Energy Generation Technology

Technology utilized on the premises to generate non-purchased energy, including renewable energy that is passively collected. This includes energy collected from the environment such as air, water, or ground-source heat pump systems. Technology equipment may exist as facade systems and roofing systems. Technology equipment may also exist on a premises off of a building envelope including on the ground, awnings, or carports as well as underground.

Data Type: 
Constrained List
Category: 
Generation and Storage Equipment
Unit of Measure: 
None
Sector: 
Commercial, Residential, Multifamily
List Options Option Definition Unit of Measure
Anaerobic biodigester An anaerobic biodigester, contains methane, a natural by-product of anaerobic digestion of landfill refuse, sewage, and other products, which can be converted into electricity through conventional combustion processes. Equipping landfills and other facility premises (e.g., wastewater and manure treatment facilities) to capture biogas provides a source of on-site generation from a byproduct that would otherwise be wasted. None
Binary cycle Binary cycle geothermal power generation plants differ from Dry Steam and Flash Steam systems in that the water or steam from the geothermal reservoir never comes in contact with the turbine/generator units. Low to moderately heated (below 400¡F) geothermal fluid and a secondary (hence, "binary") fluid with a much lower boiling point that water pass through a heat exchanger. Heat from the geothermal fluid causes the secondary fluid to flash to vapor, which then drives the turbines and subsequently, the generators. Binary cycle power plants are closed-loop systems and virtually nothing (except water vapor) is emitted to the atmosphere. Resources below 400¡F are the most common geothermal resource, suggesting binary-cycle power plants in the future will be binary-cycle plants. None
Cogeneration The concurrent production of electricity or mechanical power and useful thermal energy (heating and/or cooling) from a single source of energy. Also known as combined heat and power (CHP). A type of distributed generation, which, unlike central station generation, is located at or near the point of consumption. None
Fuel cell A single fuel cell consists of an electrolyte sandwiched between two electrodes. Bipolar plates on either side of the cell help distribute gases and serve as current collectors. Depending on the application, a fuel cell stack may contain a few to hundreds of individual fuel cells layered together. This "scalability" makes fuel cells ideal for a wide variety of applications, such as stationary power stations, portable devices, and transportation. None
Gasification Gasification is a process that converts organic or fossil fuel based carbonaceous materials into carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. This is achieved by reacting the material at high temperatures, without combustion, with a controlled amount of oxygen and/or steam. The resulting gas mixture is called syngas (from synthesis gas or synthetic gas) or producer gas and is itself a fuel. None
Hydrokinetic Systems that use the natural flow of water rather than damming or diverting flow through conventional turbines. Designs may include pistons, turbines, and pumps. Systems are typically installed in rivers and ocean areas with strong tidal flows. None
Linear fresnel reflector Linear Fresnel reflector systems are a type of linear concentrating systems that collects the sun's energy using long rectangular, curved (U-shaped) mirrors where one receiver tube is positioned above several mirrors to allow the mirrors greater mobility in tracking the sun. The mirrors are tilted toward the sun, focusing sunlight on tubes (or receivers) that run the length of the mirrors. The reflected sunlight heats a fluid flowing through the tubes. The hot fluid then is used to boil water in a conventional steam-turbine generator to produce electricity. None
Microturbine Microturbines are small electricity generators that can burn a wide variety of fuels including natural gas, sour gases (high sulfur, low Btu content), and liquid fuels such as gasoline, kerosene, and diesel fuel/distillate heating oil. Microturbines use the fuel to create high-speed rotation that turns an electrical generator to produce electricity. None
None None None
Not applicable Not applicable None
Other Other None
Photovoltaic Photovoltaic (PV) systems derive energy from incoming solar radiation that is dependent on time, quality of sunlight, and the mounted pitch. PV arrays can exists as facade systems and roofing systems. Facade systems include curtain wall products, spandrel panels, and glazings. Roofing systems include tiles, shingles, standing seam products, and skylights with option for fixed-tilt (non-adjustable) or sun-tracking (adjustable). PV systems can also exist on a premises off of the building envelope such as on the ground, awnings or carports. Types of applications include thin-film or PV modules. This DC power can be used, stored in a battery system, or transformed into AC electricity. None
Solar dish A solar dish/engine system uses a mirrored dish similar to a very large satellite dish, although to minimize costs, the mirrored dish is usually composed of many smaller flat mirrors formed into a dish shape. The dish-shaped surface directs and concentrates sunlight onto a thermal receiver, which absorbs and collects the heat and transfers it to the engine generator. The most common type of heat engine used today in dish/engine systems is the Stirling engine. This system uses the fluid heated by the receiver to move pistons and create mechanical power. The mechanical power is then used to run a generator or alternator to produce electricity. None
Solar parabolic trough Solar parabolic troughs are a type of linear concentrator system that collects the sun's energy using long rectangular, curved (U-shaped) mirrors where receiver tubes are positioned along the focal line of each parabolic mirror. The mirrors are tilted toward the sun, focusing sunlight on tubes (or receivers) that run the length of the mirrors. The reflected sunlight heats a fluid flowing through the tubes. The hot fluid then is used to boil water in a conventional steam-turbine generator to produce electricity. None
Solar power tower A power tower system uses a large field of flat, sun-tracking mirrors known as heliostats to focus and concentrate sunlight onto a receiver on the top of a tower. A heat-transfer fluid heated in the receiver is used to generate steam, which, in turn, is used in a conventional turbine generator to produce electricity. Some power towers use water/steam as the heat-transfer fluid. Other advanced designs are experimenting with molten nitrate salt because of its superior heat-transfer and energy-storage capabilities. The energy-storage capability, or thermal storage, allows the system to continue to dispatch electricity during cloudy weather or at night. None
Solar thermal system collector Generic solar thermal system collector None
Standby generator Standby generator installed on-premises for back-up electricity production. None
Turbine Turbines generate electricity from mechanical energy exerted by a renewable resource, such as wind, or steam pressure from fuel burning. The mechanical energy creates a high-speed rotation that turns an electrical generator to produce electricity. None
Unknown Unknown None
Wind Generic energy generation system powered by wind None
Term ID: d3107e23-f59e-452e-aaae-b7a43ff286d0

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