Energy Sector Technology Innovation Challenge: Testing energy-saving solutions
Asia and the Pacific may have achieved a 98.6% electrification rate in 2021, but 67 million people still lack access to adequate electricity. The region is also heavily reliant on fossil fossils for power contributing to increasing carbon dioxide emissions: in 2022, 56% of its electricity generation came from coal alone.
ADB aims to increase access to reliable, affordable, and low-carbon energy across Asia and the Pacific. In 2019, it called for proposals for innovative solutions that would help address growing energy needs. This was ADB’s first Technology Innovation Challenge, where innovative solutions for development challenges are selected via a competitive grant selection process. The selected technology providers are given the opportunity to test their identified solutions in a “real-world” setting, with funding coming from ADB’s High-level Technology Fund.
Asano Taiseikiso Engineering Co., Ltd. (ATK) and HeliosAltas Corp. (HeliosAltas) were selected to implement their proposed solutions out of the 157 teams that submitted their proposals in the Energy Sector Technology Innovation Challenge.
ATK
ATK sought to demonstrate that its heat exchange technology could be used in an industrial setting. Specifically, it aimed to test whether the heat exchanger could recycle thermal energy from wastewater to deliver energy savings.
The solution offered by ATK was anchored on G-Hex, a polyethylene-based heat exchanger technology ATK developed that could be used for heating and cooling. G-Hex is resistant to corrosion, easily maintained, and has an estimated life of 50 years. The integrated wastewater heat recovery system came with software for calculating electricity consumption reduction.
The solution was tested in a Hanoi factory of Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group, a food processing company. The demonstration site was selected because ATK was interested in showing to key government agencies and research institutions in Viet Nam, many of which are based in Hanoi, the results of the initiative.
The factory uses an electric chiller to bring down the temperature of industrial water, which it used for its production process before discarding the wastewater. ATK aimed to show that its innovative heat exchange system could be used for heating or cooling the water. The intent was to reduce use of the electric chiller, thus lowering carbon emissions. In addition, it also intended to demonstrate that it could recycle thermal energy from the wastewater, which was still cold at 3 C, for maximum energy efficiency while also achieving heat recovery.
ATK provided overall project management and worked with partners to implement its solution. In Japan, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology and the Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute provided technical support and assisted in the conduct of the workshop and evaluation. Similarly, Geo-System Co., Ltd. provided technical support for the energy system. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. provided business support, including on the market research on Viet Nam in collaboration with Green Development Center, which is based in Viet Nam. Hitachi Consulting Co., Ltd. performed the same role but on the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Tonets Vietnam Co., Ltd. installed the system in the factory. Hanoi University of Technology conducted an independent evaluation of the results of the initiative.
COVID-19 prevented experts from Japan to bring the components and install the heat exchange system. To remedy this, core components were procured in Japan and shipped to Viet Nam, with the COVID-19 pandemic bringing up transport costs. ATK also had to provide remote device to its Vietnamese partners to set up the system, leading to a longer assembly time. In addition, the pandemic affected personnel assignments and caused a three-month delay in the completion of the planned activities in the pipeline.
The installation of the system, which came with three G-Hex devices, was completed in December 2021. A pretreatment tank was designed and installed to filter out waste materials such as food fragments from the water before it goes through the G-Hex system.
G-Hex technology was able to cool the water. Initial analysis showed that the installation of this system could reduce carbon dioxide emissions and up to 19% of energy could be saved amounting to about $8,584 annual cost savings. Operations were monitored throughout the process. Some issues were encountered because of unexpected power supply shutdowns, no industrial water supply, and holidays. Issues with internet connectivity required manual data recovery and transmission for analysis.
The initiative was officially completed and turned over to the CP Group on 18 May 2022. Hanoi University of Technology conducted an independent evaluation of the results of the initiative.
HeliosAltas
HeliosAltas sought to show that a renewable energy microgrid could be set up by pairing solar photovoltaic modules and lithium batteries with a micro-hydropower wheel installed in an existing irrigation canal.
The Helios PowerWheel is a water wheel designed to generate electricity from small water sources, including shallow streams and canals as long as there is 1 meter per second of water flow and 15 centimeters of water depth. The low-cost technology was designed to have no environmental impact on water and wildlife, to be suitable for rural applications, and easy to install. In addition, it could be combined with other renewable energy systems, including off-grid applications.
The chosen demonstration site for this initiative was Camp Kawayan, a resort in Tacloban, Philippines. The area experienced intermittent power, which was why the resort had a backup diesel generator that could be used in case of electricity fluctuations. The initiative was intended to demonstrate that the Helios PowerWheel could be integrated in a hybrid system without altering the primary use of the water source. It also aimed to demonstrate to the Philippine government’s National Irrigation Administration (NIA) that irrigation canals could be used for power generation without altering or damaging the existing structure or changing the water flow. In addition, it was intended to show to local cooperatives and local electricity companies that the technology could help them meet the renewable energy portfolio requirements as mandated by law.
HelioAltas collaborated with its local partners to set up a microgrid with 6 kW solar photovoltaic modules. HeliosAltas and One Renewable Energy Enterprise Inc. provided the overall project development, implementation, and support. The system was installed on NIA’s irrigation canal in Tacloban. The Don Orestes Romualdez Electric Cooperative, Inc. (Dorelco) assisted with the site grid connection and meter modifications, as well as with the net-metering arrangement. Camp Kawayan were given the flexibility to switch between the different forms of generation at a low cost.
The solar photovoltaic modules were installed and became operational in December 2021. The installation was completed in December 2022, with the system officially being turned over to Camp Kawayan.
A typhoon hit the town in 2021, after the microgrid was installed. After the weather improved, the villagers, who raised the PowerWheel to protect it from the typhoon, lowered it back into the water. The system was able to immediately give them sufficient power for cooking, lighting, and for recharging devices. It was not only used by the people in the resort, but also those from the village and the neighboring areas as there was no grid power in the area for a month.
The solar photovoltaic modules produced a maximum of 6,200 kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is slightly lower than the maximum amount (7,500–8,200 kWh). Its performance was affected by some issues, including long periods of rainy and cloudy days, downtime for modifications, and resetting of the inverters due to low voltage and grid connection issues. Meanwhile, the microgrid system became operational in October 2022, although its operations were intermittent and were primarily for demonstrations and testing while the formal lease agreement between NIA and One Renewable Energy Enterprises Inc. was pending.
The system could be operated and monitored remotely. In addition, data relevant to the operations could be generated and shared with NIA in real time.
Modifications and enhancements on the wheel were identified based on the performance of the wheel during the intermittent operations to optimize its performance. These included changing to a two-dimensional formed SS design instead of a three-dimensional, curved cast aluminum design to improve efficiency. In addition, two permanent magnet generators will be lifted and mounted on the outside of the wheel to enable it to run faster and with less direct contact with the water. Nonetheless, the system was able to bring down the expenses of Camp Kawayan. It also reduced the use of the backup diesel generator from 15–20 hours to around 5 hours. The system was expected to deliver annual energy savings worth $22,000 and 82 tons of annual carbon emissions savings.