LEDs - Light up The World Foundation.

In my previous post, I felt that I had not done full justice to LED lighting and to the people behind The Light up The World Foundation (Lutw).

The Light Up The World Foundation (Lutw) aims to bring efficient, durable and near permanent White Light Emitting Diodes (WLED) lighting solutions powered by renewable energy to the world's poor in ecologically sensitive and remote rural areas. Lutw support their engagement by quoting Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories (LBNL) as saying that, "the primary source of greenhouse gas emissions in the developing world comes from dirty, hazardous and expensive fuel-based sources such as kerosene for lighting.

LBNL states explicitly that the only real way to meet the increasing lighting energy demands is to replace fuel based lighting with solid state lighting systems."

History of the foundation from their website:
Scots born, Dr. David Irvine-Halliday, a Professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Calgary, had in 1997 the vision to use LED lighting to bring practical, economical, and environmentally safe lighting to the developing world.

Dave, who had been working with LEDs for more than two decades, spent most of 1997 and 1998 trying to make an acceptable white light from various combinations of colored indicator LEDs. He made white light but it was simply not bright enough to be of any practical use in the developing world. Around the end of 1998 Dave discovered that Nichia, a Japanese company, had invented the White LED a few years earlier and he immediately requested that they send him samples. When he and his technician, John Shelley, lit their very first White LED it was most definitely the “Eureka” moment – “Good God John, a child could read by the light of a single diode”.

(cf. my own home experience in the previous post whereby I can read comfortably with an 18 diode,spot of 1W. "a wee Eureka" but I did not say that I bought my second packet 2 spots at half price because this product was not selling well. A pity that I did not have more of the suitable sockets, great for directional bedside reading!)

My own first encounter with "Light Up The World" dates back roughly to 2005 when creating my first personal pages drawn-up to document my personal experience, publications and writings. The latter link many be given only upon request.

More history...

Short summary -" What are LEDs". (quoted from Lutw.org)
- LEDs are made from layers of different semi-conductor material formed on a sapphire substrate, one on top of the other using a process called Epitaxial crystal growth
- About 13,000 LEDs can be formed on the substrate which can be about .25 x.25 units in size
- Tiny gold contacts are applied to each chip site
- Each individual chip is packaged to form a lighting device

Much of the current research appearing recently in science break-through alerts aims to further reduce the materials and manufacturing cost of WLEDs

More on technology from Lutw...

Strategic Alliances and Project Management Lessons_case study.

Arcadis Greystone
Canadian Hydro Developers
Carmanah Technologies Corporation
Kyocera Solar
Philips Lumileds
Luxeon Star LEDs
Nemalux LED Lighting
SunEnergy Power International
University of Calgary

"LUTW has grown from a single idea to a global humanitarian organization that is the leader in its field. Each step, and each increase in capacity, has been the result of collaborative effort.

It is an excellent example of the mutually beneficial results and opportunities created through partnerships. These include major industrial partners, NGO's, local communities and academia. LUTW is able to create strong relationships with various groups in many capacities, through its ingenuity and commitment to making positive changes in the world. LUTW will continue to build strong partnerships to deliver high quality projects and reach more people in need."


A wealth of further information is available on Lutw's media section.

Putting the Heat on Coal-Fired Power Generation_ Materials, Steels, Superalloys, Coatings to fight GHG Emissions? Information overload assistance

The heat is on in more than one sense!

One of my "Wedge-a-War" aims (in the Pacala-Socolow-S.Lam sense[pdf]) deriving from my focus on CCS-CO2 capture and storage is to bring the materials issues to the fore:

To such an end, we metallurgist, students or experience metallurgical scientists and power engineering professionals alike will be much indebted to the pragmatic materials expert Prof. T.B. Gibbons for his paper entitled Superalloys in modern power generation applications, Ed. Materials Science and Technology 2009 VOL 25 NO 2. available online to IOM3 members.

The paper opens in Tom’s typically pragmatic style recalling that;
“It is widely recognised that for the foreseeable future, coal will remain an important energy source for generation of electric power in many areas of the world. [In other words we are stuck with it and must make the best of the situation.] However, it will be essential to develop generation technologies that include the capture and storage of emissions such as CO2 to combat the harmful effects of climate change.

[One of the] "The key(s) to the successful implementation of advanced generation technologies, the ultimate aim of which is the zero emission power plant, depends heavily on the availability of suitable materials." [and perhaps more importantly on the exploration and qualification of suitable geological CO2-GHG storage sites?]

In his paper, Gibbons considers the requirements for materials with improved high temperature performance, discipline in which he is a world renowned expert. He applies his expertise in the context of three types of power generation systems being developed to operate with greatly reduced emissions and with high levels of efficiency.

(i) ultra supercritical (USC) steam power plant ( steam T> 760°C)
(ii) integrated gasification combined cycle systems (IGCC)
(iii) oxyfuel combustion (Clean Energy Systems).
whose respective merits he describes and illustrates with schematics.

The common feature in all three approaches is the drive for greater efficiency of power generation systems, since this will mean that the level of emissions per unit of power output is reduced. Thus, it is claimed that a high efficiency power plant generating 500 MW of electricity will produce 27% less CO2 than a conventional plant of similar capacity. More... cf.Gibbons Ref.1

Work is in progress worldwide to improve the efficiency of power generation technologies, which use coal as a primary energy source. Such improved efficiency requires the use of higher temperatures cf. Fig.1 click to enlarge.

World Wide Programmes referenced are:

Examples of these activities are the:
-AD700Project in Europe whose acronym means ADvanced T>700°C [pdf]and AD 700 participants. and the

-Ultragen project in USA [pdf], where the aim is to build demonstration plants operating with higher steam temperatures and hence higher efficiencies, and a US Department of Energy (DoE) Project to develop more efficient coal gasification combined cycle systems.

In Japan, efforts are in hand to retrofit older coal burning units to enable operation at
higher steam temperatures with improved efficiencies. (Gibbons Ref.4)

There is a lot of metallurgy condensed in Tom’s paper, from recommended high-temperature steels, superalloys, and coatings for plant and turbine blades-aerofoils. The limitations of existing materials are outlined and the need for materials with higher temperature capabilities and ease of manufacture are discussed from a metallurgical science and engineering perspective.
The paper is an excellent summary of the metallurgical issues facing materials engineers in order to meet the challenges of so called “clean coal” and “zero emission" technologies.
Many of the papers referenced or related may be obtained, often freely available online.

In fact Tom Gibbon’s paper is a good window into a much researched field, but perhaps one where practice lags rhetoric among the main industrial... players, who admittedly suffer from the heavily capitalised, huge inertia bound (muscle-bound?), nature of the systems in which they operate?

Brain d-rain video: Frosty the coalman for a laugh (or a cry).
Comment cf. further reading ref.3 below.
Further comments, suggestions or questions welcome.

cf. reported comments section.
All 22 conference papers presented at the Malcolm McLean Memorial Symposium: “The superalloys: from processing to performance”)by internationally recognised experts in the field have been issued in a special addition of Materials Science and Technology Vol 25 Feb 2009. [almost 200 pages on all aspects of superalloy process and product metallurgy;from R&D, through primary and secondary melting, casting and single crystal growth, hot-transformation (rolling, forging etc), critical properties at high-temperatures in stressful and corrosive environments have all been addressed to meet the highest standards and client requirements and rightly claim the conference title superalloys: from processing to performance"


Further reading on this blog:

1. Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources Ranked_Review of solutions to global warming, air pollution, energy security_Information Overload Mastered

2. Solutions to global warming, air pollution, and energy security reviewed _Parametres used to classify and rank_Follows previous post

3. New comments-Conversations with B.J. Sovacool on Nuclear Power Plant, Coal Fired Power Generation, GHG emissions

Main Reference: Materials Science and Technology Vol 25 Feb 2009

Life-Cycle Analysis of Nuclear Fuel Route_Cradle-to-Grave, GHG-CO2equivalent emissions_Nuclear Inspections

Nuclear Inspections
In two of my recent posts:

1.Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources Ranked_Review of solutions to global warming, air pollution, energy security_Information Overload Mastered, (09 March 08).

2.Solutions to global warming, air pollution, and energy security reviewed _Parametres used to classify and rank_Follows previous post (21Feb 09).

I introduced readers to Mark Z. Jacobson's strong pitch, in his "Review of solutions to global warming, air pollution, and energy security", in favour of "renewable energy sources" his 1st and 2nd choices, termed, Tiers 1 and 2. followed by his less favoured 3rd choices, Tier 3, which includes alternatives energies; coal-fired power with the "elusive" carbon capture and sequestration (Coal-CCS) , and the experienced and successful Nuclear route. Both coal without CCS and Nuclear are current main and acknowledged alternative power supplier respectively. By the same, both are major users of high-temperature corrosion resistant alloys and as a very early retired specialist in the later fields, I -and colleagues- shall come back, with some delight, to talk about what the metallurgists, materials scientists and engineers can hope to bring to humanity's energy-climate plight which is unlikely to miraculously disappear.

At present, it is the latter 3rd choice, tier 3, in particular Nuclear, which will be considered here thanks to Benjamin K. Sovacool, a research fellow at the National University of Singapore, who recently analyzed more than one hundred life-cycle studies of nuclear plants around the world, his results published in August in Energy Policy (ref1.).
The life-cycle-assessment (LCA) evaluates the total carbon output of the nuclear industry involves calculating those emissions and dividing them by the electricity produced over the entire lifetime of the plant.

The Good News:
From the 19 most reliable assessments, Sovacool found that estimates of total life-cycle carbon emissions ranged from 1.4 grammes of carbon dioxide equivalent per kilowatt-hour (gCO2e/kWh) of electricity produced up to 288 gCO2e/kWh.

Sovacool believes the mean of 66 gCO2e/kWh to be a reasonable approximation.
and according to his analysis,

-nuclear power, at 66 gCO2e/kWh emissions is well below
-scrubbed coal-fired plants, which emit 960 gCO2e/kWh, and
-natural gas-fired plants, at 443 gCO2e/kWh.

However, nuclear emits twice as much carbon as solar photovoltaic, at 32 gCO2e/kWh, and six times as much as onshore wind farms, at 10 gCO2e/kWh.
."


"A number in the 60s puts it well below natural gas, oil, coal and even clean-coal technologies. On the other hand, things like energy efficiency, and some of the cheaper renewables are a factor of six better. So for every dollar you spend on nuclear, you could have saved five or six times as much carbon with efficiency, or wind farms," Sovacool says. "Add to that the high costs and long lead times for building a nuclear plant about $3 billion for a 1,000 megawatt plant, with planning, licensing and construction times of about 10 years and nuclear power is even less appealing.

The Bad News-Work To Be Done (TBD)?

Over and above the already extensive ranking of the nuclear route there remains many serious concerns about the risks caused by uranium mining (eg radon gas levels on miners), and waste disposal both from the mining operations on miners and locally exposed populations-cradle side or to local populations on the end waste "grave side" if I may use the expression. A rapid Google Search turns-up an impressive list of concerns. however at the time of this post, again a scientific pointer is given by BK Sovacool in his paper on bird mortality or rather avian mortality (birds, bats...etc) (Ref. 2 below) which surprisingly ranks wind the least harmful to avian species followed by nuclear and worse of all coal power generation. (personal communication by Mark Z. Jacobson.)





NB. in both references there is strictly no reference to "Superman or woman! " This is perhaps a lesson in it's self!

References:

1."Valuing the greenhouse gas emissions from nuclear power: A critical survey" [pdf].


2. Contextualizing avian mortality: A preliminary appraisal of bird and bat fatalities from wind, fossil-fuel, and nuclear electricity [abstract]

Record-Breaking Pittsburg Steelers from well-named US Coal Mining and Steel Town win US - Football’s Super Bowl_Bigger CCS Records need Breaking!

Link to full post Record Breaking Pittsburg Steelers of famous well-named US Coal Mining and Steel Town win US - Football’s Super Bowl_Bigger Record needs Breaking

Will Pittsburg be Bull's (New York) or Bears (Chicago) in CO2-CCS and not just Steal-Off into the shadows?Pittsburg Steelers of the famous well-named and one time booming US Coal Mining and Steelmakers (Carnegie) Town win Super Bowl for a record 6th time.Mind you, other more important record are at stake, global ones. Here as indicated above, I have chosen once again CO2-CCS and more precisely carbon storage and sequestration (CSS).The following key words "Pittsburg", "Super Bowl", "Chicago Bull's supported by President Obama". To crown it all the headline Steel Curtain Call shed dread to many, if not all metallurgists provided the chemical spark to write.

Full post:
Record Breaking Pittsburg Steelers of famous well-named US Coal Mining and Steel Town win US - Football’s Super Bowl_Bigger Record needs Breaking

Carbon Dioxide Reduction Technologies - Get Help from Extraction Metallurgists

North American Extractive Metallurgical Communities recognise that Worldwide commitments to reduce CO2 emissions to pre-1990 levels in the next 12 to 13 years pose a formidable challenge.



Some metal ores are converted to metals using energy other than carbon-based fuels—such as electricity. CO2, and H2O—which are similar to metal ores (oxides, sulphides etc.) and can be modified to non-global-warming forms by techniques well known to extractive metallurgists.

It is in these layman terms that N R. Neelameggham, introduced his excellent summary of the Transactions of the (US) Materials Society - TMS Symposium 2008 dedicated to CO2 reduction Technologies.

"When converting minerals into metals, energy is consumed. Even though energy in various forms can be used in achieving this conversion, or reduction, typically a reductant that can carry the anion of the mineral away from the desired element is used. The potential for economic production of common fuels from the respective oxides of carbon (CO2) and hydrogen(H20) by simple chemical reductions was the inspiration for the CO2 Reduction Metallurgy Symposium at the TMS 2008 Annual Meeting."

Several clear statements emerge :

1. The world needs fuels in all three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gaseous. Naturally available solar, wind, and hydro-energy (marine, wave) can be converted into the mobile forms of fuel(nb. position on the Venn Diag. above) by using carbon dioxide and water. When such conversions can be affordably achieved, perhaps one cause of global warming— carbon emissions—will be minimized.

2. Most of the gaseous emissions from the use of fuels are emitted at temperatures higher than ambient temperature. This mass of gases, when mixed with ambient atmosphere, increases the atmospheric air mass temperature. Present-day fuels release both CO2 and H2O, along with hot air, in their exhaust. Of these, the non-condensable CO2 (under atmospheric conditions) continues to increase and is easily measured. In addition, these tri-atomic molecules participate in the radiative heat transfer in the atmosphere [whereby the balance is heat-warming compared to a H20 base-line, hence the label "Greenhouse gas"-JA].

3. Unless another cooling medium can dissipate this thermal emission by some other mechanism, global warming will persist. We can only minimize the rate of global warming and not eliminate it as long as the energy conversion from one form to another happens with certain uncontrolled emission of heat. This necessitates the reduction of thermal emission and its constituents. Minimizing the temperature of gaseous emissions by simple methods will go a long way toward minimizing the rate of increase in atmospheric temperatures.

4. Extractive metallurgists can reduce any oxide compound to its elemental form. Examples of this are the making of iron from iron oxides, aluminum from aluminum oxides, and hydrogen from hydrogen oxide (or water). Carbon dioxide is just like any other oxide and can be reduced to its respective elements by applied energy, a process that could minimize the amount of CO2 released in the air and result in improved fuel self sufficiency.

More...

The symposium was divided into three major sessions [pdf link]:

1. Mechanisms (5 papers)

2. Ferrous metallurgy (5 papers), and

3. Electrolytic approaches (7 papers)

introduced by a Keynote address by Meyer Steinberg, ex-Brookhaven National Laboratory, co-author with M. Halmann, of a detailed treatise Greenhouse Gas Carbon Dioxide Mitigation: Science and Technology based on more than 30 years each of expertise in this field

M. Steinberg’s review covered the principles of removal and recovery from power plant stacks, the oceanographic and geological disposal of CO2, and the conversion of CO2 to gaseous and liquid transportation fuels.

This symposium is the first of its kind in applying extractive metallurgy techniques.

It is complimentary to several international conferences on CO2 utilization. There have been eight such symposia so far, the last of which was held in Oslo, Norway in 2005, which by chance, allows me to introduce CO2 uses and eventually the Carbon Economy and Industries[pdf conf outline-link] as referenced in the Venn Diagramme above ),2 and minor symposia on the subject by the American Chemical Society, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Electrochemical Society, etc., in promoting pertinent know-how in solving these global concerns.

Approaches to CO2 emission reductions in metal production by improved energy efficiency in life-cycle fuel use, (cf. recent posts on LCA-Life Cycle Analysis 1. previous post and 2. JM Pearce's et al approach for example) , reduction in carbonate based flux/raw material usage, and thermodynamically feasible reactions leading to lower emissions are all part of this program.

The topics discussed give useful pointers to researchers, project managers and business innovators.
More...

CO2 Chemistry


UK Extractive Metallurgy Resource cf Journal Cover





Warning- It is well worth periodically reading-up and checking-out Climate Change and GHG effects at the "Source"

Sources:
1. Most reputed blog: RealClimate ™
2. The World Authority UN - IPCC
3. My Blogs eg Conversations give various links as I build my knowledge base.


PS:Ours is a very energy intensive industry. I still believe that current official policy, strong recommendations-EU directives... to sink CO2 must not be hindered by our current professional tastes. Such policy choices are made taking into account multiple criterion: people (are still people), societal, technological, powerful lobbies... They must be taken seriously-more seriously than at present. LCA appears to be the only objective, correct, way forward in all our professional activities. Indeed it ought to start in the Lab. and in University education irrespective of you religous faith, or not:
"remember your creator
or if you prefer more order
the atoms and molecules
you are now made of
in the days of your youth!"

Comments, suggestions, information, or question welcome.

Thinking Outside The Box - Fuel from Coal-Eating Microbes - System 4_Bis

THE BOX -VENN DIAGRAMME opposite.

Burning coal for heat and energy is too old to dwell on. It was the logical step during much of the last century to carry this to today's high temperature materials assisted power generation. To continue pollution represented by the most abundant green house gas -CO2 must be mastered hence the necessary additional steps of CO2 capture and sequestration. Various processes exist, unfortunately only at fairly large pilot size but well under predicted sustainable climate predictions-requirements.

OUTSIDE THE BOX- System 4 Bis:
Relatively new biochemical process results suggest a new low-temperature_lower energy loss process route whereby methane gas fuel is generated from coal by coal eating microbes.

The incentives to develop this new route are:

- Low Temperatures, less energy intensive.
- Half as much carbon dioxide is emitted as does burning coal.
- reduce or help eliminate the anticipated need to import natural gas in the future. (Russia - Ukraine etc)
- Substantial interest and historical evidence for in coal bed methanisation:
1. Luca Technologies, a start-up based in Golden, CO, has raised $76 million to scale up a process that uses coal-digesting microorganisms to convert coal into methane.
2. Andrew Scott, former professor of economic geology, Univ of Texas,Austin is the founder Altuda Energy Corporation, based in San Antonio, TX A. Scott


Having said this, the framework may still be argued to hold if accent is given to Power Industry rather than Coal Fired Power. Clearly, however these concepts are radially different. The microbiological route appears to hold much promises and at the very least hopefully will stimulate the over mature Coal Fired Power players to accelerated their work to achieve all the objective the silent majority aspires to - much cleaner energy and eventually renewable energy. In the meantime the cross disciplinary- Metallurgical and Materials Industries will evidently still play an important role in anticipating evolving requirements.

Full Paper with many hypertext links

Fuel from Coal-Eating Microbes

Acknowledgements to Ray Kurzweil editor of one of my early Internet newsletter subscriptions whose AI The Brain Technology presentation fascinated me.

New Years Resolution Time: Systems - Synergy 4 Motivation, Innovation in Our Professional Disciplines: Materials-Minerals-Mining.

Materials Science, Technology and Engineering news feed is moving fast.

On the contrary slower moving realisation, seldom lives-up to expectations. Arguably this can result in a lowering of expectations with an accompanying lowering of standards?

Now is the time for making New Years Resolutions - Few will regret the end to 2008!

Someone who wished to remain anonymous, but granted me permission to publish, recently wrote in a personal and confidential document the following statements:

"NB. Currently Studying Opportunities for a new concept(s) for CO2 absorption with simultaneous production of Hydrogen, industrially oriented; Steelmaking, mining and metallurgical extraction =>energy production, distribution & control of industrial gas emissions:

From local (motivation) to global...

Systems /Synergy 4 Approach:
-click to enlarge the Venn Diag image opposite.

1. Focus: CCS-Carbon, Capture & Storage,
2.Mining (Coal)– Motivation, Coal reserves France(58)-Scotland, Ayrshire...
3.Coal Powered Electricity & Heat generation,
4.Metallurgy/Materials/Advanced Processes,

It is common knowledge that immediate action is required and plebiscited. The 2009 clean economy appears to be the time to start -get over this crises stuff and no hedging!

One of my resolutions will be to report on these fields and contribute as far as my professional skills permit.

I strongly believe a concurrent engineering approach is the best way forward, if the coal burning lobby is to avoid being named and shamed globally!

Having failed to post regularly on the many advances during 2008 I shall echo a couple of news items from our pro-association IOM3 (UK)



1. Peridotite

Peridotite carbonation can be accelerated via drilling, hydraulic fracture, input of purified CO2 at elevated pressure, and, in particular, increased temperature at depth. After an initial heating step, CO2 pumped at 25 or 30 °C can be heated by exothermic carbonation reactions that sustain high temperature and rapid reaction rates at depth with little expenditure of energy. In situ carbonation of peridotite could consume >1 billion tons of CO2 per year in Oman alone, affording a low-cost, safe, and permanent method to capture and store atmospheric CO2.

ref: In situ carbonation of peridotite for CO2 storage,PNAS By Peter B. Kelemen and Jürg Matter of the Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY 10964

NB. P.B.K. and J.M. have a preliminary patent filing for the technique of heating peridotite to achieve self-sustaining, rapid carbonation. Good luck with the realisations.

2. Coal of Africa.
A new coal mine in RSA-Republic of South Africa has started production. The company aims to Produce 5-6 MT/y, 70% for exportation.

Nine Top Search Tips for Research and Innovation Ideas on the European Union (EU) Framework Programme 7 (FP7)

It is not always easy to know where to look in the huge European Research and Innovation data base for project ideas and possible collaborations, hence the following guide from my recent experience. (LINK)

I know that all of my colleagues in materials science, physics, chemistry and engineering... are a very intelligent lot but like most highly solicited professionals, short for time (and "time is money").

If the above link is sufficient for some, it many not be sufficient for all?

To do you and the EU - Cordis web site justice, I promise to post on rapid search tips specifically for the hard pressed Materials Scientist and Engineer and perhaps also to our Journalist friends who need breaking news information in the advanced materials and processes revival. From the early days of the first highly successful, peaceful re-structuring of the sensitive EU Coal Iron and Steel Economic Community, ERA. much may be learned in the present recessionary circumstances. Shake your blue's away! Progress in the advanced materials and processes has not only opened vast new and fabulous fields for in scientific and technological development but has also encouraged vigorous competition for new solutions to life saving themes. Indeed a renewed interest for traditional mature technological advances such as coal and steel, cement and clay can be seen in attempts to face the colossal energy and climate change challenges. Similarly a reappraisal of wood and forestry management must be put firmly on the global the agenda. New bio-materials, synthetic and natural and mans genius in bio-mimicry will spur the international community to bigger and better things!