Green Car Congress

Hythane Company Begins Hydrogen-CNG System Demonstrations in China

The Hythane Company is beginning demonstrations of its low-emission hydrogen-compressed natural gas fuel system in support of a major bus conversion project in China. Hythane (generically called HCNG: hydrogen-CNG) is essentially CNG mixed with a small percentage of hydrogen (usually about 7% by energy or 20% by volume), and was developed by Hydrogen Components in the US.

In October 2004, Brehon Energy entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with four leading Chinese groups to convert 10,000 diesel buses in five major cities to run on Hythane. (Hythane Company is the technical division and wholly owned subsidiary of Brehon Energy). The project targets the conversion of the 10,000 buses prior to the start of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. (Earlier post.)

The use of a hydrogen-CNG blend can reduce NO_x emissions by 95% relative to diesel. In tests between HCNG and CNG engines run by the Center for Transportation Technology and Systems, SunLine Transit Agency (which currently runs two HCNG buses) and Cummins Westport, the HCNG fueled engines reduced NO_x emissions by 50%, non-methane hydrocarbons by 58%, methane by 16%, total hydrocarbons by 23% and CO₂ by 7%. These reductions were achieved with no significant change in fuel efficiency between the HCNG- and CNG-fueled engines.

Assisting China in developing its transportation and energy strategies is a huge opportunity for the company. The initial test phase over the next six to nine months will help set the stage for large-scale market rollout.

—Roger Marmaro, Hythane Company president

This may be the world’s first use of hydrogen as a vehicle fuel on a massive scale.

—Frank Lynch, company founder, co-inventor of Hythane (with Marmaro)

Other parties to the memos of understanding include the China Association for Hydrogen Energy, the China Electronic Engineering Design Institute, Tsinghua University, and the Shougang Technology Research Institute.

EPA Issues First Renewable Fuels Standard Ruling: A Collective 2.78% for 2006

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced its first rulemaking under the provisions of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program as authorized in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

The Act directs EPA to issue RFS regulations by 8 August 2006, and provides that if EPA has not adopted such regulations by that date, then 2.78% of the gasoline sold or dispensed to consumers for calendar year 2006 must be renewable fuel. The RFS volume standard specifies 4 billion gallons of renewable fuel in 2006.

EPA does not believe that it can meet the August 2006 statutory deadline. EPA is therefore establishing a limited set of regulations adopting that initial 2.78% target, thereby providing those liable for its implementation—refiners, importers, and blenders—some guidance. This first ruling is designed to provide a smooth transition to the long-term RFS program.

RFS Volumes
Year	Billion Gallons
2006	4.0
2007	4.7
2008	5.4
2009	6.1
2010	6.8
2011	7.4
2012	7.5

In adopting the 2.78% target, EPA is determining compliance on a collective, rather than an individual, basis for 2006. Under this approach, refineries, blenders, and importers together will be responsible for meeting the default 2.78% standard, and compliance with this standard will be calculated over the pool of gasoline sold to consumers.

An individual refinery, blender, or importer will not be responsible for meeting the 2.78 percent standard for the specific gasoline it produces. EPA will determine compliance after 2006 using gasoline and renewable fuel consumption data available from the Energy Information Administration, supplemented by information readily available from other sources.

With this short-term resolution, biodiesel appears to be in a little bit of statutory limbo. Both the default standard and the annual standard to be met under the long-term program are expressed in the statute in terms of percent renewable fuel in gasoline (and clearly, biodiesel is not blended into gasoline). The long-term program will allow for biodiesel integration in the program through credit trading, but the default standard provision (the EPA’s 2.78% for 2006) does not specify the manner in which use of biodiesel is to be counted towards compliance. However, EPA, says, “for the purposes of this rule we believe it is appropriate to include biodiesel in the pool of renewable fuel used to determine compliance with the default standard.”

If EPA determines that the default standard had not been met in 2006 on this collective basis, any deficit will be carried forward and applied as an adjustment to the standard for 2007. The regulations implementing the default standard for 2006 will not include any provisions for credit generation or trading, given the collective nature of the obligation.

The default standard of 2.78% provided in the Act applies exclusively to calendar year 2006, and the collective compliance approach will likewise apply only to 2006. For 2007 and beyond, EPA will determine and publish the applicable renewable fuel standard for each year and develop a renewable fuel standard credit trading program per statutory direction.

This rule will specifically identify liable parties, lay out the compliance program including record keeping and reporting requirements, and delineate all elements of the credit trading program. All these and many other issues impacting the full RFS program will be addressed in a subsequent EPA rulemaking and are not discussed in the direct final rule.

Resources:

• Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Renewable Fuel Standard Requirements for 2006 (pre-publication in Federal Register)

Rentech Awarded Patent on Co-Production of Fischer-Tropsch Fuels and Electricity with CO2 Capture

Overview of Rentech’s integrated process. Click to enlarge.

Rentech has been awarded a new patent (its 20^th in this area) on a process for co-producing Fischer-Tropsch (FT) liquids and electrical power with CO₂ emissions reduced through carbon capture.

The plant described in the patent combines an air separation unit, a syngas generator, a Fischer-Tropsch unit, a CO₂ removal unit and a combined cycle electricity generation unit. Although each of these individual components are well known, Rentech is knitting the units together in its process.

The process described in the patent—Integrated Fischer-Tropsch and Power Production Plant with Low Carbon Dioxide Emissions—uses primarily hydrogen from the FT tail gas (gas that is not converted inside the FT reactor) and bypassed syngas (a combination of hydrogen and carbon monoxide (CO) produced from a hydrocarbon feedstock) to fuel the combustion turbine of a combined cycle unit.

The combined streams of FT tail gases and bypassed syngas are fed to a shift reactor in which the carbon monoxide is reacted with water to produce hydrogen and carbon dioxide (CO₂). CO₂ removed from the shift reactor outflow can then be used in commercial process such as chemical and fertilizer production, bottling for carbonated drinks and tertiary recovery in oil fields.

The remaining effluent from the shift reactor (mainly H₂) flows to power a combustion turbine to produce electricity. Fueling the turbine with primarily hydrogen greatly reduces the amount of CO₂ produced in the stack gases.

Hot exhaust gases from the turbine are cooled in a heat recovery steam turbine, which is also coupled to the generator. Exhaust steam is cooled and recirculated as process water.

Producers can opt to divide the syngas into two streams as it leaves the sulfur removal unit, with one stream going to the FT reactor, the other directly to the shift reactor. This implementation allows producers to optimize the output between FT fuels and electricity.

A computer simulation of the process yielded the following:

• 5,550 tons per day (tpd) coal gasified with 3,091 tpd water and 4,806 tpd oxygen. The coal (Pittsburgh #8) is 74.16% by weight carbon.

• After quenching and cleaning, 47.2% of the syngas flows to an FT reactor to produce 6,000 barrels per day of liquids and tail gases.

• FT tail gases and the other 52.8% of the syngas are mixed with 233 MMSCFD of steam and sent to a low-temperature shift reactor.

• Gases leaving the shift reactor are on a volume basis approximately 38.0% hydrogen, 37.5% CO₂, 23.0% H₂O and less than 1% of CO, CH₄ and N₂.

• Carbon capture removes 11,300 tpd of CO₂.

• The H₂-rich gas used as fuel in the combustor produces approximately 349 Mwe in the combined cycle unit.

• 3.5% by weight of the carbon in the coal fed to the gasifier is present in the flue gases emitted into the atmosphere.

Resources:

• US Patent No. 6,976,362, Integrated Fischer-Tropsch and Power Production Plant with Low Carbon Dioxide Emissions

China Power Moves to Develop Oil Shale; Tapping Wind Also

Jilin Province

China Daily. One of China’s top five power producers, China Power Investment Corp (CPIC), is planning to develop oil shale resources, in addition to expanding beyond coal-fired power generation into wind and nuclear.

The State-owned electricity generator has inked a framework agreement with the local government in Jilin Province for joint development of oil shale resources. Jilin has 546 million tons of total proven oil shale reserves, and 317 million tons can be commercially exploitable, according to reports.

Earlier this year, Royal Dutch Shell took a 61% stake in a new joint venture firm that will invest up to US$150 million in exploring and developing oil shale deposits in Jilin Province. The new joint venture company, the Jilin Shell Oil Shale Development Company Limited (Jilin Shell), will be 61% owned by Shell and 39% by Jilin Guangzheng Mineral Development Company Limited. (Earlier post.)

CPIC will use oil produced from the Jilin reserves to generate electricity. The company has also been trying to tap renewable energy sources, cashing in on the new opportunities brought about by China’s first renewable energy law, which will take effect next year.

The Beijing-based power generator signed a 3-billion yuan (US$369.9-million) agreement with Goldwind Science & Technology Co Ltd, China’s largest wind electric power generator manufacturer, for wind power plant construction projects in East and Northwest China.

The accord covers a 200-MW and 100-MW projects, both scheduled to start construction next year, with commercial operation likely to start in 2008. China by the end of this year will have wind power generation facilities with a capacity of 1,000 MW. The country plans to increase the figure to 30,000 MW by 2020.

The company has also reached agreements with the country’s two biggest nuclear reactor builders, China National Nuclear Corp and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, to start building four reactors in Liaoning and Shandong next year, a company official said.

By the end of last year, State-owned CPIC had power generation facilities with a total capacity of 27,959 MW. Coal-fired plants accounted for 66.97 per cent, hydro plants 28.2 per cent and the remaining 4.83 per cent consisted of nuclear plants.

nZEC. CPIC is also one of the groups cooperating in developing a near-zero emissions (nZEC) coal power plant with carbon capture and storage (CCS). This is a project analogous to the US’ FutureGen (earlier post).

CPIC, along with China Huaneng Group, China Datang Corp, China Guodian Corp, Shenhua Group (China’ biggest coal producer), State Development and Investment Corp, and China National Coal Group formed a new venture, the Green Coal Power Company, with a budget of 5.8 billion yuan (US$716 million), to participate in the nZEC project, which is a joint initiative with the UK.

Last week, Chief Scientific Adviser Sir David King formally signed the nZEC agreement in Beijing with Minister Xu Guangha, from the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, which signals the start of the first phase of the project.

Carbon Capture and Storage offers the opportunity to reduce emissions per unit of electricity by 85%–90%, according to Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). Successful development of near-Zero Emissions Coal plants and large-scale deployment of CCS in China could halve the country’s projected greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Some estimates forecast China surpassing the US as the top global CO₂ emitter by 2015.

The partners are outlining a phased approach. The first phase will be a 3-year feasibility study, examining the viability of different technology options for the capture of carbon dioxide emissions from power generation and the potential for geological storage in China, and leading towards a possible demonstration project starting up between 2010 and 2015. The UK is leading the first phase of the nZEC project, and supporting it with £3.5 million (US$6 million, Yuan 48.8 million) of funding (Defra £3m, DTI £0.5m). They hope to begin awarding contracts for the initial feasibility stage of the project in early 2006.

Resources:

• Carbon Abatement Technologies for Fossil Fuels

Update on the New Yaris for the US: 36 MPG

2007 Toyota Yaris

Toyota has provided more performance detail for the 1.5-liter engine powering the new 2007 Toyota Yaris (earlier post) for the US in four-door Sedan and three-door Liftback configurations.

The initial US 2007 Yaris models which go onsale this spring are using a larger engine than their global counterparts. A 1.5-liter gasoline engine was a standard option on the older Yaris, but Toyota removed it from its initial global lineup for the new Yaris.

The first version of the Yaris, launched in 1999, has been an extremely successful car for Toyota—with the sole exception of in the US market, where it was sold as the Echo and flopped. By contrast, the Yaris today represents 25% of all Toyota sales in Europe.

Now, however, with the US market apparently focusing more on fuel economy, the results here may likely change.

Yaris fuel efficiency will be among the highest in the subcompact segment. A preliminary EPA fuel economy mpg rating for the Liftback is estimated at 34 city/40 highway for the five-speed manual and 34 city/39 highway for models equipped with the four-speed automatic. The EPA pegs the Yaris Sedan with preliminary estimates of 34 city/40 highway for the five-speed manual and 34 city/39 highway for the automatic.

Both the Liftback and Sedan use either a five-speed manual or available four-speed automatic transmission. All Yaris models with an automatic transmission will be equipped with uphill/downhill shift logic to help reduce the frequency of gear shifting caused by the operation of the accelerator pedal during winding uphill and downhill driving.

Yaris will be EPA-certified as an Ultra-Low Emission vehicle (ULEV II).

Engines in the New Yaris
	1.0 VVT-i	1.3 VVT-i	1.5 VVT-i (US)	1.4 D-4D
Fuel	Gasoline	Gasoline	Gasoline	Diesel
Cylinders	3	4	4	4
Max power (kW/hp)	51/69	64/87	79/106	66/90
Max torque Nm)	93	121	140	190
0–100km/h (s)	15.7	11.5	NA	10.7
Fuel consumption (l/100km)	5.4	6.0	6.4	4.5
Fuel economy (mpg US)	43.6	39.2	36.5	52.3
Emissions	Euro 4	Euro 4	ULEV II	Euro 4
CO2 g/km	127	141	NA	119

ZAP Gets Slapped

ZAP—the provider and promoter of a range of electric cars, hybrid cars, electric bicycles and scooters, and the Americanized smart car—has received a notice from the Pacific Stock Exchange (PCXE) that as a result of the recent drop in share price, the company is not meeting the minimum requirements for listing on the exchange.

ZAP shares closed yesterday at $0.30, down from a high a year ago of $3.69.

The notification does not in itself result in ZAP’s delisting from the exchange. ZAP will need to adhere to certain compliance criteria in order to continue trading. The PCXE will review the company’s continued status on 19 January 2006. ZAP is at work on a plan to rectify its shaky status, and intends to provide a written response by 9 January 2006.

In addition to the Americanized smart car (earlier post), ZAP is promoting a number of new alternative vehicles, including:

• The Obvio! flex-fuel minicars from Brazil (earlier post);

• The XEBRA three-wheeled electric car from China (earlier post);

• Fuel-cell vehicles under development with Anuvu (earlier post).

Defense Spending Bill Contains Provisions for E85, Coal-to-Liquids Reports

Tucked away in the massive $453-billion defense spending bill passed by both houses of Congress prior to its holiday recess are provisions for separate reports on two alternative fuels for use by the military: E85 (85% ethanol blend) and Coal-to-Liquids (CTL) synthetic fuels.

Now cleared for signing by the President, the spending bill, H.R. 1815 (EAS—Engrossed as Agreed to by the Senate), was also the bill into which Alaska Senator Ted Stevens had tried to place opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling—an attempt that was defeated.

Section 329 of the bill instructs the Secretary of Defense to conduct a study on the use of ethanol by the Armed Forces and the Defense Agencies. The study is to include:

• An evaluation of the historical utilization of ethanol fuel by the Armed Forces and the Defense Agencies;

• A forecast of the requirements of the Armed Forces and the Defense Agencies for ethanol fuel for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2012;

• An assessment of the current and future commercial availability of E85 ethanol fuel, including facilities for its production, storage, transportation, distribution, and commercial sale;

• A review of the actions of the Department to coordinate with State, local, and private entities to support the expansion and use of alternative fuel refueling stations that are accessible to the public; and

• An assessment of the fueling infrastructure on military installations in the United States, including storage and distribution facilities, that could be adapted or converted to the delivery of ethanol fuel, including an assessment of the cost, feasibility and advisability of the adaptation or conversion of such infrastructure.

The E85 report is due 1 February 2006.

Section 1090, which incorporates the language proposed by Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) (earlier post) calls for the Secretaries of Energy and Defense in coordination to prepare a development plan for a national coal-to-liquids fuel program and a report on the potential use of the fuels by the Department of Defense.

The development plan is to take into consideration:

• Technology needs and developmental barriers;

• Economic and national security effects;

• Environmental standards and carbon capture and storage opportunities;

• Financial incentives;

• Timelines and milestones;

• Diverse regions having coal reserves that would be suitable for liquefaction plants;

• Coal-liquid fuel testing to meet civilian and military engine standards and markets;

• Any roles other Federal agencies, State governments, and international entities could play in developing a coal-to-liquid fuel industry.

Both the CTL development plan and report are due 90 days after the enactment of the Act.

Resources:

• National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (Engrossed Amendment as Agreed to by Senate)

Bridgestone to Build $100M Synthetic Rubber Plant in China

Bridgestone Corp. will invest about $100 million to build a synthetic rubber plant in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China to meet what it anticipates will be the surge in tire demand in Asia.

The new plant, due to become operational in 2008, will produce 50,000 tons per year of styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR). The synthetic rubber plant will supply its output mainly to Bridgestone Group’s tire plants in China as well as other areas in Asia.

Earlier this year, Bridgestone announced plans to build a $300-million tire plant in Huizhou to produce radial tires for trucks and buses. The plant, scheduled to begin operation in January 2007, will be the company’s fourth tire plant in China. Bridgestone produces passenger car tires at plants in Wuxi and Tianjin and truck and bus tires at a plant in Shenyang.

Bridgestone Group already produces synthetic rubber at two plants in the United States. The decision was made to build and operate a plant for the production of enhanced-performance rubber especially for China and Asia in line with an expected surge in demand in those areas. Bridgestone concluded a licensing agreement with JSR Corporation regarding the technology used to produce the enhanced-performance synthetic rubber.

JSR Corporation is a leading Japanese producer of SBR, with an annual capacity of 215,000 metric tons.

Bridgestone held 18.2% of the global tire market in 2004, behind Michelin and ahead of Goodyear.

In October, Sumitomo Rubber Industries announced that is had developed and will launch next year a specialty tire made with a smaller-than-usual proportion of synthetic rubber, which is made from petroleum. Sumitomo Rubber roughly halved the share of synthetic rubber used in the tire. It also increased the share of a genetically engineered natural rubber, which is made from the latex sap of the rubber tree. (Earlier post.)

Resources:

• Emulsion Styrene-Butadiene Rubber

Toyota’s “Car-Shaped Music Player” on Sale in Japan

The new bB

Toyota has put its completely redesigned bB on sale in Japan. The car, cousin of the Scion xB and shown as a concept at the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show, is, according to Toyota, a “Car-shaped Music Player.”

This boom box on wheels, which incorporates an advanced audio system, interior lighting that flashes in rhythm to the music, and newly-developed super-reclining front seats (to “create a sense of privacy”), uses either a 1.5-liter or a 1.3-liter VVT-i engine and delivers between 36 to 39 mpg US in a combined Japanese cycle, depending upon the configuration.

The 1.5-liter and 1.3-liter VVT-i engines are also applied in the new Vitz/Yaris (earlier post), although the bB does not offer the continuously variable transmissions, instead using a four-speed automatic.

Toyota bB
	1.3-liter		1.5-liter
	2WD	4WD	2WD
Displacement	1,279 cc		1,495 cc
Power	68 kW (92 hp)		80 kW (107 hp)
Torque	123 Nm		141 Nm
Fuel consumption	6.1 l/100km	6.58 l/100km	6.25 l/100km
Fuel economy	38.6 mpg US	35.8 mpg US	37.6 mpg US
CO2	141.6 g/km	152.7 g/km	145.1 g/km

The 2006 Scion xB, fitted with a 1.5-liter engine, is rated by the EPA at 31 mpg US combined (with approximately 207 g/km CO₂ equivalent emissions.)

All new bB vehicles achieve emission levels 75% lower than the 2005 standards under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s Approval System for Low-emission Vehicles, with 0.013 g/km of NO_x and NMHC, and 1.15 g/km of CO. Front-wheel-drive vehicles also meet the Japanese 2010 fuel efficiency standards, qualifying for incentives under the Japanese government's Green Taxation System.

Terminal Operator at Port of Seattle Moves to B20 Biodiesel

In a deal brokered by Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), terminal operator SSA Marine will use 800,000 gallons of biodiesel blend in its dockside loading and container-moving equipment at the Port of Seattle next year, starting with a B2 blend but reaching B20 (20% biodiesel, 80% petroleum diesel) within three months.

In another aspect of the deal, the Port of Seattle will use some 20,000 gallons of B20 in its service vehicles next year.

The deal between SSA Marine and the port is the largest venture of its kind, Cantwell’s office said. It will also represent the highest concentration of biofuel used in a single place in the United States, her office said in a news release.

Seattle Biodiesel will provide the biodiesel to the Port and SSA Marine. The company, which opened a 5-million-gallon-a-year refinery in South Seattle in March, will soon announce plans for a bigger refinery somewhere in the Puget Sound region to meet future demand.

In separate port news, the ports of Los Angeles and Shanghai executed two reciprocal environmental agreements—a Friendship Port Agreement and Letter of Intent for Collaboration on Air Quality Issues—as part of a mutual accord to cooperate on air quality (earlier post).

Citing the progression of shared environmental programs and mutually beneficial maritime business, the Friendship Port Agreement also calls for environmental betterments toward commercial waterfront development. The Letter of Intent explores the technical side of urban air pollution management, solidifying the ports’ existing Green Port Memorandum of Understanding, dated November 25, 2002.

During a series of meeting in China, representatives from both ports presented overviews on their respective port’s environmental programs. The Port of Los Angeles’ briefing centered on its Clean Air Program, with an emphasis on Alternative Maritime Power (AMP), ship-related emission reduction strategies and emissions inventory methods, while Port of Shanghai’s focused on general environmental initiatives, including emission testing and air monitoring.

Representatives proposed establishing a Pacific Ports Air Quality Work Collaborative, chartered by the ports of Los Angeles and Shanghai, with participation from other major Asian ports. The new working group would take the lead on international air quality issues, initially focusing on emission inventory methods, oceangoing vessel emissions and cleaner fuels.

The ports of Los Angeles and Shanghai will collaborate to develop an Air Emissions Inventory Report for Shanghai, similar to the Port-wide Baseline Air Emissions Inventory released by the Port of Los Angeles in July 2005.