Letter from...
Stephen Levy
TSEA Executive Director
November 24, 2009
After all the presentations on different techniques, devices and concepts had been presented, Stan went to the front of the room and announced that he had a device that was better than anyone else's and it was sitting on his shelf as an interesting but not important to his work at the moment. He described the device as a small solid-state encapsulated diode looking structure with two leads. He said it was the answer to transient protection. When asked if it were commercially available, Stan said that it was an early work product that is sitting on the shelf.
Later, I asked Stan if we at the Army could test it to verify his claims. Well, he was reluctant and suggested that he did not want to divulge any information on the device to us as Governmental representatives. So I asked him to name his conditions to verify his claims. He said that he would send someone from his company to Fort Monmouth with one of his devices and that we would test it, but, he would take all the data, the device and any other information with him and we did not have permission to report the results other than yes, it worked, or no, it did not work. Since we had nothing to lose, we agreed on the terms.
Later that month, someone did bring the device to our labs for testing. We looked at this small item that was about 1.5 inches long, most of it wire leads, and the center blob which was about half a centimeter in diameter. To shorten the story, we tested it starting with a small pulser of a few kilowatts peak, the device was working, then kept on increasing the size of the pulser until we tested it with our largest commercial unit. The device performed flawlessly. The company person then collected all the data, the device, and left. We never heard from Stan regarding the device. As far as I know, it still is the best transient protection device that could be on the market if Stan wished it to be so.
That is how I remember Stan Ovshinsky.
This is the New York Times article on Stan and how he is contributing to a better world.
[Stephen Levy can be reached at 865-805-2313 or e-mail to steve@tnsolarenergy.org]
Letter from...
Stephen Levy
TSEA Executive Director
October 31, 2009
What is the problem with our U.S. electric utlities and the companies that support the electric utility industry? Do they lack imagination or maybe they are just afraid of risk? That does not seem to be the problem with SANYO. They have proposed the answer to the intermittent renewable power source issue with their new concept, the Smart Energy System (pdf).
This is the concept that really is the solution to managing electric power which is do-able today. The battery technology may be in its infancy but there are other battery solutions that may be cheaper for now, however no new physics or technical barriers face the adoption of this concept. The “smarts” is what I think the ‘smart grid’ is all about.
We can use existing power lines; we do need to manage the power flowing over the lines, but in general, we have the infrastructure. The smarts are in the power electronics and in the intelligence circuitry used to decide on how to manage the energy flow and when. For those fortunate enough to have homes with roofs or grounds with solar power installations, you are your electric utility power partner.
There seems to be a shift in the attitude to the acceptance of solar power as a power source by the major utilities. The utilities are rightfully concerned on how to best utilize the intermittent power of wind and solar. We can buy and sell the use of our energy storage to the utility as well as selling the solar power generated by our panels by each of us having a smart energy system.
Read about the SANYO idea and picture in your mind how this could help this country secure its needed energy resources. Post your ideas on our blog of what you think could and should be done. Let us join together and become the solution rather than the problem.
[Stephen Levy can be reached at 865-805-2313 or e-mail to steve@tnsolarenergy.org]
Letter from...
Stephen Levy
TSEA Executive Director
September 20, 2009
Jim Hackworth and I traveled to Chattanooga and met with the TVA people about their green program. What we found out was a bit disappointing.
It seems that the rules governing solar implementation in sizes exceeding 1 MW are outside the boundaries of their green program to which Jim and I were very surprised. We had a hard time understanding the inflexibility of TVA policies. We were told that if our proposed project were to exceed the 1 MW limit, then we would have to submit an unsolicited proposal and that we could only expect a price per kilowatt-hour of 3 cents. It did not resonate with the visions expressed by TVA in its green-power initiative. That is why all of us that are served by TVA and its distributors need to ask the TVA management why the arbitrary rule if TVA is seeking more renewables?
The way we see it is that every parking lot of significant size, such as shopping centers, city parking lots and sports arenas could add solar shading to its open air parking lots. Why not an increased vision where the benefits of solar energy generation can be combined with other beneficial features providing multi-use for such ventures? Yes, solar is still expensive. Yes, solar is an intermittent source. But once installed, the cost of upkeep and the cost of power is very small. We believe that installing energy storage along with the solar can improve the value of the power delivery.
By storing and then releasing energy from the storage system in a controlled manner makes solar a potentially dispatchable power source. Dispatchable power sources are those that can deliver power in the amount and duration requested by the system operator. We need to start now with how to effectively manage the energy storage system which today would be battery-based. Until lithium batteries have been in service for a few years and the price has come down, we can temporarily used sealed lead-acid batteries. We know a lot about lead-acid batteries and how to efficiently manage the power delivery from such a battery system at efficiencies in the 90% range. The present cost of the batteries for a megawatt sized solar installation is about 5% added cost to the overall system. The key is the smarts of the power delivery system and that means an intelligent power electronics system. Such systems are now coming available so there are not show stoppers preventing solar from being a dispatchable power source.
We invite comments from your electric power distributor and from TVA.
[Stephen Levy can be reached at 865-805-2313 or e-mail to steve@tnsolarenergy.org]
Letter from...
Stephen Levy
TSEA Executive Director
September 17, 2009
Auguste Mouchout, a mathematics instructor at the Lyce de Tours began his solar work in 1860 after expressing grave concerns about his country's dependence on coal. "It would be prudent and wise not to fall asleep regarding this quasi-security," he wrote. "Eventually industry will no longer find in Europe the resources to satisfy its prodigious expansion. Coal will undoubtedly be used up. What will industry do then?" By the following year he was granted the first patent for a motor running on solar power and continued to improve his design until about 1880.
Look at the solar industry today. Since 1880 solar has gone from obscurity to a realistic power source. The price of solar panels has dropped from the 1970’s price of $10 to $2 - $3 per watt. This price is predicted to reach $1 per watt by the end of next year for large installations. It is time for all of us to consider solar power for our homes. How do you find out what a solar system cost today? Contact your local distributor for a list of local solar installers. These installers will quote you a price based on how much solar you want. They will design the installation, install the system and guarantee it.
How will this affect you? It will offer you the opportunity reduce your electricity bill. The reduction will depend on how much solar panels you install. TVA through its distributors like KUB pay you for the solar energy you generate. This is from the TVA website. If you pay your power company 10 cents per kWh for the electricity you use to your power your home each month, then TVA will pay you 22 cents (10 cents plus a 12 cent guaranteed premium) per kWh for 100% of the green energy generated from your solar photovoltaic system. A 2 kW solar photovoltaic (PV) installation in the Valley averages 200 kWh per month or roughly $44 per month Generation Credit: 200kWh X $0.22/kWh (average retail rate of $0.10 + solar premium $0.12) = $44. All new participants will receive a $1,000 incentive to help offset start-up costs.
Will the cost of solar come down? Sure, the price will come down but the question is when and how much? The nice feature of TVA offer is that if the price they pay for solar power increases, you automatically get the improved rate. If the price of electricity rises, so will the TVA credit for the solar power you generate. If you decide to install more solar panels and you end up with a credit on your bill, you will receive a check for the credit balance.
TVA as well as most of the utility industry has been hesitant about seriously considering solar energy as a utility source of power because it takes about 4 million solar panels to equal the output of a large coal-fired power plant. The kicker is that solar only produces power during daylight hours. In fact, solar panels only about 5 to 6 hours per day. Add to the problem what happens when we have a cloudy day and the solar panels are only producing 10% of the average of a sunny day. However, when the price of the installed solar system drops below $2 per watt installed, your home solar system will have a payback in 6 to 7 years. There are those who think the price of installed solar will reach $1 per watt within the next five years.
How many jobs would the solar industry generate if all the single family homes were converted to solar energy? There are over 100 million homes in this country. The answer is about 400,000 good paying jobs. And that is not including jobs that would result from supporting businesses. The whole industrialized world understands the implications of solar energy. Applied Materials in California makes the equipment that assembles solar panels. None of their products are made for this country. There are five are in Germany, four are in China, one is in Spain, one is in India, one is in Italy, one is in Taiwan and one is even in Abu Dhabi. As Thomas Friedman of the New York Times puts it, “if you like importing oil from Saudi Arabia, you’re going to love importing solar panels from China.
Tennessee needs more manufacturing jobs which solar photovoltaics can provide. The solar energy industry has been concentrated in California as the weather and high price of electricity has provided an economic incentive as well as environmental benefit to the state residents. California is the leader in solar panel production even though the cost of manufacturing is high compared to Tennessee. Now the solar industry is looking at desert lands and began building concentrated solar plants on barren lands, transmitting the power to California to compete in the highly profitable electric power business.
We see solar energy being publicized on television and wonder why we do not see more of this in Tennessee. I truly do not know. Well, first of all, we are fortunate to have TVA and its distributors that provide electricity to the six million people at a relatively low cost compared to the rest of the country but only recently has TVA seriously considered solar power as a significant. Secondly, Tennessee has not changed our laws and taxes to attract solar manufacturing here in Tennessee, though the governor has done a wonderful job of bringing two polysilicon manufacturers to the state. The reason given is our state's economy has not allowed our legislature the luxury of offering special tax benefits to purchasers of solar systems. The sales tax adds to the cost of the initial purchase and installation cost of the solar system. The third reason is the property tax assessors have no guidance regarding deferment of added property tax for those who install solar.
The states that have been supportive to the solar industry have prospered. The East Coast is waking up and states like Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York are becoming solar territory. In fact, New Jersey, which has less sunny hours then we do, is second in solar behind California.
We have one solar panel manufacturer in this state. Why not more? Again, I do not know. According to one report regulatory, price and connectivity certainty is what Germany has established, and that explains why Germany now generates almost half the solar power in the world today. Germany is becoming the world-center for solar research, engineering, manufacturing and installation. With more than 50,000 new jobs, the renewable energy industry in Germany is now second only to its auto industry. China will soon be the largest exporter of solar panels in the world.
There needs to be more information and education on solar energy. That is the motivation behind the founding of the Tennessee Solar Energy Association (TSEA). Our task is to hasten the wide spread use of solar in this state. TSEA is new and in its infancy and with the help of the wonderful people in Tennessee TSEA expects to be working effectively by the end of this year. We expect to be a chapter of the 50 year old American Solar Energy Society that has led the way through the lean times for solar into the present. The American Solar Energy Society is promoting a solar tour day with tours in towns and cities in this country. The City of Knoxville's Solar America Cities Program and local solar industry companies and organizations such as the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy are sponsoring the Knoxville Solar Tour that will be held on October 3rd at Krutch Park, downtown Knoxville as well as all the major cities in this country. Details are on the web at: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/policy/solar/
[Stephen Levy can be reached at 865-805-2313 or e-mail to steve@tnsolarenergy.org]