Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. The Recipient has experienced significant increase in Solar Photovoltaic (PV) interconnection requests in recent years, and this trend is expected to continue. This high level of Solar PV adoption requires a host of grid modernization efforts to manage the substantial progress the Recipient envisions in decarbonizing the electricity provided on the electrical system. The existing paradigm for integration of renewables is based around legacy enterprise control solutions (i.e. existing functions such as state estimation and optimization) and a relatively static distribution planning approach. Dynamic visualization of capacity, automation of the interconnection process, and self-discovery of new devices into distributed control subsystems as part of a hierarchical control paradigm are required to achieve scalable integration of Distributed Energy Resources (DER) in excess of 50% of peak load. These distributed control capabilities will enable distributed intelligence and control capability to support fast, automated decisions and improve overall resiliency of the distribution grid system.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. California’s forest health crisis is an emergency of unprecedented scope and scale, with disastrous implications for the state’s environment, economy, energy systems, and human life. Unlike essentially all other technologies and solutions proposed to respond to the crisis, gasification has the potential to process forest waste in a way that extracts value and sequesters a large portion of its carbon. Before the recipient’s development of the pre- commercial Powertainer technology, no one had developed gasification technology that could economically respond to the problem. As a result, there have not yet been any large-scale deployments of distributed, commercial-scale gasification technology. The acceleration of tree mortality and persistent drought conditions make finding solutions to this problem more critical with each passing day.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. To achieve robust zero emissions targets, cities and load-serving entities require advanced energy solutions that enable the cost-effective deployment and integration of distributed and renewable energy resources, and the cost-efficient rehabilitation of homes to a near Zero Net Carbon standard.3 Achieving these outcomes in disadvantaged communities requires a combination of innovative technology, scaled finance, and the inclusive engagement of cities, NGOs, and community residents.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. Future offshore wind development in California will create a risk to seabirds for collision or displacement. Existing seabird models, which describe the density and species composition in the California Current, can be used to identify hot spots for seabird activity, but these models do not delineate the presence of seabirds at different heights above the sea surface. Without incorporating flight height and how flight behavior changes with wind speed, it is difficult to accurately estimate the potential impact to seabirds from offshore wind farms. As different size turbines are being designed for use in an offshore environment, the existing two-dimensional spatial models of seabird populations will be unable to estimate the difference in potential impacts
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. The size of wind turbine towers is constrained by transportation size and weight making conventional towers prohibitively expensive for larger next-generation turbines in California. Overhead traffic signals, road width and weight regulations limit conventional steel tubular towers to sub-optimal diameters of 4.3 meters (14 feet.). As a result, the tallest wind turbine towers installed in California are 100-meter (m) tall with turbine capacity of 3.3-megawatts (MW).
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. Climate change poses an urgent and significant threat to California and the nation. California has taken a leadership position in supporting cutting edge science to understand the nature of the threat and possible actions to mitigate that impact. However, California cannot solve this threat alone and does not have all of the solutions.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. Mechanical steam traps are one of the leading causes for steam loss within a steam system. While methods exist to monitor the performance of the steam traps, this is labor intensive and requires knowledge on how to accurately assess performance. Often steam traps will fail and cause a substantial amount of steam loss, which increases natural gas use and GHG emissions, and causes process and production issues. With natural gas prices being at an all-time low, there is a cost barrier to implementing new energy efficient technologies to reduce natural gas use and GHG emissions.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. California processes over one million tons of grapes per year and produces nearly 100 percent of raisins in the U.S.2 Processing and packaging raisins is an energy intensive process which involves substantial natural gas use. The facility currently uses an oversized boiler and steam lines as a means of delivering hot water throughout the facility – a system that is highly inefficient, costly, and difficult to maintain.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. Onsite emissions from industrial facilities contribute to about one-quarter of California’s GHG emissions. There is significant scope to reduce these emissions through newer technology or retrofits to older equipment, and California’s cap-and-trade program seeks to make it economically viable to make these adjustments. Despite these inducements, many facilities do not engage in energy efficiency upgrades due to uncertainty of the financial benefits and a preference for short payback periods.
Problem/ Solution Statement Problem. The safety and integrity of underground natural gas pipelines rely on the availability and accuracy of pipeline location information. According to the Common Ground Alliance (CGA), improperly 1 Please see subtask 1.3 in Part III of the Scope of Work (General Project Tasks) for a description of Critical Project Review (CPR) Meetings. located or undetected subsurface utilities has resulted in 1,906 injuries, 421 fatalities, and $1.7 billion in damages during the last 20 years2. Additionally, CPUC annual reports show that inaccurate and insufficient locating practices led to 21% of excavation damages to natural gas distribution pipelines in California. These incidents resulted in an estimated annual loss of $1.5 million due to property damage and gas emission, excluding other losses caused by system shut off, fatalities and injuries. A contributing factor to these incidents is inaccurate or missing data within the data records maintained by pipeline installers, owners, and operators. Also, current methods and tools for locating pipeline assets once they are buried underground are highly dependent on pipe diameter, depth of cover depth, and other environmental factors. Another issue with current pipe locating methods and tools is their inability to provide accurate vertical information that can be used to determine how far beneath the surface the pipeline assets lay. The lack of accuracy and completeness of data records and lack of reliable locating methods and tools make buried pipeline assets susceptible to safety issues and integrity threats such as damages by excavators. For example, safe excavation practices rely in part on clear, complete, and accurate knowledge of subsurface hazards, such as pipeline assets, which may be present prior to excavation.
