Argonne Releases Latest Version of GREET
08 May 2008
Argonne National Laboratory has released the latest version (1.8b) of the Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy use in Transportation (GREET) full life-cycle model used to evaluate and compare the environmental impacts of new transportation fuels and advanced vehicle technologies.
The update will allow scientists to model combustion of ethanol produced from Brazilian sugarcane and used by US automobiles; production and use of bio-butanol as a potential transportation fuel; and production and use of biodiesel and renewable diesel via hydrogenation, coal/biomass co-feeding for Fischer-Tropsch diesel production and various corn ethanol plant types with different process fuels.
New fuel production pathways include soybeans to renewable gasoline production; oil sand to pet coke; and pet coke to H2.
In addition, simulations of many existing fuel pathways in GREET are updated. The new version updates the shares of Canadian oil sands products in crude oil blends; updates the petroleum refinery processes including hydrogen from different feedstock sources; updates the calculation of renewable energy use in the production of biofuels from corn and soybean feedstocks; and adds missing higher heating values (HHV) for some biofuels and feedstock sources. Petroleum refining energy efficiencies in GREET are updated with recent survey data from the Energy Information Administration.
Enhancements to current pathways include three methods for dealing with co-products for soybean-based biodiesel; compression energy efficiencies for natural and hydrogen gases are calculated with the first law of thermodynamics; and a tube trailer delivery option for hydrogen gas to refueling stations is included.
In addition to the fuel-cycle GREET module, the vehicle-cycle GREET module (2.7) incorporates an additional platform, allowing researchers to model sport utility vehicles in addition to cars and light trucks. That version better evaluates the energy consumption required to produce the aluminum used in the chassis of automobiles.
Led by Dr. Michael Wang, a group of Argonne transportation researchers regularly update key parameters and assumptions in the GREET model on the basis of new research and development in fuel pathways and vehicle technologies. Today, GREET can simulate more than 100 fuel production pathways and more than 80 vehicle/fuel systems. The model has more than 4,000 registered users worldwide.
Several state and federal agencies have used GREET to aid in their considerations of potential fuel greenhouse gas regulations. For example, the US Environmental Protection Agency uses a specific set of assumptions with the GREET model in its analysis of the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the potential expanded use of renewable and alternative fuels.
California Air Resources Board has been using a GREET version in its effort to develop low-carbon fuel standards.
The GREET software is available at no charge.
Resources
GREET Website
As far as I can tell, it still has limited support for PHEVs and biomass to methane production (via anaerobic digestion or other startegies). But plenty of H2 and ethanol support, of course. Fairly clear who butters Argonne's toast.....
Posted by: Jim | 08 May 2008 at 11:53 AM
Who exactly gets to dream up the Plethora of Acronymic Monikers (POAMs) in government? And how much do they get paid? And... are there any openings?
Posted by: sulleny | 08 May 2008 at 01:19 PM
I wonder how it is inside government labs and departments. A pro oil administration comes in and tells you to work on coal, oil, nuclear and appear to work on other things. You hope they are only there for 4 years and then they get reelected. Oh well, things are set in reverse for 8 years.
Posted by: SJC | 08 May 2008 at 07:31 PM
Good question. And while we're at it, how 'bout we pause to guffaw at the pathetic attempts of these oil swilling politicians to look green. Maybe I'm just grumpy but I think these claims that Bush is an environmentalist are... some kind of guvm'nt plot!
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004400570_apwawildskywilderness.html?syndication=rss
This admin is neither an enviro or mentalist. Unless it's a DE-mentalist.
Posted by: sulleny | 09 May 2008 at 09:43 AM