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The Magazine for Research and Innovation | Special Edition: Green Technologies
www.siemens.com/pof
Tomorrow’s
Power Grids
How Vehicles, Cities and Alterna-
tive Energy Sources will Interact
Energy
Efficiency Renewable Energy
Squeezing Better Results out
of Today’s Technologies Solutions for a Sustainable, Low-Carbon Future
Pictures of the Future | Editorial Pictures of the Future
Contents
I n recent weeks there have been signs
that the world may have left the worst of
the financial and economic crisis behind —
vehicles at night, when electricity is
cheaper, and sell it during the day at peak
prices. Electric vehicles will also have an
Energy Efficiency
and already some people are playing down important stabilizing function. Just a few
the causes of the worst crisis in 80 years. hundred thousand electric vehicles con-
However, we shouldn't ignore a simple nected to the power grid would provide 66 Scenario 2025
fact: activities aimed exclusively at short- more “balancing power” than Germany Energy-Saving Sleuth
term gains don't create long-term value! currently needs to cover its demand peaks. 68 Urban Energy Analysis
This is particularly true when it comes The most reliable, cheapest, and most Cities: A Better Energy Picture
to climate change. Current efforts to limit environmentally-friendly source of energy 71 Trends: Energy for Everyone
warming are based on the expectation that is reduced consumption. That’s why there’s Light at the End of the Tunnel
the global community will set course to- a huge need for energy-efficient technolo- 73 World’s Largest Gas Turbine
ward a sustainable future. The aim is to im- gies (p. 66-125). Experts expect worldwide Unmatched Efficiency
prove the balance between environmental, demand for such technologies to grow by 76 Coal-Fired Power in China
economic and social interests. 13 percent annually in the coming decade. Olympic Efficiencies
One of the most significant factors af- A large part of our product range is aimed 78 Steam Turbine Materials
fecting the achievement of this goal is how at this future market, which could be worth Preparing for a Fiery Future
more than €2 trillion by 2020. We provide 82 CO2 Separation
the most energy-efficient and high-per- Coal’s Cleaner Outlook
88
CO2 Sequestration
Testing Eternal Incarceration
Power Plant Upgrades
2 Pictures of the Future Special Edition on Green Technologies | Fall 2009 Pictures of the Future Special Edition on Green Technologies | Fall 2009 3
Interview | Hans Joachim Schellnhuber
In his report, British economist Sir Nicholas marine life would also have to adapt. Second, Are greater efficiency and renewable What can a global company like Siemens think there’s a good chance that policy in Wash-
Stern warns that the world economy is in the atmosphere would be more heavily laden energy enough? do about the climate challenge? ington will change. The U.S. probably won’t
danger. Stern says the concentration of with water vapor and energy, resulting in in- Schellnhuber: Not on their own. In particu- Schellnhuber: German companies have the sign up to the Kyoto Protocol, but it could end
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere creasingly violent storms. Third, the variation lar, we’re going to have to use carbon seques- strengths needed to cope with climate change. up setting similar targets. The U.S. might
must be kept below 550 parts per million in precipitation patterns would become more tration. That means whenever carbon is com- Don’t forget, people used to poke fun at Ger- change as Europe has. Here, many people did-
(ppm) if global warming is to be limited extreme, meaning even less rain in places busted, the CO2 must be captured rather than mans because of our concern for the environ- n’t want to recognize warming. They thought
to a maximum of two to three degrees where there is already little rainfall, and vice being emitted into the atmosphere. This is ment. But our industry can help launch a new there would be another 50 years to go before
Celsius. Do you agree? versa. Just one consequence of this would be most effective in biomass power plants — industrial revolution — and even post good the train would derail. But today I sense a
Schellnhuber: Two to three degrees — that increasing desertification. And fourth, because that way, the net amount of carbon in the at- earnings in the process — which will one day growing interest among people.
doesn’t sound like much, but it is. The temper- of the greater temperature difference between mosphere is reduced. In addition, the operat- lead to a zero-emissions society. Invest now,
ature rise between the last ice age and the cur- land and sea, Europe would face the prospect ing life of existing nuclear power plants could and you’ll later have the advantage of being Has the Stern Report brought about a real
rent temperate period was only five degrees, of a monsoon effect. be extended, since their associated dangers able to supply your technology to the major sea change in opinion?
yet what a difference those five degrees have are low compared to those of global warming. markets of the future, such as China and India. Schellnhuber: Years of warnings from scien-
made for the world! But let me spell out in de- How much would it cost to meet the On the other hand, their contribution to gen- tists have weakened those who argued that
tail what the Stern Report says. Even if we two-degree target? erating capacity cannot be boosted substan- Where does the U.S. fit into this equation? global warming was a fantasy. Now Stern has
Schellnhuber: According to Stern, we would tially without ramping up the industry to And do you think it will start to control its managed to tear down the last remaining walls
have to invest around one percent of world reprocess spent plutonium — or building greenhouse emissions before it’s too late? of resistance by taking the facts and calculating
Why Carbon Dioxide Emissions GDP in order to limit global warming to be-
tween two and three degrees. His report relies
thousands of new nuclear power plants. In my
opinion, however, the gains from extending
Schellnhuber: Countries like India and China,
which are consuming increasing amounts of
their economic impact. His arguments will
carry a lot of weight, because when it comes
heavily on model calculations produced by our the operating life of nuclear facilities should energy, will continue to point the finger at the to politics, economic arguments count.
Need to be Cut in Half by 2050 institute as part of an international comparative be channeled into developing alternative U.S. as long as it fails to cut emissions. But I Interview conducted by Jeanne Rubner
project. We adopted new methods of economic energy sources.
analysis, because earlier studies on the costs of
meet the 550 ppm target, we will still face a protecting the atmosphere, mainly originating Do you think the industry will cooperate
Prof. Hans Joachim 90-percent probability of global warming of in the U.S., were based on false premises. They in this reorientation of the world’s energy The Cost of Climate Change
more than two degrees. That’s pretty alarming. barely took account of technological advances system?
Schellnhuber is Director
I would tighten Stern’s demand and stipulate in the use of environmentally friendly energy Schellnhuber: Yes, if conditions are right.
of the Institute for Climate an upper limit of 450 ppm. That way, there’s a sources and therefore came to an unrealistically Governments must establish guidelines and According to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the 650-page Stern Report, which was
Impact Research in Pots- 50-percent probability that global warming high figure. According to our results, even the set targets. I think it’s sensible for each country submitted on October 30 of last year, was the most important document produced during his entire
dam. Schellnhuber, 59, will be limited to two degrees, although a 50- cost of sticking to the two-degree limit is less to draw up its own roadmap, and then to time in office. The author, Sir Nicholas Stern, was a government advisor to Blair. Blair himself has de-
was one of the first re- 50 chance is not particularly reassuring either. than one percent of global economic output. combine these into a kind of world road atlas. fined climate change as a key political challenge. Indeed, the World Economic Forum in Davos at the
searchers to investigate Basically, to be sure of meeting the two-degree Stern has factored in a safety margin, making There’s no escaping the fact that we need to end of January of this year supported Blair’s point of view, revealing a real consensus, particularly
limit, we would have to cut emissions to below his calculation more pessimistic than ours. halve global CO2 emissions by 2050, compared among participants from leading industrial nations, that action on climate change is urgently needed.
the consequences of cli- 400 ppm in the long term. to 1990 levels. And industrial countries should According to Stern, a former Chief Economist at the World Bank, if the concentration of greenhouse
mate change. The physi- And what would be the costs of doing really be reducing carbon emissions by 60 to gases in the atmosphere isn’t kept below 550 parts per million (ppm), there will be grave conse-
cist was also Research Why two degrees? Is that, so to speak, nothing at all? 80 percent, because they’ve produced much quences for the world economy. By way of comparison, the level of greenhouse gases at the beginning
Director at the Tyndall the point of no return if we are to get Schellnhuber: At least ten times higher than more CO2 than developing countries. of the Industrial Revolution was 280 ppm, while today’s figure is 430 ppm — and currently rising by
Centre for Climate a handle on global warming? the costs of protecting the atmosphere, that is 2.3 ppm a year. If we succeed in limiting greenhouse gases to 550 ppm, there will be global warming
Schellnhuber: It’s not a hard and fast line, to say somewhere between ten and 20 percent How effective is emissions trading? of between two and three
Change in Norwich (UK)
Interview conducted in areas; human civilization as we know it would lights, low-consumption vehicles, and lots velop a successor agreement to Kyoto. Then, percent reduction from the current level — with a world economy degrees Celsius could end
have to be reinvented. What’s more, because more. Developing renewable energy sources over the next five to ten years, important deci- that will be three or four times larger than today’s (i.e., they will up costing as much as one
Spring, 2007. of the direct CO2 transfer from the atmosphere, is, by comparison, more expensive, but it is sions are going to have to be made regarding have to fall by 75 percent per unit of GDP). fifth of world GDP per year.
the oceans would become more acidic, and imperative in the long term. the modernization of a lot of power plants.
4 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 5
Interview | Steven Chu | Facts and Forecasts Top 10 CO2 Emitters
0% 5% 10% 15% 20%
Are we on the edge of a climate crisis? allow buyers and renters to compare energy
U.S.
Chu: Climate change is a real threat to our requirements for different buildings. Guess
long-term future. The issue is, what will
happen if temperatures go up two degrees,
four degrees, six degrees Celsius and so on?
what this would do? It would encourage
homeowners at least one year before
deciding to sell or rent out their property
The Sources of China
A six degree reduction in average global
temperature is the difference between what
we have today and what was experienced
to seal major leaks, put in more insulation,
and possibly install more energy-efficient
heaters, air conditioners, etc. This would also
Greenhouse Gases Russia
during the Ice Age. And six degrees on the help home owners and builders to do a better
Source: IEA, Germanwatch — Klimaschutzindex 2009. Reference value: energy-related CO2 emissions
plus side would also be a very different world. initial job of making new homes energy
The glaciers on Greenland would have a good
chance of melting away. Parts of Antarctica
would melt. If these things happen, sea
efficient because they would appear more
attractive to prospective buyers. What would
this cost? Almost nothing. The utility compa-
A bout one third of the approximately 44.2 billion
tons of CO2e that are emitted annually around the
world as greenhouse gases comes from agriculture,
CO2e. More than two-thirds of the greenhouse gas emis-
sions (currently about 28 billion tons of CO2e) are ener-
gy-related, meaning they are caused by people’s energy
Japan
levels would increase by seven to ten meters. nies already have records of electricity and forestry, land clearing measures and waste. “CO2e” refers consumption. The emissions result from electricity gen-
India
Bangladesh would be half underwater. What’s gas use on every home. So why not provide to CO2 equivalents. Other greenhouse gases — including eration in power plants, generation of heat, and fuel
methane, laughing gas, fluorocarbons and industrial combustion by transport vehicles. In Germany, about 87
gases (e.g. sulfur hexafluoride) — are converted into percent of greenhouse gases result from energy use,
Germany
these equivalents to show their global warming potential while the remaining 13 percent come from other sour-
Prescriptions for a Threatened Planet compared to carbon dioxide (CO2). Methane’s global
warming potential, for example, is 21 times that of CO2,
with one ton of methane corresponding to 21 tons of
ces, including agriculture and the chemicals industry.
Power generation is the source of nearly 40 percent
of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The largest Canada
he was director of the instance, we don’t know what the tipping Chu: I think we should take a fresh look at 15
of total world gross
domestic product
Lawrence Berkeley point is for the release of the CO2 that is geothermal from the local level with the use 2030 South of total world population
6 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 7
Pictures of the Future | Environmental Portfolio
Why Climate Change pledged to work to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. This is
also the target being pushed by climate experts on the Intergovernmen-
tal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It’s clearly time for the world to act.
According to a study conducted by British economist Sir Nicholas Stern,
folio, which lists all products and solutions that help protect the environ-
ment and battle climate change. The list accounts for more than 25 per-
cent of the company’s sales, and in 2009 amounted to €23 billion —
much more than any competitor. In the same period of time, Siemens
Is Powering Growth the consequences of extreme weather or a rise in sea levels could im-
pact the global economy and necessitate expenditures of between five
and 20 percent of gross world product (GWP).
On the other hand, implementation of effective measures to combat
climate change would cost much less. Limiting the rise of average global
customers reduced their carbon dioxide emissions by 210 million metric
tons, which is more than 40 times the level of CO2 that Siemens itself
produces.
Independent auditing company PricewaterhouseCoopers regularly
confirms the validity of the Siemens Environmental Portfolio and the
temperature to under two degrees, for example, would require an esti- savings it has generated, as well as the method Siemens used to calcu-
Siemens’ leadership in products and solutions designed to protect the mated investment of only around one percent of GWP a year. Such an in- late the savings. The Siemens Environmental Portfolio is expanding at an
environment and the climate is worth a bundle. In fiscal year 2009 the vestment would make ecological sense, and in most cases economic average annual rate of ten percent and will easily achieve the initial tar-
company posted sales of €23 billion in this area and helped its customers sense as well — after all, it would provide many companies with oppor- get the company set of €25 billion by 2011. Siemens also has ambitious
tunities to achieve sustainable growth. goals for its own environmental protection activities. In 2007, the com-
reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by 210 million metric tons. For many years, Siemens has been a leader in environmentally- pany emitted a total of 5.1 million tons of CO2 equivalent. This figure
friendly power generation and distribution, as well as energy-efficient consists of all emissions generated by energy consumption for electricity
products ranging from lighting systems and drive units to building tech- and heat, direct greenhouse gas emissions and emissions produced
Power Transmission:
5,000 MW Energy Highway
High-voltage direct-current power transmission
(HVDC) has proven to be a very effective tech-
nique for transmitting electricity over long dis-
tances with minimal losses. An example is an
HVDC “electricity highway” being built in China
between Yunnan Province in the southwest and
Guangdong Province in the south. In mid-2010,
this HVDC line will begin transmitting 5,000
megawatts of environmentally friendly electricity
from hydropower plants over a distance of 1,400
kilometers at 800 kilovolts. Other ecological
power transmission and distribution systems
from Siemens include power grid links for off-
shore wind parks, gas-insulated transmission
Mass Transit: lines, gas-insulated transformers, and the Siplink
Server Farms:
Cutting Energy Bills by 30% DC coupler, which eliminates the need for diesel
Achieving 80% Utilization
The transportation sector accounts for 25 to 30 generators on docked ships. Rapidly growing data volumes and ever-more
percent of global end-consumer energy con- powerful computers are pushing up energy
sumption. And mobility is going to substantially consumption and putting a strain on the envi-
increase in the future, which means transporta- ronment. Experts have calculated that computer
Combined Cycle Power Plants: Light-Emitting Diodes: tion must become more environmentally servers around the world require the complete
Achieving 58% Efficiency Saving up to 900 Billion Kilowatt Hours friendly. The Velaro high-speed train — the output of 14 power plants in the 1,000-mega-
The most environmentally- and climate-friendly conventional power plants are The use of efficient lighting technology could reduce global electricity con- world’s fastest rail vehicle — requires the equiva- watt class. Siemens’ “Transformational Data
combined cycle gas and steam facilities that use natural gas. Such plants have sumption by more than 900 billion kilowatt-hours per year, which is twice the lent of only two liters of gasoline per person and Center” Environmental Portfolio component
a peak efficiency of more than 58 percent, and their CO2 emissions per kilo- annual electricity consumption of France. Based on the current worldwide 100 kilometers when half full. The consistent balances economy, ecology, and flexibility by
watt-hour (g CO2/kWh) are only around 345 grams. The corresponding aver- electricity mix, such a reduction would also lower CO2 emissions by more than lightweight design of subway trains in Oslo has addressing all aspects of a server farm, from
age figures for coal-fired plants worldwide are 30 percent peak efficiency and 500 million metric tons per year. Energy-saving lamps from Osram boast a reduced energy consumption by 30 percent. planning and construction to operation and
1,115 g CO2/kWh. The Siemens Environmental Portfolio therefore includes the high level of luminous efficiency and use up to 80 percent less electricity than Road traffic energy efficiency can be improved outsourcing. It also includes systems for active
modernization of old coal-fired plants. The company’s technicians recently light bulbs. They also last up to 15 times longer. LEDs are the light sources of as well — by using LEDs in traffic lights, for ex- energy management and computer center
raised the efficiency of the Farge plant operated by E.ON by three percentage the future. These semiconductor compounds directly convert electricity into ample. Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio for the automation. The Transformational Data Center
points to 45 percent — an improvement that reduces annual CO2 emissions by light and last for more than 50,000 hours. Like energy-saving lamps, LEDs con- transportation sector also includes traffic and has enabled Siemens-operated server farms to
100,000 tons. The Environmental Portfolio for fossil power generation also in- sume up to 80 percent less electricity than light bulbs. Siemens’ Environmental parking management systems, airport naviga- increase their capacity utilization to more than
cludes fuel cells, heat and power co-generation, and power plant control Portfolio also includes fluorescent lamps and electronic ballasts, Halogen En- tion lighting, and rail traffic automation and 80 percent, which in turn lowers energy con-
technology. ergy Savers, and high-intensity discharge lamps. power supply systems. sumption.
8 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 9
Pictures of the Future | Environmental Portfolio
through business trips. By comparison, automakers produced two to five eration sector as well. The average efficiency rating for coal-fired power Corporate Technology and the Siemens Sectors have also calculated for product of the 233 g CO2/kWh difference and the amount of electricity
times more emissions per employee — and oil companies generate plants worldwide is 30 percent. Siemens technology achieves a 47 per- the first time the greenhouse gas savings potential for each Siemens generated annually at new combined cycle plants installed by Siemens
around 200 times that level. Despite its relatively low CO2 footprint, cent efficiency rating, however, and combined cycle plants will soon product and solution. Their calculations are based on a before-after during the corresponding business year equals the emission reduction.
Siemens is determined to achieve a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse reach 60 percent. Consumers can also do their part — for example, by comparison specific to each product or solution, such as the effect of a Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio reduced annual CO2 emissions for
gas emissions relative to sales by 2011, as compared to 2006 levels. using energy-saving lamps and light diodes, both of which consume 80 power plant modernization, or the impact that energy performance con- the company’s customers by 210 million metric tons in 2009. In fact,
The growing concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has a major im- percent less electricity than incandescent light bulbs. New refrigerators tracting has on energy optimization in buildings. products and solutions installed during 2009 alone led to savings of 62
pact on climate change — and we must do everything in our power to can also help, as these require as much as 75 percent less energy to op- Direct comparisons were also made with a reference technology. For million metric tons. That total is set to increase to 300 million tons by
diminish this trend. There’s still time to act. Most of the technology erate than 1990 models. example, emission reductions resulting from the use of low-loss, high- 2011, which corresponds to more than the current CO2 emissions of Tokyo,
needed to do so is already available. London offers a good example. Ac- Siemens is the only company able to offer efficiency-enhancing prod- voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission systems were calculated New York City, London, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Rome combined.
cording to a study conducted by McKinsey on ucts, solutions, and green technologies across through a comparison of emis- Siemens has firmly embedded
behalf of Siemens, the British capital could the entire value chain. It offers everything sions generated by conventional its Environmental Portfolio
cut its CO2 emissions by 44 percent between Environmental Portfolio: from equipment for power generation, trans- AC transmission. The experts Siemens Cuts CO2 by as into its business strategy. The
now and 2025 using solutions already avail- €25 billion by 2011 mission, and distribution to energy-saving also compared new facilities much as the Emissions Rome ~ 15 Mt company consistently ad-
10 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 11
Renewable Energy | Scenario 2030
Highlights
14 African Sunlight for Europe
The goal of the Desertec
Industrial initiative is to help
Europe meet its future energy
requirements by supplying solar
power from North Africa. By
2050, 15 to 20 percent of
Europe’s energy requirements
may be met by solar imports. This
would require 2,500 sq km of
desert for solar power plants and
3,500 sq km for transmission lines
throughout the entire EU-MENA
region. The technology to do it
exists today.
20 High-Altitude Harvest
Siemens has built the world’s
largest offshore wind farm on the
North Sea off the Danish coast.
There, 91 turbines pump around
210 megawatts of electrical
power into the network – enough
to supply over 136,000 house-
holds with electricity. The rotors
are so stable they can withstand
hurricanes.
Morocco in 2030.
Karim works as an engineer in the
The Electric Caravan
2030
Harvesting electricity in 2030. A solar ther-
world’s largest solar thermal
mal power plant in the Moroccan desert
covers 100 square kilometers, which makes power plant, which transmits
energy from the desert to
it the world’s largest installation of its kind.
Using HVDCT lines, the electricity is trans-
mitted as direct current at 1000 kilovolts to
faraway Europe. Every evening he T he reflected image of the man walking past
the glittering parabolic mirrors is oddly dis-
torted. It wanders like a mirage through the
want to miss the daily evening show. Before the
sun sets he wants to reach the hill above the
“frying pan” — his colleagues’ name for a huge
missed in the five years since he was sent here
to help manage the world’s biggest solar ther-
mal power plant.
the coast, where it transforms salt water takes the time to admire the seemingly endless row of mirrors, stops briefly solar thermal installation in the Moroccan Together with his colleagues, he lives and
into pure drinking water. From there, it is sunset above the countless rows and then continues on its way. There’s not a desert. works in a small settlement on the edge of the
transmitted across the sea to Europe, where breath of wind, and even though the sun is now In the glow of sunset, the level field of installation. With the help of thousands of sen-
it provides clean power to many countries.
of parabolic mirrors. But today low, the temperature is still over 30 degrees Cel- countless mirrors is transformed into a sea of sors, solar thermal power experts here monitor
he’s not doing it alone. sius. Karim is in a hurry, because he doesn’t red flames. It’s a spectacle Karim has never yet the power plant, which covers 100 square kilo-
14 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 15
Reliable and highly flexible steam turbines from
Renewable Energy | Solar Energy
Siemens, such as the SST-700, are ideal for the
special requirements of solar-thermal power plants
(right: Solel’s Lebrija plant in Spain).
now being refined in the DII. A retired physi- According to estimates by Greenpeace, De- optimize the facility’s yield, the mirrors con-
cist, Knies’ favorite quote is from Albert Ein- sertec would lead to the creation of some two tinuously track the sun to within one-tenth of
stein, who said: “We can’t solve problems by million jobs in participating countries by 2050. a degree of arc. The light they reflect is chan-
using the same kind of thinking we used when Dr. René Umlauft, CEO of Siemens’ Renew- neled into vacuum-insulated receiver tubes
we created them.” able Energy Division, has supported the initia- that contain a special oil that is heated to
Knies believes this logic fits in very well tive from the start. “Desertec can make a key nearly 400 degrees Celsius. The oil later trans-
with the issue of climate change brought contribution when it comes to establishing a fers its heat to water in heat exchangers,
about by CO2 emissions, as this development sustainable energy supply system,” he says. thereby creating steam.
can only be counteracted by revamping the “And with the solutions from its Environmental “At that point, a solar-thermal plant begins
energy supply system. Over the years, he has Portfolio, Siemens is the right technology part- operating like a conventional facility,” says
put together an impressive group of support- ner for this visionary project, many of the ele- Umlauft. That’s because the downstream
ers, including TREC, the Club of Rome, DLR, ments of which have already been imple- “power block,” in which electricity is generated
and Prince Hassan of Jordan. mented in Europe.” from steam, employs the proven technology
used in steam-turbine plants.
But solar-thermal plants have special re-
Desertec: 100 gigawatts of installed capacity would quirements with regard to turbine size and on such days,” says Valerio Fernandez, Director competitive prices in many regions in Europe. as little heat as possible is lost during the heat
cover 15 to 20 percent of Europe’s electricity needs. flexibility. For one thing, turbines in certain of Operations and Maintenance at Abengoa But things weren’t always this way. Thirty exchange process between the hot heat trans-
types of solar plants need to be able to start up Solar, which operates Solnova. “The turbine years ago, it cost around €3 million to install fer agent and the steam.
very quickly when the sun rises. That’s one therefore has to be flexible enough to make up one MW of onshore wind-power output, while Fernandez thus expects that the initial in-
“We all understood that putting a halt to For instance, Siemens is the market leader reason why many solar power plant operators for these fluctuations.” today it costs only €1 million. Experts expect a vestment per MW of installed generating ca-
climate change would require CO2-free tech- in the construction of new offshore wind tur- opt for customized Siemens technology. In As the morning sun rises, Fernandez in- similar development with regard to solar-ther- pacity will soon decrease. “So far we’ve been
nologies like wind power, geothermal systems bines, many of which can be found on Euro- May 2009, Siemens opened a new turbine pro- spects the Solnova construction site, where mal power. Here, the high cost at the moment producing mostly one-of-a-kind equipment
and, above all, solar-thermal facilities — all on pean seas (see p. 20), and it has, through duction hall in Görlitz, Germany, that produces workers are busy tightening bolts and assem- is mainly due to the initial investment. For ex- and procuring special components, like re-
a mass scale,” he says. Whereas Müller-Stein- Solel, strengthened its capability to offer the the SST-700, the world market leader when it bling and polishing equipment. “On the whole ample, a 50-MW facility with heat storage ceiver tubes, from small production series. But
hagen is one of Desertec’s technology design- key components for the construction of para- comes to parabolic trough power plants. In in Seville we have very good conditions for costs around €300 million, which has to be when mass production for solar-thermal plants
ers, Knies got the associated political process bolic trough power plants from a single source fact, Siemens’ share of this market is more solar-thermal power plants. About 210 days a paid off over the plant’s useful life, which can begins, investment and power generation
moving. His work culminated in the launch of and to further enhance the efficiency of these than 80 percent. Together with control sys- year of perfect sunshine, from morning to extend up to 40 years. costs will fall dramatically,” he predicts.
the implementation phase in the summer of plants. Siemens technology can be found in tems from Siemens, the SST-700 turbine is evening,” says Fernandez. The Spanish feed-in Heat storage isn’t cheap, as indicated by ex-
2009, when a consortium was established and solar power plants built by other companies as also being used in another power plant in An- law for subsidizing solar-thermal power has isting systems at the European Center for Solar Perfect Match. Industrial consolidation is
support was obtained from companies such as well. At the beginning of 2009, for example, dalusia: Solnova 1 in Sanlúcar la Mayor, near triggered a real boom. Since 2006, producers Energy Activities, the Plataforma Solar de proving helpful in this context. The acquisition
Siemens. the Andasol parabolic trough plant went on- Seville. Power generation was scheduled to have been entitled to receive a maximum of Almería, as well as in Andasol. But by storing of Solel Solar Systems by Siemens in October
The DII intends to develop business plans line in Andalusia, Spain. begin at the facility in late 2009. approximately €0.27 per kWh from the gov- heat produced during the day, both locations 2009 is a case in point. Solel has decades of
and financing concepts to supply the MENA re- SST-700 turbines are already in operation in ernment, and civil servants are being buried in can generate electricity at night as well. Up experience in the development and manufac-
gion and Europe with power produced using Just Follow the Sun. The Andasol plant is many CSP plants around the world. The model applications. until now, large insulated tanks containing ture of solar field equipment, including the
solar and wind energy ressources. The goal is equipped with curved parabolic mirrors laid is popular due to its reliability and specifica- liquid salts with a melting point of around 200 high-tech receivers. In addition the company is
to build a belt of solar-thermal power plants in out in long rows covering an area of 500,000 tions — which are very well-suited to the size Big Up-front Investment. Depending on the degrees Celsius have mostly been used as stor- active in the planning and construction of
North Africa and the Middle East, which would square meters. These mirrors will enable the class currently in operation — and its flexibil- location and sunlight intensity, it now costs up age media. Researchers at DLR and other facili- solar fields. This is a complementary fit with
be linked via high-voltage lines with local con- plant, which will consist of three complexes in ity. “This is important because in Seville we to €0.23 to produce a kWh of electricity, which ties are now trying to find ways to reduce the traditional Siemens competencies for the
sumers and European countries. Plans call for its final expansion stage, to generate 150 MW have light cloud cover about 90 days a year. is relatively high. Electricity from wind power, costs by altering the storage media or fine- power block, where steam is transformed into
achieving a capacity of 100 gigawatts (GW) in all, and 176 GWh per complex and year. To The plant’s output can fluctuate considerably on the other hand, can already be produced at tuning power plant components to ensure that electrical energy, as Umlauft from Siemens
and the supply of 700 terawatt-hours (TWh) confirms: “Siemens and Solel are a perfect
per year by 2050, which would cover 15 to 20 match. We are the market leader in steam
percent of Europe’s electricity needs. turbines for solar thermal power plants and,
Obviously, these plants could meet an even Areas with the Best Potential for Solar-Thermal Facilities with the power block, we can offer a key part
higher share of energy demand in the dynami- Desertec’s Energy Mix for solar power plants.”
cally growing countries in which they would Solar-thermal power plants Hydroelectric Bringing the ability to supply the most
be located. The electricity requirement in the Photovoltaic Biomass important key components under one roof
MENA Region (Middle East and North Africa) is Wind Geothermal opens up greater possibilities for enhancing
Power lines (e.g. HVDC, with extensions)
expected to increase five-fold over the next 30 efficiencies of the integrated solution, thinks
to 40 years, to 3,500 TWh. “Solar-thermal Avi Brenmiller, CEO of Solel Solar Systems:
m
plants and wind power facilities could, for ex- 2.000 k “Together, we will utilize our know-how in
ample, play a key role in the energy-intensive these core competencies to further optimize
desalination of seawater,” says Knies. the water/steam cycle and to further boost the
Moreover, because as much as 80 percent efficiency of solar thermal power plants.”
Source: Desertec Foundation
16 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 17
Renewable Energy | Solar Energy
future technology is that unlike oil, which ages enter service in 2010. Archimede tubes are for solar power because the Nile can provide plus, which could be transmitted to Europe. transported 1,400 kilometers (see p.44). “Such The key issue with solar-thermal power to-
with frequent temperature changes and thus already being used at a solar field in southern sufficient cooling water for the condensers in Clearly, in such a case, losses must be mini- HVDC lines are like electricity highways,” says day is no longer feasibility but the ability to
must be replaced, molten salt can remain in Italy. the steam cycle. However, condensers can also mized — and this is where high-voltage direct Retzmann. “We’re going to need them in Eu- achieve efficiency in large-scale applications.
the cycle. It also allows operation at tempera- Instead of using special oil or molten salt, be cooled in dry regions using air, although ef- current transmission (HVDC) comes in. rope when we expand our grid and large The main issue for the MENA Region is to en-
tures up to 550 degrees Celsius, which boosts it’s also possible to produce steam directly in ficiency in this case is 20 percent lower. Such amounts of electricity from wind power facili- sure continued stable economic development
efficiency because the steam that drives the absorber tubes. This eliminates the need for an approach might make sense in parts of Al- Electricity Highway. “Transferring power via ties will have to be moved great distances.” and a reliable supply of energy for desalination
turbine can also be brought to higher temper- an expensive heat transfer agent, as water can geria, for example, where stone deserts offer conventional AC lines over thousands of kilo- Desertec might therefore become a key plants which produce drinking water. The wa-
atures and pressures. be used to generate steam directly. Together an optimal location for solar-thermal power meters from Africa to Europe would lead to component of tomorrow’s energy networks. ter table in Sanaa, Yemen, for example, is sink-
What’s more, the use of salt eliminates the with the DLR, Siemens has been working on plants for a different reason: There are no sand huge losses,” says Dr. Dietmar Retzmann, Sie- The project provides solutions in three key ar- ing at the rate of six meters per year, according
need for high-loss heat exchangers because the associated technology for many years. storms that could damage mirrors. mens’ leading expert for HVDC transmission eas, according to Michael Weinhold, chief to Müller-Steinhagen. In Egypt, new water
the salt in the receiver tubes can also be used Thanks to the major advances achieved so far, Algeria is the site for the future Hassi R’Mel technology. “Such losses can be greatly redu- technologist at Siemens Energy. “Energy sys- sources with a volume equivalent to the entire
as the storage medium and can be pumped it will be possible to operate some of the para- power plant, a 160-MW facility currently under ced by using HVDC lines and undersea cables.” tems must be effective in terms of three di- flow of the Nile need to be tapped by 2050.
into an insulated tank as well. After it cools, bolic collectors at the Andasol-3 power plant construction that combines a conventional gas HVDC loses only around ten percent of power mensions,” he says, “economy, environment, Desalination at solar-thermal facilities could
the salt flows back into the receiver, where it with such a direct steam generation system. and steam turbine plant with solar technology. over 3,000 kilometers — that’s roughly the and security. Desertec will be good for the en- meet a large portion of this requirement. In
again “harvests” solar energy. Conditions for solar power generation are The facility will initially generate electricity for distance from the southern end of the Sahara vironment, it will be designed in an economi- conjunction with modern technology, the sun
Construction of a new factory for produc- even more favorable in the deserts of the U.S. the local market. However, with the construc- to Central Europe. Siemens is now building the cal manner, and it will enhance European en- that beats down on this region, could one day
ing Archimede receivers in northern Italy has and North Africa than in southern Spain. tion of more and more power plants, North most powerful HVDC connection in the world ergy security because it will substantially be bringing water, electricity, and life to the
begun this year; the facility is expected to Egypt, for example, is considered to be ideal Africa will eventually have an electricity sur- in China, where 5,000 MW of power will be reduce dependence on fossil fuel imports.” desert. Andreas Kleinschmidt
with designers and facility capacity of at least 50 megawatts, could grad- just one percentage point at a time, the cu- up to 550 degrees, thereby increasing the efficiency of the plant. Some compa-
operators, Müller-Steinha- ually go online. That sort of value is common mulative effect over the lifespan of a facility nies are now also testing direct steam generation systems in which water is used
gen’s teams have made solar in Spain today. This approach will work be- could be substantial. The German Aerospace as the heat transfer agent in the receivers and is sent on to the turbine as hot
Source: Siemens
Cold
cause investment costs can be kept at a man- Center is therefore working closely with steam in a closed loop. As a result, a heat exchanger is no longer required. Many Heat transfer
electricity generation much ageable level. And with the right financial in- Siemens in many areas to ensure that the so- solar-thermal plants are also equipped with heat storage so that they can pro-
medium (e.g. salt) Heat storage Water-cooled
condenser
more efficient. Their institute centives, such plants can be operated lar-thermal plants of the future will be built in duce electricity at night as well. Here, steam is either stored directly in heat-insu-
is a global leader in its field. profitably. At the same time, the infrastruc- the near, rather than in the distant, future.
ture needed to transport some of the energy Interview conducted by Andreas Kleinschmidt.
18 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 19
The construction of the world’s largest offshore wind
Renewable Energy | Offshore Wind
farm — the Horns Rev II off Denmark — is a chal-
lenge from the production of rotors and trans-ship-
ment at the harbor to assembly on the open sea.
breeze; others are waiting to be commis- Norway’s pumped storage power plants to be ble that they bend inward considerably in
sioned, while a few more are mere founda- used later during calm weather. Although cur- stormy conditions.”
tions protruding out of the sea. Horns Rev II is rently capable of coping with peak loads and
the name of this wind farm, which is situated stabilizing the network, this arrangement may Robust Blades. Søren Kringelholt Nielsen and
on a sandbank about 30 kilometers off the not be equal to future demands — particularly his 800 employees at Siemens Rotor Blade
Danish coast. The park is still under construc- as the Danish government plans to substan- Manufacturing, which is located 230 kilome-
tion but when completed at the end of 2009, tially expand its use of wind power in coming ters away in Aalborg, ensure that the huge
it will be the largest offshore wind farm in the years. blades are flexible. All the blades for the Euro-
world. A total of 91 turbines from Siemens will And that’s just fine as far as Møller is con- pean market are produced here. The floor of
then be able to pump around 210 MW of elec- cerned. He has been building wind farms for the factory is covered with neat rows of the gi-
trical power into the network — enough to the last ten years and has developed a special gantic rotor blades, each of which is bigger
supply over 136,000 households. bond with his turbines. “Although the work is than the wing of a jumbo jet. The surface of
routine,” he says. “I experience something spe- the blades is so smooth that you can’t see or
World Record for Wind Power. Such su-
perlatives are nothing special by Denmark’s
standards because they are already multiple A wind turbine produces enough energy to boil six
world record holders. This small kingdom is liters of water in just one second.
not only the largest producer of wind power
plants, but also generates 20 percent of its en-
ergy requirements with wind power. In com- cial every time I ascend a windmill and look feel a single seam, while the edges at the tips
parison, Germany, has so far only managed out over the North Sea.” Just in front of him, are nearly as sharp as knives. Despite their
seven percent. Perhaps the figures aren’t so the huge 45-meter rotor blades stretch into size, the aerodynamic blades can be bent by
surprising when you consider that Denmark is the sky, their tips roaring through the air at several centimeters using nothing more than
a windy country and enjoys only ten calm days 220 kilometers per hour and producing your hand.
a year. On really windy days, the windmills can enough energy to boil six liters of water every “This apparent fragility is deceiving,” says
produce half of the country’s electricity, and second. Depending on the strength of the Nielsen, who heads Rotor Blade Manufactur-
on a stormy night, this figure can even rise to wind, it’s possible to alter the white blades’ an- ing in Aalborg. “The blades are extremely ro-
100 percent. gle of attack so that they operate in the most bust. Imagine placing a mid-sized car at the
However, this bounty of green energy does efficient manner. end of a three-kilometer beam. The forces that
have its downside. Because such plants rely on The 82 ton-nacelle can also turn on its own are being placed on the other end of the beam
the wind, long-term energy production plans axis in the wind — courtesy of a computer-con- are the same as those a rotor blade needs to
High-Altitude Harvest
Siemens is building the world’s largest offshore wind farm 30 kilometers from the Danish
coast. The project is both a technical and logistical challenge because the individual com-
ponents are huge, weigh dozens of tons, and must operate flawlessly in the windy North
Sea — even during a hurricane. What’s more, they have to do all this for 20 years or more.
20 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 21
Renewable Energy | Offshore Wind | Floating Wind Farms
22 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 23
Finished blades await shipment (below),
Renewable Energy | Wind Turbines
while new ones are already in the making (right).
Here, huge molds are being removed (center)
from raw blades (left).
— despite their huge size and strength — must In a patented process, wind mill blades are
have an optimal aerodynamic shape right
down to the smallest angle and, most crucially, baked as a single piece — without any seams.
they must be very robust. This is because many
of them are destined for offshore wind farms,
where repair and replacement costs are ex- explains Burchardt, “and once it has been in- “With this method it only takes 48 hours from
tremely high. “The cost to the manufacturer of jected with epoxy resin it turns into a fiber-rein- the first step to a completed blade, instead of
carrying out a repair on the open sea is around forced plastic composite. Unlike products from several days,” says Burchardt with evident pride.
ten times as high as that for an onshore instal- rival manufacturers, our rotor blades don’t con- “That’s one day to place all the fiberglass, and
lation,” says Burchardt. “On the large turbines tain any polyvinyl chloride, which has been as- another to inject and bake. After that the blade
an everyday wind speed of 10 meters per sec- sociated with dioxin. This means they’re not a is adjusted and painted white — it’s a mixture of
ond forces 100 tons of air through the rotor problem to dispose of at the end of their 20 high-tech and skilled handicraft.” Once com-
every second. That requires a robust blade!” year service life, because they are primarily pleted, the rotor blades are delivered by truck or
Extreme quality requirements such as these made of recyclable fiberglass.” ship to customers worldwide, including destina-
have caused many manufacturers to pull out of How can such a length of fabric give a rotor tions as far away as the U.S. and Japan.
the offshore sector. In the meantime, Siemens blade its enormous strength? “The mold is ini-
has not only become the most experienced, tially lined with many layers of fiberglass. In fact Good Vibrations. Before delivery, samples of
but also the largest supplier of offshore wind there are seven metric tons of this material in a the rotor blades have to go through a variety of
turbines. 45-meter blade, and 12 tons in a 52-meter blade. static and dynamic tests. First of all, they are
To enhance stiffness, a layer of wood is placed subjected to 1.3 times the maximum operating
Blade Baking. In the Aalborg facility’s produc- between the fiberglass layers,” says Burchardt. load. To simulate 20 years of material fatigue,
tion hall, which is some 250 meters in length, He indicates the different layers of fiberglass the blades are then mounted on special test
there are huge blade-shaped molds like cake and the wooden mat carefully embedded in beds and made to vibrate around two million
pans, stretching out along the floor and even the midst of the multilayered structure. “The times, before the endurance of the material is
hanging upside down from the ceiling. There’s other side of the blade is made up of the same again tested with a final static test.
not a hint of chemical smell and most workers ingredients and then joined with its mate. But In Brande, a town of 6,000 inhabitants lo-
don’t have to wear special protective clothing. instead of fixing the two sides together with an cated some 150 kilometers south of Aalborg,
24 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 25
Before installation at sea (bottom), Henrik Stiesdal
Renewable Energy | Wind Turbines | Facts and Forecasts
(right) makes sure that everything is perfect —
including turbine assembly (center), and
a final endurance test (left).
Predicted Energy Demand and CO2 Emissions Demand for Renewable Energy in Europe
Source: IEA 2007. 1 Mtoe = 1 million tons oil equivalent = 41.868 PJ (petajoule)
Global demand for primary energy Carbon dioxide emissions
20,000 Sales in millions of US$ Average growth rate (2005 – 2011)
Actual and forecast figures resulting from combustion of energy carriers
between 10 and 13% per year
Renewable energy Gas 18,000
Nuclear energy Coal
with the know-how to build fully functional enough energy to supply my home town of wind turbines are neatly stacked, awaiting in- 16,000
Gas Oil
wind turbines, Denmark experienced a boom Odense and its 185,000 inhabitants, including stallation. On the left are the huge steel nose Coal
17,700
41,900 14,000
that has continued to this day.” households, industry, street lighting and every- caps, which will later adorn the turbine hous- Oil 40,000
15,000 12,000
Although it’s good weather outside — in thing,” he says, before entering a giant hall ing, in the middle the machine nacelles, and on Millions of tons (Mtoe)
Millions of tons
the Danish sense — Stiesdal is evidently con- where turbines are produced. the right the gigantic rotor hubs, each of which 30,000 10,000
tent to remain in his cozy office. From a drawer weighs around 35 tons. The blades from Aal- 10,000 8,000
8,755 20,688
he produces a chronology of wind power 500-ton Giants. Here, massive metal nacelles, borg are delivered straight to the site of installa- 20,000
6,000
technology and places it on his desk. “The first each containing a 2.3-megawatt machine, are tion. The various components for the towers,
5,000
26 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 27
Renewable Energy | Renewable Resources | Interview Oberheitmann
Developing Countries
Tsinghua University in average to generate one euro’s worth of GDP.
Beijing. Oberheitmann However, because the renminbi is significantly
previously worked at the undervalued at the moment, the difference
RWI economic research is not as great in terms of purchasing power
parity.
institute in Essen.
The boom in renewable energy sources is benefiting developing countries, His activities at RCIEP That isn’t good news for the climate...
especially in remote areas not connected to power grids. It is also leading to focus on a program Oberheitmann: That’s right, unfortunately.
environmental projects in large emerging markets such as India and China. sponsored by the GTZ China is expected to surpass the U.S. within
technical cooperation the next two years as the number one pro-
ducer of CO2 emissions. China already emits
organization that seeks
Bank invests $3.6 billion per year in energy Still, Cabraal warns, the green energy revolution 6.1 billion tons of CO2 per year, and that figure
projects, half of which focus on tapping renew- will require a huge amount of technological ex- to develop practical will climb by ten billion tons by 2020. If drastic
able sources and improving energy efficiency. pertise and planning. solutions to problems measures aren’t taken, China will play a key
Toward the End of 2007 the World Bank It’s a massive challenge, and mistakes are associated with climate role in pushing up CO2 emissions worldwide.
launched the “Lighting Africa” initiative. The easily made. The Capgemini consulting firm, protection in developing
goal of the initiative is to provide up to 250 mil- for example, claims that Beijing’s plans to in- Does China need to undergo the indus-
countries.
lion people in Sub-Saharan Africa with access crease China’s capacity by 950 gigawatts (or trial revolution process as we know it in
to electrical lighting. Lack of lighting is one rea- 1,000 power plants) between 2006 and 2020 the West? Can’t it start using environ-
son why millions of children in Africa can’t will result in a 30 percent shortfall. It’s also mentally friendly energy sources now?
study at night. With this in mind, Siemens sub- clear that the global climate problem cannot be Oberheitmann: Yes and no. History is repeat-
sidiary Osram has become the world’s first solved by micro power plants or distributed so- Interview conducted ing itself — but at a much faster pace, with
lighting systems manufacturer to replace mil- lar cell facilities alone. Says Opitz: “It will be in Spring, 2008. some stages being skipped. That’s an argu-
lions of light bulbs in Africa and Asia with en- some time before the world can stop using big ment to get China to sign up to environmental
ergy-saving lamps. In line with the Kyoto Proto- power plants.” Jeanne Rubner protection. It’s true that the industrialized
28 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 29
Renewable Energy | Interview Wan Gang
countries have largely produced the CO2 that’s Professor Wan, you’ve been China’s Min- the first developing country to draw up a gov- that reality still doesn’t correspond to of- vations and then brings its products to market
accumulated in the atmosphere to date — ister of Science and Technology for half a ernment concept for addressing climate change. ficially stated intentions here. What is worldwide. China’s industry, which is relatively
with the U.S. accounting for around 27 percent year now. What challenges does China This concept focuses on fundamental, techno- China doing to correct this? young, is still unable to keep up with such
and China only 8 percent. However, China will face in these fields? logical, and applications research, and also in- Wan: China has made a major effort to ad- processes from either a strategic or a financial
account for a major share of future emissions. Wan: You have to look at things from two dif- cludes measures for getting the public invol- dress this issue over the last few years. We perspective. That’s why government support is
ferent perspectives. China has achieved very ved in the process. One way we do this is by joined the WTO in 2001, and we’ve also signed so important, especially when it comes to
China’s energy policy seems inconsistent great economic successes since opening up to explaining to people what could be achieved if international agreements and established a le- bringing companies, universities, and research
at times. The Chinese put a new coal-fired the West, and it’s well on the way to industrial- everyone turned up their air conditioning ther- gal system for dealing with these matters. Nu- institutes together. Let’s look at fuel cell vehi-
power plant into operation every few ization. This progress has led to many positive mostat one degree, left their cars home for one merous legal proceedings have been carried cles again. The government coordinated coop-
days, but the government also addresses things — but it’s also created problems in day, used environmentally friendly detergents out and many court rulings have been made eration between experts from universities, re-
environmental issues… terms of energy security, environmental pro- etc. In this way, we sensitize people to the fact that protect intellectual property in China. We search centers, and the automotive industry
Oberheitmann: Economic growth requires tection, and climate change. We’re now that everyone can contribute to environmental know we still need to do more, and we there- here in order to develop key components and
energy. To get it, China must install between 60 searching for ways to achieve sustainable de- protection and help stop climate change. fore continue to work hard on further improv- drive systems. We then installed the technol-
and 100 gigawatts of new power generation velopment, which is obviously a challenge not ing our standards. We also know that protec- ogy in different vehicles from manufacturers
capacity each year. That’s nearly the equivalent only for China but also for all humanity. Industry plays a key role in this regard, tion of intellectual property is one of the such as Volkswagen, SAIC (Shanghai Automo-
of Germany’s current total capacity. More than since outdated machines in factories can fundamental conditions for establishing an in- tive Industry Cooperation), and Chery. In doing
70 percent of the new facilities in China are cause significant environmental damage novation-focused society. After all, people will so, we spread out the technology. I think this
coal-fired plants, which of course produce that seriously endangers nature and hu- only be motivated to develop innovations if type of cooperation is our great strength.
CO2emissions. China’s government is aware of
all this, which is why its current Five-Year Plan China’s Road to man health. Modern equipment, on the
other hand, operates more efficiently and
they’re certain these will be protected. Chinese
companies need to understand that the pro-
When products developed in such a manner
are ready for the market, the government will
contains ambitious goals such as reducing spe- cleanly… tection of foreign technologies also guarantees discontinue its involvement.
cific energy consumption per unit of GDP by Sustainable Development Wan: That’s correct. Environmental protection the protection of their own new develop-
20 percent between now and 2010. China also involves making industrial processes more ments. This realization will ultimately have a Just how advanced are fuel cell vehicles
both needs and wants to conserve energy. Its efficient, improving process planning, and greater impact than tougher laws. We’ve made in China?
economy is now growing at ten percent a year. combining technologies to create closed cy- a lot of progress over the last five years in this Wan: We finished building our fourth genera-
Obviously its energy consumption can’t grow Prof. Wan Gang, 57, has What role do technological developments cles. Residual heat from steel production, for regard, and the situation will improve even tion at the beginning of this year. It now takes
at the same pace. In response, the country is play in overcoming the challenges China example, can be converted to electricity; slag further over the next five. one of our fuel cell vehicles less than 15 sec-
been China’s Minister of
introducing measures that will also improve faces? can be processed into construction materials; onds to accelerate to 100 kilometers per hour,
energy security. And China has produced re-
Science and Technology Wan: A huge role, because in order to solve and cooling water can be purified. This not The Chinese government has traditionally and the top speed is 150 kilometers per hour.
sults. The four-gigawatt Huaneng Yuhuan since April 2007. Wan the problems, we need to be innovative. This only eases the strain on the environment and played a major role in technological de- We will be presenting these hydrogen-fuel ve-
power facility, for example, has an efficiency received a Master’s degree view is also reflected in the long-term develop- conserves energy; it also creates value. We’re velopments in the country. Now, how- hicles at the 29th Summer Olympics next year
rating of 45 percent — a top value for a steam in automotive engineer- ment plan we published in 2006. China is now starting to do such things in China. We ever, Chinese industry is also becoming a in Beijing. Around 20 fuel cell passenger cars
power plant. China is also building the world’s ing at Tongji University in seeking to become an innovation-focused know that Siemens is a worldwide leader in driving force behind innovation. What and about ten fuel cell buses will be used at
highest-capacity direct current transmission country over the next ten to 15 years. How- environmental protection and the optimization role would you like to see each of them the Olympic site, along with 50 battery-pow-
line, which will be able to supply 5,000
Shanghai. In 1990 he ever, it’s not enough to have scientists address- of industrial processes, and that the company play in the future? ered electric buses and another 300 battery-
megawatts. In addition, the country plans to received a PhD from the ing the problems we face; China’s people need continues to lead the way in these areas. Wan: The government will support those powered small cars. All of these vehicles are
limit new residential construction in large Clausthal University of to understand the importance of sustainable Siemens thus has a lot of market potential. things it deems important, and it will provide the result of Chinese research projects that we
cities to buildings that require 65 percent less Technology in Germany, development. Our main task at the Ministry of investment accordingly. Take fuel cell vehicles, launched five to seven years ago — and now
energy than the level required by today’s stan- after which he joined Audi Science and Technology is therefore to support What types of partnerships need to be for example. The technology here is not yet we’ll be seeing the technology used for the
dard. Investments are also being made in dis- all activities that promote sustainability. formed to enable the efficient use of such ready for the market, which is why the govern- first time in real applications.
in Ingolstadt, working ini-
trict heating systems. technologies in China? ment needs to fund its development. However, Interview conducted by Bernhard Bartsch.
tially in the Vehicle Devel- What key technologies are being pushed Wan: Environmental protection is an issue that in those situations where a particular technol-
Can China also make greater use of opment department and the most in China today? everyone around the globe needs to address, ogy can soon be launched on the market, the
distributed energy sources such as solar later serving on the Plan- Wan: We’re focusing on several different ar- and each of us has to do what he or she can to government will simply create favorable condi-
cells and wind turbines? ning Committee. At the eas, the most important of which are new help. In general, it’s important to make the tions for its introduction and then let the mar-
Oberheitmann: Such an approach is good for forms of power generation such as clean coal technologies that are already being used in the ket do the rest.
end of 2000 Wan returned
remote areas not linked to the power grid. Tibet systems and renewable wind and solar energy. industrialized nations affordable to developing
uses a lot of hydro power, for example, and so- to Tongji University to We’re also working on environmental protec- countries like China. Technology transfer also You yourself spent many years doing re-
lar-thermal facilities for hot water can be found coordinate a nationwide tion and information technology systems. furthers development and market expansion. search at a German university, and also
throughout the country. Although photovoltaic research program for the Health care-related research is also important, The more these technologies are utilized, the worked as a manager at a German au-
systems are still often very expensive, China is development of electric from biotechnologies and pharmaceuticals to more money and energy we can all save. At tomaker — so you’re familiar with the re-
the world’s leading manufacturer of solar cells. new diagnostic techniques and the develop- the same time, China itself has to become in- spective strengths and weaknesses of the
vehicles and hydrogen
In remote areas, photovoltaic systems are used ment of various types of medical equipment. novative through its own power. Still, being East and West. How would you compare
mostly as a substitute for biomass, although
technology. In 2004, he Finally, we’re conducting extensive basic re- an innovative country doesn’t necessarily conditions in the two societies?
they also power small diesel generators. Photo- was named president of search into forward-looking technologies such mean doing everything yourself or reinventing Wan: Europe’s strength — and the strength of
voltaic power isn’t usually channeled into the his alma mater. as nanotechnology. Again: it’s crucial to get things. Germany in particular — lies in the ability of its
public grid. The situation with regard to solar Interview conducted the entire population involved in these issues. industries to develop many products on their
power could change over the long term, of in Fall, 2007. One aspect that is of great concern to in- own. Siemens offers a good example of this.
course, if oil prices increase dramatically. How do you plan to do that? ternational companies is the protection of The company has developed its own strategy
Interview conducted by Jeanne Rubner. Wan: At the end of May 2007 China became intellectual property. There’s a feeling for success; it invests at an early stage in inno-
30 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 31
Renewable Energy | Biomass
Flaming Scrap
furnace chamber. This setup makes for a much country. The development of biogas facilities wind power from North Africa and the Middle Kaltschmitt of the Biomass Research Center in
better distribution of the particles and thus has been even more dramatic. Energy produc- East. That’s the goal of the Desertec Industrial Leipzig, Germany, one can expect the Biomass
more effective combustion. It also eliminates tion in 2007 was 828 petajoules (43% as heat, Initiative, whose founder companies include boom to continue throughout Europe and
the danger of slag buildup. The first SIPAPER 38% as electricity, and 19% transport), which Siemens. The technologies needed to accom- around the world for the coming years. By
Reject Power facility entered service nearly four corresponds to around six percent of total pri- plish this goal are available now, from solar 2050, bio-energy production could cover one-
A technology developed by Siemens makes it years ago at a paper mill in Austria, where it mary energy use in Germany. “That figure thermal plants that produce power from sun- third of global energy requirements. (p. 32)
produces heat and electricity for the factory’s could be almost doubled if all existing techno- light in Spain and California to high-voltage
possible to convert biomass waste into energy with own use. “This form of waste recycling cuts the logical potential were to be harnessed,” direct current (HVDC) transmission lines, In 2008 Siemens for the first time docu-
a high degree of efficiency. factory’s primary energy use by up to a third,” Kaltschmitt explains. In any case, Kaltschmitt which can transmit electricity over long dis- mented its complete Environmental Portfolio,
says Dr. Hermann Schwarz, a technology prod- says, we can expect the biomass boom to con- tances with low losses. Solar-thermally pro- which lists all products and solutions that help
uct manager at the Siemens Industry Solutions tinue throughout Europe and around the world duced electricity is expected to be competi- protect the environment and battle climate
32 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 33
Investments in clean technologies — from efficient
Pictures of the Future | Economic Crisis and Opportunities | Interview Edenhofer
and renewable power generation and transmission
to green buildings and CO2 capture and sequestra-
tion — can help overcome the economic crisis.
We’re currently struggling with two crises
at once — the economic crisis and the
climate crisis. Is that just a coincidence,
or do you see parallels?
Edenhofer: There definitely is a parallel. Both
are crises of sustainability. Sustainability can
be formulated as an imperative: Act in such a
way that you don’t destroy the foundations
that enable you to act in the long run! In the
financial crisis, the banking sector destroyed
the foundation of its own business.
34 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 35
Pictures of the Future | Economic Crisis and Opportunities | Interview Weizsäcker
tive. Second, we also need a concept of fair- by the EU in January 2009. The prospects for Siemens believes that investing in climate times more energy efficient with simple meas-
ness. We have to distribute emissions rights this are good. This would be a signal to India, protection could promote growth. Others ures. But as long as energy is cheap, that does-
among countries in an evenhanded way. In my China, and others. We need to involve these disagree. Is this something we can afford n’t happen. We could make energy more ex-
view, a fair proposal has been made in this re- large emerging economies because they can only when the economy is strong? pensive in small steps through taxes or
gard. By 2050, the rights should be redistrib- limit CO2 emissions much more cost-effec- Weizsäcker: That’s the impression being given emissions certificates, in parallel with increas-
uted in such a way that every person on earth tively than the West can, where most power now by some. This thinking has its roots in the ing energy efficiency. That’s fair in social terms
has the same right to emissions — for exam- plants already meet a high standard of effi- regulation of pollutant emissions, where only and makes efficiency more profitable. Investors
ple, two tons per person per year. ciency. the rich countries could afford environmental could make long-term plans. Habits will
protection. But in the case of climate protec- change, possibly even our relationship to the
Will developing countries accept that? How can the BRIC nations be persuaded tion, the problems are mostly caused by the automobile. There might be more car-sharing
After all, up to this point, pollution has to take part in this? After all, they still rich. They use more energy, eat more meat and instead of ownership, for example.
been caused mostly by the rich countries have a lot of catching up to do economi- fly more. The economic crisis offers a great op-
— at the rate of 19 tons per person per cally. portunity to reverse this course and create jobs Raw materials’ prices are falling because
year in the U.S. and eight tons in the EU. Edenhofer: China and India are well aware at the same time. In Europe and Japan, that’s of the crisis. Couldn’t that cause countries
China is at two to three tons already, and that, in the future, they will not only be the already understood. Now it seems that this idea such as China to become less concerned
India is at 1.5 tons per person. largest sources of emissions, but will also be is being accepted in the U.S. as well. with energy efficiency?
Edenhofer: There will continue to be consid- the ones who suffer most from climate
erable conflict and disagreement about the change. Many of their largest cities are located
allocation, because the developing countries
also want to take historical emissions into ac- China’s Yuhuan power plant has achieved
on the coasts, where a rise in sea levels could
be very dangerous. In addition, these countries Why Increased Efficiency Will Lead to a
count. What is more important, though, is that
we agree that we have only a limited amount
of capacity in the atmosphere for more CO2,
record efficiency using Siemens turbines. need new technologies to cope with their
heavy dependence on coal. In this connection,
we’re right in the midst of a global renaissance
More Advanced Civilization
and it has to be allocated reasonably fairly. Edenhofer: We could indeed, yes. What is im- of coal. In light of that, it should be possible to
After that, we have to achieve a carbon-free portant is that we now boost the economy put together a good package — with power Prof. Ernst Ulrich von Do you expect the U.S. to take a leading Weizsäcker: Yes, low prices are encouraging
global economy. If we develop the innovations with investments that also make sense for the plants that capture CO2, which is then stored, Weizsäcker, 70, is a role in climate protection? waste again. But the Chinese are on their toes,
needed for that, we can also resolve the alloca- long term. That’s why we need an emissions for example. physicist and biologist. He Weizsäcker: Obama can’t change the U.S. and they’ve made energy efficiency a national
tion conflict much more easily. trading system that sends a clear price signal has served as a professor overnight. But the country is more receptive to objective in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan.
for CO2 — a signal for every sector that pro- As a member of the IPCC, you have first at German universities, as climate protection than commonly thought.
Does that mean that we will have to start duces greenhouse gases; not just the electric- hand experience with global climate director of the UN Center Some states have been involved for years, and How do you rate the economic stimulus
living more modestly? ity sector and energy-intensive industries, but protection politics. Is it realistic to think many companies are far ahead of the politi- programs as they relate to climate protec-
for Science and Technol-
Edenhofer: Only if economic growth cannot above all buildings and cars. There are many that the community of nations will agree cians, too. Now the federal government is fol- tion?
be decoupled from emissions. For decoupling options here that don’t cost anything and actu- on an effective plan?
ogy in New York, as lowing suit. Obama’s rescue plan for the auto Weizsäcker: The German government and the
to occur, however, pricing mechanisms will ally generate revenue through energy savings. Edenhofer: We cannot afford a catastrophe. president of the Wuppertal industry puts a lot of emphasis on the environ- U.S. are acting pretty sensibly. The focus is on
have to set the right incentives — which is If it becomes possible to see and feel climate Institute for Climate, ment. That’s a big step in the right direction. rescuing the credit institutions. At the same
what emissions trading is designed to do. Is emissions trading working in the areas change, it will be too late. In the next ten Environment and Energy, time, Obama is pushing the auto industry to-
where it is already established? years, we must create an agreement that com- and as a member of the Why does Europe have an edge here? ward more efficiency, and he wants to spend
No new moderation, in other words? Edenhofer: We’re not in bad shape in that re- prises at least the six countries that produce German Bundestag for the Weizsäcker: In Europe, people earn a good liv- billions on renewable energies. Environmental
Edenhofer: No one should be prevented from gard. Emissions will surely fall in the electrical the most greenhouse gas emissions. Maybe SPD. Most recently, Profes- ing from environmental protection and energy considerations can help overcome the disorien-
exercising more moderation. But I think that power sector. But there is a sustainability prob- the chances of developing a sensible response efficiency. That’s where the future lies, in my tation of the economy.
sor von Weizsäcker was
the global economy can continue to grow at a lem here too. Investors need a signal that aren’t very high. But when we are confronted view; that’s becoming the rhythm of technolog-
rate of two to three percent per year, because emissions have to continue to fall after 2020. by historic challenges, we should ask not
dean of the Donald Bren ical progress. Energy and water are scarce. We Are you optimistic about the future?
there is no reason why economies should be That, in my view, is the responsibility of the cli- about probabilities, but about necessities. School for Environmental should learn to use both three times, five Weizsäcker: We’ll manage, assuming that key
dependent on increased energy use to grow. In mate conference in Copenhagen (Denmark) in Science and Management times, ten times more efficiently, and especially countries, such as the U.S. and China, have the
the last 150 years, labor productivity has risen December 2009. In short, climate protection isn’t optional... at the University of the end user. Then it’s fine if energy and water courage to adopt a climate-friendly course. I
faster than energy productivity. Now we have Edenhofer: Exactly. Anyone who claims it is California in Santa get more expensive. Japan showed how to do believe that we’re moving toward a new, long-
to reverse that relationship. The climate protection discussion doesn’t understand the fundamentals of eco- Barbara. He is considered this in the ‘80s, when electricity and gasoline term Kondratiev wave — with a paradigm shift
involves concepts similar to those in the nomics. That would be like saying we want to a leading force behind the were very expensive. After its modernization toward more energy efficiency and the associ-
What sort of technological progress do we financial sector, such as certificates, for have a market economy, but prices will be al- programs, the country was twice as efficient as ated innovations and investments. I like to
concept of sustainable
need to achieve a CO2-free economy? example. Are these systems similar in lowed to express the scarcity of goods only Australia or the U.S. at the time of the Kyoto compare our current infrastructure and prod-
Edenhofer: More energy efficiency, the cap- structure? when it’s convenient. That kind of thinking led
development. Conference in 1997, providing twice as much ucts with the dinosaurs. Our cars, houses and
ture and storage of CO2, the promotion of re- Edenhofer: Yes. At some point, we will also to the collapse of the Soviet economy, where prosperity per kilowatt-hour. appliances are wasteful and outdated. The
newable energies, a moderate expansion of need a central bank for climate protection. there was always a reason to continue with coming society will be more efficient and more
nuclear energy, and the development of more Such an institution would regulate the market subsidies. Because of the long-term distortion Is higher energy efficiency the key in the elegant than today’s. In that society, for exam-
advanced nuclear power plants. for CO2 certificates and prevent speculative of prices, the system was doomed to fail. The fight against climate change? ple, people will use computers that don’t
bubbles. That’s similar to what a central bank ability of our atmosphere to store CO2 is also a Weizsäcker: Yes. Today, we can conjure up ten waste energy and are as efficient as the hu-
That sounds like a huge economic stimu- does in the financial sector. In terms of global limited asset. Environmental protection is Interview conducted in times more light from a kilowatt-hour than just man brain. That won’t entail a drop in the
lus plan. Do you think we can extricate emissions trading, the U.S., together with therefore not optional; it’s about implementing a few years ago. Buildings can be kept warm quality of life. On the contrary, I see us enter-
Spring, 2009.
ourselves from the economic crisis Europe, could take the lead in creating a trans- price systems that express a very real scarcity. with a tenth of the heating energy used back ing a new epoch of advanced civilization.
through climate protection investments? Atlantic carbon market of the kind proposed Interview by Christian Buck. then. The whole country could become five Interview by Christian Buck.
36 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 37
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Scenario 2020
Highlights
44 China’s River of Power
Starting in 2010, hydroelectric
plants are to supply energy to
megacities in southeast China —
with power generated 1,400 km
away. An HVDC transmission line
from Siemens will transport this
environmentally-friendly electrici-
ty in the most powerful system of
its kind anywhere.
54 Transparent Network
Smart meters enable consumers
to monitor and manage their
power use. Thanks to these digital
systems, utilities can, for the first
time, gain detailed, real-time in-
sight into network dynamics, thus
opening the door to significant
savings.
2020
Pensioner Yun Jang listens to his nephew that wasn’t connected to the electrical net-
explain how China is stilling its hunger for work? I’m sure you’ll agree with me that those
energy. An IGCC power plant uses coal to were literally dark days, even though there was
produce climate-friendly energy. The CO2 China, 2020. Pensioner Jun Yang has been invited by his sometimes a greater sense of community. After
it generates is stored underground. Wind the sun went down it was usually impossible to
turbines feed electricity into an intelligent
nephew to visit the new Ministry of Energy. The small play Mahjong, as the petroleum lamp in your
network, and automated building manage- village where Jun Yang lives has been connected to the hut was too dim. I’ve come to believe that you
ment systems are linked with weather fore- electrical grid for only a few years, so he’d like to know actually didn’t mind a bit — you’re simply a bad
casts. People drive to work in plug-in hybrid loser. That’s probably also the reason why you
cars that are fueled by solar energy.
where the energy that has changed his life comes from. He bought yourself a television as soon as we had
reports on his experiences in a letter to his friend Wan. electricity. Ever since then, our Mahjong games
40 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 41
Most of tomorrow’s electricity will be generated
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Trends
from renewables such as wind. With HVDC tech-
nology, the power can be transmitted over long
distances (here an 800 kV transformer).
large cities in some developing nations, as Desertec project. “Electricity will draw the world
much as 50 percent of electricity disappears together,” predicts Weinhold.
this way, and power providers are often un- In addition to new electricity highways, to-
aware of outages — at least until the first com- morrow’s grid will need more buffers to stop it
plaint is received. from bursting at the seams. Intermediate stor-
With a view to heading off impending prob- age is needed for the excess power fed into
lems, in 2005 the European Union came up the grid by fluctuating energy sources. Tradi-
with a concept, which it called the “smart grid” tionally, this has relied on pumped storage
— a vision of an intelligent, flexibly control- power plants, but there is hardly any capacity
lable electrical generation and distribution in- for further expansion in Central Europe. As a
frastructure. “The energy system plus informa- result, wind farms will either have to be shut
tion and communications technology all enter down to prevent them from overloading the
into a symbiosis in the smart grid,” says Wein- grid during periods of overproduction or pro-
hold. “Not only does this make the grid trans- ducers will have to pay someone to take the
parent and thus observable, it also makes it electricity.
easier to monitor and control.”
Governments and companies are commit- Cars as Buffers. One future solution could be
ting large amounts of money to ensure that electric cars, which temporarily store excess
this vision becomes reality. The U.S. Depart- energy and later return it to the grid when
ment of Energy, for instance, has provided needed — at a higher price. For example,
roughly $4 billion in subsidies for smart grid 200,000 electric cars connected to the grid
projects in the U.S. German energy utilities are could make eight gigawatts of power available
planning to invest roughly €25 billion in smart quickly. That would be more than is currently
grid technology by 2020. Key components for required in Germany. As part of the EDISON
the power grid of the future are already avail- project, in which Siemens is also participating,
able and have even been installed on a limited testing will begin on the electric cars concept
basis in some countries. One example is smart locally-produced energy marketplaces) proj- inconsistently, could be connected to form a Super Grids. The steadily increasing dis- kV across a distance of 1,400 kilometers by and other solutions in Denmark in 2011.
meters — intelligent, electronic electric me- ect, which is subsidized by the German federal virtual network. “This would allow them to tances between power generation sites and 2010. Weinhold believes that these electricity It is abundantly clear to Weinhold that we
ters. government, Risitschka is responsible for de- bundle their power and sell it in a marketplace consumers must also be bridged. One element highways will not only cross borders in the fu- are moving full speed ahead into a new era.
“Smart metering is a key technology for the veloping the information and communication that is inaccessible to small suppliers,” says of a solution to this problem could be high- ture, but will link entire continents. “We will “Just yesterday the big issue was oil, but cli-
smart grid,” says Eckardt Günther, who heads interface between smart meters, the system Günther. The grid would benefit too. “Consoli- voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission, see the establishment of super grids in regions mate change is moving things in a different di-
the Smart Grid Competence Center at Siemens for meter data management, and the elec- dated into a virtual power plant and acting as which is capable of transporting large amounts that can be interconnected across climate and rection,” he says. Weinhold believes that we
Energy in Nuremberg, Germany. “With smart tronic marketplace. “Among the things we are a flexible unit, small plants could make balanc- of electricity across thousands of kilometers time zones,” he says, adding that this would al- are currently on the threshold of a new electric
metering, energy providers and consumers investigating is how these digital links need to ing power available and thus help to stabilize with low losses. Siemens is currently building low seasonal changes, times of day and geo- age. Electricity is increasingly becoming an all-
can for the first time record in detail where be configured, i.e. what data should be trans- the grid,” says Günther. Balancing power is the world’s highest capacity HVDC transmission graphical features to be used to their optimal encompassing energy carrier. This is good for
and how much electricity is being used and mitted and how can we obtain useful informa- provided in addition to the base load to cover system in China. The system is scheduled to benefit. Super grids could be used to transport the climate, because electricity can be gener-
fed into the grid.” The advantage is obvious: If tion from it,” she explains. The interfaces will peaks in demand. As this type of power re- begin transmitting electricity generated at hy- enormous quantities of solar energy from ated ecologically and transmitted very effi-
electricity consumption is precisely recorded, connect both private and commercial electric- quires power plants that can begin producing droelectric plants with a record voltage of 800 Northern Africa to Europe, as described in the ciently. Florian Martini
energy quickly, the price for a kWh of balanc-
ing power is much higher than for a kWh of
“In the future, electricity highways will not just cross base load power. Base load power is generally
borders but will link entire continents.” provided by the workhorses of power genera- The Smart Grid will Optimize Interconnections between Producers and Consumers
tion — coal-fired or nuclear power plants that
Smart Smart grid Smart
run around the clock. generation consumption
flexible rates can be used to match consump- ity customers within model regions to an elec- Stability will be crucial to tomorrow’s grid.
ERP
tion to supply. This lowers electric bills and tronic marketplace and link them to energy But intelligent systems alone will not be
Billing
CO2 emissions. In contrast, at present if more traders, distribution grid operators, and other enough to manage the large amounts of en- Solar power Call center
electricity is being consumed than was fore- participants. The project is scheduled for com- ergy provided by the growing numbers of wind CRM etc.
cast, the production of electricity must be in- pletion in 2012. Rusitschka believes that proj- farms or solar-thermal power plants. “There is
creased. Shedding some light on the distribu- ects like E-DeMa will boost the smart grid’s also work to be done on the hardware side,” Industrial
Wind power System Energy Distribution Meter data
tion grid isn’t the only advantage associated prospects. “The technology is available and it says Weinhold. “We need to greatly expand the Asset consumers
integrity management management management
with smart meters. “Smart meters heighten works,” she says. “The first larger-scale smart number of power lines, as physics limits the management
protection systems (EMS) systems (DMS) (MDM)
energy use awareness and help to better con- grid solutions could become reality by 2015.” transmission of electrical energy to wires or Distributed
Intelligent
trol it,” adds Günther. “In addition, they are a cables.” energy HVDC and Substation Distribution Smart meters
buildings
Condition
prerequisite for actively participating in elec- Virtual Networks. Another component of According to the German Energy Agency resources FACTS automation automation and demand
monitoring
technology and protection and protection response
tricity markets.” the smart grid is the “virtual power plant”. (DENA) study, some 400 kilometers of high-
Sebnem Rusitschka of Siemens Corporate Here, the idea is that small energy producers voltage grid needs to be reinforced and an ad- Electric cars Electric cars
Technology is also convinced that tomorrow’s such as cogeneration plants, wind, solar, hy- ditional 850 kilometers of lines need to be (batteries) (batteries)
grid will have to be smart. As part of the dro or biomass plants, which have previously erected by 2015 simply to transmit the wind Transmission grid Distribution grid
E-DeMa (development and demonstration of fed their power into the grid individually and energy that will be generated in Germany.
42 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 43
With the help of high-power transistors, rectifier Hydroelectric generation capacity on the Jinsha
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | HVDC Transmission
modules, and smoothing reactors, a new HVDCT line River is being expanded. The resulting electricity will
is able to transmit 5,000 megawatts over the 1,400 be transmitted to major cities on China’s southeast-
kilometers from Lufeng to Guangzhou. ern coast by the world’s most powerful HVDCT line.
44 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 45
Giant 800 kV transformers were tested in A gate at the Guangzhou receiving station alerts
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | HVDC Transmission
Nuremberg (left) before being shipped to China visitors to its world-record transmission voltage.
for installation (center). The control room of the Hydropower and HVDCT are cutting China’s CO2
transmission station in Lufeng (right). emissions by 33 million metric tons a year.
megawatts; that’s the output of five large would still be significantly higher than with tage here is that one conductor is operated as commissioning in June 2010. In the first proj-
power plants,” explains Prof. Dietmar Retz- HVDCT. an 800 kV positive pole and the other as an ect with China Southern Power Grid, Siemens Plugging into HVDC’s Advantages
mann, one of Siemens’ top experts on HVDCT. Sawatzki leads us into a hall the size of an 800 kV negative pole, thus giving a total of 1.6 handled 80 percent of the total contract vol-
aircraft hangar, where workers are installing a million volts between them. In other words, ume, in the second 60 percent, and in the
Low Losses. Regardless of whether power is power stabilization system onto long poles the power is divided between two conductors third 40 percent. In the fourth project this High-voltage direct-current transmission (HVDCT) is ideal for countries where power has to be trans-
transmitted as an alternating or a direct cur- suspended from the 20-meter-high ceiling — a in order to minimize transmission losses. At share has fallen a bit further, coming in at ported over long distances. HVDCT becomes financially viable from around 1,000 megawatts and
rent, the goal is to ramp up the voltage as measure designed to minimize the chances of the same time, this is a precaution in the event around €370 million out of the €1 billion that 600 kilometers upward. The 1,400-kilometer HVDCT line between the Chinese provinces of Yunnan
much as possible. For both types of transmis- a short circuit and associated electrical outage that one pole should go down. the system is costing. China Southern Power and Guangdong will transmit at 800,000 volts, a new world record. Compared to a 765 kV alternat-
sion, physics dictates that for a fixed amount even in the event of an earthquake. The de- A number of tests are scheduled for the Grid has stipulated that most of the compo- ing-current (AC) line of the same length, which would require immense compensation for transmis-
of power, the current is inversely proportional vices look like a stack of huge plant trays and coming months. Eight Siemens engineers, ac- nents to be supplied by Siemens must be man- sion losses, HVDCT will save around 36 percent in costs over a 30-year service life.
to the voltage. In other words, the higher the could well have been inspired by the leg- commodated in an office above the valve hall, ufactured in China by subcontractors. So In the case of undersea cables, the advantages of HVDCT come into play over distances as small as 60
voltage, the lower the current, thus reducing endary Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Each tray sit in the control room, gradually ramping up whereas Siemens is still responsible for the en- kilometers. Over longer distances, AC lines act like huge capacitors that are charged and discharged
the energy losses that result from the conduc- contains a total of 30 shiny golden cans that the voltage onscreen. This is designed to push gineering of the thyristors, for example, these 50 times a second, eventually losing virtually all their power. This effect can be compensated for by
tor heating up. When transmitting over long are carefully connected in series and wired to the components to their very limits and reveal components and all the ancillary equipment the use of coils, but such measures are not economical for underwater cables. As of May 2011, for
distances, however, HVDCT is superior. control circuits with fiber optic cables. any weaknesses before the system enters serv- are being manufactured under Siemens super- example, a 250 kV HVDCT line from Siemens will connect the Balearic Islands with the Spanish main-
“With our power highway in China, as Inside the tins are thyristors — converter ice. A blackout in one of China’s large coastal vision by two Chinese firms. land, 250 kilometers away, and carry 400 megawatts of power.
much as 95 percent of the power reaches the valves made of silicon, molybdenum, and cop- cities would be a nightmare. The forthcoming boom in offshore wind farms will provide a further boost for the HVDCT market.
consumer,” says Wolfgang Dehen, CEO of per — which are activated optically by means The left half of a large control screen dis- Profiting from Innovation. It will not be HVDC PLUS is an innovative system from Siemens that features a new generation of power converter.
plays the operating load of the transmission possible, however, to build future systems of With its compact dimensions, it is designed to provide flexible and reliable transmission from off-
station in Lufeng as “0 megawatts.” The right this kind without Siemens’ know-how, since shore wind plants.
With HVDC, 95 percent of the power is transmitted; with side of the screen shows the status of the re- innovation is continuously advancing the state HVDCT back-to-back links are a special instance of this technology. The principle is the same as the
AC, 87 percent — the equivalent of 400 megawatts less. ceiving station in Guangzhou, where the di- of the art in this field. “There’s a lot of new one governing a normal HVDC transmission system, except that the transmission and receiving
rect current will be converted back into alter- know-how in the 800 kV technology, which is stations are on the same site. Their purpose is to link different AC power networks with dissimilar
nating current and fed into the public grid. being used here for the first time,” explains Su- voltages and frequencies by converting alternating current into direct current and then back again.
Siemens Energy. With AC transmission lines, of a laser beam 50 times a second, exactly in Here a default reading of “9.999 megawatts” is sanne Vowinkel, who works at Siemens’ En- HVDCT is also increasingly being incorporated into synchronous three-phase AC networks, both for
this falls to 87 percent, which in this case phase with the current as it switches polarity. displayed. Were the station in operation, the ergy Sector as a commercial project manager long-distance transmission and to provide back-to-back links. This is because, as Prof. Dietmar Retz-
would amount to a loss of 400 megawatts — This occurs so precisely — to within a millionth screen would show a power of 5,000 in the field of contracts, issuing invitations to mann explains, HVDCT has the major advantage over AC transmission that it acts like a firewall, auto-
the output of a mid-sized power plant or 160 of a second — that the negative waves of the megawatts as well as a raft of other data from tender to suppliers, and customer relations. matically halting cascading failures within a network and thus greatly reducing the risk of a major
wind generators. As a result of these reduced alternating current are “flipped” so as to create Guangzhou, all of which will be transferred in Innovations from Siemens include silicone- blackout.
losses, the HVDCT link will cut emissions by a a direct current. Because this current still has a real time via a fiber optic cable that is laid covered insulators that repel water and pro- So-called gas-insulated lines (GILs), meanwhile, are ideal for transmitting high power in urban envi-
further three million metric tons of CO2 a year. high ripple content, it next goes to the so- along the HVDC transmission route. vide better insulation when dirty. Meanwhile, ronments, where space — the cheapest form of insulation — is usually at a premium. The lines are
In theory, it would be possible to build AC called “DC yard” right behind the valve hall. engineers are already looking beyond the 800 laid underground in a 50-centimeter pipe filled with a low-pressure gaseous mixture of nitrogen and
transmission lines over similar distances. A There, capacitors temporarily store charge, Know-how from East and West. Whereas the kV mark, as higher transmission voltages pro- sulfur hexafluoride. This gas insulates the conductor so well that a power of up to 3,500 megawatts
voltage of 800 kV will transmit an alternating which they “inject” into the ripples, and coils AC part of the system was built entirely by Chi- mise even lower line losses. The move from can be transmitted at 550 kilovolts.
current over a distance of 1,500 kilometers. filter out interference signals emanating from nese firms, the DC part contains a lot of Sie- 500 kV to 800 kV has already reduced costs over GILs require little maintenance and they do not deface the landscape. As a rule, they are used in ma-
The problem is, however, that over long dis- the rectifiers in the hall. All this is standard cir- mens know-how. Yet that doesn’t mean that 30 years by one quarter. The name of the game, jor cities, where it is impossible to build high-voltage overhead lines. In terms of construction costs
tances the voltage waves at the beginning and cuitry, as found in any mains-operated electri- all the components were made in Germany. as Vowinkel points out, is to stay one step ahead. alone, GILs are between five and ten times more expensive than overhead lines. However, this extra
the end of the transmission line are shifted rel- cal appliance, but the dimensions are gigantic Half of the 48 transformers are of German pro- Siemens has just landed a major contract in cost become smaller once the costs of land and maintenance for overhead lines are factored into the
ative to one another — the technical phrase here in the DC yard. duction, while the others were manufactured India and tendered bids for further HVDCT equation. What’s more, GILs become even more attractive economically at higher transmission loads.
here is “phase angle” — and this necessitates in China under the supervision of Siemens. projects in China, India, the U.S., and New Another advantage of GILs is that the metal pipes that encase them block electromagnetic radiation.
the installation of large banks of capacitors Bipolar Transmission. In another hall right Sawatzki has been in China for ten years Zealand. What’s more, HVDCT has already be- This was an important consideration for the operators of the Palexpo congress center in Geneva,
every few hundred kilometers for the purposes next to the first one, the screed floor is being now. The HVDCT system in Lufeng is his fourth come the cornerstone of major projects for the where a Siemens-built GIL under the exhibition halls ensures that visitors and sensitive electronic
of series compensation. This drives up the poured. Sawatzki draws a circuit diagram on a for network operator China Southern Power future, such as Desertec, which will transmit systems are shielded from radiation fields.
price of such installations. And in spite of such piece of cardboard and explains: “The rectifiers Grid. All in all, the project will take three years, power from North Africa and the Middle East
compensation, the losses over long distances and the DC yard are in duplicate.” The advan- from the award of contract in June 2007 to full to Europe. Bernd Müller
46 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 47
Pumped-storage power plants are used to
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Energy Storage
stockpile surplus power (here an 80 MW plant in
Wendefurth, Germany). Underground storage
systems (below) could also be a solution.
would otherwise be a danger of damage to Germany’s largest pumped-storage power Batteries and Compressed Air. Other major
connected devices such as motors, electrical plant is in Goldisthal, about 350 km southwest industrialized countries such as the U.S. and
appliances, computers and generators. For of Berlin. The facility has an output of 1,060 China also make significant use of pumped-
this reason, power plants are immediately megawatts (MW) and could supply the entire storage power plants. In addition, major ef-
taken offline whenever an overload pushes state of Thuringia with power for eight hours. forts are being made to find alternative meth-
the grid frequency below 47.5 hertz. In all, 33 pumped-storage facilities operate in ods worldwide. The best-known of all electricity
Oversupply can likewise pose problems. Germany, providing a combined output of storage devices is the rechargeable battery,
Germany’s Renewable Energy Act stipulates 6,700 MW and a capacity of 40 gigawatt-hours which can be found in every mobile phone. Al-
that German network operators must give (GWh). Each year, they supply around 7,500 though the amounts of energy involved here
preference to power from renewable sources. GWh of so-called balancing power, which cov- are tiny by comparison, this has not stopped
But an abundance of wind power means that ers heightened demand at peak times — in some countries from using batteries as a cache
conventional power plants have to be ramped the evenings, for example, when people switch facility for the power network. “In Japan, for
down. This applies particularly to gas- and on electric appliances and lights. The energy example, this method is used practically
coal-fired plants, which are responsible for held in reserve by pumped-storage power plants throughout the country,” says Dr. Manfred
providing the intermediate load — in other can be called up within a matter of minutes. Waidhas from Siemens Corporate Technology
words, for buffering periodic fluctuations in In Germany, however, simply increasing the (CT). “Batteries the size of a shipping container
demand. For the power plants assigned to pro- number of pumped-storage power plants isn’t can store about 5 MWh of electrical energy
and are installed in the grid close to the con-
sumer.” They are used as an emergency power
Electric vehicles could serve as mobile and readily- supply, as a reserve at times of peak load, and
available storage devices for electricity. as a buffer to balance out fluctuations from re-
farms with a total output of 55 gigawatts quired. The power network itself is unable to ciency of around 80 percent, reflecting the tial. Such a project would involve more than (kW) per vehicle — could make up for this. “As
(GW), compared to 22 GW at the end of 2007. assume this function, since it is a finely bal- proportion of energy generated in relation to just laying a long cable to Norway. The grid ca- few as 200,000 vehicles connected to the grid
Germany already accounts for approxi- anced system in which supply and demand the energy used in pumping the water to the pacity at the point of entry in both countries would produce 8 GW. And that’s enough bal-
mately 20 percent of the world’s total wind have to be carefully matched. If not, the fre- top reservoir. At present, no other type of stor- would also have to be increased in order to ancing energy to improve grid stability,” says
power generating capacity. Until recently, it quency at which alternating current is trans- age facility is capable of supplying power in avoid bottlenecks in transmission capability. Prof. Gernot Spiegelberg from Siemens CT.
was the pacesetter, but has now been pushed mitted deviates from the stipulated 50 hertz, the GW range over a period of several hours. In “This would be necessary because electricity al- “On the other hand, we need to remember
into second place in this particular world rank- falling in the case of excess demand, or rising fact, more than 99 percent of the energy-stor- ways looks for the path of least resistance and that such batteries will be relatively expensive
ing by the U.S. Although this is all excellent in the case of oversupply. age systems in use worldwide are pumped- will take another route when it encounters an due to their compactness, safety specifications,
news as far as the climate is concerned, it pres- Both scenarios must be avoided, as there storage power plants. obstruction,” explains Dirk Ommeln from EnBW. and low weight,” warns Dr. Christian Dötsch
48 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 49
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Energy Storage | Interview Arvizu
from the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, says Wolf, any of the caverns already used for Smart grids are a hot topic in the U.S. projects. One exciting example is in Boulder, What challenges will the massive integra-
Safety and Energy Technology in Oberhausen, the short-term storage of natural gas would What’s your vision of this area? Colorado and is called “Smart Grid City.” We are tion of solar and wind power plants into
Germany. “What’s more, the number of times also be suitable for hydrogen. Arvizu: Of course no one knows for sure what involved in this project. One important element the modern power grid cause?
they can be recharged is still very limited. At Around 60 caverns are now under con- a smart grid will look like, but I would expect it is the installation by Xcel Energy, the sponsor- Arvizu: The main problem is that wind and solar
present, the extra recharging and discharging struction in Germany. “If we were to use only to be flexible, interactive, less vulnerable than ing utility, of a broadband interconnection infra- power are in variable, rather than constant, sup-
for the purposes of load balancing would seri- 30 of these for hydrogen storage, we would be present systems, information-rich, and just plain structure that allows information to flow both ply. Additionally, these plants are often far from
ously reduce battery life,” says Dötsch. (For able to cache around 4,200 GWh of electrical more sophisticated. Today, electricity mainly ways between the consumer and the electricity urban centers. So one thing that we have to do is
more, see page 60.) energy,” Wolf points out. Hydrogen has such a comes from a network of big cables that have utility. Forty-five thousand two-way meters are to intelligently interweave various energy sources
Another concept is to warehouse potential high energy density that as much as 350 kilo- central power stations at various intersections. being installed. Additionally, a limited number that produce the equivalent of a base load, which
kinetic energy underground by a technique watt-hours (kWh) can be squeezed into every It provides a base load, on top of which vary- of households will be able to see online how today is still being met by coal and nuclear power
known as compressed air energy storage cubic meter of available storage space. This ing demand is met. The future of the electric they consume electricity throughout the house. plants. Also, we should learn to use power when
(CAES). This involves pumping air, which has significantly exceeds CAES (2.7 kWh/m3) and is grid looks different, though. The grid will prob- And in one test, some homes will have Web- it is available. For example, we could use electric
been pressurized to as much as 100 bar, into matched only by lithium-ion batteries. ably not be centralized any longer. It will meet addressable appliances that allow their power cars, refrigerators, hot water boilers and indus-
underground cavities such as exhausted salt With hydrogen storage, whenever demand real time needs better, and it will transport en- use information to be transmitted to the Inter- trial machinery in a way that takes advantage of
domes with a volume of between 100,000 for electricity rises, hydrogen is used to power ergy more efficiently than the present-day grid. net, where the total energy use in one’s house a cheap surplus of energy when it is available.
and a million cubic meters. “This compressed a gas turbine or a fuel cell. “At present, under-
air can be used in a gas turbine,” says Waidhas. ground hydrogen storage is unmatched by any
“You still need a fossil fuel such as natural gas, other energy-storage system,” says Wolf. “Each
but energy is saved because the compressed cavern is capable of providing more than 500
air for combustion is already available.”
There are two CAES pilot projects world-
MW for up to a week in base-load operation –
the equivalent of 140 GWh. By way of compar-
Smart Grids: Jump Starting Use of Renewable Energy Resources
wide: the first went into operation in Huntorf, ison, all the pumped-storage power plants in
Germany, in 1978; the second in McIntosh, Al- Germany have a combined capacity of only 40
abama, in 1991. The basic idea behind CAES is GWh.” What’s more, underground hydrogen Dr. Dan Arvizu, 59, is a Can you flesh this out a bit? could be calculated. This opens up the prospect How could electricity be stored?
simple, but there are drawbacks. “In both proj- storage facilities can supply power quickly and physicist and the director Arvizu: Today more than 60 percent of the of eventually doing away with the physical me- Arvizu: Batteries will gain more prominence in
ects, the gas turbines are custom made, and are as flexible as a combined-cycle power energy content in our supply gets lost in in- ter and measuring use only on the Internet. the future to meet fluctuating energy production
of the U.S. Department
that kind of special development costs plant. Hydrogen has other advantages: Apart efficient conversion to electricity at the power and demand. Battery-powered cars could make
money,” says Waidhas. “CAES only gives you from storing energy for generating power or of Energy’s National Re- plant or on its way to the consumer. Clearly, How does the U.S. compare with other coun- excellent storage devices. One could envision a
storage capacity of around 3 GWh.” heat, it can also be mixed with syngas — from, newable Energy Laboratory this has to be done much more efficiently — tries regarding smart grid implementation? scenario where one charges one’s car during the
for example, biomass plants — to produce fuel (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. for example, transmission efficiency can be Arvizu: When it comes to deployment of night when energy is cheap and uses it or feeds
Hydrogen: Ideal Storage Medium? An inte- in a biomass-to-liquid process. That’s what’s An expert on photovoltaic improved over long distances by using a high- renewable energy technologies, the U.S. lags it back into the grid during the day. Hydropower
resting alternative to the methods already happening in the context of a pilot project in voltage direct-current transmission system. behind other industrial countries. Other coun- is certainly the most straightforward storage
and battery technology,
mentioned is hydrogen storage. Here, surplus Brandenburg, Germany. In April 2009 Enertrag The grid of the future will also be able to inte- tries have been driven primarily by heavy gov- solution, but that is not an option everywhere.
electricity is used to produce hydrogen by laid the foundation stone for a new test facility he worked for inter- grate much more energy produced by solar, ernment subsidies for solar and wind energy.
means of electrolysis. The gas is then stored in in Prenzlau. This will be the world’s first hydro- national engineering and wind, and other renewable energy sources. That’s what Germany has done. This has In one of its studies NREL claimed that on
underground caverns at a pressure of between gen-wind-biogas hybrid power plant capable infrastructure company And since these sources will be more widely forced some countries, such as Denmark and federal lands enough resources are avail-
100 and 350 bar, where, according to Erik of producing hydrogen from surplus wind CH2M Hill, as well as the distributed throughout the country, energy Germany, to successfully deal with some of the able from renewable sources to meet all
Wolf from Siemens Energy Sector in Erlangen, power. The hydrogen will be used to power hy- Sandia National Laboratories will have to be bundled and distributed more interconnection challenges that renewable en- U.S. consumption needs. That ‘s impressive
Germany, leakage is not a problem. “Typically, drogen vehicles or will be mixed with biogas to intelligently and the grid will need to accom- ergy sources represent. Still, when it comes to — but it’s not a serious proposal, is it?
each year, less than 0.01 percent is lost,“ he produce electricity and heat in two block-type
in New Mexico before his modate varying generation coupled with vary- the smart grid, we have an even playing field; Arvizu: Well, one can talk of various potentials.
says. “This is because the rock-salt walls of cogeneration plants with a total output of 700 appointment as head of ing loads. Finally, tomorrow’s grid needs to be everybody is facing the same challenges. Theoretical potential is what could be achieved
such caverns behave like a liquid, and any kW. The facility is scheduled to enter service in the NREL in 2005. One of protected from physical and cyber attacks. with alternative energy resources if finances,
leaks seal up automatically.” For this reason, mid-2010. Christian Buck his main objectives is to You often point out that energy in the politics, and technology were not an issue.
push the development of What advantages does the smart grid of- U.S. has to become cheaper. Today safety These are limitations to the potential that realis-
fer for consumers and energy producers? regulations, labor costs, and commodity tically can be achieved. In one study we made
energy efficiency and Arvizu: Mostly it gives you one thing — the prices keep energy prices high. Alternative some realistic assumptions and asked if it’s fea-
alternative energy sources. opportunity to make wise decisions about your energy in the U.S. continues to be more sible to produce 20 percent of electricity in the
energy use and ultimately save energy and expensive than conventional energy. U.S. from wind by 2030. Our conclusion is that
save money! The smart network will allow Arvizu: That has to change. When we speak of this is not a crazy idea. The necessary technol-
consumers to monitor their electricity use, alternative energy, we mean wind, solar, hydro- ogy already exists. The current remaining hur-
make choices about appliances and their use, power, etc. These sources have to become the dles are politics, financing and transmission.
and manage their overall energy needs based rule, not the exception. And they have to survive
on this information. This will also allow energy economically on their own, without any subsi- Some companies recently announced they
providers to know how much energy their dies. I believe this can be achieved through tech- intend to build giant solar energy plants in
costumers actually use. That in turn may help nological innovation and market incentives such Africa to transmit electricity to Europe. Is
them develop more accurate predictions of as emissions trading for CO2. We also have to something like this conceivable for the U.S.?
energy demand and meet it accordingly. price the externalities of fuel extraction, conver- Arvizu: Sure. In the Southwest there’s plenty
Interview conducted
sion, use, and emissions — e.g. environmental of sun and the desert is huge. At this scale and
In the future, electric vehicles could provide temporary storage of electricity, which could be fed back into
in Fall, 2009. How far has the smart grid advanced so far? damage — into the prices consumers pay so that with appropriate transmission, solar energy be-
the grid as required, thereby improving the network’s stability. Arvizu: Worldwide, there are a number of pilot fuel sources can be compared on the same basis. comes profitable. Interview: Hubertus Breuer
50 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 51
In the future, buildings will actively
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Networking
participate in the grid. In Masdar City
(small pictures) narrow spaces between
and under buildings will enhance cooling.
Plugging Buildings
washing machines and driers can be run at ences depend on how buildings are used. For
night when electricity is cheaper. But which instance, in Europe many shopping malls are
hours offer the best prices? “Many appliances open ten to 12 hours a day and closed on Sun-
are already capable of determining this day. But a hospital operates around the clock.
into the Big Picture through signals in power lines,” says Dragon.
“On and off times can be determined by a
smart meter.”
“That’s why hospitals don’t have much scope
for saving large amounts of energy. The heat-
ing can be turned off in an office building but
This scenario would give utilities the advan- not in a hospital,” says Dragon.
Around 40 percent of the energy consumed worldwide tage of being able to manage demand within Advanced technologies not only save en-
is used in buildings to provide heating and lighting. But their networks. It would also help them to pre- ergy in hot and temperate zones; they can also
in the future, intelligent building management systems vent sudden peak loads from occurring — for do so in icy areas. Take the new Monte-Rosa
example, when large numbers of consumers Hut of the Swiss Alpine Club, for instance,
will ease the load on power and heat networks — and turn on appliances at the same time. which is perched at an altitude of 2,883 me-
even feed selfgenerated electricity into the grid. However, consumers would have to con- ters. It will be largely self-sufficient — thanks
sent to having their appliances turned on or to sophisticated building technology and com-
off by a utility depending on the network’s ponents supplied by Siemens (see p. 114).
load — based on the premise that they would Power will be supplied by a photovoltaic system,
be paying less for their power. Ultimately, both supported when necessary by a cogeneration
late beneath them. Today, 70 percent of the involved in the project. “The Masdar initiative trialized countries, for example, buildings are energy consumption, but will also be able to parties have an interest in a flat load curve, unit.
energy consumed in Abu Dhabi is used to cool is not only a fascinating project; it also fits in being transformed from mere energy con- communicate with household appliances and which is achieved by leveling demand over In order to maximize efficiency, the build-
buildings. Planned architectural measures are very well with our energy efficiency program sumers to active participants in the electricity utilities. Starting in 2010, a European Union each 24-hour period. The challenge is to coor- ing’s control system will use weather forecasts
expected to dramatically reduce that figure in and the solutions offered by our Environmen- market, where they offer self-generated power directive and legal regulations in Germany will dinate each building’s sub-systems with one and information on guest bookings, thus help-
Masdar. tal Portfolio,” says Tom Ruyten, who manages for sale. “More and more buildings have photo- require all new and modernized buildings to another and control their communication with ing it to coordinate its power and heating sys-
Masdar’s green, high-tech vision, which Siemens’ activities in Dubai. voltaic or small wind power plants on their be equipped with smart meters. Customers their surroundings. In other words, all isolated tems as well as energy storage and applicate
was developed by British architect Sir Norman Masdar is, of course, unique. After all, how roofs,” says Volker Dragon, who works in the will have better insight into their electricity solutions should be combined. power demand. A smart algorithm will period-
Foster, is scheduled to be completed in 2016. often do you have the opportunity to build a area of energy efficiency at Siemens’ Building costs, while utilities will be able to more accu- “That is not a trivial matter because these ically calculate the best end temperature, so
If it proves a success, urban developers and ar- complete city with a focus on minimizing its Technologies Division in Zug, Switzerland. “In- rately predict demand, and thus offer new systems have developed independently over that the desired room climate can be realized
chitects from around the world may orientate environmental footprint right from the start? telligent electric meters — the smart meter — products, including dynamic rates, which can many years,” says Dragon. “We therefore need with the least resources — thereby ensuring
their plans according to the technologies that However, intelligent building management will usher in a lot of change in this area.” change every 15 minutes. interfaces that allow control systems to com- that not even the smallest amount of energy is
prove themselves here. Naturally, Siemens is technology is in demand everywhere. In indus- These small boxes will not only measure Entire grids will benefit as it will be easier municate with one another.” wasted. Christian Buck
52 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 53
Smart meters enable consumers to monitor
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Smart Meters
and manage their power use. Utilities also save
money and, for the first time, gain detailed
insight into network dynamics.
month, instead of having to pay estimated placing its conventional meters with Siemens now being supplied with electricity for the
fees, as was the case in the past, and then re- AMIS units along with the complete meter very first time. A total of 150,000 villages in
ceiving a huge bill at the end of the year. So data management system. Ninety percent of India alone will be hooked up to the grid over
living in the dark about one’s own electricity the company’s new meters communicate with the next few years. As smart metering technol-
consumption will soon no longer be an issue, a central server that processes the huge ogy will be used here from the start, integrat-
at least not in Arbon. amounts of data, with most of this data trans- ing it into existing systems won’t be a prob-
The benefits that smart energy meters offer fer occurring via power line communication — lem.
utility companies go far beyond improved grid in other words, the grid itself. More developed markets — like Brazil, for
load planning. For one thing, the manual read- “Smart metering is leading to the formation example, where the vast majority of house-
ing of conventional meters is subject to errors of new business models", says Philip Skipper, holds already have electricity — will have to
that generate additional costs, such as the from Siemens Metering Services. "In many modernize their systems to reduce electricity
need for a second readings. These require dis-
proportionate amounts of time and energy in
comparison with standard reading trips. Smart Completely new business models based on smart
meters, on the other hand, are read automati- metering will arise in coming years.
cally.
“On average, around three percent of the
readings of conventional meters are erroneous cases the complexity and risk requires a new theft and increase supply reliability. Smart me-
and need to be repeated,” says Dr. Andreas approach and as a trusted and proven innova- ters will thus also be installed in many areas in
Heine, head of Services at Power Distribution. tor in this space Siemens is serving as the serv- these markets. Finally, in many of the most de-
“Smart meters reduce this error rate to nearly ice partner that drives the transformation of veloped countries, legislation enacted as part
zero. So, if you’ve got an area with a million the metering function.” of electricity market deregulation is leading to
customers, you can save more than €1.6 million Siemens prepared itself well for such new the rapid introduction of smart meters. The
Transparent Network
Power companies worldwide have begun installing electronic smart meters that
allow customers to monitor consumption practically in real time and thus conserve
energy. Such companies benefit from better grid load planning and lower costs.
Siemens offers complete solutions that include everything from hardware to software.
54 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 55
Hydroelectric plants in Germany like those at
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Virtual Power Plants
Ahausen and Niederense (below) have been in
operation for decades. They are now enjoying new
significance as part of a virtual power plant.
Power in Numbers
Small, distributed power plants and fluctuating energy sources such as wind and
sunlight have one thing in common. They increase the need for reliable and
economical operation of electric power grids. The virtual power plant is an intelligent
solution. It networks multiple small power stations to form a large, smart power grid.
56 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 57
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Virtual Power Plants | Facts and Forecasts
58 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 59
Tomorrow’s electric vehicles will redefine mobility.
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Electromobility
Not only will they recharge in only minutes at fast-
charge stations. They will also function as mobile
power storage units for the smart grid.
270 kilowatts of power and a top speed of RWE, Siemens will soon be installing 40 charg- ings. After all, if 10,000 vehicles simultane-
250 kilometers per hour, also boasts high ing stations at locations in Germany, with 20 ously tap the grid for 20 kW each, the resulting
torque and impressive acceleration right from stations planned for Berlin. In addition, RWE is required output will be 200 megawatts —
the start. Whereas a combustion engine needs now staging a roadshow in Germany that fea- which is what a medium power plant produces.
some time in order to fully develop its power, tures the Greenster. Siemens is participating in
an electric motor delivers its full performance the tour, which also made a stop at the IAA In- Batteries on Wheels. The energy specialists
immediately. ternational Motor Show in September 2009 in for “Inside Car” and “Outside Car” are currently
The Greenster is a pioneering vehicle that Frankfurt am Main. participating in Denmark’s EDISON project,
demonstrates just how chic electromobility Siemens is pursuing the development of which stands for “Electric vehicles in a Distrib-
can be. Still, because the model was devel- electromobility through a comprehensive ap- uted and Integrated market using Sustainable
oped in only three months, its individual com- proach involving not only automotive engineer- energy and Open Networks.” EDISON, the
ponents were not all part of a new component
approach but instead represent a combination
of available standard components. “The suc- Siemens covers all facets of electromobility — from
cessor Greenster II model, which is already vehicle technology to power grid integration.
being planned, will have optimally matched
components,” says Prof. Gernot Spiegelberg,
head of the Electromobility Team at Siemens ing — as is the case with Greenster and the world’s first and most extensive project of its
Corporate Technology (CT). Such components SUVs — but also systems for connecting vehi- kind, will bring a pool of vehicles to power out-
include a fast-charge unit and precisely tuned cles to the power grid. Here, both the charging lets and connect them to the fluctuating
components for battery management, motor process and communications are being ad- power of the wind. The associated technology
control, and charging electronics. The new dressed. Spiegelberg refers to these two areas as for vehicles and the grid will be developed and
Greenster II will be completed by the end of “Inside Car” and “Outside Car.” “We’ve put to- prepared for use over the next two years.
2010. gether a team that covers all facets of electro- Practical testing will begin in 2011 on the
60 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 61
Tomorrow’s Power Grids | Electromobility
In addition to Siemens, the EDISON consor- Another major obstacle to electromobility connection, Siemens will deliver charging driver can still handle a vehicle perfectly in ex-
tium includes the Technical University of Den- is the length of battery recharging times. With posts, an energy management system for the treme situations.
mark (DTU) and its RisØ-DTU research center,
as well as Denmark’s Dong Energy and
Østkraft power utilities, the Eurisco research
this in mind, Holthusen and his colleagues are
working on a fast-charge function that oper-
ates with much higher voltages and currents
integration of electric cars into the smart grid,
and associated communication systems.
In addition, researchers at Siemens CT labs
With a central motor concept, all the power
must be transferred via a bulky and heavy dif-
ferential, which adds weight to the vehicle.
In Brief
and development center, and IBM. In the EDI- — initially with 400 volts and 63 amps. in Munich are analyzing electronic compo- With the double motor concept, however, a
SON project, various working groups are re- Holthusen’s approach is considered to be real- nents, particularly with regard to bidirectional small control unit is all that’s needed to send
sponsible for developing all the technologies istic since many European households already charging and discharging. Scientists at commands by wire to the individual electric
needed for electromobility. Here, Siemens is have a 400-volt connection in the basement or Siemens Corporate Technology want to use motors. Kuhn and his colleagues are now
mainly responsible for fast-charge and battery other storage areas for electric ranges and test rigs to simulate various load situations. studying how well the electronic differential Our power grids are facing new challenges. customers to monitor their consumption
replacement systems. “Siemens’ portfolio al- other devices. “First we’re going to test individual drive works. “It’s not just in the ‘Outside Car’ area They will not only have to integrate large practically in real time and thus conserve en-
ready contains many components that we are “We go a great deal further in our tests, systems and then complete vehicles,” says that we’ve still got a lot of work to do,” says quantities of fluctuating wind and solar power, ergy. Such companies benefit from better grid
now adapting and reprogramming,” says Sven however, in order to determine what’s possi- Karl-Josef Kuhn, who is responsible for Kuhn. “The electric drive system is also highly but also incorporate an increasing number of load planning and lower costs. Experts say
Holthusen, who is responsible for the EDISON ble,” says Holthusen. More specifically, he constructing bidirectional test rigs in Spiegel- complex in its own right.” If everything goes small, decentralized power producers. Today’s completely new business models based on
project at Siemens’ Energy Sector. wants to raise charging power to as much as berg’s team. “Later on, we’ll connect the well with “Inside Car,” the complete Greenster infrastructure is not up to this task. The solu- smart metering will arise in coming years.
vehicles to a simulation of the grid that will be II will be put on a test rig in 2010. tion is to develop an intelligent grid that keeps Siemens offers complete smart meter solu-
provided by the Energy Sector.” This will be It’s already clear to Spiegelberg what will electricity production and distribution in bal- tions that include everything from hardware
We can’t even begin to imagine the type of revolution- done to determine how smoothly a vehicle can happen next. “The coming years will see the ance. (p. 40) to software. (p. 54)
ary breakthroughs that electromobility will lead to. be connected to the grid infrastructure. development of electric vehicles whose four
Power produced from renewable sources Small, distributed power plants, fluctuating
such as wind and sunlight is irregular. Experts energy sources such as wind and sunlight,
are therefore looking at ways of storing sur- and the deregulation of electric power mar-
plus energy so that it can be converted back kets have one thing in common. They in-
into electricity when required. One option is crease the need for reliable and economical
underground hydrogen storage, which is inex- operation of electric power grids. The virtual
pensive, highly efficient, and can feed power power plant is an intelligent solution from
into the grid quickly. (p. 48) Siemens. It networks multiple small power
stations to form a large, smart power grid. As
Renewable energy sources have to become a part of this virtual plant, these small energy
the rule, not the exception, says Dr. Dan Arvizu, producers can sell their power on the electrici-
director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Na- ty market. (p. 56)
tional Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in
an interview. Therefore it’s necessary that re- Industrial companies and energy suppliers
newable energy also reach consumers who are are working closely together to make the vi-
Prof. Gernot Spiegelberg (right). With the Greenster far away from energy sources. The world’s most sion of electric mobility a reality. Along with
Contaminated Grid? One of Holthusen’s jobs model, Siemens and Ruf are demonstrating just powerful HVDCT system, which Siemens is automotive engineering, the focus here is on
is to study how the grid will be affected when how attractive electric cars can be. When used as Where Motors Are Going. While the SUVs wheels will each be equipped with their own building in China, shows how these eco-friendly the interaction between vehicles, the power
millions of electric vehicles are plugged into it grid-connected storage units, they can even earn are being readied for their assignment in small drive unit,” he says. These motors will re- energy sources can supply millions of citizens in grid, and the technologies needed for storing
and disconnected every day. He is therefore money with their batteries. Copenhagen, Kuhn and his colleagues are cover brake energy and eliminate the need for far-off megacities. In 2010 the system will be- and bidirectionally transmitting energy de-
carrying out his research at the RisØ research testing a new drive system for the Greenster II, a large central motor and the transmission and gin transmitting electricity at a record of 800 rived from renewable sources. Tomorrow’s
campus, which has its own electricity grid. the younger brother of the model presented axle shafts, thereby creating more space. kilovolts over a distance of 1,400 kilometers electric vehicles will redefine mobility. Not
“This enables us to monitor the effects of such 300 kW so that batteries can be recharged in last March. Greenster I was a concept car — Moreover, unlike axle shafts, electronic from hydroelectric plants to the southeastern only will they recharge in only minutes at
a situation on a small scale,” he explains. six minutes. Electrics would then be on a par but Greenster II will be the world’s first components can be installed anywhere in the coast of China. This will cut the country’s annual fast-charge stations. They will also function
In this context, things become particularly with conventional vehicles. Porsche-based electric vehicle to be manufac- vehicle and don’t necessarily have to be located CO2 emissions by around 33 million tons. The as mobile power storage units for the smart
tricky if harmonics occur when batteries are Lithium-ion batteries with such fast charg- tured in a small production series. near the electric motors. This will offer design- HVDCT line will transmit 5,000 megawatts — grid. (p. 60)
hooked up to the 50-hertz grid, as these can ing capability are expected to be ready for The key component here is a double motor ers completely new possibilities for things like equal to the output of five large power plants .
resonate and unbalance the grid frequency. market launch in the near future. However, for the rear axle. Whereas the Greenster I was side-mounted wheels that also hold the drive (pp. 44, 50)
Such disturbances, which are referred to new battery technologies will have to be de- equipped with a rather large central motor, in units. In addition, vehicle entry and exiting LINKS:
as “grid-quality contamination,” can lead to veloped if a car is to be charged in as little as the Greenster II each rear wheel will be pro- could be facilitated in large multi-passenger Not only must power production become Smart grid platform of the EU:
failure of the entire network if large waves three minutes (see p. 117). pelled by a small drive unit located relatively vehicles by removing the center console and more efficient, so too must electricity con- www.smartgrids.eu
form. Siemens’ testing activities are not limited close to the wheel. Usually, the output of a installing active fold-out seats. sumers. Around 40% of the energy consumed EDISON Project:
There are no quick fixes for such a scenario to Denmark, of course. The company’s re- motor is distributed across the wheels via a dif- In general, vehicle interiors could be com- worldwide is used in buildings to provide www.edison-net.dk
yet — but Holthusen is working on answers. In searchers are also active in Germany, where, ferential, which isn’t an ideal arrangement for pletely redesigned and made even safer — for heating and lighting. But in the future, intelli- National Renewable Energy Laboratory:
his tests, he connects up to 15 batteries, each they are working with Harz.EE.mobility in a fast cornering. example, by getting rid of the hard steering gent building management systems will ease www.nrel.gov
of which weighs 300 kg and has an energy project designed to determine how distributed The double-motor concept, however, uses column and replacing it and the pedals with the load on power and heat networks—and Masdar Initiative:
content of 25 kWh. By comparison, a mid- wind, solar, and biogas power systems can be an electronic control system that ensures opti- levers or joysticks for operating the car. Com- even feed self-generated electricity into the www.masdar.ae
range vehicle requires around 18 kWh to travel better aligned with the grid. mal propulsion of the right and left wheels, pletely new features are conceivable. In fact, grid. (p. 52) European Network of TSOs:
100 kilometers. Holthusen then uses software Three participating districts in Germany’s which are exposed to different loads in a we can’t even begin to imagine the type of rev- www.entsoe.eu
to measure how the batteries affect the grid Harz region are looking at how to incorporate curve. It’s thanks to this phenomenon, which olutionary breakthroughs that electromobility Power companies worldwide have begun Electric Power Research Institute:
and to cushion the results of connection. electric vehicles into such a system. In this experts refer to as torque vectoring, that a will lead to. Tim Schröder installing electronic smart meters that allow www.epri.com
62 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates)
Pictures
from Pictures
of the Future
of the| Future
Fall 2009
| Fall 2009 63
47
While Transparent Energy Systems specializes in
Pictures of the Future | Siemens Venture Capital
the utilization of waste heat (large image), Powerit
Solutions (below) develops software that helps to
avoid demand peaks, for example at wineries.
we can also develop such companies more Energy companies justify this policy by argu- low providers to cap electricity supply at short
productively than our competitors can.” By dis- ing that they must maintain generating capac- notice, for example in midsummer, when air
cussing their strategy with Siemens experts ity to cover even extremely rare demand conditioners are running and the grid is in
the companies benefit from Siemens’ technical peaks. danger of overloading. Customers can save
expertise and global presence. To avoid such peaks, Powerit Solutions links millions of dollars in just a few years through
Dr. Ralf Schnell, CEO of SVC, is proud of his and matches all key production power con- these programs, enabling them to recoup their
team. “Since its founding in 1998, SVC has par- sumers. Food production facilities, where re- initial investment very quickly.
ticipated in over 150 companies — and a third frigeration units account for a big share of Powerit Solutions’ industrial green technol-
of the firms in our current portfolio offer solu- electricity consumption, are a good example. ogy activities still largely focus on North Amer-
tions that boost energy efficiency. We’re active Using predictive algorithms, Powerit’s soft- ica; around 70 of its solutions can be found in
in all major markets — in Europe, Asia, and the ware determines when, how, and by how the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. With the injec-
U.S.,” he says. SVC invests €2 to €5 million per much to turn off or down equipment without tion of financing by SVC, however, the com-
financing round in early-stage companies. But affecting food quality or production. “Our ex- pany’s expansion can now be accelerated.
recently, it started offering minority stakes of perience with various industries gives us pre- Bob Zak of Powerit Solutions and B. G.
€10 to €30 million of so-called growth-capital cise knowledge of the processes involved,” Kulkarni of Transparent have a lot in common
financing to established companies. The first says Zak. “We use this data to generate in terms of business goals. Both intend to con-
such investment was made in German waste complex decision-making matrices that help quer the global market with their green tech-
heat specialist Maxxtec AG. Every investment us balance energy savings with productivity nologies. And both have a partner in Siemens
ends with either the sale of the company or an requirements. And the systems are adaptive, that offers financial strength, a global net-
IPO. “At that point, the bottom-line return so they can adjust to a plant’s changing elec- work, and industrial expertise, especially in en-
must be solid,” Schnell explains. tric profile.” This strategy makes it possible to vironmental solutions.
reduce the power consumption not only of Some environmental technology compa-
Coping with Demand Peaks. SVC is on track ongoing processes but also of processes to be nies in the SVC portfolio call themselves “green
for success with Seattle-based Powerit Solu- carried out at a specific time in the future. dwarfs.” Together with the “green giant” —
tions, in which it acquired an interest in May Powerit Solutions customers exploit such Siemens — they can more effectively make
2009. Powerit, which has seen its sales double capabilities to take advantage of demand re- their vision of efficient resource utilization a
year after year, helps industrial firms avoid sponse programs — special contracts that al- reality. Andreas Kleinschmidt
64 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 65
Energy Efficiency | Scenario 2025
Highlights
78 Preparing for a Fiery Future
To reach higher efficiencies,
tomorrow’s coal-fired power
plants will have to operate at
Energy-
700 degrees Celsius. Materials
are being developed that can
take the heat.
Saving
82 Coal’s Cleaner Outlook
Researchers are developing tech-
nologies for storing the CO2 gen-
erated by coal-fired power plants
Sleuth
in underground depots.
2025
In his special lab, energy-efficiency sleuth It wasn’t easy getting an appointment with
Henry Poiret fine tunes the environmental Henry “the Sniffer” Poiret — least of all as a
balance sheets of new locomotives for a rail- journalist, because if there’s one thing the 70-
way company. The trains and the entire pro- year-old former FBI scientist can’t stand, it’s
duction hall are represented as holograms. publicity. Poiret prefers to work out of sight,
Poiret is assisted in his work by his avatar and the prodigious wrongdoers he strives to
“Virtual Watson.” Here, he presents a new hunt down — power hogs and energy wasters,
drive system that produces electricity as gas guzzlers, and climate killers — often re-
soon as the train brakes, and feeds it back main elusive as well. In short, anything that
into the power grid. consumes too much electricity, raw materials,
or other resources must go. Poiret is an energy-
start up the lab, we’re going down,” the master front drive section.” The avatar strolls over to water, wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and Heating oil 56 PJ = 27%
Kitchen appliances 10 PJ = 16%
Natural gas Households Freezers/refrigerators 10 PJ = 16%
says. His secretary hands me a cup of coffee one of the locomotives and touches the under- other sources. Converting this primary energy From natural gas 377 PJ 270 PJ = 26% Space heating Natural gas 110 PJ = 53%
Washing machines, dryer 9 PJ = 15%
and urges me into an elevator at the end of the body. As if by a magical force, the entire train into usable forms of energy leads to losses due 20 million tons 22% 208 PJ District heating 8% Hot water 11 PJ = 17%
= 20.5% Renewables 12% TV, I&C, office 14 PJ = 22%
room. “I’ve set up a small workroom in the becomes transparent. “The drive system is not to energy consumption by power generation (54,000 t / PJ) Lighting 6 PJ = 10%
basement,” says Poiret. “That’s where I also only gearless and ultra-efficient; it also serves facilities themselves and power transmission. Electricity 62 PJ Others 2 PJ = 4%
show customers my results from time to time. as a generator. Whenever the locomotive is As a result, consumers wind up with only 1,045 Nuclear
Transportation
Mr. Watson is expecting us.” When the elevator moving downhill or its brakes are applied, it ac- PJ of so-called “site energy.” Industry and busi- energy
189 PJ 315 PJ = 30% Passenger cars (5.6 million)
Trucks 44 PJ = 14%
doors open, I am met by a wave of loud factory cumulates braking energy. It feeds the power ness consume 44% of this energy, households Wind/water/ 11%
Fuels 217 PJ = 69%
Air transportation 32 PJ = 10%
noise. We are in the middle of a cavernous as- back into the electrical grid or uses it for its on- 26%, and the transportation sector 30%. other 308 PJ Local/long-distance rail 13 PJ = 4%
129 PJ = 7.5% Buses 6 PJ = 2%
sembly hall; welding robots are everywhere, board systems — so the train not only con- In our hypothetical city, residents, authori- Ships 3 PJ = 1%
Electricity 7 PJ
working on half-finished trains, and the air has sumes electrical energy, but also produces it.” ties, and industry have all pledged to practice
a metallic taste. “Watson,” calls Poiret, “turn off Poiret gestures to Watson to climb aboard
that sound track immediately, it’s unbearable.” one of the trains. The assistant takes a seat in
The din subsides in seconds. A figure that
seems strangely transparent glides forward
from behind a locomotive. “Allow me to intro-
duce Virtual Watson,” says Poiret. “You don’t
have to extend your hand, he couldn’t shake it
one of the compartments and lights up a vir-
tual pipe. “Mr. Watson has just made himself
nice and comfortable atop what is essentially a
compost heap: All the seat covers are com-
pletely environmentally compatible, and
Cities: A Better Energy Picture
anyway. Mr. Watson is an avatar, a hologram, what’s more, they will even become valuable Many energy-efficient energy conservation. Heat is a good place to windows. Old buildings consume 17–25 liters and space heating account for 67% of energy
just like the entire hall. An entirely new tech- fertilizer after they have been used,” explains start, because 53% of site energy in Germany is of oil or cubic meters of gas per square meter consumption. Electricity is also needed for ven-
nology, and not exactly inexpensive.” Poiret Poiret. “In theory, you could even eat them. In-
solutions that could used solely to generate heat for offices and of space per year. For comparison, conven- tilation and air conditioning systems. In our ef-
takes a sip of coffee. cidentally, the whole train is completely recy- substantially reduce homes, as well as heating up household water tional new buildings require only ten liters/cubic ficient city, however, these systems no longer
“The entire locomotive production process clable and contains no toxic substances what- power consumption are and supplying process heat in industry. Accord- meters per year and low-energy houses five to run at full capacity but are instead regulated in
can be simulated down here,” he explains. “The soever. We succeeded in hunting down all the ing to the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Energiebilanzen seven. Even more impressively, a so-called line with requirements. Here, heat and CO2
manufacturer has already transferred the data environmental polluters before it was too late.” already available. A study — a federation of seven German energy associa- “passive house” needs just 1.5 liters of oil or cu- sensors determine whether rooms are too cold
to me, so I can find out where energy and raw Poiret types a combination of keys into his of a hypothetical city — tions — heat accounts for 80% of total energy bic meters of gas per square meter per year. or stuffy, while other sensors register if rooms
materials are wasted, for example, and deter- PDA. Slowly, the production hall disappears, consumption in private households. It is therefore not surprising that all the old are occupied and assess how much fresh air is
mine the best ways to save even more.” and all that remains is a small white room —
the world champion in Heat thus offers huge savings potential that buildings in our hypothetical city have been needed. Such solutions are a specialty of
Poiret pulls an ultra-thin folding OLED dis- and Virtual Watson. “I still have a thing or two energy efficiency — pro- can easily be exploited. According to Germany’s renovated and new buildings have been built in Siemens’ Building Technologies Division,
play from his pocket. “But now let’s get to work. to do here. Unfortunately, my holographic vides insight into how Federal Environment Agency, energy consump- line with low-energy or passive house stan- whose experts search for “energy leaks” in
We’re not playing a computer game here. Wat- room uses quite a bit of power,” he admits. “But tion could be cut by 56% in older buildings alone dards using government funding. everything from hospitals and shopping cen-
son, explain to our young friend what we’ve I can hardly bear to turn off Mr. Watson.”
such solutions could simply by renovating, insulating outer walls and The situation is similar for industrial and ters to government agencies, schools and uni-
learned.” Florian Martini work in practice. basement ceilings, and installing heat-insulated commercial buildings, in which process heat versities. As it turns out, energy consumption
68 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 69
A blanket of illumination as seen from space is a re-
Energy Efficiency | Urban Energy Analysis | Trends
minder of our planet’s hunger for energy, which
is expected to increase by 55 percent by 2030.
By 2020, Earth will be home to eight billion people.
in many buildings can be cut by 20%–40% since taxes and toll fees had made driving vehi- ple, solar cells can be found on top of nearly
without a major investment in new technology. cles with high CO2 emissions expensive. The every public and private building. Windmills,
new buses and trains are comfortable, travel at solar thermal and geothermal plants and bio-
Miserly Motors. Our efficient city has also frequent intervals, and consume 30% less en- mass power plants also provide their share of
plugged other energy leaks, such as losses from
the electric motors used in drives, conveyor
belts and pumps. Motors account for nearly 70%
Replacing old appliances throughout Germany
of total industrial power consumption. A lot of would save enough electricity for 5 million people.
energy can be saved here by using intelligent
and more efficient motors. In the past, virtually
no one knew how much electricity was being ergy than their predecessors, thanks to light- electricity, while a large portion of household
used by which machines in a factory. But weight materials and regenerative braking sys- waste is converted into fuel for power plants.
Siemens has developed analysis software that tems. Motorists use hybrid vehicles that store
enables operators to obtain such data. The braking energy in their batteries, which is then Saving at Home. Residents of the efficient
software works its way through processes at a transferred to an electric motor. This reduces city also contribute to energy conservation. Al-
factory and finds out how much energy is con- fuel consumption by around 20%. It will be pos- most half of all electricity consumed in the
sumed by each machine — and when. This sible to save even more energy when electric household is used by refrigerators, freezers,
process reveals hidden potential for optimiza- drives and electric brakes are integrated directly stoves, washing machines and dishwashers.
tion and identifies energy guzzlers. into each vehicle’s wheels. In the meantime, In- Purchasing new appliances is the best invest-
Of course, waste heat is also harnessed in ternet-based information and efficient traffic ment here, as the consumption of such devices
the efficient city. Siemens offers a concept here guidance systems are helping to prevent traffic has been cut by 30%–75% since 1990. The
that is perfect for all sectors where large jams and facilitate parking. Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment
amounts of waste heat are produced, such as and Energy estimates that replacing old house-
the glass, metal, pharmaceutical and cement Green Energy Production. Our city wouldn’t hold appliances throughout Germany would
industries. The principle is always the same. be an efficiency champion if it hadn’t also cut reduce annual electricity consumption by 7.9
Waste heat vaporizes a liquid, and the resulting power consumption. Although electricity ac- terawatt-hours (billion kWh) or 28.4 PJ — the
gas is used to drive a turbine, which in turn
generates electricity.
Naturally, all of these measures cost money.
counts for only 22% of all delivered energy con-
sumed in Germany, that’s just half the story. Af-
ter all, it first has to be generated in gas, coal or
equivalent of the annual electricity require-
ment of nearly five million people.
Lighting systems in this hypothetical high-
Light at the End of the Tunnel
And given that local governments generally nuclear power plants, whose losses total any- efficiency city would be completely revamped
The world’s population is
operate on tight budgets, energy savings per-
formance contracting can offer an ideal solution.
Here, Siemens plans and installs new technology
where between 50% and 65%. In other words,
40% of all the primary energy consumed in Ger-
many is used to produce electricity. That was
as well. Lighting accounts for more than 10% of
electricity consumption in Germany and nearly
19% worldwide. Given the current global en-
growing — as is its thirst A stronauts working at the International
Space Station (ISS) are treated to a spectac-
ular view as they orbit the earth. With each
will increase by 55 percent between 2005 and
2030 if the current environmental policy
framework remains unchanged (see p. 27).
that guarantees energy savings. Local govern- too much for the efficiency champions, who ergy mix, that corresponds to emissions of two for energy, which is revolution, the earth grows dark, and billions of Consumption would thus rise to 18 billion tons
ment pays for the investment in installments make better use of primary energy in facilities billion tons of CO2 per year — or the emissions increasingly being lights 390 kilometers below join to form a of oil equivalent (toe) per year, as compared to
financed from the energy savings achieved. like combined-cycle power plants, which today produced by 700 million passenger cars. The shimmering meshwork that extends across 11.4 billion toe in 2005.
Such a system doesn’t burden local budgets, and can convert more than 58% of the energy con- potential for savings here is huge and easy to
quenched, especially in land masses like a spider web. This light is, in The IEA study says developing countries will
once the contract expires after around ten years, tained in gas into electricity. The energy-effi- exploit because energy-saving lamps can reduce emerging markets, by fact, the only visible sign of civilization on our be responsible for 74 percent of this increase in
all savings flow directly to the client. In Berlin, cient city also exploits associated heat, pushing consumption by up to 80% compared to con- streams of coal. But planet, at least as seen from space. primary energy consumption — with China
for example, Siemens renovated 11 municipal the fuel conversion rate to over 80%. Here, ventional light bulbs. So too can LED lamps, The sea of light continually expands as the and India alone accounting for 45 percent.
indoor pools by replacing boilers and installing process steam and heat are sent via pipes to which last around 50 times longer than incan- solutions are in sight. earth’s population grows. According to the UN, Moreover, both of these countries will meet
more-efficient heat recovery and warm water nearby factories and apartment buildings. descent light bulbs. Emissions can be cleaned there will be eight billion people living on our most of their energy needs with coal because,
processing systems. It also converted operation In the town of Irsching, where a 570-mega- Energy consumption can also be reduced in planet in 2020. As prosperity spreads, these unlike other raw materials, coal remains abun-
from oil to gas. The public swimming pools now watt combined-cycle plant is being built for en- production facilities, which up until now have
and CO2 can be people will seek a higher standard of living, dant and is currently cheaper than renewable
save 1.63 million euros per year — or one third ergy supplier E.ON, Siemens is already demon- often been equipped with several thousand flu- sequestered. Efficiency and will thus begin buying more and more elec- energy sources. China already has a huge
of their previous energy costs. Performance strating that efficiency ratings of more than 60% orescent lamps. State-of-the-art mirror louvre lu- can stretch supplies and trical appliances, cars, and other products, which hunger for coal. The country put 174 coal-fired
contracting particularly pays off in old municipal could soon be the norm. Weighing 444 tons, minaires, electronic ballasts and dimmers that in turn will necessitate the construction of new power plants online in 2006 alone, which aver-
buildings, where it can often halve energy con- this 13-meter-long gas turbine is as heavy as six automatically adjust to natural light can generate
cut pollution. And new, factories and offices. More than anything else, ages out to one new plant every two days. This
sumption. The concept has also been success- diesel locomotives — but has 100 times the lighting-related electricity savings of up to 80%. renewable energy all of this will require huge amounts of energy. is a climate-change nightmare, says Hennicke,
fully implemented in hospitals and universities. output. In fact, its 375 megawatts could supply Thanks to the combined potential for energy technologies are right “Energy is a necessity of life,” says Professor especially when you consider the fact that facil-
the population of a city like Hamburg. Future conservation in households, buildings, industry, Peter Hennicke, former head of the Wuppertal ities built today will remain in operation for the
Putting the Brakes on Energy Use. Our en- versions of the plant are expected to achieve transportation and power plant technology, an around the corner. Institute for Climate, Environment, and Energy. next 30 years. “In order to contain the associ-
ergy-efficient city has also addressed the second- an efficiency of 63% within ten years. The im- efficient city could reduce its consumption of “But it can also be a curse if you look at it in ated risks to the climate, we have to exploit the
biggest energy consumer — transportation, plications of this become clear when you con- primary energy and its CO2 emissions by 50%. terms of climate change, resource depletion, most effective, fastest, and least expensive po-
which accounts for 28% of delivered energy. Up sider that replacing all coal-fired plants world- This analysis of a hypothetical city clearly and the failure to use and produce it efficiently tential solution: energy efficiency.”
until recently, 5.6 million passenger cars were wide with the latest combined-cycle plants demonstrates that a variety of solutions already and economically.” Unfortunately, we’re still far China is aware of the problem, and has there-
on the road in this hypothetical city, emitting would result in over four billion tons less CO2 exist for achieving major reductions in energy from doing that, according to the International fore included in its 11th Five-Year Plan strict
15 million tons of CO2 per year. That was rea- being released into the atmosphere each year. consumption. In other words, they don’t have to Energy Agency (IEA), and things won’t get any stipulations for reducing environmental pollution
son enough to start using the extensive and Renewable energy sources also help reduce be developed — they could be implemented better if current trends hold up. The IEA pre- and improving energy efficiency. New techno-
modernized public transit network, especially CO2 emissions in our imaginary city. For exam- right now. Tim Schröder dicts that global primary energy consumption logies from Siemens are pointing the way here.
70 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 71
The world’s largest gas turbine measures 13 me-
Energy Efficiency | Trends | World’s Largest Gas Turbine
ters in length, five meters in height and weighs
444 tons. It was built at Siemens’ gas turbine
plant in Berlin.
Take, for example, China’s most modern Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) power cent between now and 2050 through more ef-
electrical power plant, the Huaneng Yuhuan plants. IGCC plants transform coal and other fu- ficient utilization of energy, with only marginal
coal-fired facility (see p. 77). Since November els like oil and asphalt into a synthetic gas that additional costs, according to Hennicke.
2007, so-called ultra super-critical steam tur- drives a turbine. From this gas, the CO2 can be Operators of an indoor swimming pool in Vi-
bine units and generators from Siemens have separated relatively easily, leaving only pure enna, Austria, are already reaping the benefits
made possible an efficiency rating of 45 per- hydrogen behind. “We’re ready to start con- of more efficient energy use. Thanks to a clever
cent at Huaneng Yuhuan. That’s 15 percentage struction of a major IGCC facility anytime,” says energy-saving model and building manage-
points higher than the global average for hard- Dr. Christiane Schmid from Siemens Fuel Gasifi- ment system from Siemens, the pool facility
coal power plants and seven percentage points cation Technology GmbH, in Freiberg, Ger- now produces around 600 tons less greenhouse
more than the EU average. This is significant, many. “Siemens, after all, has been involved in gas per year than in the past. The Siemens
since one percentage point of higher efficiency the development of optimized IGCC concepts setup not only helps the environment; it’s also
translates for a mid-sized power plant into for years now.” Spain and the Netherlands, for saving the pool’s operator €200,000 per year on
around 100,000 fewer tons of CO2 per year. “If
we use the same technology in future projects,
it will make a huge contribution to improving “We have to exploit the most effective, and least
energy efficiency and environmental protection expensive potential solution: energy efficiency.”
72 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 73
Energy Efficiency | World’s Largest Gas Turbine
The world’s largest turbine, which was built GmbH. The plant houses two small gas tur- nology can register — from temperature and Efficiency Record. Siemens’ project manager speaking, therefore, less fuel will be burned countdown was under way, with ignition
at Siemens’ Energy plant in Berlin, traveled bines and a steam turbine. Siemens also built pressure to mechanical stress and material Wolfgang Winter points to one of the walls and and 40,000 tons less carbon dioxide (CO2) per scheduled for mid-December, 2007.
1,500 kilometers to get to Irsching — initially the plant’s new Block 4, where the giant tur- strain. If a component is defective, or fails, explains that it is the connection to the air in- year will be emitted into the atmosphere than There’s good reason for Siemens’ decision
by water along the Havel river, various canals, bine is installed. The new turbine’s output of computers linked to the sensors call attention take unit, which draws in fresh air from the would be the case with the Mainz-Wiesbaden to use one giant turbine rather than the two
the Rhine, and the Main. It then went down the 375 megawatts, which equals that of 17 jumbo to the problem immediately. The component outside. Equipped with a special housing, fil- plant. smaller ones E.ON will put into operation next
Main-Danube Canal to Kelheim, where it was jet engines, is enough to supply power to the will then be removed, replaced, or reworked. ters, and sound absorbers, the unit channels in But there was still plenty of work to do after door. “The price per megawatt (MW) of output
loaded onto a truck for the final 40 kilometers. population of a city the size of Hamburg. Most of the measuring technology is hid- 800 kilograms of air per second when the facil- the plant was built in 2007, as technicians still and efficiency correlate with the size of the tur-
This odyssey was undertaken because the only “Block 4 is our project at the moment,” says den; the thing that stands out at the facility is a ity operates at full capacity — an amount that had to test all systems to ensure that the gas bine — in other words, the bigger it is, the
way to truly test such a large and powerful tur- Winter. Siemens uses the existing infrastruc- section of 21 office trailers housing the tur- would exhaust the air inside the hall in just a lines were pressure-tight, electrical cables were more economical it will be,” explains Willibald
bine is to put it into operation at a power plant. ture here, purchases gas from E.ON-Ruhrgas, bine’s measurement stations. The trailers look few minutes. properly secured, and that all valves could Fischer, who is responsible for development of
“It was a nice coincidence that the energy com- and sells the electricity it produces at the plant. tiny next to the turbine hall, which is 30 meters But it will be worth the effort because the open and close quickly and reliably. It was like a the turbine. “In 1990, the largest gas turbine
pany E.ON was planning to expand the power But that was not that important in 2007, how- high. Despite its massive size, the new facility’s gas turbine and a downstream steam turbine final check before a space mission — and the produced 150 MW, and, in conjunction with a
station in Irsching,” says Wolfgang Winter, En- ever, as the turbine first needed to be tested metal facade makes it seem light and modern will set a new world record in 2011 with an ef-
ergy project manager in Irsching. over the following 18 months. To this end, the compared to the plant’s three old concrete tow- ficiency rating of over 60 percent, two percent-
Siemens built a combined cycle plant at the unit was equipped with 3,000 sensors that ers from the 1960s and ’70s, each of which is age points higher than the previous titleholder,
The turbine produces enough electricity for
Bavarian facility (Block 5) for E.ON Kraftwerke measure just about everything modern tech- 200 meters high. the Mainz-Wiesbaden power plant. Relatively the population of a city the size of Hamburg.
74 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 75
Yuhuan, China’s most advanced coal-fired power
Energy Efficiency | Coal-Fired Power in China
plant, boasts a record-breaking efficiency of
45 percent — thanks to ultra-supercritical steam
turbines supplied by Siemens (small photo).
equivalent of each cubic centimeter of such a power plants over the last 25 years, but the de- be imported at high cost. In 2007, around 1.5
blade weighing as much as an adult human sign and performance of those at Yuhuan are billion tons of coal were burned in Chinese
being. really special,” says Lothar Balling, Vice Presi- power plants. Any improvements in efficiency
The blades of the new mega turbine are dent Steam Power Plants at Siemens. The plant will therefore have a substantial impact on the
made of a nickel alloy. These used to be cast operator agrees. “We’ve known for a long time country’s consumption of resources, fuel costs,
and then left to harden. Later, crystallites were that Siemens supplies the very latest technol- and greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, a rise of
made to grow in the same direction as the cen- ogy and high-quality systems,” says Fan Xiaxia, a single percentage point in efficiency brings
trifugal forces. But now the blades on the giant Vice President of Huaneng Power International fuel costs down by 2.5 percentage points. For a
turbine in Irsching contain alloys that have Inc. “Huaneng needs this kind of advanced medium-sized power plant that has an installed
mostly been grown as single crystals through technology to help it develop as a company.” capacity of 700 MW and operates for 7,000
the utilization of special cooling processes. On the other hand, Huaneng is relaxed about hours a year, this translates into an annual
They are therefore extremely resistant to break- the prospect of Yuhuan soon being overtaken in reduction of 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide.
ing, as there are no longer any grain bound- the efficiency stakes. Indeed, it’s firmly hoped “Efficient and environmental power plant
aries between the crystallites in the alloy that that the plant will lead the way for China’s technology has a big role to play in reducing
can rupture. other power generators. That’s because en- CO2 emissions,” says Balling. “Our aim is to real-
Engineers also optimized the shape of hanced efficiency, environmental compatibil- ize this potential worldwide.” This approach fits
the blades with the help of 3D simulation ity, and sustainability are a must for China’s perfectly with the political strategy of the Peo-
programs, whereby the edges were designed electricity industry. “The Chinese administra- ple’s Republic. The country has already sur-
to keep the gap between the blades and the tion has categorically said that the country’s passed the U.S. as the world’s largest producer
turbine wall as small as possible. As a result, economy can’t be allowed to grow at the ex- of greenhouse gases and is aware of the
practically all the gas passes across the blades pense of the environment,” says Hu Shihai, As- responsibility that goes with this role. During
and is utilized. The blade-wall gap is made even sistant General Manager at China Huaneng initial negotiations for the follow-up to the
smaller due to the turbine’s operation in a Group. “That’s why the 11th Five-Year Plan con- Kyoto Protocol, China demonstrated that it takes
cone. This means that the shaft can be shifted tains very strict targets on the reduction of pol- the threat of global warming very seriously.
several millimeters during operation until the lution and improvements in energy efficiency.”
blades nearly touch the housing — a practice Record Efficiency. In June 2006 Beijing pub-
known as “hydraulic gap optimization.” Energy Appetite. China needs to overcome lished its own roadmap as to how to reduce
huge challenges if it is to remain on the path of emissions of greenhouse gases. The target is to
Trial Run. Each off the measures mentioned economic growth. According to official statis- raise energy efficiency 20 percent by 2010,
above produces only a fractional increase in tics, the country's energy demand has risen by based on 2005 levels. In addition, by building
efficiency or output. But taken together they an average of 5.6 percent every year since the more-efficient coal-fired power plants, the gov-
add up to a new record. That everything start of the reform era in the early 1980s, and ernment plans to reduce carbon dioxide emis-
worked as planned was revealed by the last year it leapt by a massive 20 percent. sions by 200 million tons over the same period.
18-month trial period that began in November
2007. The tests were successful beyond expec-
tations. After thorough analysis of the test
Olympic Efficiencies Back in 2003, China had a total installed
generating capacity of 400 gigawatts (GW). By
2007, that figure had risen to 720 GW, and is
“When you look at the most recent power
plants in China, it’s obvious the country’s al-
ready long past the stage of being a developing
results, it is now possible to announuce the now forecast to top 1,000 GW by 2011. In nation,” says Lutz Kahlbau, who was President
turbine’s power rating: 375 MW in pure gas
Generating capacity has long been regarded as the 2006 alone, 174 coal-fired power plants in the of Siemens Power Generation China until mid
operation, and 570 MW when used as a Achilles heel of China’s boom. But thanks to new 500-megawatt class entered service in China 2009. “In fact, China’s most modern power
combined cycle power plant. A release for dis- technology from Siemens, power generation in the — in other words, on average, one every other plants are among the best anywhere in the
tribution was issued in August 2009, meaning day. Driving the country’s growth is not only in- world, with great efficiency and comparatively
that the new mega turbine is on the market.
People’s Republic is becoming increasingly efficient, dustry but also private consumption, with most low CO2 emissions,” he adds.
After successful completion of all tests in environmentally compatible, and sustainable. Chinese households now owning a refrigerator Leading the way is the Yuhuan plant. “It’s
August of 2009, things are now quiet in and TV, and many now investing in washing the most energy-efficient and environmentally
Irsching. The turbine will now be overhauled machines and air conditioning as well. How- compatible coal-fired power plant anywhere in
and disassembled, and all of its components
will be thoroughly examined. If everything is
found to be in order, the unit will be reassem-
F or China, 2008 was just the latest in a
whole series of big years. With posters for
the summer’s Beijing Olympics plastered across
which China intends to excel every bit as much
as in summer’s 2008 sporting events in Beijing.
The latest demonstration of China’s commit-
efficiency of power plants in China is 30 per-
cent, a figure similar to that of the U.S., and
even in environmentally-progressive Europe it’s
ever, per capita electricity consumption is still
low by international standards and, according
to a study by the International Energy Agency
China,” says Hu. “If we use the same technol-
ogy for future projects, it will have a huge im-
pact on the efficiency and environmental im-
bled minus its specialized measuring equip- billboards throughout the provinces, the Chi- ment to these goals — a commitment en- only 38 percent. (IEA), was only around 1,780 kilowatt-hours pact of China’s power industry.”
ment. nese looked upon the Games as a golden op- dorsed by the entire Beijing administration — Not that there’s anything artificially en- (kWh) in 2005, substantially less than in Ger- Siemens is already targeting new records for
During the overhaul, engineers will install portunity to not only put on a huge sporting is on display in Zhejiang province, south of hanced about the performance of the Yuhuan many (7,100 kWh) or the U.S. (13,640 kWh). future power plants. “The next generation of
an additional steam turbine on the shaft at the festival but also to showcase their country’s re- Shanghai, which is home to China’s most mod- facility, which is operated by Huaneng Power On the other hand, when this figure is com- coal-fired plants will operate at steam tempera-
end of the generator. The turbine will make use cent achievements. Despite having increased ern power plant. International Inc. Such efficiency is possible pared to economic output, China is anything tures of 700 degrees Celsius and pressures in
of the generator’s 600-degree-Celsius gas to gross domestic product by a nominal factor of The Yuhuan coal-fired plant consists of four thanks to the use of so-called ultra-supercritical but frugal: for every unit of GDP, the People’s excess of 300 bars,” Balling explains. “That
generate steam in a heat exchanger. Only 13 over the period since 1990, the People’s Re- 1,000-megawatt generating units, of which steam turbines from Siemens (see p. 78), which Republic consumes 3.5 times as much energy should enable us to break the magical barrier
through this combined cycle process can the public was determined to show the world that the two most recent — Units 3 and 4 — en- make it possible to produce temperatures of 600 as the international average. of 50 percent efficiency and thus significantly
energy in the gas be so effectively exploited as it still has a lot of potential. tered service in November 2007. The facility degrees Celsius and a pressure of 262.5 bars in As much as 73 percent of the country’s elec- reduce CO2 emissions compared to today’s lev-
to achieve the record efficiency of 60 percent – The buzzwords of China’s latest wave of boasts an efficiency of 45 percent, which is the main steam line. By way of comparison, the tricity is generated from coal, the only source of els.” With so much potential for progress, 2008
a record in terms of eco-friendliness. modernization were “efficiency, environmental very much a winning performance in this field, pressure in a car tire is around 3.3 bars. The gen- energy that China possesses in any considerable won’t be the last big year in China’s calendar.
Bernhard Gerl compatibility, and sustainability” — areas in even by international standards. The average erators are also from Siemens. “I’ve seen a lot of quantities and which therefore doesn’t have to Bernhard Bartsch
76 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 77
In a Siemens factory in Mülheim an der Ruhr,
Energy Efficiency | Steam Turbine Materials
scientists prepare turbine materials for ultra-high
temperatures (left). Gigantic steam turbines will
one day have to withstand over 700 degrees Celsius.
Preparing for
break in a few days,” he says. The experiment able to withstand the temperatures,” says
is relentless — and that’s as it should be. After Pfitzinger. “And we want to make as much use
all, it’s better if the metals fail in the lab than as possible of these materials, so we’re going to
later, after they’ve been forged to form steam go straight to 700 degrees.” The higher pres-
a Fiery Future
turbine shafts a meter or more in diameter and sure is necessary to optimize efficiency. The ob-
are enduring enormous centrifugal forces and jective is to increase efficiency by four percent-
temperatures of 700 degrees Celsius. age points over that achieved at 600 degrees,
This metallic martyrdom is helping engi- and to cut coal consumption by six to seven
neers prepare for the coal-fired power station of percent, thus also reducing CO2 emissions.
To achieve 50 percent efficiency and cut environmental the future, which should be much more efficient
impact, tomorrow‘s coal-fired power plants will use and use as little fuel as possible in order to keep Exotic Mix. By new materials, Pfitzinger
atmospheric emissions to a minimum. The need means nickel alloys, which are a sophisticated
hotter steam. Testing turbine materials at hellish tem- for action is urgent. On average, the world’s mix of high-strength metals like nickel and
peratures and centrifugal forces is part of the picture. coal-fired power plants consume 480 grams of chromium, with only a pinch of iron. Such al-
coal to produce a kilowatt-hour of electricity. In 2015. Such an efficient power plant would be as hot as possible and the steam leaving it loys are expensive. After processing — a
doing so, they release between 1,000 and consume only 288 grams of coal per kilowatt- as cool as possible. The blades then have the painstaking process — they cost five to ten
1,200 grams of CO2 into the air, or some eight hour, and thus produce only 669 grams of CO2. maximum available energy to convert into ro- times as much as the chromium steel used to-
billion tons a year. One of the most efficient Such a step would have significant conse- tational energy, which is fed into the generator. day. That’s not exactly peanuts in a turbine re-
coal-fired power plants in the world, the Block quences because each percentage point in im- As a result, the steam temperature needs to be quiring some 200 tons of the metal alloys.
Waigaoqiao III in China, for which Siemens de- proved efficiency — if applied to all coal burn- increased from the level currently found in the To reduce material costs, the turbine need
livered two 1,000-megawatt turbines, burns ing power plants — translates into 260 million best power plants (around 600 degrees Cel- not be made entirely of nickel alloy, but instead
only 320 grams of coal per kilowatt-hour, and tons less CO2 each year . sius) to 700 degrees Celsius — the temperature can be composed of different alloys depending
thus emits only 761 grams of CO2. to which the metals are being subjected in the on the temperatures different areas are sub-
In a project led by Trianel Power-Projektge- Ordeal by Fire. To achieve this ambitious Mülheim laboratory. Only then will it become jected to. For example, the inner and outer
sellschaft, Siemens is building a comparable goal, turbine materials will have to be able to possible to achieve 50 percent efficiency. “Tem- housings are to be thermally separated by a
power plant for a consortium of 27 city utilities survive extraordinary stresses. A glance at any perature is the key factor,” says Dr. Ernst-Wil- layer of cooler steam, so that normal steel will
on a site at Lünen in northern Germany. The physics book reveals the principle behind the helm Pfitzinger, the project manager in charge be adequate for the outside, which will have to
plant is scheduled to go into operation by heat engine — and that’s exactly what a fossil- of developing the 700-degree turbine in Mül- withstand a temperature of 550 degrees. In ad-
2012. However, with an efficiency of around fuel-fired power plant is. It turns out that the heim. But as Werner-Holger Heine, head of dition, the meter-thick shaft can be forged in
46 percent, these power plants are not good useful energy produced by such plants is deter- Product Line Management for Steam Turbines, several pieces, with the nickel alloy only being
enough for Siemens Fossil Power Generation mined by the difference between the tempera- is only too aware, the situation is complex. For employed in the hottest area.
Division and the power plant operators. Their ture source and the temperature sink. In other a steam turbine, customers demand a working But even this concept creates new chal-
aim is to achieve 50 percent efficiency by words, the steam entering the turbine should lifetime of at least 200,000 hours, he says. lenges, including how to deal with different
78 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 79
Twice as big as an Airbus A380 turbine, the
Energy Efficiency | Steam Turbine Materials
steam-turbine rotor being manufactured in
Siemens’ Mülheim an der Ruhr factory is the
biggest and heaviest in the world.
heat expansion coefficients. In addition, the that could one day be used in a 700-degree po- efficiency, E.ON plans to preheat the combus- The problem of naming such power plants
necessary casting, forging, milling, and testing wer plant. These included a test boiler, main tion air and use seawater, which cools more ef- will certainly be easier than developing their
methods for manufacturing and processing the steam lines, and other components operated at fectively, for cooling — hence the location of technologies. Because water converts directly
heat-resistant material have yet to be devel- temperatures of 700 degrees Celsius, including the plant in a coastal city. Construction of the into steam at pressures of over 221 bar, design-
oped — at least for steam turbine components a nickel alloy turbine valve made by Siemens. 500-megawatt block is expected to start in ers characterized modern power plants as
weighing several tons. The old turbine was not affected by any of this. 2010. “over-critical” in line with this physical phenom-
The production process used for gas tur- enon. That not only sounds unnecessarily
bines, where the use of nickel alloys has long threatening; it also requires some mental acro-
been standard, doesn’t help here. “We can’t
The first 700-degree power plant will cost around batics in terms of finding names.
simply copy the process,” says Pfitzinger. Gas €1 billion, but will cut CO2 emissions significantly. At temperatures from 600 to 620 degrees
turbines are delicate in comparison to coal tur- Celsius engineers refer to “ultra-supercritical.”
bines and can be built using completely differ- For the 700-degree class, there is no designa-
ent techniques. What’s more, although at over After passing through the test section, the But 700-degree power plants are not yet an tion yet — let alone for anything beyond that.
1,400 degrees their temperatures are very steam cooled to 520 degrees Celsius to avoid economical proposition. Today, a power plant But Heine isn’t interested in the next name
high, their pressures are comparatively low, at potential damage. Says Siemens turbine expert in the 600-degree Celsius/800-megawatt class combination of “hyper,” “ultra” or “super.” “At
around 20 bar. Dr. Holger Kirchner, “The inspection of the val- costs over €1,700 per kilowatt. 50plus will cost present, plants with temperatures of 760 or
To jump from 600 to 700 degrees is no ve was very positive.” The results of the test will €1 billion, which will drive costs up to €2,000 even 800 degrees are in the realm of fantasy,“
small achievement. In fact, no individual man- be analyzed by 2011. per installed kilowatt. 50plus has therefore he says. Bernd Müller
been essentially designed as a demonstration
plant for future series-produced power sta-
tions. "When things get uneconomical, cus-
CO2 Emissions in Coal-Fired Power Plants tomers are no longer interested," says Heine. Turbines that Dwarf other Engines
But considering the increasing costs of raw ma-
Specific CO2 emissions [g CO2/kWh]* Specific coal consumption [g coal/kWh]*
terials and CO2 levies, savings will be possible
1,200 500 due to the plant’s improved efficiency, even al- You might think that the new Airbus A380
1,115 g CO2/kWh Mean data for coal-fired power plants
480 g coal/kWh (source: VGB) lowing for the 10 to 15 percent higher costs of is relatively large. Take its engine, for example,
1,000 * related to a median calorific value of 25 MJ/kg a series-produced 700-degree power plant. which has a rotor diameter of almost three me-
** Lünen coal-fired plant 400 ters and is 4.5 meters in length, making it the
880 g CO2/kWh
379 g coal/kWh Competing Concepts. The new 700° technol- biggest in the world. But at Siemens’ steam tur-
800 727 g CO2/kWh ogy will compete with other technologies, such bine and generator factory in Mülheim an der
669 g CO2/kWh 300
313 g coal/kWh as IGCC power plants, in which coal and other Ruhr, you would scarcely notice the mighty
600 288 g coal/kWh fuels, such as oil and asphalt, are converted A380 engines. Housings belonging to steam
Global EU-wide Technology Steam power into syngas and fed into a gas and steam-tur- turbines twice that size are awaiting assembly
200
average average available plant with bine power plant (Pictures of the Future, Spring here. Close by is a giant wheel that might look
400
today 700 °C tech- 2007, p.91). “Today, with modern gas turbines, like the compressor blades of an airplane engine
nology (2014) we achieve efficiency levels of up to 46 per- but is disproportionately larger. Covering 30
100
200 cent,” says Lothar Balling, head of the Steam square meters, the turbine blade has a diameter
Power Plants and Emerging Plant Solutions unit of 6.7 meters. At 320 tons total weight, the
0 0 at Siemens’ Fossil Power Generation Division in complete rotor is the largest and heaviest in the
Erlangen. “By 2020 improvements will enable world (picture above on this page). The finished
80 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 81
Siemens scientists at the company’s test plant
Energy Efficiency | CO2 Separation
in Freiberg, Germany (below), are developing coal
gasifiers (right) and investigating how different
types of coal behave during the gasification process.
82 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 83
A CO2 testing laboratory in Frankfurt. Here, Siemens In Ketzin, Germany, scientists plan to pump
Energy Efficiency | CO2 Separation | CO2 Sequestration
experts investigate CO2 separation from flue gas. 90,000 tons of CO2 into the earth. Geologists have
The CO2 is bound to an absorber (right) by a special drilled holes 700 meters into the rock and installed
scrubbing agent and thus removed. numerous measuring probes.
Testing Eternal
it consumes far less energy than previous procedures, whose efficiency costs total more than ten
percentage points. of the greenhouse gas by raising the tempera- year life span, the project is expected to se-
The detergent used is also very stable, which means that it hardly reacts with trace substances in ture, after which the regenerated detergent is quester about 90,000 tons of CO2 — roughly as
the flue gas. As a result, it is almost fully retained in the cycle — that is, it does not escape with fed back into the absorber,” Schneider explains. much as the 150,000 residents of Potsdam will
Incarceration
the residual gas, as is the case with many other detergent substances. The pilot facility is testing “After that, the cycle begins anew.” exhale during the same period. But that’s noth-
the technology under real-life power plant conditions. Among the factors being examined are the For the past three years, Schneider and his ing compared to the more than 10 billion tons
detergent’s long-term chemical stability and the effectiveness of the process. In addition, the re- team have been working extensively in a labo- of this greenhouse gas that are expelled into
searchers aim to further reduce energy consumption. ratory at Frankfurt Höchst Industrial Park on the atmosphere each year through power plant
CO2 detergents that bind CO2 particularly well smokestacks. And the problem will grow more
and release it again when temperatures are Emissions from coal-fired power plants must become acute, judging from the forecasts of the Inter-
IGCC with CO2 Separation raised. “We can conduct good analyses of all cleaner — which means removing their carbon dioxide national Energy Agency (IEA) and Siemens,
the individual aspects of CO2 scrubbing in our which indicate that fossil fuels will account for
lab,” says Schneider. “As a result, our new
content. The best place to store this greenhouse gas one third of the increase in power production
In the IGCC process, the conversion of coal into power can be combined with upstream CO2 sepa- chemical CO2 scrubbing technique loses less permanently is deep underground. That’s exactly what over the next 20 years (see p. 59). In fact, coal
ration. First, the coal is converted into a combustible raw gas in a gasifier under pressure and at detergent into the flue gas and also requires is happening at a test facility near Potsdam, Germany. demand is expected not to decrease, but to rise
high temperatures of 1,400 to 1,800 degrees Celsius. The gas, whose primary constituents are car- less energy than previous methods.” by 27 percent. China, for example, put 174
bon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2), is then coarsely cleaned, after which the carbon monoxide coal-fired power plants in the 500-megawatt
is converted into CO2 and H2 in a shift reactor with the help of water vapor. Next, sulfur com- Heading for Large-Scale Applications. In class into operation in 2006 alone, which cor-
pounds and CO2 are separated out with the help of a chemical or physical scrubbing process. The order to make fossil fuel-fired power plants responds to the commissioning of one plant
CO2 is then compressed and transported to a storage site. Separation rates of up to 95 percent are more climate-friendly as quickly as possible, every two days (see p. 28).
projected for this technique. All the remaining hydrogen is burned in the gas turbine, which is at- energy supplier E.ON joined forces with
tached to an electrical generator. Siemens now has over 400,000 operating hours’ worth of experi- Siemens to put a pilot facility for CO2 separa- Underground Disposal. In view of these de-
ence in the combustion of hydrogen-rich fuel gases at various commercial power plants. The hot tion into operation at the Staudinger coal-fired velopments, CO2SINK could, in spite of its mod-
flue gases, especially atmospheric nitrogen and water vapor, are also used for steam generation. In plant near Hanau in September 2009 (see box). est scope, provide important answers to basic
a manner similar to what occurs in a conventional combined cycle power station, the steam drives “The challenge is to maintain a high level of ef- unresolved questions regarding CO2 sequestra-
a steam turbine and a second electricity generator. ficiency and avoid negative environmental in- tion and therefore contribute significantly to
fluences, which might arise from traces of environmental protection. If the measurements
harmful detergent emissions in the scrubbed in Ketzin confirm the models, which predict that
Air Air
separation flue gases,” Schneider explains. “Our objective the gas can be securely confined underground
N2
O2 is to develop the new CO2 separation process to in porous rock for thousands if not millions of
Electricity
Coal CO CO2 Combined cycle the point where it’s ready for large-scale com- years, the project would send an important sig-
Gasification Cleaning
Shift separation power plant mercial applications by 2020.” nal worldwide. It would prove that CO2 from
Raw gas: CO2 Thanks to oxyfuel and pre and post-com- coal-fired power plants, refineries, cement fac-
CO, H2, etc. Sulfur compression bustion capture, technologies will be available tories, and steel mills can be pumped into the
CO+H2O CO2+H2 within the next decade that will allow us to earth and stored there. And if the gas isn’t emit-
CO2 to store
burn coal without having to have a guilty envi- ted into the air, it can’t harm the climate. More-
ronmental conscience. Ulrike Zechbauer over, there is an abundance of room under-
84 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 85
Energy Efficiency | CO2 Sequestration | Interview Hüttl
ground for carbon dioxide. The capacity for CO2 phy, the gas can be monitored in great detail in tically nothing travels upward through the amount naturally generated in the same period Is underground sequestration of carbon
sequestration in Germany alone is estimated at three dimensions as it spreads. rock.” The reason for this is the cap layer of by bacteria through degradation processes in dioxide the solution to the climate-
30 billion tons. That’s enough for about a hun- The project team is also carrying out experi- gypsum and clay that lies like a bowl over the the soil in the area above the CO2 reservoir in change problem?
dred years at the current rate of CO2 emissions ments modeled on medical ultrasound. Here, approximately nine-square-kilometer dome of Ketzin. Hüttl: We have to look at things realistically.
from German coal-fired power plants — about intense sound waves are transmitted into the sandstone and completely seals it. It served the Ideal CO2 reservoirs exist wherever gases or Even if CO2SINK works as planned, the process
350 million tons. The Intergovernmental Panel ground from the surface between the boreho- same purpose over the past forty years, when liquids have long accumulated underground. chain of removal, transport, injection, and
on Climate Change (IPCC) of the U.N., a scien- les and reflected back. Since sound has a lower power companies used a sandstone layer here That basically means all petroleum and natural monitoring involves a great deal of effort and
tific intergovernmental body, which won the velocity in pores filled with CO2 than in those at a depth of between 250 and 400 meters to gas deposits, which have manifestly been is still very expensive. Also, coal-fired power
Nobel Prize in 2007, estimates global seques- filled with salt water, the spread of the gas can store natural gas. This repository was signifi- sealed for millions of years. Some oil and gas plants with CO2 removal lose a considerable
tration capacity to be up to 900 billion tons in be monitored this way as well. cantly larger than the planned CO2 reservoir. producers already pump CO2 back into such de- amount of efficiency, which must be compen-
oil and gas deposits and at least 1,000, possibly Optical sensors measure temperature chan- What would happen if the CO2 managed to posits in order to raise the yield through in- sated for with more fuel or new technologies
even 10,000 billion tons in saline aquifers, ges underground through the scattering of escape to the surface? Since the gas is heavier creased pressure. There are three industrial- to increase efficiency. So CO2 sequestration is
which are sandstone deposits saturated with photons and thereby show the flow of CO2 be- than air, critics fear that it could collect in pools scale showpiece projects in Canada, Algeria, a transitional technology. But we can’t do with-
salt water, like those found in Ketzin. These po- low the surface. In the area of the reservoir where it would suffocate all life. But there’s no and Norway. StatoilHydro of Norway, for in- out it if we want to act responsibly, because
tential sequestration sites around the world are around the bores there are narrow tubes with a risk of this in Ketzin, says Schilling. Even if it stance, has the most experience here. Since most of our power will continue to come from
also often found near large CO2 producers, semi-permeable membrane through which were to escape, the CO2 would be literally gone 1996 it has pumped ten million tons of CO2
where liquefied CO2 can be easily transported CO2 can pass. High-purity argon forces the CO2 with the wind. down to a depth of 1,000 meters beneath the
in pipes to storage depots. This is the case not upward through capillary tubes to the surface, We breathe it in small quantities all the North Sea. The CO2 is an impurity that is ex-
only in Brandenburg, but also in the U.S. state
of Illinois, where a prototype CO2-free power
where its concentration is measured.
Whatever the results of the measurements,
time, and drink it in sparkling mineral water
and soft drinks. Besides, the quantity of CO2
tracted with the natural gas. But it would cost
StatoilHydro dearly to vent it, as Norway levies Sequestration: A Key
plant is being tested in the Future-Gen project.
The dream of a coal-fired power plant with a di-
one thing is certain, says Frank Schilling: “Prac- stored in two years will merely be equal to the a tax of $50 on each ton of CO2.
Transitional Technology
rect exhaust line into the subterranean rock Toward Affordable Sequestration. The IPCC
could become a reality in many places around report calculates the cost of CO2 capture by
the world if policymakers quickly lay the low-CO2 power plants and its transportation
groundwork and research efforts are intensi- How Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Works and sequestration to be 20 to 70 dollars per Prof. Reinhard Hüttl, fossil fuels in the foreseeable future. Our proj-
fied. ton. That’s worth the price in Norway, but in 52, is the scientific ect is therefore an important building block for
Studies show that CO2 remains under- countries without a CO2 tax other market a more environmentally compatible method of
Seismic CO2 Vibration measurement director of the Geo-
ground for an extremely long time. It will dis- source devices (geophones) mechanisms must come into play. In Europe, energy production for the coming decades.
solve there in saline aquifers, much as it dis- the certificates in the emissions trading system Forschungs-Zentrum in The process is already of interest for increasing
Power plant
solves in mineral water when pumped by a CO2 provided for by the Kyoto Protocol currently Potsdam, the German yields during petroleum and natural gas ex-
CO2
carbonator, and will then be retained in the cost less than 15 dollars — not enough to cre- Research Center for Geo- traction.
pores of the sandstone. Over time, more and Shock waves ate an incentive. But in the event of a state sub-
Geophones sciences. A geoscientist,
86 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2007 87
Upgrading and new control systems (bottom right)
Energy Efficiency | Power Plant Upgrades
can boost a steam turbine’s efficiency substantially.
At EnBW’s cogeneration plant in Altbach, Germany,
Siemens improved output by 11 MW.
New Life for Old Plants it more efficient and boosted its output by 11
MW. The entire outer casing could be retained.
With around 4,000 operating hours at full load
per year, the plant has benefitted from the up-
grade with a reduction in its annual CO2 emis-
2008, Siemens was awarded the Asian Power
Award for its upgrading of the Sendai nuclear
power plant in Japan. Following moderniza-
tion of the control systems and the three tur-
bines, the output of the plant rose by 40.5 MW
porate affair. Unlike its stance on the automo-
bile industry, the European Union is prepared
to let market forces, rather than regulation,
bring about power plant modernization. That
said, climate expert Geden foresees a major
Worldwide, there are hundreds of fossil fuel-fired power plants that could, if modern- sions of 50,000 metric tons. As a result, the to 942 MW. At present, in a contract awarded upheaval in the power plant market from 2013
ized, improve their efficiency by 10 or even 15 percent. Such upgrades would reduce plant is now classified as one of EnBW’s
“green” facilities and may, if required, rack up
CO2 emissions accordingly, which would be a major contribution to climate protection. additional operating hours.
In Europe, there are over 500 steam turbine plants that
The biggest potential lies in North America as well as parts of Europe and Asia. North America’s power plants are even old- now require modernization — in India, less than 50.
er than Europe’s, with an average of 34 years
for steam turbines in the U.S. and Canada, and
When it comes to upgrading existing power pace of modernization. “In Europe, power turbines, a job that primarily involves replacing 17 years for gas turbines. Siemens is involved by Florida Power and Light (FPL), Siemens is onward, when CO2 emission certificates in this
plants, however, there is still massive un- companies have to convert a lot of older the rotor and the inner casing. The latest in in a number of major upgrades in this area. overhauling the generator and renewing a sector will all be auctioned.
tapped potential, both in economic and envi- combined-cycle power plants from base- to turbine blade technology and enlarged flow Some of these cover more than just the tur- high-pressure turbine and two low-pressure Power companies will therefore have to pay
ronmental terms. The average efficiency of Eu- peak-load operation,” says Hendricks, who is areas boost the efficiency and performance of bines, with the company currently contracted turbines at the St. Lucie nuclear plant in Flori- for a percentage of their CO2 emissions
rope’s coal-fired power plants is a mere 37 to responsible for so-called lifetime management the turbine. In addition, the use of new seals to renew the complete control system for a da. This will increase the output of each of the through the purchase of emission certificates.
38 percent. Only about one in 10 plants tops and thus for power plant upgrades. in high- and intermediate-pressure turbines number of plants, including a coal-fired facility two reactors by 100 MW. In addition, Siemens An exception, however, has been made for
the 40 percent mark. That’s hardly surprising, The reason for the conversions is that Eu- reduces clearance losses, which likewise in- in Carneys Point, New Jersey, a combined-cy- is installing new high-pressure turbines and many Central and Eastern European countries,
given that steam turbines in Europe are, on rope is ramping up use of land-based and off- creases efficiency. These measures lengthen cle plant in Redding, California, and combined- modernizing the generator at FPL’s Turkey giving them until 2020 to catch up. During
average, almost 29 years old. Gas turbines, on shore wind farms. When winds are strong, the service life of the turbine, allowing it to cycle installations in Syracuse and Beaver-Falls, Point nuclear plant, which will boost its output this time, the most efficient power plants will
the other hand, are usually of a more recent these farms generate lots of electricity, which remain in operation for an additional 15 to 20 New York, all of which are being fitted with by around 100 MW. With the exception of set the benchmark there too. Power plants
vintage, with an average age of just under 12 means conventional plants can scale back out- years. As a rule, Siemens also renews the con- the SPPA-T3000 web-based instrumentation France, which generates the lion’s share of its meeting this standard will receive emission
years. Nevertheless, the German Association put. But when winds die down, the latter have trol system for the turbine set or the power and control system. This system integrates the power using nuclear plants, the energy mix in permits free of charge. Emissions trading will
of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) esti- to be able to reach peak load rapidly to com- plant as a whole (Pictures of the Future, Spring power plant and turbine control functions in a Europe still includes a major share of coal. This thus ensure that old power plants become in-
mates that around one-quarter of Germany’s pensate for load fluctuations. The ability to re- 2009, p. 27). According to Dr. Norbert Henkel, common, easy-to-use platform. For the opera- applies particularly to Central European coun- creasingly unprofitable. And once the last inef-
power plants will need to be modernized in act rapidly not only secures a power company responsible at Siemens for the modernization tors of Carneys Point, for example, this will tries, including Poland, which meets over 90 ficient plant has been decommissioned, each
the immediate future. high prices on the power market; an upgraded of fossil-fuel and nuclear power plants, it costs provide greater flexibility to tailor operation of percent of its power needs from coal. electricity consumer will have become a little
As Ralf Hendricks from Siemens Energy power plant also reaches its operating point between €20 million and €60 million to com- the individual generating units to actual de- At the same time, these countries have the bit easier on the environment — without even
explains, the increasing exploitation of alter- more quickly, which cuts CO2 emissions. prehensively upgrade a steam turbine system mand, along with greater reliability and re- least-efficient power plants. In Europe, there thinking about it.
native energy sources is also accelerating the Siemens is a specialist in upgrading steam for a medium-sized power plant. “By modern- duced maintenance costs. are over 500 steam turbine plants that are old- Katrin Nikolaus
88 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 89
Efficient Siemens solutions, such as those for
Energy Efficiency | Steel Plants
blast furnaces (large image) and electric arc
furnaces for melting scrap (right), can radically
reduce operating costs and emissions.
heating, for example, or for generating elec- reduce costs and improve environmental pro- operated by the world’s fourth biggest steel
tricity. A typical CDQ facility from Siemens tection. With Selective Waste Gas Recirculation producer, Posco of South Korea.
with a capacity of one million tons of coke per technologies, for example, waste gas pro- Siemens VAI has also developed an energy
year consists of three cooling chambers — two duced during sintering can be recirculated. In management system that focuses on a steel
in full operation and one on “hot stand-by.” a sintering plant the ore is baked on a sinter plant’s total energy use with a view to cutting
The latter is only charged with about ten per- strand, which is similar to a furnace grate. In its energy consumption, costs, and emissions.
cent of its actual quenching capacity and is this way, the fine ore is prepared for the blast This involves taking into account the complete
ready in case a problem occurs. Quenching is furnace. Here, the ore is ignited on the sinter production process — from raw materials to
thus possible at all times, including possible strand, and wind boxes suction off the waste final steel products. Organized to be modular,
maintenance periods.
With CDQ, hot coke is cooled to 180 de-
grees Celsius, even as 1,000 degree coke is fed The heat from a coking plant can power a steam turbine
into the cooling chambers from above. A circu- that generates enough electricity for 30,000 households.
lating gas flows in at the bottom of the cooling
chamber and absorbs the heat. The gas, now
at about 800 degrees Celsius, is channeled gases from below. “The ore burns from the top the system can be tailored to the customer’s
with air back into the waste heat water boiler. down, like in a tobacco pipe,” says Andre Ful- specific needs, and can even be integrated
Here, more than 500 kilograms of high pres- gencio, Product Manager for sintering plants into existing automation technology at very
sure and high temperature steam can be pro- at Siemens VAI in Linz, Austria. old facilities. “In the ideal scenario all you need
duced per ton of coke. Connecting a steam To allow some of the gas to be recirculated to do is transfer and configure the software,”
turbine yields 15 to 17 megawatts of generat- into the process, it is first fed into a chamber. says Franz Hartl, who is responsible for tech-
ing capacity. That’s equivalent to the power Here it is mixed with waste gases from the sin- nical marketing of automation solutions at
produced by five large wind turbines and ade- ter cooler, to ensure the oxygen content is at Siemens VAI in Linz.
quate for the requirements of about 30,000 least 16 percent and thus high enough for
four-person households. What’s more, as the combustion. After that, the waste gas mixture System-wide Savings. As steel mills use a
coke in the CDQ process is drier than wet- flows into a recirculation hood installed above very large number of processes, it is often also
necessary to install additional measurement
systems, for example to determine levels in
tanks. Key values in terms of energy consump-
tion and distribution can then be recorded
90 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 91
Excavators can lift up to 120 tons per scoop.
Energy Efficiency | Mining Electrification
Trucks move up to 400 tons per trip. Catenaries
(right) make transport quicker and more
economical, while reducing emissions.
interrupted and re-engaged to generate a rota- cover the costs of buying the trolley trucks and that can be modulated. The converters feature
tional movement. This limits the revolutions the costs associated with the installation of the particularly long-lasting circuit components
per minute that a motor of this type can attain. overhead lines.” that have proven their capability in rail technol-
And it requires more parts that need to be Speed is king not just in terms of transporta- ogy. “Like mining vehicles, trains experience
maintained regularly. “Our alternating current tion but also loading performance. That’s why extreme conditions,” says Köllner. They have to
motors can deliver up to seven percent more monster excavators are also used in mines, be able to run at minus 40 degrees Celsius and
performance from the same amount of energy, alongside the giant trucks. These excavators in blistering heat. In addition, the converters’
and downtimes for maintenance and repair are massive steel systems that resemble the air coolers must be extraordinarily dependable,
work are rare,” says Köllner. “Generally, just one bow of a ship and sit atop caterpillar tracks. even where air pressure is low.
technology check a year is all that’s needed.” Their grab arms look like electricity pylons and
their shovels are as big as mobile homes. With Digital assistants. Sophisticated control sys-
Giant Trucks, Zero Emissions. AC drives also just one scoop, they can move around 120 tems are also vital when it comes to keeping
form the basis for a development from Siemens tons. It takes just four shovelfuls to fill the load maintenance and repair times short. For exam-
Monster Drives
just propel the truck too? “The reason is simple. that can significantly speed up the transport of compartment of a giant truck. “The process ple, thanks to these systems, the machines’
It’s just not worth putting the engine and gears mining products: trolley trucks. Such vehicles barely takes two minutes,” says Köllner. functionality can be monitored from a control
of a car onto the slopes of a mine. A gearbox function like streetcars — sporting antler-like Such excavators are also powered by center (see Pictures of the Future, Spring 2005,
powerful enough to handle the workload re- pantographs that can be raised and lowered at Siemens three-phase drives. At present, there p. 51). “Our regional set-up and local partners
quired of these trucks would be enormous, and the press of a button. This means that the driv- are more than 150 such excavators in opera- can also offer rapid assistance if need be,” says
At open pit mines all over the world, mechanical mon- would also need a lot of maintenance,” says er can link the truck to overhead conductors tion worldwide. “We use four motors with dif- Christian Dirscherl, who develops full-service
sters are hard at work. They dig for bituminous sand, for Köllner, explaining the drawbacks of purely (catenaries), which are generally installed on ferent outputs,” says Köllner. “The most power- solutions for mine operators at Siemens’ Indus-
mechanical propulsion. steep slopes. “This is where conventional ful, at 2,600 hp, lifts and lowers the excavator try Sector in Erlangen, Germany. In fact, service
example, or transport tons of copper ore. By equipping Not only do the trucks dispense with gear- trucks, despite their 3,000 plus hp, can only ad- arm, while another moves the shovel. A third is due to be expanded even further. “In the fu-
the giant excavators and trucks with state-of-the-art, boxes. Thanks to their electric drive systems, vance at a snail’s pace,” says Köllner. The cate-
ultra-efficient electrical drive systems, Siemens helps they also do without clutches and brake disks naries can provide the drive systems with al-
in normal operation. Electrical resistors are most 6,000 hp. This means that the truck’s
Thanks to catenaries and three-phase current drives,
its customers to save energy, time, and money. used to brake the vehicles, and speed can be speed can almost double, and the mine opera- giant trucks can achieve outputs of up to 6,000 hp.
steplessly adjusted via three-phase current fre- tors can reduce the number of expensive me-
quency. “Such trucks are essentially driven like chanical giants they need to have on site.
92 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 93
Siemens is developing measures to save energy
Energy Efficiency | Airports
for Denver Airport (below). Thanks to Siemens
technologies, Stuttgart Airport (right) has already
cut its energy bill by around 40 percent.
Another measure involves the provision of Energy-saving lamps alone would save Denver
heat and hot water using biomass, which can
cover all requirements in the summer and International more than 11 million kWh per year.
serve as a supplementary energy source in the
winter. Installation costs for such a system
would total approximately $3.5 million, while mass/biogas, geothermal sources, and fuel How to Exploit Savings Potential. Siemens
energy savings would add up to almost cells. “Here, decisions have to be made based Building Technologies is also active as an en-
$500,000 per year, with an associated CO2 re- on individual circumstances,” says Karl. Den- ergy manager in Germany, at Münster/Osna-
duction of around 7,000 tons p.a. ver’s airport covers almost 140 square kilome- brück Airport and also at Stuttgart Airport. Here
After conducting a detailed analysis of the ters, for example, making it by far the largest in in the Southern German Airport, BT is responsi-
proposals, the Denver International Airport op- the U.S. in terms of area; so it makes sense to ble for efficient energy management on the
erating company will decide which measures it consider the use of biomass/biogas and wind basis of values calculated from the counting
will implement, and at which times. energy.” The Siemens study thus proposes such pulses of roughly 500 water meters and 400
The fact is that airports need to take steps to measures as well. heat and cooling meters. The set-points as well
increase their energy efficiency, since their The third area focuses on solutions in the as the controller settings from the automation
complex infrastructures make them major en- fields of power generation, alternative energy, and field level are also documented and
ergy consumers. After all, thousands of air- baggage and freight logistics, IT services, and processed by the airport’s energy management
ports around the world are used by billions of building technologies. The goal here is to man- system. In addition to monthly, quarterly, and
passengers and airport employees every year. age the many energy-hungry systems in use yearly reports, hourly values also play a key role
In addition, studies conducted by the Airports with the help of intelligent IT solutions aligned in assessing the efficiency of the systems. The
Council International (ACI), the International with airport processes, and to regularly moni- program for analyzing the energy data com-
Air Transport Association (IATA), and the Interna- tor and compare energy consumption over pares current values with the building’s numer-
ical model. Energy savings of up to 40 percent
can thus be achieved.
These examples illustrate how major energy
savings can be achieved through smart mod-
Flight from Carbon Dioxide ernization and optimization. At the same time,
more pleasant temperatures and lighting plus
better air quality make the time spent at airports
more comfortable.
In new buildings, the energy required for
Rising energy prices, growing environmental awareness, and increasingly stringent heating and air conditioning can be reduced by
legal requirements are forcing airports to sustainably reduce their energy consumption. up to 40 percent just through architectural
Solutions from Siemens demonstrate the kinds of energy savings that are possible if measures and new insulation and ventilation
concepts.
complex airport infrastructures are looked at holistically. Siemens already serves as an CO2 emissions can be reduced by 70 percent
energy manager at many airports in the U.S. and Germany. or even more if alternative energy sources,
such as wind, solar, and hydroelectric are used
to generate the required energy, if geothermal
94 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 95
Free-climber Alain Robert scaled the
Energy Efficiency | Facts and Forecasts | Efficient Buildings
NY Times Building as a protest against climate
change — yet the building uses 30 percent less
energy than its neighbors.
Percent cant. By the end of 2007, emissions by 4.5 million tons each year,” says Michael serve energy and cut CO2 emissions without building. Everyone knows it makes sense to air
16 Exajoules Space heating 100
Domestic
4,100 buildings and facto- Geißler, Executive Manager of the Berlin Energy Agency. sacrificing comfort. The New York Times Build- out your home in the morning on hot summer
90
14 appliances
80
ries had acquired the “En- By 2010, the agency anticipates the market volume for State-of-the-art technology ing (NYTB), which opened in November 2007, days — but it takes high-tech systems to
12 Hot water ergy Star” label for energy contracting to reach €4 billion a year. Contracting is making it possible to uses up to 30 percent less energy than conven- achieve the same practical results in a building
58 53 70
10 efficiency, 1,400 of them providers such as Siemens can exploit significant growth tional office high-rises. Designed by star archi- as big as the NYTB. The task is enormously
Lighting 60
in 2007 alone. In Califor- potential here, since only around ten percent of the mar- reduce energy consump- tect Renzo Piano, the building has an unusual complex. Interior temperature, outside temper-
8 Cooking 50
6 40
nia, the Building Regula- ket is being tapped. tion in buildings by up to ultra-clear glass facade that allows neighbors ature, the building’s configuration, the angle of
21 tions Committee passed Sylvia Trage to not only look into the interior, but also all the the sun, and the electrical and heat output of
4
16
30 30 percent. Four buildings way through to the other side. The design al- the in-house gas-fired combined-heat-and
2
17 16 20
— in New York, Malmö, lows passersby to look right through the lobby power generation systems are just a small sam-
10
0
4
5
5
5 0
Heating Losses for a Typical Home Madrid, and Sydney — and into a garden featuring birch trees and ple of the many variables that have to be moni-
1990 2005
with and without Insulation moss. It’s like an oasis in the middle of Manhat- tored to ensure efficient use of energy in such
1990 1995 2000 2005
demonstrate what can be tan, one that symbolizes a key principle behind a skyscraper. No building superintendent could
IEA 19: Association of 19 industrialized nations incl. Germany, France, UK, U.S. and Japan. Roof
12,120 kWh/year
Roof
3,000 kWh/year achieved for people and the building — to conserve energy with the ever make decisions on the basis of so much in-
the environment when help of, and in harmony with, nature. formation. But in The New York Times Building
Glass skyscrapers normally waste a lot of these decisions are made by a building man-
Energy Consumption in Non- sensors, special materials, energy because they collect heat like a green- agement system from Siemens that automati-
Residential Buildings Lighting
6% Other
energy supply systems, and house and then use air conditioning to keep cally monitors and controls the air condition-
Walls Windows Windows themselves cool. But the NYTB is different. It ing, water cooling, heating, fire alarm, and
Other
60%
Residential buildings
65%
Ventilation, air
conditioning
process heat
15%
10,100
kWh/year
4,700 2,520
kWh/year
information technology has a second facade made of ceramic rods that generation systems.
kWh/year
Source: Germany Energy Agency
Walls
23%
2,900 kWh/year interact in an optimal extends from the ground floor to the roof and The building management system seam-
Ground/cellar Ground/cellar manner. keeps out direct light. A shading system is pro- lessly integrates equipment from other manu-
Source: Siemens AG
96 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 97
A garden in the NY Times Building (left) boosts moti-
Energy Efficiency | Efficient Buildings
vation while networked sensors cut power consump-
tion. Malmö`s Turning Torso (below) and Sydney’s
30 The Bond (right) also save lots of energy.
dreds of sensors, including those for monitor- building management system from Siemens — port heat down to the lower floors. Instead of made them appealing in 2005. Back then, the conditioning, energy and water supply, fire
ing temperature, which are distributed will in the future help ensure that the most de- heating the ground floor at the same time that owners of the Turning Torso may not have real- protection, and lighting. Several of the energy
throughout the building. While all functions manding tenant requirements are met while the air conditioning is running in the top floor, ized they would become pioneers in lighting conservation strategies are also similar. Syd-
can be regulated from a central control room, using as little energy as possible. the building automatically regulates itself to systems for buildings. ney’s 30 The Bond is divided into 80 zones that
this usually isn’t necessary because all it takes All relevant information — from lighting ensure energy efficiency. can be controlled individually, with only those
is a few commands to get the systems to auto- and air conditioning to heating systems, for ex- The intelligent control panels are also very Minimizing Resource Consumption. The parts of the building that are actually in use be-
matically adjust themselves to conditions on ample — will be available on control panels lo- efficient, consuming around 15 percent less fact that impressive aesthetics and energy effi- ing illuminated, cooled, and ventilated. There
any day. Whether it’s a hot, humid work day, or cated throughout the building, thus helping to energy than conventional units, says Margarita ciency needn’t be mutually exclusive is also are also CO2 sensors for measuring air quality
a cold and dry holiday when only a few offices ensure smooth operations. Stability will also be Izquierdo of Siemens Building Technologies, demonstrated by the 30 The Bond office com- in the conference rooms. The system channels
are being used — the goal is always to save en- maintained in the event of a failure of individ- who is responsible for Energy & Environmental plex in Sydney — the first building in Australia fresh air into a room only if people are present.
ergy by ensuring that as few systems as possi- ual systems or in case the central control room Solutions. Izquierdo helped her Siemens col- to receive five stars from the Australian Build- Completely new for Australia at the time the
ble are in operation, without diminishing com- itself is damaged. If a fire breaks out, for exam- leagues on the Torre de Cristal project to opti- ing Greenhouse Rating Scheme (ABGR). This 30 The Bond building opened was the method
fort in any way. ple, ventilation dampers would still automati- mize energy efficiency in all areas. “The Torre stringent certification system was introduced used for cooling it. Instead of passing cold air
de Cristal is truly avant-garde for Spain,” says by the government of New South Wales to en- directly into the office space, the system pumps
Izquierdo. “Solutions for energy efficiency in courage building owners to use state-of-the-art chilled water through passive chilled beams (or
If part of the building is not in use, the building manage- buildings are in many respects still in their in- technology to minimize resource consumption. radiators) mounted in ceilings. Chilled beams
ment system will shut down its light and ventilation. fancy here, which is why I’m convinced this The highest rating is issued to buildings that cool the space below by acting as a heat sink for
project will serve as a model in many ways.” operate with a carbon footprint that falls below naturally-rising warm air. Once cooled, the air
a set benchmark. Greenhouse gas emissions at drops back to the floor where the cycle begins
“Nobody benefits from cooling an empty of- cally close throughout the building to prevent LED Lighthouse. Another energy-saving 30 The Bond, which was completed in 2004, again.
fice in the evening,” says Gary Marciniak, Ac- smoke from spreading. The control panels will building is the 190-meter Turning Torso in are around 30 percent lower than in similar Says Lynden Clark, who was responsible for
count Executive at Siemens Building Technolo- also use information from sensors to regulate Malmö, Sweden, which was completed in buildings. Those who visit it generally don’t re- engineering the Siemens solution at 30 The
gies. “That’s obvious,” he adds. “But other factors air flows and thus the temperature of individ- 2005. The building’s ambitious architectural alize at first that they’re in an office building, as Bond: “When it comes to such ambitious proj-
are less apparent. For example, sometimes it’s ual sectors of the building. If part of the build- style led the New York Museum of Modern Art there is a café located in an eight-story atrium ects Siemens is an enabler helping customers
more efficient to have one of two water pumps ing is not in use, its light and ventilation sys- to induct it into its Hall of Fame of the world’s whose huge size helps to cool the structure. to achieve their individual goals, whereby we
operating at full capacity, while at other times tems will be shut down. 25 most fascinating skyscrapers. Light is one of The back wall is made entirely of sandstone, decide on a case-by-case basis which technolo-
the greatest efficiency is achieved by letting Individual control units will be networked its design key elements, with LEDs used to and the roof features a small garden right in gies are most suitable for a given situation.”
them both run.” The system itself recognizes and will constantly exchange information on flood the corridors in symmetrical white light. the middle of the Australian metropolis. It’s no coincidence that in many cases the
and automatically exploits such situations in conditions in their sectors, thus providing a real “Other solutions like fluorescent lights would Depending on the weather, the garden is solutions are based on the same principle as
order to maximize resource conservation. time overview of all building conditions and have created unattractive shadows,” says Jørn watered by a timed, drip irrigation system at that applied in New York, Madrid, and Sydney,
processes. Automated control procedures can Brinkmann, who coordinated the installation of night, so the upper floors take longer to heat which calls for more extensively exploiting the
Crystal Tower. Similar technologies are being then be used to make continual adjustments to some 16,000 LEDs for Siemens’ Osram sub- up in the morning. Sixty percent of all worksta- surroundings of the buildings, the natural heat
used in the Torre de Cristal skyscraper in enable optimal energy utilization. If, for exam- sidiary in what was the first mass architectural tions have a clear view outside, making the or cold, and the light of the sun. After all, na-
Madrid’s Fuencarral-El Pardo district, one of ple, the system finds that the upper floors are application of such technology. When the Turn- building a part of its natural surroundings. ture opens up all kinds of opportunities for liv-
Spain’s prime locations. The second tallest warmer than the lower ones, it will cool things ing Torso was built, LEDs consumed about as As with similar buildings in New York and ing and working in harmony with it in modern
building in the country, the Torre de Cristal has off by automatically sending cold water to the much energy as fluorescent tubes — but today Madrid, intelligent building management tech- high-tech buildings — and intelligent building
benefited from a Siemens fire protection sys- upper floors through high-pressure pipes. they use around a third less energy for the same nologies from Siemens integrate various systems technology makes it possible to seize these op-
tem. In addition, “Desigo” — an integrated Warmer water from the top floors can trans- output. But it was their long service life that at 30 The Bond, including those for heating, air portunities. Andreas Kleinschmidt
98 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 99
Sensors were long considered too expensive for Kerstin Wiesner (left) tests the sensitivity of
Energy Efficiency | Intelligent Sensors
building systems. Research, however, is making them gas sensors, one of many sensor types being
smaller, cheaper, and more flexible — such as studied by Maximilian Fleischer (right).
Siemens’ CO2 measurement sensor (bottom left). Bottom: Tempering metal films.
100 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 101
Energy Efficiency | Intelligent Sensors | Lighting
102 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 103
Fluorescent lamp manufacturing. Most of the
Energy Efficiency | Lighting | Lamps
energy consumed during a lamp’s life cycle results
from operation, while production (small images)
requires a relatively small proportion of energy.
Mercury-Free Lamps. A small amount of
mercury, which turns into a gas at a lamp’s op-
erating temperature, is usually added in xenon
automobile headlights. Thanks to their larger
size, mercury atoms are more easily hit by elec-
trons in the plasma of these gas-discharge
lamps. Because they emit light that is close to
the visible spectrum, the loss occurring during
conversion into white light is very low. Mercury
also serves as a chemical and thermal buffer,
preventing unwanted oxidation processes and
helping to dissipate heat. But mercury is also
poisonous and can accumulate in the environ-
ment. An EU regulation therefore specifies that
it should be avoided whenever possible in the
automotive sector, which is why researchers
are looking for alternatives.
Three years ago, Osram launched the “Xe-
narc Hg-free lamp,” which replaces mercury
with zinc iodide, a harmless gas. “The product’s
development was difficult,” says Christian Wit-
tig, head of Marketing for Xenarc Systems. “We
had to adapt the entire electronic and optical
environment to the new technology.” For ex-
ample, the higher currents in this xenon lamp
subject the components and electronics to
greater stress, so Osram had to use thicker
electrodes and thicker fused quartz glass. “Pro-
duction is a bit more complicated, but it’s a step
forward for the environment,” says Wittig.
Automakers including Audi, Ford, and Toyota
use the new lamps.
Glowing Prospects. Osram compact fluores- fied and recorded. Where do raw materials The desired efficiency increases can be at- monly used T8 tube, which is as thick as a
cent lamps still use mercury, but less than three
milligrams per lamp. “It’s nearly impossible to
dispense such a small amount of this material
Let there be Savings! come from, and how are they extracted, trans-
ported, prepared, and processed? What exactly
occurs during the manufacturing process, and
tained through extensive refinements, such as
limiting tolerances during production in order
to minimize a lamp’s environmental impact.
broomstick. The “leaner” model actually con-
sumes around 40 percent less energy while de-
livering the same level of brightness.
in drop form,” says Dr. Ralf Criens, an Osram which machines and tools are needed? How Soon, for example, it should be possible to fill Osram and the Energy Research Center in
environmental expert. “So the mercury is fixed Researchers who have studied the life cycles of various much material and energy is used, and which lamps with precisely the amount of gas needed Munich began assembling data on the energy
with iron powder, which lets us put the right lamps from Osram, a Siemens subsidiary, have found energy sources are involved? How much elec- to make them light up most efficiently. Imple- consumption of lamps 20 years ago. Since
amount into each lamp.” Long service life is tricity do the lamps consume when operating; mentation of many such measures can raise then, Osram has continually updated its fig-
particularly critical for environmental reasons. that their environmental balance sheet from production how long do they last? And finally, which sub-
Ultimately, longer service life means fewer re- to disposal is almost exclusively determined by their stances are recyclable, and can therefore be re-
placed lamps — and less mercury. That’s why used when the lamp reaches the end of its An energy-saving lamp lasts 15 times longer than a
efficiency and life span.
Osram researchers developed the very long- service life? light bulb — and saves one megawatt-hour of electricity.
lasting compact fluorescent Dulux EL LongLife The results of Kroban’s extensive investiga-
lamp, which can burn for 15,000 hours. tion made one thing very clear: “The environ-
“Service life is a key factor when working on
concepts for new lamps, as is the need to think
in terms of systems,” says Criens. He foresees
M algorzata Kroban spent months traveling
to manufacturing workshops and pro-
duction halls every day. The young engineer
topic of her doctoral dissertation at the Bran-
denburg University of Technology in Cottbus,
Germany — was to put together a comprehensive
mental balance sheet for lamps is largely deter-
mined by their energy consumption during
operation,” she says. As Kroban discovered,
the luminous efficiency of today’s common
lighting systems by around 20 percent.
ures. According to this data, by simply switch-
ing to modern lighting solutions, around 900
billion kilowatt-hours would be saved, or one-
perennial favorites like white LEDs, which pro- visited Osram glass manufacturing centers, environmental balance sheet for fluorescent only one to two percent of total lamp energy When Less is More. Osram’s developers can third of the electricity currently being used for
vide up to 90,000 hours of light, dispensing where glass cylinders and tubes are made from lamps and various other Osram lighting systems. consumption is attributable to lamp produc- also use such life cycle analyses to identify lighting.
with the need for a base — a development that a large number of materials melted together in “This dissertation marked the first time that tion. “That’s why efficiency during operation is those parts of the production process where re- Given today’s energy mix for electricity
is expected to soon usher in new kinds of floor giant hot furnaces. the entire lamp life cycle had been closely ex- the most effective lever for making lamps more sources can be conserved, and future waste production, that would be equivalent to a 450-
lamps, table lamps, and other applications us- Kroban witnessed lamp bodies being coated amined — everything from quarry operations environmentally friendly,” says Merz. “So, if we thus prevented. For instance, Kroban’s studies million-ton reduction in carbon dioxide emis-
ing LEDs as fixed components at competitive with phosphor, filled with gases, fitted with and extraction of the materials for the glass to can raise lamp luminous efficiency even just show that in some cases, energy consumption sions each year. “You’d have to plant 450,000
prices. As a result, many customers could soon electronic circuits and stuck to plastic parts. recycling and disposal facilities,” says Christian one or two percent, we’ll achieve more than if can be reduced by using less material. The Os- square kilometers of forest — an area about
be glowing with pleasure at the sight of their She spoke with factory managers, researchers, Merz, a sustainability expert at Osram. It was we covered up all our smokestacks and no ram T5 fluorescent tube, for example, which is the size of Sweden — to achieve the same ef-
bright, environmentally-friendly and long-last- and developers, and sifted through numerous thus at once a premiere and a complex detec- longer released production-related carbon about as thin as a finger, performed much bet- fect,” says Merz, who adds that it therefore
ing lamps. Andrea Hoferichter databases. Her objective — which was also the tive assignment. Every detail had to be identi- dioxide into the atmosphere.” ter in terms of energy efficiency than the com- makes sense to ban incandescent light bulbs.
104 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 105
By trading in their old incandescent bulb for a
Energy Efficiency | Lamps | UN Certificates
modern energy-saving light source, the Radheyshyam
family will save about €55 on electricity over ten
years and help preserve the environment.
106 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 107
Energy Efficiency | Interview Pachauri | Off-Grid Solutions
What are the most significant environmen- work with our government on a set of policies direction in this country that has to translate
tal threats faced by India?
Pachauri: We are confronted by a range of
environmental threats, from soil degradation
that contribute to energy-efficient solutions.
108 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 109
At the heart of Siemens’ new dryer is an innovative
Energy Efficiency | Appliances
heat pump (right). Designed to be the most efficient
dryer on the market (center), blueTherm passed
endurance tests (left) with flying colors.
Laundry Room
BSH is also meeting the needs of its customers. energy consumption of 2.1 kilowatt-hours for where it absorbs moisture. importance of effective recycling. Specifically,
That’s because appliances still account for seven kilograms of laundry, which was just A second aluminum frame works as a steps would have to be taken to ensure that the
around 40 percent of total energy consump- slightly above the world record at that time,” cooler. When hot, humid air returns from the dryer’s coolant, like that of a refrigerator,
tion in private households — despite the effi- Nitschmann recalls. drum, it comes into contact with this frame, would be disposed of properly and not released
ciency gains achieved with refrigerators and His development team at BSH’s Berlin plant which has been cooled down by the cooled into the environment at the end of the ma-
Once considered to be power gluttons, dryers are becom- such over the last ten years. Life cycle studies started out by disassembling all types of dryers, coolant. Moisture condenses as the air cools, chine’s service life.
ing much more conservative in their energy demand. For carried out by BSH environmental experts also counting their nuts and bolts, and weighing and the heat obtained from the air is then Meanwhile, developers in Berlin were faced
show that such appliances mainly impact the their plastic parts. They also measured the dry- transferred back into the coolant. “The energy with the challenge of incorporating heat-pump
instance, Siemens’ new blueTherm heat-pump dryer con- environment through electricity and water con- ers’ energy consumption and loudness. Their in the hot dryer air and in the vapor is tem- technology into a dryer for the first time, since
sumes 40 percent less energy than is permitted within sumption when they’re being used. “Transport analysis resulted in the conclusion that the only porarily stored in the coolant and then used for up until that point they had been used only in
Europe’s top Energy Efficiency Class A — a new record. and recycling play only a minor role, and re- way to achieve their ambitious energy effi-
source consumption in production accounts for ciency goals was to use a heat pump — a tech-
A visit to the developers at BSH Bosch und Siemens Haus- only a small percentage of the total resources nology that had never before been used in a More than 90 percent of the environmental impact of
geräte in Berlin reveals how they achieved this success. used. In contrast, operation is responsible for dryer. “A heat pump prevents the energy con- household appliances results from their operation.
more than 90 percent of the overall environ- tained in the vapor and hot air from escaping
mental impact of most appliances,” says Ru- from the dryer,” says Nitschmann.
110 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 111
Energy Efficiency | Appliances | Facts and Forecasts
112 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 113
Weather predictions and building automation
Energy Efficiency | Predictive Building Management
will be tested in a pilot facility at 2,883 meters.
Researcher Dr. Jürg Tödtli (photo below) and
partners are key players in the project.
114 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2008 115
Energy Efficiency | Combined Heat & Power Systems | Energy Storage
How to Own a Power Plant auxiliary burner can add between 10 and 30
kilowatts, depending on its size.
As a special feature, the microCHP device
Piggybanks for Power
can also operate independently of the grid. In
Innovative heating systems not only provide warmth but also satisfy two thirds this case, it disconnects itself from the grid and Whether at base or peak load, high-performance
of the electricity demand of an average four-person household. produces up to one kilowatt of emergency energy storage devices guarantee optimal power
power for specially vetted emergency power
groups such as refrigerators, freezers, and supplies in vehicles.
emergency lighting. “That is a key differentiat-
Burner ing feature of our device,” says Wolfgang Hu-
Stirling
engine
ber, who is responsible for development at
Siemens BT. I f electrical energy is to be optimally used, it
needs to be temporarily stored. And that’s
the case whether we’re talking about cars,
brid), or as an assistant when the vehicle has to
stop and restart frequently (in the start-stop
hybrid). In the future, full electric vehicles will
Huge European Market. Even if its advan- buses, streetcars, subway systems or power be an important addition to this list. Here, the
tages aren’t obvious at first glance, the mi- distribution networks. In road vehicles, elec- electric motor will play a major role in making
Cold water
croCHP device is a significant innovation. Paul tronic components are taking over more and zero-emission mobility possible (p. 60).
Gelderloos, manager of technical innovation at more functions, partly as driver assistance sys- To meet the needs of a growing number of
Remeha B.V., is certain that “the device is one tems, and partly to save energy — particularly functions, vehicles needs a high-performance
of the most promising successors in the con- in hybrid vehicles that combine an electric mo- energy storage device. Batteries, however,
densing boiler area,” he says. Georges Van tor with a combustion engine. The electric mo- are heavy and their energy density is low. One
Puyenbroeck adds that, “It offers simple access tor serves either a fully fledged second drive (in kilogram of diesel contains 10,000 watt-hours
to alternative energy; installers know about a full hybrid), as an auxiliary drive to provide a (Wh), while a lead-acid accumulator manages
boilers, only the electrical generation is new.” boost when starting and passing (in a mild hy- just 30 to 50 Wh/kg. Batteries’ power density is
He sees great potential for the new product.
“According to our market data, seven million
wall-mounted boilers are sold in Europe every
year,” he says. Product manager Markus Herger Chemical or Electrostatic Storage?
Generator estimates that in its the first three years on the
market, between 50,000 and 100,000 mi-
Households will soon be able croCHP devices could be sold — and that sales Accumulators such as lead-acid, nickel-metal hydride and lithium-ion batteries have a service life of
to generate their own heat will continue to grow after that. This depends between three and ten years, on average. They function on electrochemical principles. Charging the
usually in the form of steam and hot water. sales and marketing at BT’s OEM Boiler & gas (LPG) is also possible after appropriate tablished only after the partners bring the de- 1 Double layer capacitors
More than 90 percent of the energy contained Burner Equipment. With this goal in mind, BT readjustment of the device. vice to market. 0.1 s
in fuel can be utilized by these systems, com- specialists are working together with manufac- Siemens electronics control the heat output Siemens launched the production of the 0.1 Electrolytic capacitors
pared with only about 38 percent for electrical turers of condensing boilers, including Viess- to keep the Stirling engine within its permissi- control technology in September 2009. Re-
0.01
generation by a conventional power plant. This mann, Vaillant, Remeha B.V., and the Baxi ble operating range and provide the desired meha B.V. plans to enter the Dutch market in 10 100 1,000 10,000
high thermodynamic efficiency can make a Group. temperatures for home heating and hot water spring 2010. And specialists are already work- Power density in watts per kilogram (W/kg)
major contribution to operating economy as at the proper times. In addition, the electronics ing on developing the next generation of mi-
well as environmental protection. Simultane- How to Generate a Kilowatt. Until now, con- monitor the feeding of surplus electricity back croCHP devices. These will be even smaller, Battery type Energy density Wh/kg Power density W/kg Service life in cycles / years
ously, emissions of carbon dioxide and nitro- densing boilers have produced only heat, but into the power utility’s grid. lighter, and more powerful than their predeces- Lead-acid battery 30 – 50 150 – 300 300 –1,000 / 3 – 5
gen oxides are reduced. no electricity. MicroCHP devices, on the other Control technology from Siemens ensures sors, and will be fired by a variety of primary Nickel-metal hydride battery 60 – 80 200 – 300 >1,000 / >5
Until now, CHP technology has been limited hand, can do both. They work as follows: A gas- that the device, which operates in parallel to energy sources, such as oil or various gaseous Lithium-ion battery 90 – 150 500 – >2,000 >2,000 / 5 – 10
to large installations. Although the idea of ap- fired Stirling engine is integrated into a wall- the power grid, is able to switch on and off at fuels from biomass. Supercaps (double layer capac.) 3–5 2,000 – 10,000 1,000,000 / unlimited
plying it to single and multi-family homes is mounted boiler. The temperature difference the proper times. The burner for the Stirling en- Gitta Rohling
116 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 117
Double layer capacitors called supercaps (below) are The Russian version of Siemens’ Velaro train, the
Energy Efficiency | Rail Transport
being used in streetcars such as the Combino Plus Sapsan, will enter service at the end of 2009. The
(bottom). The devices release stored braking energy train has passed a gamut of tests, including simulated
quickly when the vehicle accelerates. snow storms and -40 degree Celsius temperatures.
low too, reaching a maximum of 300 W/kg. For
an electric car to accelerate as rapidly as a 90
kW gasoline-engine vehicle, it would need a
300-kilogram lead-acid battery in the trunk.
That’s why most of today’s hybrid vehicles
employ nickel-metal hydride batteries with a
capacity of 60 to 80 Wh/kg. Lithium-ion or
lithium-polymer batteries are even more pow-
erful, with 90 to 150 Wh/kg. Alongside storage
capacity, the service life of an accumulator is
also limited. A lead-acid battery is good for a
maximum of around 1,000 charge-discharge ture. They can take up and release large quanti-
cycles. Nickel-metal hydride or lithium-ion bat- ties of energy extremely quickly.
teries last considerably longer. This makes it possible to use an electric mo-
tor in a hybrid vehicle, streetcar, or locomotive
Extremely high power density. In general, as a generator that recovers braking energy.
accumulators must be charged slowly to avoid This regenerated energy is stored in supercaps
damage. But vehicles, in particular, are associ- and re-used when the vehicle accelerates
ated with many applications that need a fast again. The resulting advantage is fuel and en-
charging capability — for example, when brak- ergy savings of between five and 25 percent,
ing energy is harnessed in cars or streetcars. depending on the driving cycle. The capacitor
With this in mind, Siemens is promoting the packs can either be carried in the vehicle itself
use of double layer capacitors, or so-called or permanently built into segments of subway
supercaps — devices that store electrical en- lines.
ergy by separating the charges as soon as a Such a setup has already been tested in sev-
voltage is applied. eral subway systems — for example, in Madrid,
Supercaps offer capacitances of 300 to Cologne, Dresden, Bochum and Beijing. Super-
10,000 farads. Charge separation takes place caps could also be used in energy distribution
118 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2007 Pictures of the Future | Special Edition on Green Technologies 119
At a Siemens locomotive factory in Allach,
Energy Efficiency | Rail Transport | Rail Systems
Germany, engineers use life cycle assessments
that can help with the selection of the most
environmentally compatible designs.
an amount equivalent to the savings that could
be achieved by shutting down a major coal-
fired power plant.
Europe already has an extensive high-speed
rail network that is 6,000 kilometers long. In
view of the benefits offered by high-speed rail
technology, the head of Siemens Public Transit,
Ansgar Brockmeyer, is convinced that an addi-
tional 8,000 kilometers of high-speed track will
be added to the network by 2025. “Worldwide,
rail traffic volume is growing at an annual rate
of three percent, and we expect to see growth
rates as high as seven percent in Asia and Eu-
rope,” says Brockmeyer. “That makes this busi-
ness sector extremely interesting for us.”
China opted for the Velaro some time ago,
opening its first route — between Beijing and
the Olympics site in Tianjin — in time for the
2008 Summer Olympics. The Chinese Velaro,
which is also 33 centimeters wider than the
Western European train, can accommodate
600 passengers. Plans call for a Beijing-Shang-
hai high-speed line to go into operation in
2010 with 100 new Velaro trains. With 16
coaches each, these trains will be 400 meters
long, hold 1,060 passengers, and have a top
power to the wheels and distributes the power many countries. While a trip on the new cross- speed of 350 km/h.
more efficiently throughout the entire train. This border high-speed line between the centers of The Velaro’s design, comfort, and technical
makes the Velaro the world’s only high-speed Frankfurt and Paris takes a little more than two features have apparently convinced a lot of rail
train that can handle inclines of up to four per- hours longer than a plane flight, passengers operators, since the train came out on top in
cent, which is what it will face along the moun- are spared the long trip from city centers to air- five of eight calls for tenders in the past few
tainous 650-kilometer high-speed route from ports, not to mention the time spent for check- years. Germany’s Deutsche Bahn has also se-
Barcelona to Madrid, the biggest cities in Spain. in and waiting. lected the Velaro to succeed the ICE 3. The
The new route will cut travel time between the High-speed trains are also superior in terms company has ordered 15 new trains that will
two metropolises from six hours to only about of energy consumption, as a plane flying from begin operating when the 2011 winter sched-
two and a half hours. The Velaro’s drive system
also offers the advantages of a distributed struc-
ture and uniform power transfer, which signifi-
cantly reduce component wear and tear as com-
pared to conventional traction unit concepts.
Frankfurt to Paris produces around 83 kilo-
grams of carbon dioxide per person, while the
Velaro generates just under 10 kilograms — or
90 percent less. Basically, the Velaro consumes
ule goes into effect.
These Velaros will be equipped with the
state-of-the-art European Train Control System
(ETCS), which represents a milestone in cross-
Timely Trains
The Velaro consumes the equivalent of 0.33 liters of gaso- Today’s locomotives should consume as little energy
Top speed of 404 km/h. The Velaro is indis-
putably the fastest multiple-unit train in the line per seat per 100 kilometers — much less than a car. as possible — not just when they are in operation,
world. When it is delivered to the customer but also during production and eventual recycling.
from the Siemens plant in Krefeld, it’s ready
to travel at a top speed of 404 kilometers per the equivalent of 0.33 liters of gasoline per border train travel. Thanks to the ETCS, trains
Life cycle assessments can help with selection of the
hour. Its normal cruising speed with passengers seat per 100 kilometers, which makes it far will no longer have to slow down at national most environmentally-compatible designs.
and luggage is up to 350 km/h, although the more economical not only than a plane but borders in coming years. Instead, they will be
speed is of course continually adjusted to the also than a car. It’s therefore not surprising that able to speed through without interruption
immediate surroundings. Because of Russia’s 3-
kilovolt catenaries, the Sapsan will initially
travel at approximately 250 km/h. But even at
the Velaro is an integral part of Siemens’ envi-
ronmental portfolio.
from northern Europe to the Mediterranean
coast.
Up until now, Europe has had more than 20
T he assembly hall is filled with locomotives,
some of them missing their roofs, others
without control cabins. And some are even
higher priority. In fact, the model will be the
first electric locomotive on the island continent
to be equipped with an energy recovery sys-
because it was built using more copper than is
usual, which also makes it heavier than similar
units. In order to compensate for the trans-
that speed, the train will cut travel time for the Worldwide Success Story. It therefore makes different rail signaling and security systems — mounted on temporary platforms that make tem. The system collects braking energy gener- former’s additional weight, other parts of the
approximately 650 km from Moscow to St. Pe- sense that high-speed trains are becoming but the ETCS will change that. The system will them appear to be floating on air. Martin Leitel, ated on downhill stretches by trains full of coal locomotive must be lighter, which is why its
tersburg on the Baltic Sea by 45 minutes. Still, more and more popular. Among other things, enable the new German Velaro to travel across who is responsible for making life cycle assess- that are traveling from the interior of the coun- roof is made of aluminum. Naturally, all of this
Russian Railways plans to expand its high- their use is being reconsidered in the United borders not only to Paris, but to cities in Bel- ments of locomotives for Siemens Mobility in try to the coast. It then feeds the energy into results in higher energy consumption during
speed network so as to allow the Sapsan to States. The California High-Speed Rail Author- gium as well, thereby eliminating practically all Allach, Germany, points to a yellow locomotive the grid for use by empty trains going uphill. manufacturing. But, as Leitel points out, after
reach higher speeds. ity, for example, has determined that a link be- remaining obstacles to the consolidation of the without a roof. “That one’s going to Australia,” Another locomotive, Leitel explains, is for a only a few years of operation, the transformer’s
High-speed rail links between major cities tween Los Angeles and San Francisco could re- European high-speed rail network. he says, a country where rail service operators European leasing company. It’s equipped with high efficiency and the aluminum’s light
offer a real alternative to plane and car travel in duce carbon dioxide emissions by 58,000 tons, Tim Schröder recently started making energy conservation a a transformer that achieves optimal efficiency weight counterbalance these energy costs.
120 Pictures of the Future | Special Edition on Green Technologies Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 121
Energy Efficiency | Rail Systems
Such conflicts are a part of Leitel’s routine. To ensure that the associated analyses — Over a service life of roughly 30 years, a loco- will, but cautions that “the locomotive market cled; the rest are burned and the resulting en- electricity comes from coal-fired power plants.
In addition to conducting life cycle assessments also known as material balances — remain ac- motive in Europe emits between 200,000 and is price-sensitive, so the sales price is still often ergy is exploited. There isn’t much left to im- But unlike Oslo’s trains, Prague’s run mostly un-
(LCAs), his job at the Allach locomotive factory curate, Leitel relies on an extensive database 400,000 metric tons of CO2, depending on the decisive.” prove here because the rail cars are held to- derground and its winters are warmer, mean-
near Munich is to ensure coordination with containing thousands of parts numbers and in- type of use. Locomotive production results in Nevertheless, customers are well aware of gether with hook-and-loop fasteners rather ing that its trains can get by with less heating
customers when drawing up custom-tailored formation on the materials used in each com- only about 250 metric tons of CO2 emissions, the fact that the purchase price of a locomotive than glue, for example, which makes it easy to and that an investment in improved insulation
technical specifications for their locomotives. ponent. This database reveals, for example, however. And the recycling phase generates is only around 15 percent of the cost of power- disassemble them. wouldn’t really pay off anyway. What would
Combining these two goals has proved to be a that the left door of a locomotive control cabin savings of 100 metric tons of CO2 because over ing it throughout its service life. “So a ten per-
good idea. “Customers simply want a good lo- weighs 87.1 kilograms, including 68.1 kilos of 95 percent of the materials in a modern loco- cent higher list price for a locomotive still pays
comotive that meets the highest environmen- aluminum, 6.6 kilos of glass, and 4.2 kilos of motive are recyclable. These materials — for off for the customer if energy efficiency is two A ten percent higher purchase price pays off for customers
tal standards,” he says. What’s more, life cycle elastomers, with the remaining weight ac- the most part metals and coolants — are percentage points better than the competi- if energy efficiency is two percentage points higher.
analyses are often a prerequisite for taking part counted for by other materials, including steel reused, which obviates the CO2 emissions that tion’s,” Leitel points out.
in tendering processes. and insulation elements. would have been produced if the materials had
Just a few mouse clicks is all it takes to eval- been manufactured from scratch. Recyclable Subway. This argument is familiar The LCA, however, can still be improved. Ex- pay dividends, says Stuckl, would be a more ef-
Quick LCAs. Munich has been a locomotive uate specific assemblies or material classes and to Dr. Walter Struckl, who works at Siemens perts estimate that an additional 30 percent in ficient drive unit like the Syntegra bogie with
production site since 1841 — at one time under determine their proportion of total weight. An- Materials Review. Leitel believes that the ma- Mobility in Vienna, where subway trains, rail- energy savings could be achieved in actual op- its permanently excited gearless electric mo-
the name Krauss-Maffei, whose logo still adorns other database lists the primary energy con- terial analysis process can be improved. “We’re way cars, and trams are built. The market for eration and that the associated costs would be tors, which Siemens is testing as a prototype
the front of the factory hall that Siemens took sumption and carbon dioxide emissions associ- reviewing the entire range of materials now in these products is also extremely price sensitive, recouped in one year, says Struckl — even (see Pictures of the Future, Fall 2007, p. 70).
over in 1999. But much has changed over the ated with each material, as well as regional use,” he says. The idea is to use batteries that and energy-saving innovations here have to though the system already consumes around Struckl’s goal is to turn the focus away from
To maximize the environmental compatibility of trains, workers in Allach install, among other things, highly energy-efficient LED signal lights. Siemens locomotives are designed to be efficient — for instance by returning braking energy to the grid that is generated when traveling downhill.
years. While steam locomotives churned out differences. For example, an aluminum panel don’t contain heavy metals, as well as coolants pay for themselves within two to three years. one-third less energy than its predecessor, the LCA of individual assemblies and toward
enormous amounts of soot and carbon dioxide, made in Iceland, a country that uses a lot of re- made of biodegradable materials — and to Struckl opens a copy of his doctoral disserta- mostly thanks to more efficient heating and the overall mobility system. Siemens offers de-
their modern counterparts are subject to strict newable energy, has a much lower CO2 value generally ensure that new designs have more tion from Vienna Technical University. In this more effective insulation. vices that store braking energy either on trains
environmental regulations. And it’s not just the than one from China, where most electricity is recyclable parts by avoiding use of composites work, Struckl calculated down to the last detail themselves or as stationary units on tracks. The
emissions caused by operation of these powerful generated in coal-fired power plants. as much as possible. “The ideal would be to the energy balance of the Oslo subway system Mobility in Context. Struckl warns against company also supplies efficient technologies
locomotives that need to be low; environmen- The material analysis does not extend down loosen a few bolts and have the whole locomo- — probably the most efficient subway in the generalizations, explaining there is no such for producing electricity at power plants and
tal impact throughout their entire life cycles must to the last bolt; this would require too much ef- tive break apart into sets of unmixed materi- world in terms of resource conservation. When thing as a “good” or “bad” LCA. Absolute num- transporting it to tracks, as well as traffic man-
als,” Leitel explains. Struckl joined Siemens in 2003, it still wasn’t bers, such as those for CO2 emissions, don’t re- agement systems that intelligently network rail
Not every trend is as good as it sounds, possible to market the environmental aspects veal much in and of themselves. Instead, each and road transport. Siemens’ Complete Mobil-
A database lists the primary energy consumption and car- however. Although lightweight construction of a product, but today LCAs are a normal part application scenario must be carefully studied ity concept attracted lots of interest at the In-
bon dioxide emissions associated with different materials. with plastics and composites reduces operating of the tendering process. Life cycle costs have in context in order to develop optimal meas- notrans fair in September 2008 in Berlin. These
energy consumption, it also poses recycling to do with costs, but life cycle assessments ad- ures. Subway trains such as those in Oslo, for days, companies in Norway receive a cash
problems, which means that it is not necessar- dress environmental concerns. People tend to example, produce only 827 metric tons of CO2 bonus for every kilowatt-hour of energy saved;
also be kept to a minimum. This begins with the fort and expense. “We make a general estimate ily good for the environment. A locomotive confuse the two, says Struckl — but they’re not during a 30-year service life — a low figure due and other countries plan to introduce emission
manufacturing process and continues all the of the energy consumption and emissions of also shouldn’t be too light because it has to pull contradictory, given that greater energy effi- to the fact that 99 percent of Norway’s electric- trading systems for the transportation sector.
way through the product’s life to disposal, which small components,” Leitel explains. The analy- a train 20 to 30 times its own weight. When ciency usually has a rapid and positive effect on ity is generated with hydro power. On the other “When transport companies also begin to bear
will soon become the legal responsibility of the sis ultimately produces charts that show where asked if all the environmental effort that is now life cycle costs. hand, the same trains would emit 47,900 met- the cost of carbon dioxide emissions, many of
manufacturer. As a result, developers must now energy consumption is highest. With freight being implemented will ultimately pay off in With regard to the Oslo subway system, a ric tons of CO2 equivalent if operated in the them will quickly become interested in our in-
plan to recycle as many components as possible. trains it’s clearly locomotive operation itself. the form of orders, Leitel says he’s certain it total of 84 percent of its materials can be recy- Czech Republic because most of that country’s novations,” predicts Struckl. Bernd Müller
122 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 123
Traffic control centers, low-floor streetcars
Energy Efficiency | Vienna
(pictured left) and many other measures have
helped turn the Austrian capital into a role model
for holistic mobility concepts.
The Greater Vienna area has 227 kilometers practice,” says Grundmann. The goal of the power generation using coal is becoming Osram has studied the life cycles of various
Outfitting traffic lights with light-emitting diodes of streetcar tracks, one of the largest streetcar complete mobility approach is to network dif- increasingly efficient and sustainable — as lamps from production to disposal. The result:
(LEDs) can help cities slash their power costs. These networks in the world. The mass transit net- ferent transport systems with one another as shown by the Yuhuan plant, which achieves a The life cycle assessment is largely determined
tiny 10-watt light sources consume between 80 and work run by transport operator Wiener Linien effectively as possible. world-record efficiency of 45 percent (p. 76) by energy consumption during their operation,
90 percent less electricity than the lamps in conven- is over 960 kilometers in length, including 116 “The realization of this complete mobility with only a small fraction of consumption at-
tional stoplights. What’s more, to ensure safety, con- subway, streetcar, and bus lines with 4,559 concept involves close cooperation with Siemens is developing 700-degree Celsius tributable to lamp production.The key to mak-
ventional lamps have to be replaced every six to 12 stops, from which any location in the city can Siemens IT Solutions and Services,” Grund- technology in order to further boost the effi- ing lamps more environmentally friendly is thus
months, whereas LEDs are genuine long-burners. be reached within 15 minutes on foot. mann explains. The fruits of this collaboration ciency of coal-fired power plants and thus cut making them more energy-efficient. (p. 103)
“They run for around 100,000 hours, which means On weekdays, public transport accounts for include a control system for public transport CO2 emissions. This higher steam tempera-
they only have to be changed every ten years,” ex- up to 35 percent of total traffic, one of the called “PTnova” that was developed with ture is expected to make it possible to achieve Energy-efficient products are helping to
plains Dr. Christoph Roth, product manager for signal highest mass transit quotients in the world. Wiener Linien and is now running as a pilot 50 percent efficiency. (p. 78) decouple growth and energy consumption.
generators at the Traffic Solutions Business Unit of the Siemens Mobility Division. When replacing Wiener Linien plans to increase this share to project. Two examples illustrate this point. Modern
conventional bulbs with LEDs, it makes sense to renew the control unit and convert the light to 40- 40 percent by 2013 with capital expenditures PTnova controls all sales-related processes Experts worldwide are working on concepts locomotives built in the most environmentally
volt LED circuitry. “That means you can use signal light units with only six or seven watts,” says Roth, of €1.8 billion, some of which will be used to such as ticketing, customer management and for generating power from coal without possible way, in accordance with eco-balances,
who estimates that the upgrading of traffic lights at 700 intersections can save a city €1.2 million a extend existing subway lines and build new the administration of season tickets. It also releasing CO2 into the atmosphere. Siemens and the blueTherm tumble drier that consumes
year. For Germany as a whole and its 80,000 or so traffic lights, the reduction in power consumption streetcar lines in outlying districts. automates the entire data flow. Any mobile or is investing in the IGCC process, which re- half as much as conventional dryers. (pp. 110,
alone would bring savings of €140 million. Fitted with conventional lamps, Germany’s traffic lights Summer 2009 saw the launch of an over- static ticket machines, ticket printers, and moves CO2 before combustion, and flue-gas 113, 121)
would consume 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours a year. Refitting with LEDs has cut that figure to 175 mil- arching transport management system that point-of-sale systems can be connected to PT- purification methods that separate CO2 after-
lion kWh — which corresponds to a reduction in generating capacity from 180 to 24 megawatts. benefits 200,000 commuters each day. The nova. “The use of enhanced information and wards. Scientists based in Potsdam are study- LINKS:
“Municipalities can recoup the costs of replacing conventional lamps with LEDs within two to four system provides route planning and calculates communications technology can make mobil- ing how carbon dioxide can be sequestered Siemens Energy Sector
years,” Roth explains. “There are very few towns and cities in Germany that haven’t already converted travel times in real time across all modes of ity chains more efficient and public transport underground and what happens to it there. www.siemens.com/energy
in part to LEDs, and it’s a trend we’re also seeing worldwide.” In Europe, for example, Vienna (pic- transport. It is supported with a host of traffic more attractive,” says Grundmann. (pp. 82, 85) Siemens Mobility Sector
tured above) and Budapest have already fully converted. In Germany, Freiburg, Memmingen, and data, most of which is gathered and processed PTnova’s capabilities are exactly in line with www.siemens.com/mobility
Mannheim have all taken advantage of a customized financing solution provided by Siemens Finance by sensor systems from Siemens. “We’ve already the recommendations of transport experts For power plants, efficiency is absolutely Siemens Building Technologies
& Leasing, a subsidiary of Siemens Financial Services. “Our financing model has terms of between provided a lot of a products and solutions in- from MRC McLean Hazel. Their study proposes vital. Largely due to the economic crisis, many www.buildingtechnologies.siemens.com
four to 15 years, with the repayment schedule calculated on the basis of potential savings, which volved in the implementation of Vienna’s the use of so-called personalized smart media operators are avoiding major new capital ex- EU-Project CO2 SINK:
makes it very flexible compared to standard municipal loans,” explains Jörg Dethlefsen, a member of transport master plan,” says Grundmann. for the city. This smart card-based application penditures and are modernizing existing www.co2sink.com
the executive management at Finance & Leasing. Freiburg, for example, has converted 53 traffic These solutions include 44 high-speed trains would combine ticketing not only with access plants instead. Thanks to smart upgrades, Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum (GFZ)
lights to LEDs, a move that has brought it annual savings of €155,000 since 2006. These savings will for intercity connections and 40 subway trains to leisure activities — for example, entry to fossil-fuel power plants can increase their effi- www.gfz-potsdam.de
finance the repayments over the 15-year term of the loan and then flow into city coffers. “Assuming as well as the associated control, signaling, museums, libraries, and swimming pools — ciency by between 10 and 15 percent. (p. 88) EPEA Internationale Umweltforschung
the potential savings have been properly calculated, our financing solution won’t pose any financial and safety technology; 300 ultra-low-floor but also with special incentives such as bonus www.epea.com
risk for the city in question. What’s more, it gives municipalities the scope to invest in other areas,” streetcars, which Siemens is delivering to the schemes for saved CO2 emissions. As a result, At many open-pit mines, mechanical mon- Intergovernmental Panel On Climate
Dethlefsen adds. Nikola Wohllaib city’s transport operator at the rate of 15 to 20 it would help to attract more customers to sters excavate and transport ore. Siemens is Change (IPCC)
per year; and, last but not least, a Siemens sys- public transport. Nikola Wohllaib equipping these behemoths with electric drive www.ipcc.ch
124 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2009 125
London plans to cut its greenhouse gas
Pictures of the Future | Sustainable Infrastructures for London
emissions by up to 60 percent by 2025.
A Siemens-McKinsey study shows how it
can meet its objective.
unchecked rise in temperatures could cost five
to ten percent of global economic output, ac- Where London Can Save the Most CO2
cording to the former chief economist of the Mt CO2
World Bank.
47.0 1.8 45.2 10.6 3.0 2.5 3.7 25.4
Comparative Environmental Footprints Comparative Emission Targets Abatement costs Greenhouse Gas Abatement Cost Curve for London 2025
€/t CO2
5,000 CO2 emissions — buildings
kg CO2/person
2000
1800
from Decision-Makers’ Perspective
Values per year
(2005 or most recent Mt CO2 Reduction* 1600
Horizontal axis shows the CO2 savings potential in millions of metric tons per year, and the vertical axis shows the cost
available before) 1400
per metric ton of CO2 emissions avoided. Values below zero are negative costs, i.e. savings.
-12.5 % -20.0 % -30.0 % - 60.0 % - 43.7 % 1200
2,500 1,000 1000
800
CO2 emissions — 45.1 47.0
CO2 emissions — 600 Abatement levers that also make economic sense (13.4 Mt of CO2 savings)
transport
kg CO2/person industry 400
kg CO2/person 200
Source: © Copyright 2008 McKinsey & Company
Domestic waste Air pollution 1990 2005 2012 2020 2025 2025 2025 households
Heat recovery
power
Replacing coal with gas Double glazing
kg/person kg particulate matter Kyoto EU UK London After
identified Domestic Gas engine in combined heat Newly built
(PM10)/person Biofuels homes with ex-
abatement appliances and power systems
Water tremely high en-
* compared with 1990 levels levers ergy efficiency
200 m3/person
126 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Fall 2008 127
Pictures of the Future | Study of a Carbon-Free Munich
yield significant savings. It is therefore crucial Energy Conservation Act of 2007, the additional
not to scrimp in this area. In fact, the study as- costs involved in such refurbishment and the
Source: City of Munich, 2008; Stadtwerke München; estimates by Wuppertal Institute, 2008
Coal in the energy sector:
TWh per annum
perts expect cities to be seriously affected by From coal 7.4 TWh 9
2.4m t 11.4 TWh = 30% Figures rounded, Total:
climate change. Shanghai, for example, is likely 1 TWh = 3.6 PJ 8
Total: 8.03 Total:
= 122,700 t hard coal 7.44 4.32
to suffer from storms and heavy rains, and Ger- Total energy requirements: 29.0 TWh per annum equivalent
Power generation: Public transport:
7 Accounts for 40.3 % of CO2 Accounts for 12.6 % of CO2
many’s Federal Environment Agency predicts 2.75 emissions in Munich (2008) 4.00 -32% emissions in Munich (2008)
Trade +
that by the end of the century Munich will see From natural Natural
Industry Space heating and process heat 6 Total: 1.18 3.50 Total:
gas gas 5.28 -54% 2.92
a significant increase in the number of hot days 3.2m t 15.8 TWh
11.8 TWh 7.5 TWh
0.79
5 3.00
and “tropical” nights each year. Coal-fired power plant with CCS
Total:
Electricity 4.3 TWh 0.16 2.50
Is there any good news about cities? Well, 4
Solar-thermal electricity generation 1.99
0.37 Wind power on-/offshore
yes. The very fact that they are not only the Households 2.00
LPT electricity
From crude 12.0 TWh 3 Biomass
biggest culprits in climate change, but that oil Crude oil
Space heating 9.5 TWh
0.68
1.50 LPT biofuel
9.7 TWh Geothermal
they are so concentrated offers a good oppor- 2.6m t
128 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 129
Pictures of the Future | Study of a Carbon-Free Munich | Feedback
tric appliances and lighting as well as renew- Munich will also help to buffer fluctuating loads that the cost of refurbishing existing structures
able and low-carbon energy sources such as
photovoltaic systems, solar collectors, and ge-
from photovoltaic and wind sources, whose out-
put of electricity differs according to the weather
and building new ones in line with the Passive
House standard would be offset by savings in
Would you like to know more
othermal systems. The study assumes that
electricity will be increasingly generated on a
and the time of day. When power is plentiful
(and therefore cheap), electric car batteries will
energy that would have been consumed for
heating. The savings would be sufficient to fund
about Siemens and our latest
decentralized basis — for example, by CHP
plants for individual areas of the city or even
serve as an intermediate storage system. At
times of high demand (and peak rates), they
the creation of a carbon-free district heating
distribution system powered by geothermal en-
developments?
micro CHP units for individual buildings, which will feed some of their power back into the grid. ergy. In other words, investment in a carbon-free
supply not only heat but also electricity for resi- At the same time, better town planning can supply of heating would not only reduce emis-
dents (see p. 116). help reduce the amount of traffic in Munich and sions substantially but would also save the dis-
According to the study, if all the opportuni- therefore reduce its CO2 emissions. Both scenar- trict an average of €4 to €6.5 million per annum. We will be glad to send you more information. Please check the box
ties to save electricity were rigorously exploited ios are based on reduced travel requirements. It must be remembered that private individ- next to the publication you wish to order and the language you need,
— from stoplights to tumble driers — the Instead of building shopping malls on green field uals and the business sector also have a role to and fax a copy of this page to +49 (0) 9131-9192-591 or mail it to
power consumption of a city like Munich could sites, the study favors urban neighborhoods in play in boosting energy efficiency, since in Publicis Publishing — Susan Süß — Postfach 3240, 91050 Erlangen,
be largely satisfied by renewable sources. The which homes, workplaces, and stores are close many cases it is they who must choose be- Germany, or e-mail it to publishing-address@publicis-erlangen.de.
study assumes that the city will continue to ob- to one another. That way, many more trips can tween traditional technology and a more effi- Please use “Pictures of the Future, Special Edition” as the subject heading.
tain electricity from larger power plants in the be completed on foot or by bicycle. The authors cient but often, at the outset, more expensive
region as well as further afield in Germany and also advocate making public transit more com- alternative. This applies equally to the con-
abroad. Such power could be generated essen- fortable in order to encourage its increased use. struction of housing, electric appliances, and Brochure European Green City Index
tially by large offshore and onshore wind farms In addition to analyzing Munich as a whole, industrial motors. Yet the study emphasizes — Assessing the environmental impact of Europe’s major cities
in northern Europe or by solar-thermal power the study presents a detailed plan of how to that this often involves merely a change in be-
plants in southern Europe or northern Africa improve energy efficiency in an actual district havior, not a compromise in the quality of life. Brochure Sustainable Urban Infrastructure
and then transported to the cities of central on the periphery that contains both old and new Frequently it is high costs that prevent a whole- — London Edition, a view to 2025
Europe via low-loss HVDC transmission lines. housing. The authors conclude that it would be sale shift in attitudes and the widespread use
Some of this power could also be generated in possible to create a low-carbon neighborhood of low-energy technology. And frequently this Available issues of Pictures of the Future:
low-carbon power plants equipped with tech- within a 30-year period. Moreover, they say is because consumers fail to appreciate the po- Pictures of the Future, Fall 2009 (German, English)
nology for carbon capture and storage. tential savings in energy costs over a full prod- Pictures of the Future, Spring 2009 (German, English)
uct lifetime. However, experience clearly shows Pictures of the Future, Fall 2008 (German, English)
Plugging Cars into the Picture. One of the that people’s behavior can be nudged in the Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008 (German, English)
most striking changes investigated by the study CO2 Emissions right direction by the use of appropriate finan- Pictures of the Future, Fall 2007 (German, English)
is the massive shift to electric cars. It is likely cial assistance and incentives combined with Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007 (German, English)
by Sector
that by the middle of the century most car trips targeted information campaigns. The study Pictures of the Future, Fall 2006 (German, English)
in the Munich area will be made in electric ve- therefore concludes that greater energy effi-
Thousands of metric tons CO2 p.a.
hicles. For longer trips, people will probably still ciency is chiefly interesting when it makes Additional information
use hybrid or highly efficient diesel or gasoline 8,000 sound financial sense. And that is almost al- about Siemens’ innovations is available on the Internet at:
cars. The large number of electric vehicles in ways the case. Tim Schröder www.siemens.com/innovation (Siemens’ R&D website)
7,000
www.siemens.com/innovationnews (weekly media service)
6,000 www.siemens.com/pof (Pictures of the Future on the Internet, with down-
loads — also in Chinese, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Turkish)
CO2 Emissions Per Capita 5,000
-87 % -79 %
Building Heating by
Source
4,000
I would like a free sample issue of Pictures of the Future
46.5 %
TWh per annum I would like to cancel my Pictures of the Future subscription
3,000
Annual CO2 per capita (in kg) My new address is shown below
2,000 18
Total: Please also send the magazine to…
7,000 17.0
Percentage of CO2 (Please check the respective box(es) and fill in the address):
1,000 16 22 % emissions in
6,000 Munich (2008)
14 resulting from
1% heating of buildings:
0
5,000 46.5 %
Reference Target Bridge 12
-89 % -80 % (2008) (2058) (2058) Title, first name, last name
4,000 10 -79 % District heating
Passenger transport Decentralized CHP
Source: Estimate by Wuppertal Institute, 2008
130 Reprinted (with updates) from Pictures of the Future | Spring 2009 Pictures of the Future | Special Edition on Green Technologies 131
www.siemens.com/pof
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