Propa ne E duc a tion & Re se a rc h Counc il (PE RC) John E mmitte PE RC Str ate gic Consultant 6 th He a t T re a tme nt Wo rksho p Ma y 14, 2009
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il What is Propane ? Ask Hank Hill…
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il What is Propane ? • Pr opane is a hydr oc ar bon (C3H8) some time s r e fe r r e d to as lique fie d pe tr ole um gas, L P- gas or L PG • Pr opane is pr oduc e d fr om both natur al ga s pr oc e ssing and c r ude oil r e fining
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il What is Propane ? (c ontinue d) • Pr opane is nontoxic , c olor le ss and vir tually odor le ss. • As with all natur al ga se s, an ide ntifying odor is adde d so the gas c a n be r e adily de te c te d.
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il • Pr opane is e asy to transpor t and c an be use d in ar e as be yond the natur al g as mains. • Be c ause it is 270 time s mor e c ompac t as a liquid than as a gas, it is e c onomic al to stor e and tr anspor t as a liquid.
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il • >14 million U.S. familie s use pr opane to fue l the ir fur nac e s, wate r he ate r s, outdoor gr ills, fir e plac e s, dr ye r s & r ange tops • Use d on mor e than 660,000 far ms for c r op/ gr ain dr ying, spac e and wate r he ating, standby ge ne r ator s, & othe r far m e quipme nt
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il Propane and the E nvironme nt • One of the c le ane st bur ning of all fossil fue ls • A c le an fue l liste d in the 1990 Cle an Air Ac t as we ll as the National E ne r gy Polic y Ac t • If spille d, pr opane va por ize s and dissipate s r apidly (thus doe s not c ontaminate soil or gr oundwate r )
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il Wha t is the Counc il (PE RC)? • Pr opane E duc ation and Re se ar c h Ac t (PE R A) sig ne d Oc to b e r 11, 1996 (Pub lic L a w 104- 284) • PE RA a utho rize d the c re a tio n o f the Co unc il; the n pro pa ne pro duc e rs a nd ma rke te rs in a re fe re ndum vo te d o ve rwhe lming ly to a ppro ve its fo rma tio n
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il Who is the Counc il? • PE RC is gove r ne d by a 21-me mbe r boar d appointe d by: • Na tio nal Pro pa ne Ga s Asso c ia tio n • Ga s Pro c e sso rs Asso c ia tio n (Bo th a sso c ia tio ns a ppo int nine Co unc il me mb e rs a nd c o o pe ra te in the a ppo intme nt o f thre e public me mb e rs)
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il PE RC Mission • “Pro mo te the sa fe , e ffic ie nt use o f o d o rize d pro p a ne g a s a s a pre fe rre d e ne rg y re so urc e thro ug h c o nsume r & e mplo ye e e d uc a tio n a nd te c hno lo g y d e ve lo pme nt a nd c o mme rc ializa tio n.”
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il F unding • PE RC re c e ive s fund ing b y a n a sse ssme nt, o r “c he c k- o ff”, o n e a c h g a llo n o f o d o rize d pro p a ne g a s. • T he a sse ssme nt c o lle c ts ½ o f o ne pe nny pe r g a llo n a nd is pro je c te d to c o lle c t $46 millio n in 2009 to fund pro g ra ms a nd pro je c ts.
E xa mple s of Che c k- Off Prog ra ms
Pr opane E duc ation & Re se ar c h Counc il Agr ic ultur e Commitme nt • No le ss tha n 5% o f a sse ssme nt c o lle c tio ns shall b e use d fo r pro g ra ms a nd pro je c ts inte nd e d to b e ne fit the U.S. a g ric ulture ind ustry. T he Co unc il shall c o o rd ina te the se a c tivitie s with the U.S. a g ric ulture ind ustry
Why Propa ne ? Due to a unique c ombination of be ne fits, pr opane is we ll suite d for use in a var ie ty of applic ations in the home and on the far m: • Cle an-bur ning • Por table • Suitable for long te r m stor age • Non-toxic , won’t c ontaminate soil or wate r • Pr oduc e d dome stic ally, pr imar ily from natur al gas
Ar e as of F oc us • Pr oduc tion (Cr ops/ L ive stoc k) • Pr oc e ssing/ Har ve sting • Powe r Applic ations • Nutr ie nt/ Waste Manage me nt • Infr astr uc tur e Impr ove me nts • E duc ation & Safe ty • T r aditional & Non T r a ditional • E ne r gy E ffic ie nc y
Sa mple Proje c ts
Ste a m We e d Control - Conse rva tion Innova tion Gra nt L inc oln, CA - USDA/ NR CS Ste a m we e de r a nd pr opa ne ir r ig a tion syste m Continue d USDA inte r e st
Combine d He a t a nd Powe r • De monstr ation of a pr opane - fir e d 5 kWe / 14 kWth “mic r oCHP” syste m • Small gr e e nhouse (le ttuc e ) 25 mile s south of Pittsbur gh • Pr oje c t de monstr ate s 2 be ne fits: viable r e turn on inve stme nt thr ough avoide d life - c yc le e ne r gy c osts; and e nhanc e d air quality
Combine d He a t a nd Powe r • T he mic r oCHP syste m pr oduc e s e le c tr ic ity and he at with single fue l • Hot wate r is ge ne r ate d by the waste he at of the pr opane e ngine and the n c ir c ulate d thr u buffe r tank to a hydr onic fan c oil unit dur ing c ool we athe r months
Ste a m We e d Control • Batc he n - Austr alia • T e sting and de monstr ations c onduc te d in 2006-07 • U.S. pr oduc e r s are showing inte r e st in the c onc e pt and the te c hnology • A lar ge r c apac ity unit is be ing de signe d for the U.S. mar ke t
F la me We e d Control Unive r sity of Ne br aska • 1.7 million c e r tifie d or ganic c r op ac r e s in U.S. • T e sting var iable s suc h as tr ave l spe e d, we e d spe c ie s, matur ity, c r op injur y and yie ld. • Par alle l pr oje c t with e ngine e r ing to study impr ove me nts to e quipme nt
F la me We e d Control 2007-08 r e sults • Common broadleaf weeds can be controlled with ~7 gallons per acre (GPA) • Grass weeds require 6 to 20 GPA. • Flame treatment early in the season provides 5-6 weeks of weed control before re-growth occurs • USDA/NRCS CIG Grant to expand field evaluations
Soil Sa nita tion Ga s T e c hnolog y Institute (GT I) • Me thyl Br omide Alte r native • Ste am or Ae r ate d Ste am Shows Most Pr omise • Re sults ve r ifie d in GT I labor ator y • F ie ld e valuation 2008-09 in c onjunc tion with UC Davis, thr ough USDA gr ant
Soil Ne ma tode Control Supe rhe ate d Ste a m Controls Ne ma tode Population • Ne matode s ar e har mful to plant r oots and c rop yie ld/ quality • E valuating fie ld de live r y syste ms to ide ntify be st de live r y me thod and de te r mine tr e atme nt c ost
Ste a m De live ry E xpe rime nts condenser Hot Air-S team M ix Steam flow valve Steamer Flow M eter Cold Air Super Heater Temp. sensors Pressure Gauge Steam –(Hot-Cold Air) M ix Flow M eter (C) Cold Air Temp. sensor Steam-hot air mix to soil
He a t Sa nita tion T E MP-AIR “T he r mal Re me diation” (MN) Inse r t te xt he r e and le t it • T he r mal (Pe st) R e me diation in gr ain and othe r ag str uc tur e s • Kansas State and Pur due Unive r sity te sting the use of hot air to c ontr ol inse c ts
He a t Sa nita tion • Pur due Re sults • Inse c t mor tality at all life c yc le s is ac hie ve d a t 55C (131F ) for 3 hour s, on r e d flour be e tle and maize we e vil • Mold also r e duc e d • Kansas State te sting ongoing • USDA Me thyl Br omide T r ansition Gr ant
Re duc ing T ic k Popula tions Conne c tic ut Ag E xpe r ime nt Station • T or c he s c ontr ol invasive Bar be r r y • No soil distur banc e • No c he mic al r e sidue • Re duc tion of mic e / tic k populations e xpe c te d
Orc ha rd He a ting E va lua tion • 2.25 ac r Study c onduc te d to e valuate e or c har d he ating the he at and smoke r e le ase d installation inc lude d by: • Bur ne r s plac e d e ve r y thr e e Ag He a t propa ne he a te rs tr e e s in e ve r y othe r r ow • • T She ll c a sing propa ne wo 1,000- gallon pr opane • he a te rs tanks Die se l- burning smudg e • T wo pr opane vapor ize r s pot he a te rs • Unde r gr ound piping, sub- main, and main pr opane distr ibution syste m • Or c har d fan
Orc ha rd He a ting (NW U.S.) Ke y Conc lusions: • Ag He a t pr opa ne he a te r s • Pr ovide d the gr e ate st te mpe r atur e r ise on le ss fue l • Pr oduc e d the le ast smoke e missions • Die se l he ate r s pr oduc e d 3- 4 time s mor e smoke than that of the pr opane he ate r s
Irrig a tion E ng ine F ie ld E va lua tion University of Nebraska • Published performance standard does not reflect improvements in engine technology • Conducted laboratory and field tests of new propane engines
Propa ne E ng ine E va lua tion Ir r igation in Agr ic ultur e • Ne w e ngine s be at standar d • E c onomic s favor s pr opane ove r die se l • ~1.6 gallons of pr opa ne will r e plac e 1 gallon of die se l • L owe r ope r ating c ost at “typic al” die se l vs. pr opane summe r pr ic ing
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