Gaia Power: Backup Power, No Fossil Fuels Required
Imagine a backup generator that is virtually silent and requires zero fossil fuels, creating no CO2 emissions. That's what Gaia Power Technologies has successfully created in the PowerTower.
The PowerTower could become the wave of the future in response to an increasing unreliable or unpredictable energy supply. It will also have an important role in fostering the continued growth of wind and solar by being able to increase the efficiency of these renewable sources.
The PowerTower looks like a big blue filing cabinet, and takes up about that amount of space indoors. Each unit uses batteries to store power, which is then released when needed, such as in the event of a power failure. But the PowerTower is more than just a backup generator. Gaia Technologies has manufactured this turn key storage unit to be integrated with renewable power sources, such as wind and solar, so that during times of intermittent generation the stored up power can be utilized.
Because it uses batteries it doesn't need any additional fuel to run (no diesel required) and only has one moving part - a fan to keep the unit cool. Minimal moving parts also mean minimal maintenance to keep it running over the course of its 20 year operating lifetime. (Batteries need to be replaced after about 7 years.)
For those of you who like numbers, each unit provides up to 11kW of continuous power output and 15kWh of energy storage capacity, with over 25kW of surge power (to start motors pumps and furnaces) and can be configured for either 120V or 120/240V. Multiple units can be connected together to provide for greater needs.
Who is using this technology? According to Matthew Johnson, Director of Marketing and Business Development with Gaia Power Technologies, the PowerTower is mainly used right now as means of backup power for residential consumers and small businesses during times of power grid failure, and to help increase the functionality of solar and wind generation. There is also interest from countries around the world in areas with low or intermittent power connectivity.
The PowerTower can also serve to lessen peak load demand when energy use is at its highest. In New York for example, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) offers businesses an incentive for not using as much power during the heat of the day when AC units are at full blast across the city in what is called the Peak Load Reduction Program.
NYSERDA also helped fund the development of Gaia's turn key storage technologies. In addition to funding research and development of renewable and alternative energy technologies, the state agency also offers incentives and rebates for consumers and busineses in purchasing Energy Star appliances, installing solar panels and utilizing other technologies such as the PowerTower. (To see if there are incentives in your state check out the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency - DSIRE.)
The PowerTower was developed by a battery chemist, Ib Olsen, who saw the need to take battery power to a new level for the end user. Gaia Power Technologies began in 2002 and has been manufacturing and selling the PowerTower over the past year and a half. Additional information can be found at the company's website.
Tags: backup power, Climate Change, Environment, Gaia Power Technologies, generator, Green Tech, PowerTower, Renewable Power
June 19th, 2007 at 7:49 pm
I’m curious how this technology relates to some other tech out there, such as IceCycle thermal energy storage or Ice Energy’s Ice Bear thermal energy storage. Any thoughts?
June 20th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
Amy, please take my comments as a dislike of “over-selling capabilities”, as I do think that this item occupies a valuable place in my evolving home setup. I just think that you are missing some critical items.
Re: your first sentence, this is not a backup generator. Reading their spec sheet, it is nothing more than a honkin’ big UPS (uninterruptible power source), although a UPS that appears to be designed with the possibility of using wind/solar inputs - a very nice touch. Essentially a bunch of batteries, connected through inverters to the power source.
Re: “doesn’t require any additional fuel to run”, only till the batteries are flat.
A couple of items that I would have like to have seen addressed as I am only a household electrician - but will put this in front of my brother who is an electrician:
1) 11KW, 46 amps (per leg) - I am figuring that means total CONTINUOUS output is 92 amps. My house’s breaker box is a 200 amp breaker box. Looks like I will be buying two of these, or deciding what loads to shed.
2) I could not find anywhere where it states how many hours one can maintain that full continuous load for - how many kilowatt-hours. Since this is a UPS, at some point if there is no power coming in, either from the grid or from solar panels on my roof, the batteries go flat and the Power Tower (UPS) goes off-line.
Sorry again for my comments, as I think that this is a great item, and if I have misinterpreted, my apologies. I just don’t want someone to think that they could buy this and have it supply their power indefinitely on its own.
With respect,
bobk
June 20th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
You’re kidding, right?
How much fossil fuel is required to manufacture the item, including the aluminum and metals? how much fuel to ship such a heavy item? and so forth.
Please. this is nothing new–it’s a backup battery that can be hooked up to the grid or a wind/solar collector. those have been around for about, oh, 75 years.
another greenwash, i’m afraid. I’m so tired of this.
June 21st, 2007 at 10:45 am
A better design would be based on the NASA power packs used in satellites & space shots, where a small chunk of Gaia’s own permanent power source, uranium, would be surrounded by direct heat-to-DC power conversion cells. Then, if the homeowner can remember to keep the lead shielding in place, and not enter the basement without protective clothing, unlimited Gaian power would be available, forever.
June 22nd, 2007 at 10:38 am
Amy, why do you write about a topic you do not understand and then end up misrepresenting the facts. I’m assuming that this not a paid listing.
Yes, I’m being a little harsh but I think it’s well deserved because this really a very irresponsible post… calling something a miracle energy source when it’s only a stack of batteries and an inverter.
June 22nd, 2007 at 3:10 pm
Manu–
I did a search on the page for the word "miracle," and only found it in your comment. I'm not quite sure why you would claim Amy is "misrepresenting the facts" — this all seems pretty straightforward, without any kind of hyperbole.
Regardless, if you'd like to share your thoughts, please do. But please keep it civil — there's no need for throwing around these kinds of insults and accusations. We're here to discuss solutions…
_______________________________________
Jeff McIntire-Strasburg
Senior Editor
Green Options
jeff@greenoptions.com
June 22nd, 2007 at 7:36 pm
Jeff, thanks for responding. Believe me, I had to summon a lot of restraint to say what I did and I think I did manage to keep it civil. If you read the other comments, I’m not the only one outraged at this.
No insult or accusation intended. I wanted to point to the gross mistakes in this post which others have highlighted too. In case you missed, here are all the errors / misrepresentations in the above post:
#1 “No Fossil Fuels Required”: The title of the post gives the impression that it’s a new energy source when actually the device is for energy *storage*. “Requires zero fossil fuels” and “wave of the future” in the first few lines of the post reinforce this impression.
#2 The author then claims that it “will also have an important role in fostering the continued growth of wind and solar.” That a huge claim to say that it will influence the renewable energy industry. No supporting facts are mentioned such as how this change will come about and how competitive is this device to other storage solutions.
#3 The author then further claims that the device is able to “increase the efficiency of renewable sources.” This is once again a gorss misrepresentation. Efficiency of an energy generation technology has *nothing* to do with energy storage. Perhaps the author meant that the device has high DC to AC conversion efficiency - which was not clarified.
#4 The author clearly calls it a energy storage device and then inexplicably refers to it as a “backup generator”? Perhaps she needs a crash course in the difference between generation and storage.
#5 It is claimed that “Gaia Technologies has manufactured this turn key storage unit to be integrated with renewable power sources, such as wind and solar.” This sentence yet again displays an astounding lack of understanding of the topic. Is there *any* energy storage technology that doesn’t work wind and solar? Energy storage is independent of generation. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that.
#6 I cannot fathom what the following sentence means: “Because it uses batteries it doesn’t need any additional fuel to run”. Since it’s a residential system naturally it will be charged with the electric supply - where does that power comes from if not fossil fuels?
I think I’m going to stop midway now. Half a dozen errors in only the first half of the post should be enough.
I live in New Delhi, India where intermittent power supply is the norm and we have these battery based inverters in *every* house. Yes, they can be charged with solar or wind too. In every way they are identical to this product.
So when I saw this very ordinary device hyped up as a new energy source I came close to pulling my hair. If this isn’t hyperbole, I don’t know what is.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:18 pm
I certainly don't want to argue with you, Manu — obviously, you're knowledgeable about these matters, and can speak to them with authority. But, I don't know how to characterize comments like "Perhaps she needs a crash course in the difference between generation and storage," or "You don't need to be a rocket scientist to know that" as anything other than uncivil.
We're completely open to constructive criticism, but we want GO to be a place where discussion happens in an environment of mutual respect and tolerance for different levels of knowledge.
I shouldn't single you out here — many of these comments could've been made with a much more generous spirit. Please share your knowledge — that's what we're here for! But please do so in a spirit of sharing, rather than of contempt.
Amy profiled a product. She talked to the manufacturers of this product, and shared what she learned from them. This kind of product may be old hat to you, but I'm guessing other users aren't as familiar with these technologies. Perhaps the fossil fuels issue could'v been handled differently, but that's beside the point — we can all correct and instruct without getting snide or nasty.
I'm not asking you (or other commenters here) to keep quiet, or to not point our issues you have with a post — I'm simply asking that it be done in a more cooperative manner. I don't think that's too much to ask.
_______________________________________
Jeff McIntire-Strasburg
Senior Editor
Green Options
jeff@greenoptions.com