D4.1 Grid Modernization & the Smart Utility
Anthony Barazza, Grid Automation, Schneider Electric; Adam Caballero
The pace of change has been accelerating for utilities as a result of a rise in distributed energy
resources, constrained load growth, & increasing grid complexity. As utilities evolve to meet these
challenges & our electrical grid transforms from a centralized power network into a web of microplayers
selling & purchasing electricity, it will drive the transition to a Smart Utility. A Smart Utility
that is balancing traditional generation with distributed generation, that has situational awareness
from a centralized approach to distribution management that extends outside the control room &
integrates with increasingly intelligent substations & feeders, & one that has a deeper relationship
with their customers. Grid automation will be a key step in making the Smart Utility a reality. New
technologies are transforming grid automation, requiring investment to manage bi-directional power
flows with increased automation & intelligence. Most utilities are using distributed generation, but need
help integrating newer features & technology into their existing processes. Renewables integration,
microgrids, & other smart grid technology that empowers energy consumers can improve the overall
effectiveness of grid operations leading to greater energy efficiency & reduced carbon emissions.
This presentation will focus on the trends & challenges utilities face today as they transform from the
traditional utility business model towards the Smart Utility.
D4.2 Electric Rate Impacts due to Environemental Regulations
Mike Borgstadt, Manager, Business Consulting, Burns & McDonnell Engineering Co.
The electric utility industry is facing numerous environmental regulations that are forcing plants
(specifically coal-fired power plants) to either install control equipment or face retirement. In the event
the economics do not support the installation of the control equipment, the plant is forced to retire.
Burns & McDonnell will evaluate the cost impacts of the recently finalized & proposed regulations
on the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet & summarize the overall cost to the coal fleet that would be
incurred. Burns & McDonnell will summarize the status of the coal-fired plant retirements & discuss
how that capacity & energy will be replaced. Burns & McDonnell will discuss the overall electricity
rate impacts that may be incurred due to the environmental regulations, either through control
equipment retrofits, replacement capacity, or higher cost unit dispatch. Burns & McDonnell will present
a review of the following: Capital costs for retrofitting the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet with control
equipment; O&M costs for retrofitting the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet with control equipment;
Summarize potential coal-fired retirements due to environmental regulations; Discuss how the retired
units’ capacity & energy will be replaced, & the overall costs associated with replacement; Discuss the
impact to the overall electric energy rates due to environmental regulations, coal-fired power plant
retirements, & replacement power plants.
D4.3 What Happens During a Cold Snap
Stephen Slocomb, Associate, Epsilon Associates
This paper will summarize what occurred during a “Cold Snap” in ISO-NE during January of 2014. During
these cold snaps, natural gas became extremely expensive which resulted in some facilities not able
to purchase sufficient natural gas to operate. The paper will use EPA & DOE operational data to
determine which plants were running during these cold snaps & which fuels were used. This paper
will evaluate environmental impacts associated with operating using alternate fuels at Gas Turbine
Combined Cycle (GTCC) facilities & with older, less efficient facilities that did not operate using natural gas.
D4.4 Marginal Energy Emission Rates for the Evolving Energy Landscape
Jessica Lau, Engineer, ISO New England; Peter Wong
Marginal emission rates have a long history of being used to account for pollution reduction credits for
adding non-air-polluting resources, such as demand resource, PV & wind turbines. Marginal emissions
represent emissions from resources that are needed to provide the next increment of energy at the
lowest energy price. ISO-NE is using historical energy market data to examine the CO2, SO2 & NOx
marginal emissions associated with Locational Marginal Units (LMUs), which are identified through the
energy market’s Locational Marginal Price (LMP) process. The study presents various emission metrics
of interest, such as a NOx marginal emission rate during ozone season & on-peak hours. LMUs consist
of many different fuel & technology types. Some may be non-air-polluting resources; a question can
be raised of the appropriateness to include them in determining marginal emissions, as this relates to
policy questions of what reduction a resource should be credited. The study results provide different
scenarios (including or excluding non-air-emitting resources) which allow policymakers to make their
own determination & choose the proxy emission rates for use. The LMU Marginal Emissions Analysis
provides a consistent link between the resources providing incremental energy & their impact on air
emissions. Analysis for years 2009 through 2012 are available to observe historical differences in the
changing energy landscape.
D4.5 Who’s Contributing to Grid Stability?
Roger Clarke-Johnson, Western Region Manager, American Governor
With the increased use of variable, non-dispatchable forms of generation such as wind and solar,
there is increased concern not only about load matching, but grid stability itself. Hydro plants often
are proposed to back-up variable sources due to the ability of hydro plants to store their fuel/energy.
In addition to compensating for the hourly and daily variations in output from wind farms and solar
plants, hydro plants can also make significant contributions to grid stability through the capabilities of
their governing and excitation systems. Other conventional forms of generation may not be making
the same contribution to grid stability due to the fuel efficiency, pollution reduction, block loading
and/or other operating restrictions implemented in their control systems. This paper will present the
results of an analysis of recent government reports and an investigation into the control methods used
by various forms of generation. Topics covered by this paper will include: How much electricity do we
currently get from Wind, Solar, Hydro, Coal, Natural Gas, and Nuclear; What primary control methods
are used, and do they contribute to grid stability; How does tertiary control (CalISO, Utility SCADA and
Automatic Generation Control) fit into the picture; What are the three phases of response during a grid
disturbance; How does Speed Droop contribute to grid stability?
D8.1 Energy Industry View on Climate Change Risk, Adaptation & Ecosystem Risk Management
Sarah Ball, Manager, Environmental Affairs, Edison Electric Institute
With the increase in customer expectation regarding improved reliability and shorter outage restoration
following major events, electric companies are placing a high priority on developing contingency plans
for future extreme events—such as earthquakes, droughts, floods, and extreme heat or cold—and for
hardening the grid and related infrastructure. This issue has gained increased attention nationally in
light of more frequent storm–related events over the past decade and increasing efforts to link extreme
events with climate change. Regardless of why these catastrophic events are happening or the political
discourse surrounding climate change, the investor–owned utility community has developed strategies
to improve system resilience that allow them to restore electrical outages quickly and efficiently. My
presentation will focus on efforts by the electric utility industry (e.g. Entergy, Consolidated Edison) to
prepare for future extreme events and to develop contingency plans for system resilience. For example,
preparing for substation flooding, improving communications technology and undergrounding power
lines are just some of the ways a utility can harden their system to protect against natural disasters.
John Christopher, Sr. Project Manager, Louis Berger Group
One of the ways to mitigate ecosystem stress caused by climate change is to minimize parallel impacts
to ecosystem services (ES) from ‘routine’ infrastructure construction or expansion projects. Proactive,
eco-friendly considerations come into view when regulator, utility, engineer and ecologist share views
about threats to ES during the early stages of project planning. A situation involving ecosystem risk
avoidance will be presented presenting standard, as well as, alternative solutions for addressing
nutrient loading on a stream segment in California. Past practice has been to regulate the local
utility by requiring nutrient removal through the use of add-on wastewater treatment processes at
the utility’s water reclamation facility. The non-routine approach examines solutions in the context of
the overall nutrient loading and assimilative capacity of the body of water and considers reducing a
more significant loading elsewhere in the watershed. A second approach will describe how nutrient
loading can be redirected from a water body to support agricultural irrigation. Ecosystem (watershed)
assessments, collaborative planning and net ecological benefits will be discussed.
D8.3 Climate Change Impacts to Electrical Distribution Networks: Managing Risks, Enhancing Resilience
Claire Bonham-Carter, Principal, AECOM; Allan Klindworth, Chee Chan
This presentation will outline how climate change is likely to affect electrical distribution networks,
illustrated using the City of Toronto. Weather’s influence on electrical distribution systems is not new and is
actively managed through design and operational activities. However, in the face of projected climate
changes, electrical distribution companies will be placed in the predicament of having to manage
assets that were not designed for future climate conditions. A framework for understanding climate
change related risks, taking proactive steps to managing those risks, and enhancing the resilience of
electrical distribution systems is then presented. This approach is consistent with AS 5334-2013 Climate
change adaptation for settlements and infrastructure: a risk based approach. The application of the
framework is illustrated using examples where AECOM supported electrical distribution companies in
quantifying the impacts of climate change on their assets and operations, and in building business
cases seeking support from energy regulators for investment in climate change. The application of the
framework can help companies ensure the reliability and resilience of their electrical systems.
D8.4 Irrational Green: Revealing Today’s Great, Green Deceptions
Randy Hughes, Manager, Planning & Rates, Independence Power & Light
Renewable electricity won’t reduce need for oil: EPA; US Air is cleaner than anytime in last 40-years:
EPA; EPA’s Safe air quality defined. Same protections would result in a 7 mph speed limit; Indoor air
is more hazardous to health: EPA; Map of US air violations; Mobile and Area sources are the major
cause of our worst pollution problems, not coal and not industry; South Koreans burn a lot of fossil fuel,
they have the most polluted cities of any developed antion, yet they live 13 years longer and grow
3” taller than relatives in the North; The World Health Org: Affordable energy increases stds of living,
improves health and increases longevity!; Green jobs are destroying Europe economies. Spain loses 2.2
traditional jobs for each green job created. The UK has new term: Fuel Poverty to describe households
spending 10% or more of their income on energy alone!; Al Gore’s an Inconvenient Truth proves that
CO2 has always been a climate follower, not a climate driver. ; CO2 is not a pollutant; Today’s CO2 is
near all time lows!; Today’s temps are below the avg of last 10,000 yrs; UN peer-review debunked; UN
motive; What it means.
D8.5 Ammonia Fuel from Renewable-source Electricity, Water, & Air: Tech Options & Economics Modeling
Bill Leighty, Director, The Leighty Foundation
Two alternatives to electricity systems seem especially attractive, whereby the costly connection of
renewable energy (RE) generation to deliver quality electricity to the grid is replaced by conversion
of electric energy, within the plant gate, to C-free fuels, for low-cost gathering and transmission in
underground pipelines: a. Gaseous hydrogen (GH2), with low-capital-cost bulk energy storage at ~
$ 0.20 / kWh in deep, solution-mined salt caverns, and / or b. Liquid anhydrous ammonia (NH3), with
low-capital-cost bulk energy storage at ~ $ 0.10 / kWh in large carbon-steel tanks. These GH2 and
NH3 fuels are distributed at market centers for C-free stationary combined-heat-and-power (CHP),
for transportation fuels, and for ALL other energy services. These alternatives must be considered as
complete, integrated, optimized RE systems, not as adjuncts to the electricity system, or “grid”, as
we know it, or as we may advance it. Both hydrogen and ammonia systems and fuels have unique
advantages, disadvantages, and dangers — as all fuels and electricity have — and may be necessary
for “running the world on renewables”, as we must. NH3 is both an N-fertilizer and a fuel, for ICE, CT,
and fuel cell. Several nascent technologies convert electricity, water, and air to NH3 for liquid fuel
transmission and storage. Under some economic conditions, RE-source NH3 is competitive with fossilsource
NH3. Now, we need to demonstrate NH3’s RE systems advantages in pilot plants.
D7.1 Facilitate Investments in Natural Gas Infrastructure – Case Studies of Two Regions
Hua Fang, Technical Director, ICF International
We studied two regions in the US that face increasing challenges from insufficient natural gas
infrastructure to support the needs of the electric industry, New England and Florida. The electric
industry structure provides different incentives for electric industry players to actively participate and
support the development of natural gas infrastructure. It is extremely controversial in New England
where the market repeatedly experiences natural gas and electric price spikes in cold winter days
while the market is much less volatile in Florida. We will discuss plans and potential market structure that
could be implemented in New England to facilitate natural gas investments.
D7.2 Natural Gas Market Drivers: Implications for Power Generators
Ken Ditzel, Managing Director, FTI Consulting
With the U.S. natural gas market entering into the world gas market by later 2015/ early 2016, natural
gas price volatility will return. Understanding both the domestic and international drivers impacting gas
supply and demand, therefore, will become increasingly important to power generators. Mr. Ditzel will
explore these drivers, how they may impact gas prices, and what routes power generators can take
to protect themselves from market volatility. On the domestic side, particular focus will be given to
bottom-up analyses of gas demand from the electric, industrial, and LNG export sectors over the next
10 years. On the international side, Mr. Ditzel will explain LNG supply and demand expectations going
forward.
D7.3 The Safety, Reliability and Economic Layers of Natural Gas Conversion Projects
Ajay Kasarabada, Project Manager, Black & Veatch; Steve Williams
Converting coal-fired boilers to gas is not as simple as replacing burners. Even when boilers are
designed to accommodate gas co-firing, the age of the boilers can often create safety and reliability
gaps that must be addressed. Furthermore, successful conversion must consider all economic long
term factors. This presentation presents the three layers that need to be considered by the plant O&M
and management teams in evaluating coal to gas conversions or switching: Safety, Reliability, and
Economics. Safety – …is paramount when switching boilers to gas. This section will cover NFPA code
requirements, installing and protecting burner management systems, replacement of pneumatics
controls with DCS, and ensuring the boiler can handle pressure transients. Reliability – The goal for any
Plant Operations team is to provide a long-term and reliable supply of steam post switching. This section
will cover installation of new BMS and DCS based boiler combustion controls, improving in-plant steam
distribution, enhancing power house systems with BOP systems, and proper gas pipeline and feed
system sizing. Economics – Cost of steam generation is an important metric that cannot be ignored.
This section will look at way to: improving combustion efficiency, improve steam distribution, reducing
insurance premiums through NFPA compliance, methods to minimize permit and BACT compliance,
and ways to ensure project budgetary estimates are accurate for planning purposes.
D7.4 Coal to Natural Gas Conversions, What you need to know
Joe Brown, Product Manager, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems America
Is it economically feasible to convert a coal boiler to natural gas? There are many drivers for Gas
Conversions which can result in large economic benefits for your plant. But there are also many issues
that have to be dealt with that many plants are unaware of. Can capacity be maintained? Will
efficiency go down? Do the burners have to be replaced or just modified? This presentation will walk
you through the potential pros and cons for natural gas conversions and why so many plants have
already decided to convert.
Hakob Avetisyan, Assistant Professor, California State University
Global climate change is already a proven fact that has devastating consequences. Unfortunately,
emission levels increase over time due to human activities and the excess amount of emissions
contribute to climate change resulting in: rising sea levels, hurricanes and tornados, droughts or heavy
rainfalls. Therefore, any measures and steps aimed at reducing the rate of climate change are of
interest to many researchers and environmental agencies across the world. Natural gas is comparably
a less-emitting and low-cost fossil fuel making it a preferable alternative energy source or a bridging
fuel between conventional fuels and renewable energy sources. It is expanding its market share due
to its abundant reserves, technological and environmental considerations thereby minimizing adverse
impacts on the climate. Even though it is cleaner fossil fuel, but it still generates emissions and therefore
there is need for policy developments to properly price the carbon and regulated the amount of
emissions. Thus, given the importance of this industry and climate change goals this paper provides
an analysis which will hopefully guide decision-makers for sustainable future. This paper examines
what fraction of carbon taxes should be applied to various parts of the natural gas supply chain.
Some findings include: the larger the fraction applied to the supply side can be either detrimental or
beneficial to consumer surplus; the effects of this fraction can vary by type of carbon policy.
Drew Beal, CEO, Kill the Cup
In Spring 2013, I started Kill the Cup at UC San Diego. It was a grassroots campaign aimed at reducing
waste from disposable coffee cups. We created a unique construct of encouraging environmental
behavior change: the campus community uploaded photos of themselves with reusable coffee mugs
to https://killthecup.com as entry into weekly & grand prize raffles. The photo campaign established a
social norm on campus around reusable behavior. My team of MBAs tracked sales data from coffee
shops — not only was there a significant increase in the % of drinks sold in reusable containers, but
profits increased as well. After graduating last June, I have pursued Kill the Cup full-time. We replicated
our pilot success at Georgetown last November, completed the Points of Light Civic Accelerator
in January, & received 501c3 fiscal sponsorship last month. Our mission is to inspire environmental
behavior change through grassroots education. We are growing our university network, providing
college students across the country with tools & resources to launch their own Kill the Cup campaigns.
This model yields direct environmental impact, improved business sustainability, & best of all, it yields
experienced social entrepreneurs. In Fall 2014, we will host our 1st Annual Reusable Cup Challenge —
an inter-university contest to improve social & environmental performance in meaningful, measurable
ways. I will incorporate results of the campaign into my presentation.
Eric Corey Freed, Founding Principal, organicARCHITECT
Even if every new building were to obtain LEED Platinum certification, it wouldn’t reduce our current
carbon emissions. In truth we need to focus on making all buildings be net zero energy, net zero water
& net zero carbon, including our existing ones. The next generation of buildings can’t simply continue
trying to be “less bad” or make us feel guilty for our lifestyles. What is needed are living, regenerative
buildings that do no harm & repair the damage we’ve done. In this talk we will explore new models
for how to transform our buildings into living habitats. Net zero building has come to mean much
more than zeroing out the energy use. In order to prepare for our inevitable post-carbon economy,
our buildings must offset their energy use, water use & carbon emissions. We will learn the lessons of
nature, science fiction & overcoming fear to build in a radically new way. By examining the emotional,
psychological & financial reasons why we design the way we do, you’ll learn a better way to sell
your clients on greening their buildings. We’ll uncover specific, bold ideas for how to retrofit new &
existing buildings. This brand new talk is “bullet-point free” (no boring, text heavy slides used). Using rich
graphics & video, this presentation will expand your imagination & and provide you a list of actions to
take into your own community. Presented by the acclaimed speaker, architect & author of “Green
Building for Dummies.”
D2.3 Workplace & Occupational Sustainability: Thinking outside the box
Bapanaiah Penugonda, Dentist/Associate Professor, NYU College of Dentistry; Katie Baron NYU College of Dentistry
Environmental initiators at the New York University will discuss environmental projects that have positively
impacted the school environment. The goal is to inspire others to look for unique opportunities specific
to their field that could promote sustainability and environmental awareness. Some of the trends from
NYU projects that are transferable to other schools and workplaces include: modifying the physical
workspace, working within current school or work culture, seeking specialized opportunities for waste
diversions and boosting morale through environmental events.
Svetlana Pushkar, Lecturer, Ariel University; Oleg Verbitsky
Green certification is primarily achieved by correctly sizing mechanical and electrical systems with
short lifetime expectancies, whereas effective bio-climatic and passive solar architecture strategies
with long lifetime expectancies are neglected. The objective of this study is to suggest an LCA
framework application for the environmental evaluation of six shearing layers (Site, Structure, Skin,
Services, Space and Stuff), to improve sustainable performance of building under green rating
systems. The shearing layers were evaluated by Eco-indicator 99 (EI99) for a typical five-story office
building. All of the methodological options (egalitarian/egalitarian (e/e), egalitarian/average (e/a),
hierarchist/hierarchist (h/h), hierarchist/average (h/a), individualist/individualist (i/i), and individualist/
average (i/a)) that were specifically developed to address LCA uncertainties were used with EI99.
It was assumed that the building layers for an entire building are grouped into the Building layers
(i.e., Site, Structure, and Skin) and the Service layers (i.e., Services, Space Plan, and Stuff). Under EI99
evaluations, the Building layers have higher priority (70%) than the Service layers (30%). Skin layer has a
higher priority within Building layers. Structure and Stuff layers also should not be neglected due to the
significant priority of these layers in the Building and System layers, respectively.
D2.5 Opportunities & Costs for Energy Conservation in the UK Building Stock
Reza Arababadi, PhD Student, ASU; Érika Mata, Angela Sasic Kalagasidis & Filip Johnsson, Chalmers University of Technology
Previous studies on energy assessment of the UK building stock have made it clear that the largest
potential energy efficiency improvements are connected to the retrofitting of existing buildings. But
lack of information about the building stock and modeling tools is one of the barriers to assessment
of energy efficiency of the building stocks. In this paper a previously developed bottom–up modeling
methodology is used to investigate the UK’s residential and non-residential building stock. This
paper starts with an analysis of the current energy usage (net energy and final energy by fuels) and
associated carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of the UK building stock. The UK building stock in year 2010
is modeled as represented by 252 archetype residential and non-residential buildings. The archetypes
correspond to nine building typologies, four climate zones, six periods of construction and two types
of heating systems. The model has been validated satisfactorily, for which the results of modeling are
in agreement with the statistical data (3% deviation). Eleven energy saving measures are assessed,
leading to technical potential reductions final energy demand by between 0.4% to 22% of the total
final energy use. Opportunities for reducing final and primary energy demand, CO2 emissions and
corresponding capital investments and payback times are identified for the UK building stock. The
results and modeling methodology are discussed, evaluated and compared to the literature.