that has been around for over 120 years!

Our nation's first commercial power plant was a cogeneration plant that was designed and built by Thomas Edison in 1882 in New York. Our nation's first commercial power plant was called the "Pearl Street Station."

What is "Trigeneration"?

Trigeneration is the simultaneous production of three forms of energy - typically, Cooling, Heating and Power - from only one fuel input. Put another way, our trigeneration power plants produce three different types of energy for the price of one.

Trigeneration energy systems can reach overall system efficiencies of 86% to 93%.  Typical "central" power plants, that do not need the heat generated from the combustion and power generation process, are only about 33% efficient.

Trigeneration Diagram & Description
Trigeneration Power Plants' Have the Highest System Efficiencies and are 
About 300 % More Efficient than Typical Central Power Plants

Trigeneration plants are installed at locations that can benefit from all three forms of energy.  These types of installations that install trigeneration energy systems are called "onsite power generation" also referred to as "decentralized energy."   

One of our company's principal's first experience with the design and development of a trigeneration power plant was the trigeneration power plant installation at Rice University in 1987 where our trigeneration development team started out by conducting a "cogeneration" feasibility study.  The EPC contractor that Rice University selected installed the trigeneration power which included a 4.0 MW Ruston gas turbine power plant, along with waste heat recovery boilers and Absorption Chillers.  A "waste heat recovery boiler" captures the heat from the exhaust of the gas turbine.  From there, the recovered energy was converted to chilled water - originally from (3) Hitachi Absorption Chillers - 2 were rated at 1,000 tons each, and the third Hitachi Absorption Chiller was rated at 1,500 tons. The Hitachi Absorption Chillers were replaced shortly after their installation by the EPC company.  The first trigeneration plant at Rice University was so successful, they added a second 5.0 MW trigeneration plant so today, Rice University is now generating about 9.0 MW of electricity, and also producing the cooling and heating the university needs from the trigeneration plant and circulating the trigeneration energy around its campus.

Trigeneration Chart
Trigeneration's "Super-Efficiency" compared 
with other competing technologies
As you can see, there is No Competition for Trigeneration!

Our trigeneration power plants are the ideal onsite power and energy solution for customers that include:  Data Centers, Hospitals, Universities, Airports, Central Plants, Colleges & Universities, Dairies, Server Farms, District Heating & Cooling Plants, Food Processing Plants, Golf/Country Clubs, Government Buildings, Grocery Stores, Hotels, Manufacturing Plants, Nursing Homes, Office Buildings / Campuses, Radio Stations, Refrigerated Warehouses, Resorts, Restaurants, Schools, Server Farms, Shopping Centers, Supermarkets, Television Stations, Theatres and Military Bases.

At about 86% to 93% net system efficiency, our trigeneration power plants are about 300% more efficient at providing energy than your current electric utility. That's because the typical electric utility's power plants are only about 33% efficient - they waste 2/3 of the fuel in generating electricity in the enormous amount of waste heat energy that they exhaust through their smokestacks.

Trigeneration is defined as the simultaneous production of three energies: Cooling, Heating and Power.  Our trigeneration  energy systems use the same amount of fuel in producing three energies that would normally only produce just one type of energy. This means our customers that have our trigeneration power plants have significantly lower energy expenses, and a lower carbon footprint.

Waste Heat Recovery in Cogeneration and 
Trigeneration power and energy systems

In most cogeneration and trigeneration power and energy systems, the exhaust gas from the electric generation equipment is ducted to a heat exchanger to recover the thermal energy in the gas. These heat exchangers are air-to-water heat exchangers, where the exhaust gas flows over some form of tube and fin heat exchange surface and the heat from the exhaust gas is transferred to make hot water or steam. The hot water or steam is then used to provide hot water or steam heating and/or to operate thermally activated equipment, such as an absorption chiller for cooling or a desiccant dehumidifer for dehumidification.

Many of the waste heat recovery technologies used in building co/trigeneration systems require hot water, some at moderate pressures of 15 to 150 psig. In the cases where additional steam or pressurized hot water is needed, it may be necessary to provide supplemental heat to the exhaust gas with a duct burner.

In some applications air-to-air heat exchangers can be used. In other instances, if the emissions from the generation equipment are low enough, such as is with many of the microturbine technologies, the hot exhaust gases can be mixed with make-up air and vented directly into the heating system for building heating.

In the majority of installations, a flapper damper or "diverter" is employed to vary flow across the heat transfer surfaces of the heat exchanger to maintain a specific design temperature of the hot water or steam generation rate.

Typical Waste Heat Recovery Installation

In some cogeneration and trigeneration designs, the exhaust gases can be used to activate a thermal wheel or a desiccant dehumidifier. Thermal wheels use the exhaust gas to heat a wheel with a medium that absorbs the heat and then transfers the heat when the wheel is rotated into the incoming airflow.

A professional engineer should be involved in designing and sizing of the Waste Heat Recovery section. For a proper and economical operation, the design of the heat recovery section involves consideration of many related factors, such as the thermal capacity of the exhaust gases, the exhaust flow rate, the sizing and type of heat exchanger, and the desired parameters over a various range of operating conditions of the cogeneration or trigeneration system — all of which need to be considered for proper and economical operation.

The Market and Potential for Waste Heat Recovery technologies and solutions

There are more than 500,000 smokestacks in the U.S. that are "wasting" heat, an untapped resource that can be converted to energy with Waste Heat Recovery technologies.

About 10% of these 500,000 smokestacks represent about 75% of the available wasted heat which has a stack gas exit temperature above 500 degrees F. which could generate approximately 50,000 megawatts of electricity annually and an annual market of over $75 billion in gross revenues before tax incentives and greenhouse gas emissions credits.

Waste Heat Recovery technologies represent the least cost solution which provides the greatest return on investment, than any other possible green energy technology or "carbon free energy" opportunity!

Decentralized Energy is the opposite of "centralized energy."  

Decentralized Energy energy generates the power and energy that a residential, commercial or industrial customer needs, onsite. Examples of decentralized energy production are natural gas fueled CHP Systems, Rooftop PV and solar cogeneration energy systems.

Today's electric utility industry was "born" in the 1930's, when fossil fuel prices were cheap, and the cost of wheeling the electricity via transmission power lines, was also cheap.  "Central" power plants could be located hundreds of miles from the load centers, or cities, where the electricity was needed. These extreme inefficiencies and cheap fossil fuel prices have added a considerable economic and environmental burden to the consumers and the planet.

Centralized energy is found in the form of electric utility companies that generate power from "central" power plants. Central power plants are highly inefficient, averaging only 33% net system efficiency.  This means that the power coming to your home or business - including the line losses and transmission inefficiencies of moving the power - has lost 75% to as much as 80% energy it started with at the "central" power plant.  These losses and inefficiencies translate into significantly increased energy expenses by the residential and commercial consumers.

Decentralized Energy is the Best Way to Generate Clean and Green Energy! 

How we make and distribute electricity is changing! 

The electric power generation, transmission and distribution system (the electric "grid") is changing and evolving from the electric grid of the 19th and 20th centuries, which was inefficient, highly-polluting, very expensive and “dumb.”  

The "old" way of generating and distributing energy resembles this slide:

The electric grid of the 21st century (see slide below) will be Decentralized, Smart, Efficient and provide "carbon free energy" and "pollution free power” to customers who remain on the electric grid.  Some customers will choose to dis-connect from the grid entirely.  (Electric grid represented by the small light blue circles in the slide below.)

Typical "central" power plants and the electric utility companies that own them will either be shut-down, closed or go out of business due to one or more of the following:  failed business model, inordinate expenses related to central power plants that are inefficient, excessive pollution/emissions, high costs, continued reliance on the use of fossil fuels to generate energy, and the failure to provide efficient, carbon free energy and pollution free power. 

 Carbon free energy and pollution free power can also reduce our dependence on foreign oil while making us "energy independent" and reducing or eliminating Greenhouse Gas Emissions.

* Some of the above information from the Department of Energy website with permission.

Potential Clients for CHP / Trigeneration Energy Systems:

Some of these services provided by third party companies or strategic partners. Companies and industries that would benefit from CHP Systems include;

*  Airports
*  Agriculture
*  Casinos
*  Central Plants
*  City centers
*  Colleges & Universities
*  Company campuses
*  Dairies
*  Data Centers
*  District Heating & Cooling
*  Electric utilities
*  Food Processing Plants
*  Government Buildings and Facilities
*  Grocery Stores
*  Hospitals
*  Hotels
*  Manufacturing Plants
*  Military Bases
*  Nursing Homes
*  Office Buildings 
*  Refrigerated Warehouses
*  Resorts
*  Restaurants
*  Schools
*  Server Farms
*  Shopping centers
*  Supermarkets

Our company's founder has >25 years experience in the energy and utility industry with experience in; Biofuels, Business Development, CHP Systems, Cogeneration, Demand Side Management, Distributed Generation, ESCO Services & Solutions, Management, Marketing, New Business Start-ups, Real Estate Development, Renewable Energy, Trigeneration and Environmental Compliance. He has developed, co-developed or invested in > 35 MW of CHP systems (operating in cogeneration or trigeneration mode) back-up power and demand side management solutions. His education includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and an MBA.

Press Release
June 19, 2014
by Allyson Y. Schwartz

Power, Efficiency and Resiliency (POWER) Act

Washington, D.C - U.S. Representatives Allyson Y. Schwartz (PA-13), Chris Gibson (NY-19), Joseph Crowley (NY-14), Peter King (NY-2), and Richard Neal (MA-01) introduced the bipartisan Power, Efficiency and Resiliency (POWER) Act today. The legislation modifies tax incentives for two energy efficient technologies, combined heat and power (CHP) and waste heat to power (WHP). 

CHP systems generate both electricity and heat from a single fuel source. According to a study from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, CHP could be used to produce up to 20 percent of U.S. electrical capacity by 2030. This level of deployment would generate $234 billion in new investment, create nearly one million new highly skilled jobs, dramatically reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, and improve the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing by reducing energy costs. Additionally, by generating power where it is used, CHP systems ensure that critical facilities-such as hospitals, police stations and water treatment plants-are able to continue operating when the electrical grid goes down.

WHP systems recover the waste heat produced by industrial processes and use it to generate electricity. An Environmental Protection Agency Study estimated that WHP could be used to produce 10 gigawatts of emissions free electricity (enough to power 10 million homes), reduce costs to industry by $3 billion, and create 160,000 jobs.

"The Power Act incentivizes investment in energy efficient systems that protect our environment, encourage economic growth, and ensure that hospitals and other critical facilities are able to continue operating in emergencies, even when the electric grid goes down" said Schwartz. "That is why this legislation has the support of Democrats and Republicans, as well as a diverse coalition of business, labor, energy and environmental organizations." 

"This common-sense legislation will encourage investment in technologies that reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, put people to work, and make sustainable energy systems more accessible to consumers," said Congressman Chris Gibson. "These systems are especially important to hospitals and emergency services in rural areas, where there's a greater risk of power outages due to severe weather and limited infrastructure."

"In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, even those areas least affected by the storm lost power for over a week -- with the exception of homes and businesses powered by CHP systems, such as in Co-op City in the Bronx. But it's not only the reliability of CHP systems that makes them attractive, it is also the fact that there are significant environmental benefits as well," said Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Queens, the Bronx). "I'm proud to join my colleagues in introducing bipartisan legislation that will help to strengthen critical infrastructure and generate economic growth."

The POWER Act reduces the initial capital cost of deploying these energy efficient projects by providing CHP and WHP with tax incentives on par with those available for renewable energy. Specifically, the legislation:

1. Increases the investment tax credit (ITC) for combined heat and power from 10 percent to 30 percent

Increasing the credit to 30 percent will place CHP on par with other energy sources that benefit from the ITC, including solar and fuel cells.

2. Applies the ITC to waste heat to power

Waste heat to power systems are currently excluded from the ITC.

3. Applies the ITC to the first 25 megawatts (MW)Power Eff of CHP projects-up from 15 MW-and eliminates the 50 MW project size cap

Expanding the ITC will incentivize additional projects, increasing the impact of the ITC and resulting benefits 

4. Extends the Investment Tax Credit for an additional two years, through 2018. 

In order to be eligible for the ITC, projects must be operation before the credit expires-December 31, 2016 under current law. A two year extension will provide a reasonable time frame for equipment purchase, installation, and permitting.

These early projects led to more client inquiries and engagements with real estate developers, architects and building owners in Southern California, Louisiana and Texas and the advent of a growing Net Zero Energy industry along with Solar Cogeneration ^sm & Solar Trigeneration ^sm energy systems. This culminated in a family-owned 200 (Net Zero Energy) home real estate development in Desert Hot Springs which has been approved but not yet constructed. 

CHP Systems
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www.CHPSystems.com

Cogeneration
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www.Cogeneration.net

Trigeneration
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www.Trigeneration.com

Solar Trigeneration
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www.SolarTrigeneration.com

Waste Heat Recovery
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www.WasteHeatRecovery.com

We support the Renewable Energy Institute by donating a portion of our profits to the Renewable Energy Institute in their efforts to reduce fossil fuel use by transitioning to Renewable Energy Technologies and reducing/eliminating Carbon Emissions, Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Greenhouse Gas Emissions.

The Renewable Energy Institute is "Changing The Way The World Makes and Uses Energy" ^SM by providing research & development, funding and resources that reduce the cost of Renewable Energy Technologies and making a faster transition to Carbon Free Energy, Clean Power Generation, & Pollution Free Power."

#CHPsystems  #Cogeneration  #Trigeneration