16 Sep, 2011 By Mary
Romney Weir is turning the screw on CO2

Romney weir is turning the screw on CO2. Two Archimedean Screw hydro turbines, rated at 150kW each and designed by Mann Power Consulting Ltd., are to be installed on the weir to generate clean, green electricity that will be used locally.  With a total capacity of 300kW this will be one of the largest Archimedean Screw hydro schemes installed to date in the UK and Ireland. The largest single screw was recently installed at Shane’s Castle in Northern Ireland, rated at 214kW it is the largest ever manufactured Archimedean Screw hydro generator and was designed and supplied by Mann Power .

Romney Weir ‘A’ is in Windsor. The weir was built in the 1790’s and is used to control water levels between Old Windsor lock and Boveney lock. The Romney Weir hydro scheme will utilise just two of the ten existing weir bays and have little effect on current weir operations. Weirs were originally built to control water levels for navigation and flood risk purposes but can now take advantage of new technology to provide energy.

Romney Weir

To help ensure the £1.7million project both generates clean energy and improves the local environment the old Denil type fish pass will be replaced with a Larinier style fish pass which will enable over 12 species of fish including trout and perch, as well as endangered eels, to migrate up this stretch of river,  some for the first time in over 200 years.

The scheme will be fitted with a number of environmental protection measures including rubber bumpers on the turbine blades to minimise risk to fish.

A  four metre flood gate will also be linked to the scheme and will open automatically when river levels are high to ensure there is no increased risk from flooding

Pile driving completed at Romney Weir

The project, which was granted planning permission in August 2008, will consist of two four meter diameter Archimedes screw type turbines occupying two bays in the Romney Weir and will generate 300 kilowatts per hour at peak times, enough to power  600 households. It is estimated the turbines will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 790,000 kilos per year. This clean, green electricity will be used to power Windsor Castle.

The two 150kW turbines at the Landustrie factory

Mann Power Consulting Ltd., the UK based Archimedean Screw specialists designed the equipment for the Romney Weir project.  After various consultations it was decided that the most suitable turbine for the site was an Archimedean Screw Hydro Turbine which was manufactured by Landustrie based in Holland. The Landy screws are four meters in diameter, 6 meters long and each has the capacity of 150 kW. A unique feature of each screw is the number of blades or helices; here being 5 instead of usually 2 or 3. This is the first five bladed Archimedes Screw Hydro Turbine to be installed in the world to date.

Dave Mann visiting Landustrie in Holland

 

The turbines on route to Romney

The two 150kW Archimedean Screw turbines arrived on site in the early hours of Wednesday morning 7th September 2011.

The two turbines in the compound awaiting installation

 

Turbine floating to the weir on a pontoon
Installing the Archimedean Screws
The two Archimedean Screws installed on Romney Weir

The golden brown colour of the turbines and their housings were chosen by the residents of Eton, who look out onto the weir.

The turbines in-situ at Romney Weir
Sluice gates and Larinier Fish Pass

Four Hydraulic Rams have been installed to automatically move and adjust the two 94 tonne turbines as the river level changes.

Hydraulic ram being craned into place

 

The two hydraulic rams in-situ

 

Commissioning of the scheme is expected to take place in the coming weeks.

 

The fish-friendly Archimedean Screw hydro turbine.

 The Archimedean Screw turbine provides a fish-friendly alternative to conventional turbines, ideally suited to low-head (1m-10m) sites, and sites with fish protection issues. Extensive fish passage tests have conclusively demonstrated that the large water chambers and slow rotation of the Archimedean Screw allow fish of all sizes, and debris, safe passage through the turbine. As a result, the Environment Agency has agreed that no screening is required. Literally thousands of fish passages have been monitored and recorded using underwater cameras at the intake, inside the chamber of the Screw itself and at the outflow to assess the effect of the Screw on salmonids (including smolts and kelts), brown trout and eels. The trials looked at fish passage across a broad spectrum of sizes and turbine speeds, possibly the most impressive of which was the safe passage of a kelt measuring 98cm in length and weighing 7.6kg. In addition, behavioural and migrational patterns across the species have been shown to be entirely unaffected by the turbine.

Dave Mann commissioned the fish passage studies instrumental in persuading the Environment Agency to accept the technology. Mann Power have a proven track record of successful installation throughout the UK and Ireland. One of the first challenges presented to Mann Power when Dave Mann set up the consultancy firm in 2003 was to find a hydropower solution for a community project in North Yorkshire, situated in a low head site within a Site of Special Scientific Interest with particular stipulations for the protection of an endangered fish species. The result of extensive research into possible solutions culminated in the introduction of the Archimedean Screw turbine – already widely used in continental Europe – for the first time into the UK, and Mann Power have been at the forefront of supplying this equipment for hydro generation projects since 2004. Mann Power now supplies this equipment throughout the UK and Ireland, as well as providing expert consultancy services.

Dave Mann, a member of the British Hydropower Association Council, has been instrumental in the design, installation and commissioning of all but a few of all Archimedean screw power generation sites in the UK and Ireland to date with over twenty schemes fully operational and a further forty or so at various stages of development. Mann Power have commissioned several independent studies to verify the Archimedean Screw’s fish-friendly credentials and also its efficiency. Mann Power is established within the national hydropower industry as a leader in the field of designing bespoke hydro-generation installations, specialising in low head and ‘difficult’ sites which previously may have been considered unsuitable for such applications.

Eco Evolution work in colaboration with Mann Power Consulting on hydro sites throughout the island of Ireland and the UK.

We also design modern water wheels for electricity generation.

 

All photographs copyright of Mann Power Consulting and Eco Evolution.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 Sep, 2011 By Mary
The light continues to go out on incandescent light bulbs

From 1st September 2011, shops won’t be able to buy in new stocks of clear 60 watt traditional light bulbs under EU rules. They are no longer allowed to order new stocks of clear 60W bulbs but can however sell whatever remaining stock they have and manufacturers will have to stop supplying them.

Initially, Ireland’s National Climate Change Strategy wanted the government to issue a levy for low-efficiency bulbs. In December 2007 Ireland  went one step further and became the first country in the EU to introduce new legislation to  ban  the sale of energy-wasting incandescent lightbulbs  by 2009.

It was later announced that all member states of the EU agreed to a progressive phase-out of incandescent light bulbs by 2012.

From 1st September 2012 it will be lights out  for the incandescent light bulb when the 40W incandescent light bulb will be finally banned. As in 2011 shops can sell their remaining stock and manufacturers will have to stop supplying them. This will be a big change for people as the incandescent light bulb makes up about 60% of the Irish market.

Edison Lightbulb
Edison Lightbulb

As part of an EU directive, traditional light bulbs will be replaced by more energy-efficient types — halogen bulbs, which are 30% more energy-efficient, and the CFL long-life bulbs, which are 80% more energy-efficient.

Before the legislation to ban incandescent lightbulbs was drafted, different bulb technologies were assessed in an extensive study, to determine their potential environmental benefits and impact on consumers and the light bulb industry. The EU decided to phase out conventional incandescent bulbs to reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 15 million tonnes a year.

The use of traditional lightbulbs can account for as much as one-fifth of household electricity consumption. The electricity used over the lifetime of a single incandescent bulb costs 5 to 10 times the original purchase price of the bulb itself. Replacing 3 x 100W incandescent lightbulbs with CFLs using 3 hours of electricity per day can save an average household up to €43 per annum.

The EU phase-out started in 2009 when 100W bulbs stopped being sold, while last September saw the phase-out of 75W bulbs. All remaining clear incandescent bulbs on the market, including 40W and 25W varieties, will be phased out in September 2012.

A traditional incandescent lightbulb and a compact fluorescent light (CFL)

CFL bulbs, or compact fluorescent lightbulbs :

CFL bulbs, or compact fluorescent lightbulbs are designed to replace incandescent, halogen and other electric lights around your house, use between 60% and 80% less energy than their incandescent counterparts, making them an increasingly popular way to cut energy use without having to make any radical changes. CFLs can be applied nearly anywhere that incandescent lights are  used. Energy-efficient CFLs can be used in recessed fixtures, table lamps, track lighting, ceiling fixtures and porchlights.

While the purchase price of an integrated CFL is typically 3 to 10 times greater than that of an equivalent incandescent lightbulb, the extended lifetime and lower energy use will more than compensate for the higher initial cost.

CFL’s are made of glass tubes filled with gas and a small amount of mercury. The amount is so small that an old-fashioned glass thermometer holds 100 times as much mercury as one CFL bulb. No mercury is released when the bulbs are intact or in use, but CFLs can release mercury vapour when broken. It is important that you are aware of the steps to follow when cleaning up a broken CFL.

Light is emitted when mercury molecules in a CFL bulb become excited by electricity running between two electrodes at its base. The mercury emits an invisible ultraviolet light that becomes visible when it hits the white coating inside the CLF bulb.

It’s  important that you know how to dispose of Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs because, as already stated they contain mercury, a hazardous chemical.  In Ireland (possibly the whole EU) as part of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipement (WEEE) directive, retailers must take back used CFL bulbs for free when a new bulb is bought. It is important that these are recycled and not just thrown out. The environment and cost benefits of CFL bulbs make them and excellent eco-friendly option for lighting. They can also be brought to Civic Amenity sites and disposed of free of charge.

LEDs – light emitting diodes

LEDs – light emitting diodes.  

The other option to replace incandescent bulbs are LEDs – light emitting diodes.  They are becoming increasingly popular in homes and the most common uses of LED lights are in bulbs, shop displays, flashlights, traffic lights, Christmas lights and much more.

LED bulbs last up to 10 times as long as compact fluorescents, and far longer than typical incandescents. They offer the advantages of CFLs — lower power consumption and longer lifetimes — without the downside of toxic mercury.

LEDs do not have a filament, they are not damaged under circumstances when a regular incandescent bulb would be broken. LED light bulbs use only 2-17 watts of electricity (1/3rd to 1/30th of Incandescent or CFL). LED bulbs used in fixtures inside the home save electricity, remain cool and save money on replacement costs since LED bulbs last so long.