Clean fuel for thought

The Coloradoan
By CHRISTINE McMANUS
ChristineMcManus@coloradoan.com
September 19, 2006

More than 150 Coloradans involved in solving the world's energy demands traveled from all over the state to Fort Collins on Monday for Colorado's Clean Energy Partnership Day.

Experts in solar, wind, hydrogen and engine development learned more about the recent surge in clean energy collaboration statewide, especially in Northern Colorado.

Dozens of collaborations could propel Colorado's status as a clean energy capital, officials said.

In Northern Colorado, dozens of members of the Clean Energy Cluster are actively working together and have assembled a Web site. Formed the past year, the cluster is seen as an exciting agent of economic development.

Colorado is uniquely positioned to be a clean energy leader, said Dag Nummendal, director of the Colorado Energy Research Institute at the Colorado School of Mines, who has worked across the country.

"Today we're seeing a clean energy rush, likened to the early gold rush days of Colorado," said Energy Day host Drew Bolin, director of the state's Office of Energy Management and Conservation.

"In place of sluice boxes and pick axes is the brain power of students, researchers and companies doing research and development in clean energy development," he said.

One reason Colorado is well-positioned to lead clean energy development, Nummendal said, is the state's unique balance of traditional fossil fuel resources and newer renewable energy resources.

Colorado has oil and gas reserves, plus several hundred scientists working in clean energy development. For example, President Bush earlier this year announced cleaner burning coal as a focused national initiative.

"Very few places in the world can claim that dual skill set," Nummendal said.

State and local governments are part of the effort to bring solutions to the market, said Fort Collins Mayor Doug Hutchinson, who was echoed by Bolin. Their offices and Colorado State University hosted the event at the converted Fort Collins power plant, which now serves as a CSU lab for energy research and development.

State legislators in May further fueled the state's potential to be the "Silicon Valley" of clean energy. They authorized new economic incentives for research institutions and private companies that work together, through the new Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory.

Innovations in the works at the lab range from highly efficient laser spark plug replacements to biofuel-producing algae.

Along the Front Range, other engineers are developing the latest generation of solar panels and are testing new fuel-efficient engines for cars. Others are working on more efficient building systems to reduce energy demands on the nation's power grids.

Inefficiencies of commercial buildings' indoor lighting is a primary target, one whose solution could create thousands of jobs and save $1.9 billion annually in utility bills across the Front Range 20 years from now, if implemented, said Pat Keegan, executive director of the Colorado Energy Science Center in Denver.

After hearing Nummendal, Bolin and others speak, energy experts toured CSU's Engines and Energy Conversion Lab on North College Avenue.

The lab is a collaborative effort between the university, Fort Collins, state resources and private companies such as Woodward Governor and Caterpillar. One startup company in the lab, Spirae Inc., is developing a substation that would regulate varying wind energy into a consistent flow of electricity.

The lab fits one of CSU’s goals to transfer technology from labs into useful, commercial applications.

Colorado was one of the only states last year that saw an increase in funding to support clean energy research. Backers clearly see the world’s energy challenges as opportunities for Colorado, Nummendal said.

At the event, a fuel cell developed by the state and Fort Collins Utilities powered the lights, computers and projector, instead of electricity.

In addition, a state-sponsored company called Hybrids Plus demonstrated its grid-powered rechargeable battery for a Toyota Prius. For $24 per month in electric bills, the vehicle with the new version of a hybrid battery can get 100 to 124 miles per gallon of gas. The retrofit battery system costs $12,000, but could drop as more are produced.

World energy demands are expected to more than double by 2050. To keep up, two nuclear power plants would have to be built daily, Nummendal said.

Renewable energy use is projected to stay the same, percentage wise, over at least the next two decades, unless clean energy collaborations are highly successful.