Overview of the Nominee
Preon Bioelectric is a three-party join-venture between Preon Power, International Business Energy Council (IBEC) and CBRE | The Furman Co. Based at the Clemson University in South Carolina and is part of the South Carolina Institute for Energy Studies (SCIES), these three parties have come together to develop and promote a more comprehensive landfill gas-to-electric (LGTE) technology; an existing technology, utilising the waste-to-energy model.
Why/How is this innovative?
Who is the organization?
Part of the SCIES, based at the Clemson University in South Carolina, Preon Bioelectric is a joint-venture between the Preon Power, the IBEC and the CBRE | The Furman Co. James Bishop, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the co-founder of the joint-venture, who also founded the IBEC five years ago set out an aim of profitably producing electricity from methane and turning this major greenhouse pollutant into green energy. This vision of his brought about the inception of Preon Bioelectric and the development of a technology that is capable of “squeezing” electricity out of marginal methane sources that are usually commercially discarded.
Preon Bioelectric is heavily involved in the exploitation of advanced energy technologies, albeit the technologies have existed for numerous years. The combination of the biomass-to-electric (BMTE) concept with the LGTE technology and the combination of the combined heat and power (CHP) concept with the organic rankin cycle (ORC) technology are the two key examples of the utilisation of various advanced energy technologies to generate green energy.
Preon Bioelectric targets landfill owners, be it government-owned landfills that are risk-adverse or landfill owners that are looking to maximise their revenue and profits.
What is the core idea or technology?
The development of technology of converting flare gas to electricity, similarly the LGTE technology, has been established for as far as three decades. However, this conventional technology, which involves the engineering of gas conditioning skid, combustion engine-generator, and a connector to the electric grid, does not allow for or utilizes gas flow that is lower than 300 to 400 scfm. In this conventional technology, if the gas flow goes below the said rate, flaring begins as combustion engine does not operate at this low rate. Peron Bioelectric technology, on the other hand, is able to exploit and operate within this low gas rate “niche market” and generate electricity to be exported to the electricity grid.
Additionally, Preon Bioelectric technology also looks at developing a much larger project than the current flare may signify. For example, a 10MW BMTE project with a merely 2MW flare project could be made so much more profitable by utilizing the biomass that would otherwise be discarded to landfills. Algae bio-reactor is used in the recycling process of recyclables. This helps the BMTE plant to boost its revenue while extending the life of the landfill and reducing emission and carbon footprint.
Another advantage of the Preon Bioelectric idea is the phased-approach to landfill development. The three-phase approach consists of converting the flare to electricity (regardless of the flow rate), adapting a materials recovery facility on-site and the BMTE plant, and in the final phase, installing the algae bio-reactor as means of converting carbon dioxide to oxygen. The phased-approach to landfill development helps convert flared gas into an income stream, increase the landfill electricity production capacity by a factor of 3-4, and turning a carbon neutral facility into a carbon negative facility.
What makes it unique?
There are two key areas that make the Preon Bioelectric unique and sets it apart from other electricity generating technologies.
Firstly, the Preon Bioelectric technology and idea are able to utilise and commercialise “waste” gas, when other conventional LGTE technologies are only able to exploit and benefit from gas at high flow rate, while flaring or wasting these “marginal” gas. The use of a technologically advanced designed microturbine for this purpose is something that has never existed in LGTE. Meanwhile, the use of the algae bio-reactor in its overall technical design that enhances the life of the landfill while reducing emission is new and original.
Secondly, the Preon Bioelectric idea can be easily extended to other facility other than landfills while applying the waste-to-energy development concept. Places such as cattle farms or large swine operations could benefit from Preon Bioelectric technology. Biogas facility is another system that could benefit from the Preon Bioelectric technology.
Why is it important?
There are many positives of the Preon Bioelectric technology that, when put together, make Preon Bioelectric very important. Consider the stricter emission standards employed in many areas around the globe. The internal combustion engine technology by Preon Bioelectric does not only offer a much lower carbon dioxide emission compared to other conventional internal combustion technologies, but also offers itself as a cheaper solution to landfill owners. This is important for two reasons; the ability for the landfill owners to operate in emission rigid areas without having to incur extra cost i.e. carbon tax, emission penalty, etc. and at the same time making the most of the low flow rate gas to generate extra profit.
Another key factor that makes Preon Bioelectric technology important is its capability and applicability to be extended to other facilities, other than landfill, while applying the waste-to-energy concept. Its capability to operate economically while exploiting the “marginal” gas from landfills and farms makes it an important and sensible option and solution to energy generation and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission issues.
Last but not least is the fact the technology runs on an already tested and proven conventional technology, hence removing a significant amount of uncertainties and risk factors that may be common to newly introduced technologies.
How important do you think this idea is?
From my knowledge and experience, having been in the energy sector myself, the idea brought forward by Preon Bioelectric is not only important, but essential to the future of the global population. Granted landfill gas was never put in the same group as the renewable energy sources, but as part of the waste-to-energy application, this technology, from my point of view, is very sustainable and will remain so for a very long time in the future.
In the present world where “economics” or the commerciability of a technology, be it renewable or otherwise, is the key factor in its successful roleout, Preon Bioelectric fits right in. When a lot of geothermal wells, oil and gas wells, and even wind farms are abandoned or shutdown due to low heat rate, low oil and gas flow rate, and low wind speed, Preon Bioelectric steps in to utilise and exploit such “marginal” fuel and turn it into electricity and profit. Specifically in the case of landfills, Preon Bioelectric technology not only sequester the release of methane to the atmosphere, but helps landfill owners to generate income by exploiting this flared gas into electricity generation.
Also, in my view, what makes an energy generation technology important is its ability to be replicated globally, across different geographical settings and across different standards of living. To me, Preon Bioelectric has this to offer. The simplicity and applicability of the technology allows it to potentially be developed in different parts of the world such as in Brazil where cattle farms and sugarcane fields (biofuel) are abundant; similarly in the United States, Thailand and even Australia.
Even if the Preon Bioelectric technology is not extended beyond landfills, there are enough landfills in the world that could benefit from the technology. The fact that gas from landfills are generated through the degradation of municipal solid waste and not affected by the geographical nature or the subsurface outline of a specific area, makes it applicable globally, thus has a very important role to play in the global future energy mix.
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