Better Place announced the grand opening of the company’s first electric vehicle (EV) battery switch demonstration center in Israel. (Earlier post.)

The company marked the occasion by announcing the signing of 92 corporate fleet owners to date as well as a partnership with Dor Alon, one of Israel’s leading gas station operators, for the deployment of battery switch stations at Dor Alon’s facilities. Leading companies including Computer Associates and Motorola now join the ranks of 92 Better Place Vision Partners that have agreed to convert a portion of more than 45,000 internal combustion engine cars to electric vehicles from Renault when commercially available in 2011.

The Center, which includes 1 1.5-km test track is open to the public to come and familiarize themselves with all aspects of the Better Place solution: a fully electric, battery-powered car; an infrastructure that includes charge spots and a battery switch station; and a suite of in-car services designed to provide drivers with the best possible EV driving experience. In the near future, the Better Place Center will have the Renault Fluence ZE for demonstrations, which will be available in Israel in 2011.

The Better Place Center is built on the Pi Glilot site—one of the last gasoline storage and distribution centers remaining in Israel. The Better Place Center will be open to the general public beginning 14 Feb.

Proton Power Systems recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Smith Electric Vehicles, the commercial electric vehicle division of The Tanfield Group Plc. Under the MoU both parties will collaborate to build and market a battery-powered commercial vehicle, equipped with a Proton Power PM200 fuel cell system as a range extender. The collaboration will aim to supply systems to local authorities and other fleet operators across Germany initially, and will also address projects in the UK and North America.

Proton Power Systems is the parent company of Proton Motor Fuel Cell GmbH, an independent fuel cell system developer, based in Germany. Prior to its acquisition by the company, Proton Motor had historically secured external funding from Volvo Technology Transfer AB and other German institutional and private investors.

The new partnership will target Smith’s Edison range of electric light-duty vehicles, which are currently used by leading UK brands such as Sainsbury’s, Scottish & Southern Energy and Royal Mail. Smith has also rolled out its larger Newton vehicle in North America, through its associate company Smith Electric Vehicles US Corp.

Proton Power and Smith will present the first prototype at the Hannover Fair in April 2010. Thereafter, the partners plan to roll out the vehicle in transport and maintenance applications across German municipalities, with the first vehicles due to be delivered in the last quarter of 2010.

The German-based hydrogen and electric vehicle promotion organization (NOW)—backed by the German government—has expressed an interest in providing funding support to operators of electric vehicle fleets and local authorities in Germany for the purchase of up to 20 vehicles with specifications similar to the prototype which will be presented at the Hannover Fair.

Electric vehicles integrated with a fuel cell expand the addressable market for zero emission vans and trucks. Pure electric commercial vehicles have a limited range and are currently restricted to low mileage, urban operations.

Proton Power’s PM200 fuel cell will improve the range of vehicle operation (from 160 km / 99 miles to up to 300 km / 186 miles) enabling the vehicles to have a wider application within large fleets. It will also provide an on-board electrical supply which will boost the ease of maintenance work, improving a vehicle’s suitability for every-day back-to-base applications, while also supporting auxiliary functions such as air conditioning and heating.

Our partnership with Smith Electric Vehicles is a major milestone for the Group. Fuel cell range extenders are an attractive option for overcoming the current problems of electric vehicles. There are strong initiatives, such as NOW, in Europe towards the adoption of electric vehicles and there is also considerable interest in the United States and Canada. We aim to use our fuel cell range extender to help electric vehicle manufacturers such as Smith break further into these markets.

—Thomas Melczer, CEO of Proton Power

The PM200 uses new stack technology designed for mass production and cost reduction. Output per stack ranges from 3 kW – 10 kW, and the stacks are designed for use in fuel cell systems ranging from 3 kW – 50 kW.

Pratt & Whitney will offer an Advantage Performance Upgrade package for the PW4000 94-inch family of aircraft engines that will deliver a 1% fuel burn reduction and improve engine durability. Other benefits of the package include lower greenhouse gas emissions, lower gas exhaust temperature and increased time on wing. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. company.

The upgrade package is based on the technology of the recently entered into service PW4000 Advantage70 engine for the Airbus A330 aircraft, headed by improvements made to High Pressure Turbine (HPT) and High Pressure Compressor (HPC) modules.

The upgrade will be available second quarter 2010, and it will offer PW4000 94-inch operators benefits to reduce costs while also improving environmental and operational performance. The Advantage Performance Upgrade package can be incorporated during a performance restoration shop visit.

—Andy Tanner, vice president, Product Line Management, Pratt & Whitney

The PW4000 94-inch fan model was the first in a family of high-thrust aircraft engines. With certified thrust ranging from 52,000 to 62,000 pounds, it powers the Airbus A310-300 and A300-600 aircraft and Boeing 747-400, 767-200/300 and MD-11 aircraft. For twin-engine aircraft, the PW4000 is approved for 180-minute ETOPS (Extended-range Twin-engine Operations), giving airlines operational flexibility. There have been more than 2,150 engines produced.

LA Times. The Southern California Assn. of Governments rejected $11 million in federal stimulus money targeted to build 55 ethanol fueling stations across Southern California, saying it had policy concerns about ethanol as an alternative to gasoline.

Corn-based ethanol causes more harm than good for the environment because it has to be trucked from farms in the Midwest, said council members of the Southern California Assn. of Governments. Several also voiced concern that the council’s usual process for submitting grant applications had not been followed, and that the funds would be contracted to a single recipient, San Diego-based Pearson Fuels.

Paul Wuebben, a clean fuels officer for the South Coast Air Quality Management District, urged the council to accept the dollars. Ethanol is not perfect, he said, but its wider use would reduce dependence on gasoline and remove pollutants from the air…He called the panel’s decision a “major lost opportunity for the region.” The infrastructure created by the ethanol stations could evolve over time to accommodate fuels made from other stocks. Stations could also be adapted for electric/flexible-fuels hybrid vehicles that are expected to become more popular on the market, Wuebben said.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (Pty) Ltd (PBMR Pty) of the Republic of South Africa to study the area of collaboration in the development of the helium-cooled, High Temperature Reactor (HTR) Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR).

Based on the MOU, MHI will initially study the area for possible collaboration in the design of 200 MWt (megawatts thermal) plant, which PBMR Pty is currently developing. Going forward, the two companies will also probe further collaboration, including construction of plants and market exploration. With the newly concluded MOU, PBMR development will now move forward toward commercialization of a small size reactor.

MHI did the basic design and research and development of a helium-driven turbo generator system and Core Barrel Assembly, the major components of PBMR’s original 400 MW thermal, direct-cycle design. This concept was changed last year to a 200 MWt design which delivers super-heated steam through a steam generator.

The 200 MWt plant consists of a 200 MWt PBMR and a steam generator that provides hot steam at 750 °C (1,382 °F). The plant uses silicon carbide-coated uranium particles encased in graphite for the fuel spheres and helium as the coolant, making it free from risk of reactor core meltdown. The PBMR requires relatively low initial investment and is considered to be well suited to applications in areas lacking a fully developed power transmission grid.

The 200 MWt design is aimed at steam process heat applications, which provides the basis for penetrating the nuclear heat market as a viable alternative for carbon-burning, high-emission heat sources. In addition to generating electricity, this concept can also service potential customers such as the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project in the US, which is funded by the US Department of Energy, oil sands producers in Canada and the South African petro-chemical industry. A number of potential customers, including South Africa’s Sasol, have been studying the introduction of the plant, which is targeted to begin operation in approximately year 2020.

Specifically, when collaboration area has been agreed, MHI will conduct part of the research & development activities for the 200 MWt plant design. In the future, further collaboration possibilities will be probed, including construction of the 200 MWt plant and exploring market potential for the PBMR.

PBMR. The PBMR reactor has a vertical steel pressure vessel which contains and supports a metallic core barrel, which in turn supports the cylindrical pebble fuel core. This cylindrical fuel core is surrounded on the side by an outer graphite reflector and on top and bottom by graphite structures which provide similar upper and lower neutron reflection functions. Vertical borings in the side reflector are provided for the reactivity control elements. Two diverse reactivity control systems are provided for shutting the reactor down.

The PBMR uses particles of enriched uranium dioxide coated with silicon carbide and pyrolytic carbon. The particles are encased in graphite to form a fuel sphere or pebble about the size of a billiard ball. The core of the reactor contains approximately 360,000 of these fuel spheres.

Helium, which is used as the coolant, transfers the energy absorbed in the core to a secondary loop through a special heat exchanger. The helium in the primary circuit is circulated by a blower.
The secondary side of the steam generator contains water. The heat absorbed changes the water to steam which, in turn, is used to drive a steam turbine connected to a generator to produce electricity in the same way conventional power stations operate. In this configuration, the reactor is an electricity producing plant.

The secondary side of the steam generator may also be directly coupled to a process plant to provide the energy as process heat. In this configuration, the reactor is a pure process heat producing plant. Another possibility is to configure the PBMR into a co-generation plant, i.e. one that produces both electricity and process heat.

Resources

• PBMR: Product Overview & Source Term Modelling (Nov 2009)

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (Pty) Ltd (PBMR Pty) of the Republic of South Africa to study the area of collaboration in the development of the helium-cooled, High Temperature Reactor (HTR) Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR).

Based on the MOU, MHI will initially study the area for possible collaboration in the design of 200 MWt (megawatts thermal) plant, which PBMR Pty is currently developing. Going forward, the two companies will also probe further collaboration, including construction of plants and market exploration. With the newly concluded MOU, PBMR development will now move forward toward commercialization of a small size reactor.

MHI did the basic design and research and development of a helium-driven turbo generator system and Core Barrel Assembly, the major components of PBMR’s original 400 MW thermal, direct-cycle design. This concept was changed last year to a 200 MWt design which delivers super-heated steam through a steam generator.

The 200 MWt plant consists of a 200 MWt PBMR and a steam generator that provides hot steam at 750 °C (1,382 °F). The plant uses silicon carbide-coated uranium particles encased in graphite for the fuel spheres and helium as the coolant, making it free from risk of reactor core meltdown. The PBMR requires relatively low initial investment and is considered to be well suited to applications in areas lacking a fully developed power transmission grid.

The 200 MWt design is aimed at steam process heat applications, which provides the basis for penetrating the nuclear heat market as a viable alternative for carbon-burning, high-emission heat sources. In addition to generating electricity, this concept can also service potential customers such as the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project in the US, which is funded by the US Department of Energy, oil sands producers in Canada and the South African petro-chemical industry. A number of potential customers, including South Africa’s Sasol, have been studying the introduction of the plant, which is targeted to begin operation in approximately year 2020.

Specifically, when collaboration area has been agreed, MHI will conduct part of the research & development activities for the 200 MWt plant design. In the future, further collaboration possibilities will be probed, including construction of the 200 MWt plant and exploring market potential for the PBMR.

PBMR. The PBMR reactor has a vertical steel pressure vessel which contains and supports a metallic core barrel, which in turn supports the cylindrical pebble fuel core. This cylindrical fuel core is surrounded on the side by an outer graphite reflector and on top and bottom by graphite structures which provide similar upper and lower neutron reflection functions. Vertical borings in the side reflector are provided for the reactivity control elements. Two diverse reactivity control systems are provided for shutting the reactor down.

The PBMR uses particles of enriched uranium dioxide coated with silicon carbide and pyrolytic carbon. The particles are encased in graphite to form a fuel sphere or pebble about the size of a billiard ball. The core of the reactor contains approximately 360,000 of these fuel spheres.

Helium, which is used as the coolant, transfers the energy absorbed in the core to a secondary loop through a special heat exchanger. The helium in the primary circuit is circulated by a blower.
The secondary side of the steam generator contains water. The heat absorbed changes the water to steam which, in turn, is used to drive a steam turbine connected to a generator to produce electricity in the same way conventional power stations operate. In this configuration, the reactor is an electricity producing plant.

The secondary side of the steam generator may also be directly coupled to a process plant to provide the energy as process heat. In this configuration, the reactor is a pure process heat producing plant. Another possibility is to configure the PBMR into a co-generation plant, i.e. one that produces both electricity and process heat.

Resources

• PBMR: Product Overview & Source Term Modelling (Nov 2009)