Biomass power plant and data centers, Google’s Finland data center site?

January 1, 2010 Dave Ohara

Found this interesting year 2000, document by National Renewable Energy Laboratory on 20 different biomass power plants most of which are forest mills.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
________________________________________________________________________
This report includes summary information on 20 biomass power plants—18 in the United States, one in Canada, and one in Finland, which represent some of the leaders in the industry. Table 1 lists the 20 plants in order of on-line date, the same order in which they are presented in the report. In some cases, the on-line date means the date an older fossil fired plant started using biomass fuel commercially (not its original on-line date). Some of the information in the table is abbreviated, but can be clarified by referring to the specific plant sections.

One of the sites studied is in Finland which reminded me of Google’s pulp and paper mill acquisition.

Google Confirms Data Center in Finland
March 4th, 2009 : Rich Miller
It’s official: Google will build a major data center at a former paper mill in Hamina, Finland, the company said today. Google bought the former Stora Enso newsprint plant for $51 million last month, and said it was “likely” to use the facility for a data center. Today Google posted details about the Hamina project on the data center section of its web site.

The site will come online in 2010.

“When fully developed, this facility will be a critical part of our infrastructure for many years to come,” Google said. “Limited testing of the facility should be underway in 2010 and the center should be fully operational later that year.”

On a humorous side, here is this post.

Biomass Power Plant Probably Hides Future Evil World Ruler

I don't know if I would like to have a biomass power plant next to my house, but if I have to get one, please let it be like this. Better yet, let me live in it.

This 49.3 megawatt biomass power plant in the United Kingdom will be fully integrated with its surroundings on the banks of the River Tees. Fully integrated as in "hey, look that cool big fat metal volcano coming out of those woods." [Heatherwick via Dezeen via Inhabitat]

Oil companies funding biofuel research, Codexis is one example

December 31, 2009 Dave Ohara

WSJ.com has an article on Royal Dutch Shell and others investing in biofuel research.

Royal Dutch Shell PLC has roughly doubled its financial support for biofuels start-up Codexis Inc. in the past year, the latest sign that oil companies are slowly and selectively increasing their interest in plants-to-fuels research.

Shell is on pace to spend $60 million in 2009 to fund research at Codexis, nearly twice the amount as the year before, according to regulatory filings. Codexis filed paperwork this week for a $100 initial public offering. The start-up is developing microbes to speed up the chemical reactions that turn inedible plants, such as grasses or stalks, into ethanol and diesel.

The Energy Information Administration projects the fuel growth from 2008 to 2022.

Other oil companies are investing too in biofuels.

Other crude-oil companies also have increased spending on biofuels. Exxon Mobil Corp. said this summer it would spend $600 million over five or six years on a partnership with Synthetic Genomics Inc. to develop a way to turn algae into motor fuels. Chevron Corp. entered into a relationship in October with Mascoma Corp. to investigate plant-based fuel. And BP PLC created a venture with Verenium Corp. this year to build a fuel plant in central Florida next year.

Codexis is one example.

Recognized by the EPA

Codexis is focusing on pharmaceutical and biofuels which makes sense given their investors.

Codexis is a privately-held company, with investors including:

Bio*One Capital

Chevron Technology Ventures

CMEA Capital

FirstMark Capital

GE Energy

Maxygen, Inc.

Pfizer

Shell

Securing a Small Nuclear Reactor – bury it in a missile silo or bunker

November 17, 2009 Dave Ohara

I was talking to an entrepreneur at Santa Fe Institute’s Business Networking event after a presentation by Stewart Brand on Nuclear Power. We discussed the idea of micro nuclear reactors, and he says it will not happen because of the security issues required for a small nuclear plant vs. a large one, and the danger of terrorist attacks.

With all the talk of data center in bunkers and missile silos. How about burying a small nuclear reactor in a missile silo? Seems pretty secure. It is another way to recycle and re-use.

Here is a dataecenterknowledge post from 2007 where a missile silo was being sold as a data bunker.

Missile Bunker Listed on eBay, Again
September 27th, 2007 : Rich Miller
An abandoned missile base in Washington State is back in the news. The former Titan missile silo at Larsen Air Force base in central Washington, which for many years was marketed as a potential “data bunker,” has been featured this week on Boing Boing andthe BBC. The news: the 57-acre site is for sale, and is actually listed on eBay for $1.5 million.

Here is a short video of some of Stewart’s ideas and how recycled Russian nukes are being used in US Nuclear reactors.

Nuclear Reactor Research at University of Missouri

October 29, 2009 Dave Ohara

I was just in Columbia, Missouri, and the folks I was with took me on campus and we drove by the University of Missouri Nuclear Reactor, a 10 mW facility.

Endowing The Future

The internationally recognized University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR), a
10-megawatt facility, is the most powerful among the dozens of research reactors located on our nation’s university campuses.

Even worldwide, few facilities can compare.

Those at MURR treat it like the unique national resource that it is, employing the facility as a research source – providing products and services that will save or extend people’s lives.

The superior level of the science at MURR helps put the products and services it offers a step ahead, further fueling the depth of its research.

What kind of reactor is it? Here is description and a comparison to a local nuclear plant.

Operations

Power Level: 10MW_th
Power Density, Core: 303 kW/liter, with peaking factor greater than 3
Primary Coolant Operating Temperature, Outlet (T_h): 136° F
Primary Coolant Operating Pressure: 80 psia
Core, Fuel Type: Open pool PWR, HEU aluminide fuel
LEU Conversion Feasibility Study: Currently underway
Reflector: Beryllium and graphite
Flux Trap, Peak: 6 x 10¹⁴ n/(cm²sec)
License Status: 20-year renewal request submitted August 2006 (to extend to October 2026)

General

The University of Missouri Research Reactor Center has an impeccable 40+ year record of safe operation. This safety record is a combination of stringent NRC-directed safety regulations, high-quality technical and operations staff, and a philosophy of proactive, preventive maintenance. MURR operates 6.5 days per week; 52 weeks per year.

MURR’s reliability record is the envy of the industry.

Missourians are no strangers to nuclear energy, relying heavily on Ameren UE’s nearby Callaway plant to cool or heat their businesses and homes and feed their equipment and appliances. But MURR, as a multifunctional research reactor, differs significantly from such a power reactor. As the table below shows, MURR is considerably smaller. While a power reactor such as Callaway needs a source of electricity to cool the reactor core, MURR’s pool is capable of absorbing all the heat from the reactor core without the aid of forced convection.

But the facility is not just for power.

Products & Services

With its reliable and growing Products and Services division, the people at MURR are making possible custom-made quality nuclear services to a global community – offering a full line of off-shelf products, analyses, research and commercial isotopes and radiochemicals, and analytical and neutron irradiation services to its customers.

Radioisotopes/Radiochemicals
MURR’s quality systems, bulk and research grade radioisotopes and radiochemicals and 16 MeV cyclotron makes it possible to deliver tailored products to fit customer needs.

Irradiation Services
Our reactor design and full-power weekly operating cycle make possible an extensive array of irradiation services.

Contract Manufacturing
MURR’s swift and accurate development and production capabilities help meet on-time needs for its customers and colleagues.

Analytical Services
The folks at MURR can’t solve all the mysteries of life, but with Neutron Activation Analysis and an array of other techniques, they can come close.

Business Incubator Facilities & Economic Development
From concept to commerce MURR, with help from the University of Missouri, is the place to be if you’re a small business in need of incubator facilities.

Maybe next time I am in Columbia, I can get a tour of the facility.

And, there are other parts of the University who take a green engineering approach as well.

Engineering goes green

The college’s favorite color connects to more than just St. Patrick

Story by Chris Blose

Illustration by Josh Nichols

Published: March 13, 2008

Around mid-March, a strange thing happens at the College of Engineering: People start wearing a lot of green. The occasional figure shows up dressed as St. Patrick, complete with flowing beard and green robes. The dome of Jesse Hall glows green at night. All of these things come in celebration of Engineers' Week, or E-week.

That’s just one week, though. All year long, students and scholars in engineering take the “green” connection to another level through environmentally friendly research and actions — from electric cars and alternative energy to recycled materials and energy audits.

In honor of E-Week at Mizzou, Mizzou Wire presents a few of the many examples of the university’s green engineering. Let us know if you have more examples.

eBay announces Green Data Center part of 15% GHG Reduction

September 21, 2009 Dave Ohara

Environmental Leader has a post on eBay committing to a 15% GHG reduction.

eBay to Emit 15% Fewer GHGs by 2012

E-commerce powerhouse eBay plans to reduce its 2012 greenhouse gas emissions 15 percent, when compared to its 2008 emissions. This news comes at the same time as eBay has donated some old servers to the University of Notre Dame, where the servers will assist in AIDS and cancer research.

Heat generated by the Notre Dame servers will be used to warm a greenhouse that is adjacent to where the servers are housed, according to a press release.

eBay will do most of its work in reducing emissions by improved data management and infrastructure. Next year, the company will begin using a “green” data center that will handle more than a third of its IT infrastructure. The site, in South Jordan, Utah, is being built to LEED Gold status.

The eBay press release is here, and extracted the data center parts.

Energy Efficient Operations and Data Management

As an ecommerce company, eBay has a relatively small carbon footprint with a majority of the company's environmental impact coming from the energy consumed by its data centers. The company's approach to data management and infrastructure will be a key efficiency driver. In 2010, eBay will unveil a new state-of-the-art green data center that will house more than a third of its global data infrastructure. The site, which is being built to the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold standards in South Jordan, Utah, will deliver state-of-the-art efficiencies in cooling and power management, as well as in IT infrastructure and software.

Hardware efficiency is mentioned.

eBay also operates on a two-year tech refresh system that allows the company to process more transactions per watt. While this system drives energy efficiency in its operations, it comes with environmental collateral damage in the form of e-waste. To address this, eBay has undertaken new initiatives in the past year to actively repurpose and extend the useful life of hardware.

and eWaste is addressed

An example of the company's commitment to reuse can be found in its recent donation of old servers to the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. The server donation initiative not only puts old eBay servers to work in Notre Dame's research labs to power AIDS and cancer research, but leverages the heat generated from those servers to warm a greenhouse that sits adjacent to the laboratory.

Renewable energy is part of the reduction with fuel cells.

Investments in Renewable Energy
eBay continues to support the use of renewable energy to green its operations. The company opened a 197,000 square foot office building in San Jose last year, which features a 650 kW solar installation and has also been LEED Gold certified - with dimming systems and the use of recycled materials throughout. Following that, eBay is installing a new 100kW solar installation at the company's offices in Denver, Colorado. A fuel cell strategy is also under way - to be announced in early 2010.