Natural Beauty Book Authors Reveal Shocking Truths About Cosmetics (Video Interview)

Photo: Carolina Crespo, courtesy of No More Dirty Looks.

Last month, we gave No More Dirty Looks a rave book review, which is why we jumped at the opportunity to sit down with co-authors Siobhan O’Connor and Alexandra Spunt at their New York City book launch party, Thursday night. After offering our congratulations on writing a comprehensive guide to natural, organic, and DIY beauty products, we delved in to conversation about the l… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Study explores role of grid technologies in growth of U.S. wind energy

A recent report, Business Strategy: Optimizing Transmission for Wind Integration examines the role of key transmission technologies essential for the rapid growth of the U.S. wind energy market. The report (Document # EI223579, June 2010) from IDC Energy Insights, Framingham, Mass., (idc.com) describes the impact of current transmission constraints on existing and planned wind farms and the challenges encountered to proposals of new transmission lines.

Five grids at different voltages connect the U.S. The IDC Energy Insights study includes an overview of transmission technologies that offer solutions to the challenges along with examples and an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. Map source: EIA

“Wind-based electricity generation has enjoyed rapid growth in the U.S. over the past 10 years, driven by state-level renewable portfolio standards and wind’s current status as the least cost, most scalable renewable energy option,” says IDC Energy Insights Research Manager Jay Holman. “New wind farms must be located in areas with excellent wind resources and, unfortunately, these areas are often far from load centers and have weak transmission infrastructure.”

According to the IDC Energy Insights study, this creates a well documented need for additional transmission capacity, which has been difficult to satisfy due to planning and permitting hurdles that can cause endless delays and cost escalations for new transmission projects.

However, IDC Energy Insights research indicates it is not always necessary to build new transmission lines to add transmission capacity. Technologies exist that allow an increase in transmission capacity that causes little or no visible change to the existing transmission infrastructure. Even in situations where new transmission lines are required, technologies are available that can minimize their footprint, helping to stimulate planning and permitting. While no single technology will solve all transmission related challenges, together these technologies will play an important role in increasing the penetration of renewables – wind in particular – on the grid. The technologies cited by the report include:

• Dynamic line rating

• High-temperature, low-sag conductors

• Voltage uprating

• Ac-to dc conversion

• Flexible ac transmission equipment

• High-voltage dc equipment

• Superconducting conductors

“The costs that transmission constraints have imposed on the energy industry through wind curtailment and wind project delays, cancellations, and size reductions have led to increased focus on technologies that can quickly and economically increase transmission capacity while helping to alleviate challenges associated with the planning and permitting process,” says Holman.

The IDC Energy Insights study includes an overview of transmission technologies that offer solutions to the challenges along with examples and an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. Finally, the report draws conclusions and makes recommendations for industry stakeholders who want to take full advantage of existing and planned transmission technologies.

Visit the original post at: Wind Power News

Hawaii wind project includes battery storage

Developer First Wind will include power storage and controls to better balance the power output from its wind project on Ohau.

A developer of power-storage equipment for utility-scale tasks will supply a 15 MVA, 10 MWh battery and power-management controls for the Kahuku Wind Project on Oahu. This marks the second Hawaiian project for which Xtreme Power, Kyle, Texas (xtremepowerinc.com) has supplied equipment. The groundbreaking follows the company’s first commercial pilot at the Kaheawa Wind Project on Maui. The latest wind project, 30 MW from 20 GE wind turbines, is supported by a 1.5-MW Xtreme Power energy storage and power-management system. Results from the Maui project demonstrated the ability of Xtreme Power’s equipment to control ramp rates (up and down) during changes in wind conditions, and to simultaneously store surplus wind power for redeployment during times of peak demand. Both projects are owned by First Wind in Honolulu.

“This marks the second project in which we’ve chosen Xtreme Power as a key partner to help us deliver reliable wind power for the residents of Hawaii,” says First Wind CEO Paul Gaynor. “Hawaii has a huge natural resource in wind and together with Xtreme Power, we are able to effectively deliver that power.”

Overall, Xtreme Power says the project on Maui has demonstrated an ability to:

• Reduce power variability by more than 95%
• Mitigate the issues associated with wind turbine trips and overloads, delivering consistent power to the grid, and
• Effectively store and deliver surplus power.

The 10-MWh storage is possible thanks to capabilities in Xtreme Power’s PowerCells, individual 12 V, 1 kWh, advanced dry-cell batteries that use an unconventional solid-state chemistry. The cell’s characteristics allow assembling thousands in massive parallel and series matrices, ideal for use in large-scale utility applications requiring hundreds of MW while maintaining a manageable footprint. Low internal resistance results in a capability to rapidly charge and discharge large amounts of power.

Visit the original post at: Wind Power News

Hawaii wind project includes battery storage

Developer First Wind will include power storage and controls to better balance the power output from its wind project on Ohau.

A developer of power-storage equipment for utility-scale tasks will supply a 15 MVA, 10 MWh battery and power-management controls for the Kahuku Wind Project on Oahu. This marks the second Hawaiian project for which Xtreme Power, Kyle, Texas (xtremepowerinc.com) has supplied equipment. The groundbreaking follows the company’s first commercial pilot at the Kaheawa Wind Project on Maui. The latest wind project, 30 MW from 20 GE wind turbines, is supported by a 1.5-MW Xtreme Power energy storage and power-management system. Results from the Maui project demonstrated the ability of Xtreme Power’s equipment to control ramp rates (up and down) during changes in wind conditions, and to simultaneously store surplus wind power for redeployment during times of peak demand. Both projects are owned by First Wind in Honolulu.

“This marks the second project in which we’ve chosen Xtreme Power as a key partner to help us deliver reliable wind power for the residents of Hawaii,” says First Wind CEO Paul Gaynor. “Hawaii has a huge natural resource in wind and together with Xtreme Power, we are able to effectively deliver that power.”

Overall, Xtreme Power says the project on Maui has demonstrated an ability to:

• Reduce power variability by more than 95%
• Mitigate the issues associated with wind turbine trips and overloads, delivering consistent power to the grid, and
• Effectively store and deliver surplus power.

The 10-MWh storage is possible thanks to capabilities in Xtreme Power’s PowerCells, individual 12 V, 1 kWh, advanced dry-cell batteries that use an unconventional solid-state chemistry. The cell’s characteristics allow assembling thousands in massive parallel and series matrices, ideal for use in large-scale utility applications requiring hundreds of MW while maintaining a manageable footprint. Low internal resistance results in a capability to rapidly charge and discharge large amounts of power.

Visit the original post at: Wind Power News