Views on the water intensity of energy supplies Water in a World of 7 Billion Carey King Center for...

Views on the water intensity of energy supplies

Water in a World of 7 Billion

Carey King

Center for International Energy and Environmental PolicyThe University of Texas at Austin

May 10, 2012

Carey King, PhDWW7B 2

May 10, 2012

Takeaways

• Marginal energy resource life-cycles have increased ability to affect or be affected by

– Water quantity– Water quality

• Emotional ties to water clash with mostly economic energy issues

• Economic importance of energy can affect water priorities

Water for Electricity


May 10, 2012

US hydropower exemplifies water limiting an energy resource

EIA Annual Energy Review 2008.

Clean Water Act (1972)

0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Cum

ulati

ve N

et C

apac

ity (M

W)

Capa

city

Fac

tor

US Hydropower Performance and Capacity

Capacity Factor

Hydro Capacity (MW)


May 10, 2012

Many factors lead to this pattern: policy, climate, competing water uses

DOE (2006). Energy Demands on Water Resources. Report to Congress .

Clean Water Act (1972)

US Hydropower


May 10, 2012

Power plant water consumption varies by cooling type

Macknick, et al. (2011). NREL/TP-6A20-50900.

Cooling Towers

1,000 (gal/MWh)

800

600

400Once-

through

Pond

Dry

Hybrid

PV, Wind, CSP Stirling

200


May 10, 2012

Power plant water withdrawal varies by 100X

Macknick, et al. (2011). NREL/TP-6A20-50900.

50,000 (gal/MWh)

Once-through

Pond

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000Cooling Towers


May 10, 2012

Withdrawal vs. Consumption:When is each one important?

• Thermoelectric (or energy) “use” of water– Withdrawal ~ 48% of US total (USGS, 2004)

– Consumption ~ 3% of US total (USGS, 1998)

• Avoid using the term “use” to describe water– Can’t tell if “using” a LOT or a LITTLE?

• A power plant withdrawing water from a river/lake versus a dedicated cooling reservoir has different ...

– Operational risks – Environmental impacts


May 10, 2012

Wet Cooling for Concentrating Solar Power (trough)

NREL (Kutcher, C.)


May 10, 2012NREL (Kutcher, C.)

Dry Cooling for Concentrating Solar Power (trough)


May 10, 2012

Regulations on water effluent temperatures can limit power plant generation

70

75

80

85

90

95

100

105

110

115

Aug-06 Feb-07 Aug-07 Feb-08 Aug-08 Feb-09 Aug-09 Feb-10 Aug-10 Feb-11 Aug-11

Aver

age

Mon

thly

Effl

uent

Tem

pera

ture

(deg

. F)

Martin Lake

Avg. Effluent Temperature (deg. F): EPA Avg. Temp. Limit

Data from EPA.

Water for Energy: Transportation Fuels

Dominguez-Faus et al. Environ. Sci. & Technol. 2009 43 (9), 3005-3010.


May 10, 2012

Water Consumption Intensity from Near Zero to > 100 gal/mile

King & Webber (2008). Env. Sci. & Tech. 42 (21), 7866-7872.


May 10, 2012

“High Diversity Scenario for 2030”: ~ 20% conventional petroleum (4.1 trillion miles)

Coal to FT Diesel20.3%

NG to FT Diesel0.9%

Gasoline - Oil Shale10.4%

E85 - Non-Irrigated Cellulosic

9.2%

Biodiesel - Irr. Soy0.2%

H2 - SMR1.3%

H2 - Electrolysis, U.S. Grid1.3%

E85 - Irrigated Cellulosic

1.7%

E85 - No Irr. Corn Grain or Stover

9.9%

E85 - Irr. Corn Grain or Stover

1.7%

Diesel3.1%

Gasoline (E10)20.0%

Biomass gasification to liquids8.6%

Biodiesel - No Irr. Soy3.2%

Electric (EV/PHEV) - U.S. Grid

8.1%

Bio

fuel

s

Unconv.

foss

il

Nonliquids

King, Webber, Duncan (2010) Energy Policy, 38 (2), 1157-1167.


May 10, 2012

Will water consumption in 2030 be for fuels non-existent before 2000?

Similar questions arose in 1970s [2]

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030

GL

/yr

Water Consumption - AEO 2008 Reference

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030

GL

/yr

Water Consumption - NETL

Irrigated Ethanol – E85 Corn Grain & Stover

Non-irrigated Ethanol – E85 Cellulosic

Irrigated Ethanol – E85 Cellulosic

Non-irrigated Ethanol – E85 Corn Grain

Coal to Liquid (Diesel)

Oil Shale - Gasoline

Electricity via PHEV – US Grid

Irrigated Ethanol – E85 Corn Grain

Petroleum Gasoline

Biomass to liquids

Irrigated Soy Biodiesel

Irrigated Ethanol – E10 Corn Grain

[graph] King, Webber, and Duncan (2010) Energy Policy, 38 (2), 1157-1167.[2] Harte and Gasseir (1978) Science, 199, 623-634.

~ 10% US Water Consumption


May 10, 2012

Senate Energy and Natural Resources bill seeks to inform and improve data

• Energy and Water Integration Act 2011 (S. 1343)– Calls for National Academies Study of water

energy interactions

e.g. “… include a lifecycle assessment of the quantity of water withdrawn and consumed in the production of transportation fuels …”

– i.e. calculate as gal H2O/mile (King & Webber (2008) Env. Sci. and Tech.)

– Information must be used wisely in policy – What relates to consumers may not to a river basin


May 10, 2012

now EIA(ft3/s)

Data are sometimes not easily converted into information

System Boundary

Diversion

Natural evaporation

Return Flow

Steam-Electric Plant

Cooling Reservoir

Cool water

Warm water

Forced evaporation

Withdrawal

Precipitation

Discharge

Aquifer

EIA(ft3/s)

TCEQ(ac-ft)

TCEQ(ac-ft)

TWDB

Intake

Cooling Towers


May 10, 2012

Averyt, K., J. Fisher, A. Huber-Lee, A. Lewis, J. Macknick, N. Madden, J. Rogers, and S. Tellinghuisen. 2011. Freshwater use by U.S. power plants: Electricity’s thirst for a precious resource. A report of the Energy and Water in a Warming World initiative. Cambridge, MA: Union of Concerned Scientists. November.

Marginal fuels need more water:Net energy perspective


May 10, 2012

Energy Price and EROI are inversely related

King and Hall, “Relating financial and energy return on investment.” Sustainability, 3(10) 2011, 1810-1832; doi:10.3390/su3101810.

US oil and gas EROI

EROI = Eoutput/Einput

Oil

pric

e ($

2005

/BB

L)

http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su3101810


May 10, 2012

Marginal fuels: have lower net energy

U.S. Corn Ethanol, soy biodiesel

Oil sands

Brazil cane ethanol (0.4 US$/L)

Oil shale

Conventional oil

Eoutput / Einput = Energy ROI

Fue

l cos

t ($

2005

/BB

L)

King and H

all (2011), Sustainability.


May 10, 2012

Marginal fuels: have higher water consumption (or must recycle)



Oil shale


Water C

onsumption (L H

2 O/km

)(G

reen and Blue)

0.1

1000

100

10

1Conventional oil

Oil sands

King &

Webber (2008), E

nv. Sci. &

Tech.


May 10, 2012

Marginal fuels: lower net energy & higher water consumption


Oil sands


Oil shale

Conventional oil


Fue

l cos

t ($

2005

/BB

L)

0.1

1000

100

10

1

King and H

all (2011), Sustainability.

King &

Webber (2008), E

nv. Sci. &

Tech.

Water C

onsumption (L H

2 O/km

)(G

reen and Blue)

Is energy ‘special’ when it comes to priority for water access?

Example: Texas 2011 Drought


May 10, 2012

2011 in Texas was driest hottest year on modern record

John Nielson-Gammon

Sum

mer

Ave

rage

Tem

pera

ture

Summer Total Rainfall

Years of Texas “drought of

record” (1950-1957)


May 10, 2012

Do Texas water rights suspensions during 2011 drought show ‘priority’?

• “Surface water in Texas is owned by the state and held in trust for the citizens of the state.” (TCEQ)

• Texas water rights are (mostly) prior appropriation– “first in time, first in right”

• 2011/2012: “In order to protect public health and welfare, water rights with municipal uses or for power generation have not been suspended.” (TCEQ)

– http://www.tceq.texas.gov/news/releases/010912DroughtLittleSandy– http://www.tceq.texas.gov/news/releases/080811drought11brazos4


May 10, 2012

Are there long-term impacts from not suspending power generation water rights?

• Is this suspension a market failure?– ERCOT deregulated market ensures equal access to

transmission for all participants– Should all power plants have equal access to water?

• Water is a strategic asset (brownfield vs. greenfield)• Dry cooling technologies cost more and have higher

parasitic losses

• Does Texas have a duty to …– Provide water to power plants during drought?– Ensure water rights priority system plays out according

to priority date?

http://www.jsg.utexas.edu/cieep

http://www.webberenergygroup.com

WEBBER ENERGY GROUP

CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL

ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL

POLICY

http://www.beg.utexas.edu/gccc/

Carey [email protected]

web: http://www.jsg.utexas.edu/researcher/carey_king/blog: http://environmentalresearchweb.org/blog/energy-the-nexus-of-everything/

Views on the water intensity of energy supplies Water in a World of 7 Billion Carey King Center for...

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