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A Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant. Photo:Thomas LeibigEuropean automobile giant Volkswagen AG and renewable energy company Lichtblick AG have announced plans to jointly launch mini home-based power plants in Germany by the spring of 2010. The combined heat and power (CHP) generating units, which will provide a flexible and decentralised supply of power, are expected to open new avenues in the intelligent energy systems market.
Volkswagen will act as the technology partner, while Lichtblick will handle marketing and distribution activities.
The CHP plants will be based on Volkswagen's Ecoblue technology, which is also used in the company's Golf car model in Europe and other models sold in North America. Lichtblick will market the power generating units under the name of Zuhause-Kraftwerk in Germany.
Lichtblick, a privately funded energy company, addresses the energy requirements of 15,000 commercial establishments and about 500,000 households in the country. Established in 1998, the company is a fully owned subsidiary of Turina Holding GmbH & Company (Hamburg).
A Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant, which will operate on the Ecoblue natural-gas-fired turbine system, will also be configured to run on biogas in the future. The units can produce electricity on demand within 60 seconds, and can store the heat produced during electricity generation.
The heat will be used for warming water and providing centralised heating for the household. The unit will also consist of a computerised smart-metering system, which will link the household to the energy utility and the grid.
In case of a power shortfall, this feature will enable the household to transfer any surplus electricity back to the grid at short notice. Industry experts say that the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units will be a big advantage in harnessing the huge renewable energy potential in Germany and also offset the possible unpredictability of power supply from these sources.
The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plants are expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions up to 60 per cent. Energy experts are optimistic that this technology will help Germany gradually phase out coal-based and nuclear power plants. The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant will have an efficiency of about 94 per cent, compared to 30 per cent to 40 per cent efficiency of nuclear reactors.
There are plans to pay a small rent to households that install the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units and also provide a year-end bonus to homes, based on the revenues generated by Lichtblick. A feed-in tariff system will also be implemented to decide on the payment for surplus electricity purchased by the energy utility from households.
Lichtblick plans to launch the units in Hamburg, followed by other locations in the country in a phased manner. Volkswagen's Salzgitter plant, which will manufacture equipment for these mini plants, is expected to add 160 new jobs. The company has initially targeted power generation of approximately 2,000 megawatts through these units.
The Ecoblue system can only be installed in households that are linked to Germany's gas pipeline network. About 50 per cent of German households receive gas through the pipeline system, while the rest use oil to fulfil their energy needs. The cost of a Zuhause-Kraftwerk power generating system will be about 5,000 Euros (USD7,300). In the coming years, Lichtblick plans to install about 100,000 such power plants in the country.
Volkswagen has prior experience in energy generation. The company operates cogeneration power plants in Mlada Boleslaw in the Czech Republic, and Emden, Hanover, Wolfsburg and Kassel in Germany.
The company, which is the largest carmaker in Europe, operates 61 production facilities and employs 370,000 people worldwide. In a recent development, Volkswagen and Porsche entered into an agreement to merge their businesses by 2011. As part of the deal, Volkswagen will purchase a 42 per cent stake in Porsche at a reported 3.3 billion Euros (USD4.7 billion) by the end of this year.
Germany's energy-generation sector is dominated by oil, which accounts for 38 per cent of the power produced in the country. Coal, gas, nuclear power and hydropower account for 26 per cent, 24 per cent, 11 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively. Germany has set a target to generate at least 45 per cent of its energy demand from renewable sources from 2030. Energy sector analysts have observed that the distribution of Zuhause-Kraftwerk units, which should be fairly commonplace by this time, will contribute significantly toward achieving this target.
Volkswagen will act as the technology partner, while Lichtblick will handle marketing and distribution activities.
The CHP plants will be based on Volkswagen's Ecoblue technology, which is also used in the company's Golf car model in Europe and other models sold in North America. Lichtblick will market the power generating units under the name of Zuhause-Kraftwerk in Germany.
Lichtblick, a privately funded energy company, addresses the energy requirements of 15,000 commercial establishments and about 500,000 households in the country. Established in 1998, the company is a fully owned subsidiary of Turina Holding GmbH & Company (Hamburg).
What is CHP?
Cogeneration (also combined heat and power, CHP) is the use of a heat engine or a power station to simultaneously generate both electricity and useful heat.
Conventional power plants emit the heat created as a by-product of electricity generation into the environment through cooling towers, flue gas, or by other means.
CHP or a bottoming cycle captures the by-product heat for domestic or industrial heating purposes, either very close to the plant, or – especially in Scandinavia and eastern Europe – as hot water for district heating with temperatures ranging from approximately 80 to 130 °C. This is also called decentralized energy.
In the United States, Con Edison distributes 30 billion pounds of 350 °F/180 °C steam each year through its seven cogeneration plants to 100,000 buildings in Manhattan – the biggest steam district in the world. The peak delivery is 10 million pounds per hour (corresponding to approx. 2.5 GW) This steam distribution system is the reason for the steaming manholes often seen in "gritty" New York based movies.
By-product heat at moderate temperatures (212-356°F/100-180°C) can also be used in absorption chillers for cooling. A plant producing electricity, heat and cold is sometimes called trigeneration or more generally: polygeneration plant.
Cogeneration is a thermodynamically efficient use of fuel. In separate production of electricity some energy must be rejected as waste heat, but in cogeneration this thermal energy is put to good use.
Source: Wikipedia
A Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant, which will operate on the Ecoblue natural-gas-fired turbine system, will also be configured to run on biogas in the future. The units can produce electricity on demand within 60 seconds, and can store the heat produced during electricity generation.
The heat will be used for warming water and providing centralised heating for the household. The unit will also consist of a computerised smart-metering system, which will link the household to the energy utility and the grid.
In case of a power shortfall, this feature will enable the household to transfer any surplus electricity back to the grid at short notice. Industry experts say that the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units will be a big advantage in harnessing the huge renewable energy potential in Germany and also offset the possible unpredictability of power supply from these sources.
The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plants are expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions up to 60 per cent. Energy experts are optimistic that this technology will help Germany gradually phase out coal-based and nuclear power plants. The Zuhause-Kraftwerk plant will have an efficiency of about 94 per cent, compared to 30 per cent to 40 per cent efficiency of nuclear reactors.
There are plans to pay a small rent to households that install the Zuhause-Kraftwerk units and also provide a year-end bonus to homes, based on the revenues generated by Lichtblick. A feed-in tariff system will also be implemented to decide on the payment for surplus electricity purchased by the energy utility from households.
Lichtblick plans to launch the units in Hamburg, followed by other locations in the country in a phased manner. Volkswagen's Salzgitter plant, which will manufacture equipment for these mini plants, is expected to add 160 new jobs. The company has initially targeted power generation of approximately 2,000 megawatts through these units.
The Ecoblue system can only be installed in households that are linked to Germany's gas pipeline network. About 50 per cent of German households receive gas through the pipeline system, while the rest use oil to fulfil their energy needs. The cost of a Zuhause-Kraftwerk power generating system will be about 5,000 Euros (USD7,300). In the coming years, Lichtblick plans to install about 100,000 such power plants in the country.
Volkswagen has prior experience in energy generation. The company operates cogeneration power plants in Mlada Boleslaw in the Czech Republic, and Emden, Hanover, Wolfsburg and Kassel in Germany.
The company, which is the largest carmaker in Europe, operates 61 production facilities and employs 370,000 people worldwide. In a recent development, Volkswagen and Porsche entered into an agreement to merge their businesses by 2011. As part of the deal, Volkswagen will purchase a 42 per cent stake in Porsche at a reported 3.3 billion Euros (USD4.7 billion) by the end of this year.
Germany's energy-generation sector is dominated by oil, which accounts for 38 per cent of the power produced in the country. Coal, gas, nuclear power and hydropower account for 26 per cent, 24 per cent, 11 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively. Germany has set a target to generate at least 45 per cent of its energy demand from renewable sources from 2030. Energy sector analysts have observed that the distribution of Zuhause-Kraftwerk units, which should be fairly commonplace by this time, will contribute significantly toward achieving this target.
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