Page 18 - NorthAmOil Week 28

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NEWS IN BRIEF
NorthAmOil
a low-emission burner system’s technological readiness to clean up emulsi ed crude oil and reduce the Navy’s carbon footprint.
“Our goal at NRL is to transition our combustion knowledge and technology into an e ective way to get rid of oil that has been spilled at sea,” said CJ Pfutzner, NRL mechanical engineer. “ e Navy has a real stake in cleaning up oil spills, not only our own, but others’ around the world.”
e cleanup also includes fuel spills from old ships as far back as World War II that slowly leak. Sometimes they are in very remote locations and a small-scale burner such as our own can be a useful means of getting rid of one of those spills, he said.
In response to the needs of the Department of the Interior’s BSEE for a rapid disposal method for emulsi ed crude oil – the research laboratory developed a crude oil burner and conducted emissions testing of the burner.
“ e testing is pretty amazing,” said Steven Tuttle, NRL combustion and reacting transport section head, administer of emissions testing, and burner operator. “We end up shooting ames over 40 feet into the air.”
In collaboration with the US Environmental Protection Agency, NRL researchers collected exhaust measurements of critical species like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, soot and other emissions to determine how e ciently the NRL-developed system burns crude oil to compare the emissions with clean air standards, calculate
the burn e ciency, and provide metrics of the environmental impact of such a burner.
“ is burner will bene t the environment by providing oil spill remediation of emulsi ed crude oil, which is di cult to dispose of, and oil spills in remote locations, where the carbon footprint of transporting the oil to be re-processed is greater than burning the oil in place,” Tuttle said.
e team took measurements at the NRL Chesapeake Bay Detachment using a 130 feet boom li tted with gas and soot instrumentation in December 2019.
US NAVAL RESEARCH LABORATORY, July 14, 2020
ENERGY TRANSITION
FortisBC implementing a
Clean Growth Innovation
Fund
FortisBC is implementing a Clean Growth Innovation Fund to help accelerate work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as part of its strategy to support the transformation to a lower carbon economy. FortisBC recently received approval from its regulator, the British Columbia Utilities Commission, to implement this Fund as part of its 2020-24 Multi-Year Rate Plan.
Starting August 1, 2020, FortisBC will
commit CAD4.9mn per year until 2024 to the Fund, which will help FortisBC work with government and industry to advance projects that are expected to help decarbonise its natural gas supply and accelerate climate action. e fund is nanced through an additional CAD0.40 monthly charge to
all FortisBC natural gas customers, which amounts to less than CAD5 per year. rough the Fund, FortisBC expects to co-fund numerous clean growth initiatives with government, academic and/or industry partners.
“As the single largest provider of energy in British Columbia, FortisBC has an important role to play in helping the province reduce emissions to help advance a lower carbon energy future,” said Douglas Stout, vice- president of market development and external relations with FortisBC. “Technological innovation is crucial for climate action and the Clean Growth Innovation Fund will accelerate our already substantial e orts in driving climate solutions.”
e fund will help explore technologies such as Renewable Gases, carbon and methane capture, fuel cell and remote
power technologies and more, with partners in industry and government. ese new technologies are expected to reduce emissions, which may advance a lower carbon future while improving the long term viability of British Columbia’s extensive natural gas system.
FORTISBC, July 15, 2020
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Week 28 16•July•2020