I read in the press that the South Gare lighthouse, at the mouth of the River Tees in North East England, is now being powered solely by a hydrogen fuel cell. The technology was developed by the Centre for Process Innovation at Wilton. The lighthouse is 120 years old and is regularly lashed by high winds and rough seas. The fuel cell has been developed to withstand such conditions. Another development comes from USA-based Protonex Technology who, in partnership with AeroVironment, have developed a fuel cell system that has kept an unmanned aerial vehicle in the air for several hours – a significant improvement on the two hours so far achieved by earlier technologies. 

Fossil fuels are running low, we know that, so alternatives have to be sourced but are fuel cells really in the running?  First invented by Sir William Robert Grove in 1839, in recent years their development has centred primarily on military applications, although the last few years has seen a rash of activity in the leisure industry with companies, such as Voller Energy, developing fuel cells that run on natural gas, which can then be used by caravan and boat enthusiasts.  Replacing generators as an alternative source of back-up power still seems a long way off. Fuel cells are expensive to manufacture and run plus their environmental credentials are questionable. They run on hydrogen, hydrocarbons, alcohol and chlorine or chlorine dioxide, which are pretty potent chemicals that have to be sourced, stored and disposed of.  Conversely, a fuel cell can be compact, lightweight and, as it has no major moving parts, extremely reliable.  

Where the normal mains power supply is unreliable and there is a suitable supply of natural gas, fuel cells can be advantageous as an alternative source of ac power although a battery set will still be required. It will be a while before they enter the mainstream UPS market. For more information on fuel cells and alternative power sources, see The Power Protection Guide

‘Tis the season to be jolly – and why not?  You’ve worked hard all year; you deserve to ease off the peddle in December. Trouble is, that’s when people often become less vigilant and succumb to the distractions of the season; parties, shopping, planning the holiday, tying up loose ends and so on. It takes the focus away from power continuity and power protection and it is then that Murphy’s Law dictates something is bound to go wrong. So, here are a few simple steps to ensure your season goes with a bang but that you don’t end up powerless:  

• Now is a good time to test your UPS system under load conditions to ensure it is working and can provide the capacity you need to keep critical systems up and running.
• Check cables and connectors for wear-and-tear and replace any that are worn or loose.
• Check that all critical equipment is connected into the UPS feed and that non-essential kit is not (remember: printers should not be plugged directly into any UPS as they can cause a surge on start-up and are usually categorised as non-essential).
• Check and test UPS batteries and battery strings and if necessary refresh with new ones.
• Check all other consumables such as fans and filters.
• If an alternative power supply (Diesel generator, fuel cell of flywheel) is on-site, include it in a test scenario, check fuel supplies and replenish if necessary ensuring there is plenty in store (fuel prices sometimes increase in winter and it may be difficult to source supplies particularly over the holiday period).
• If you have remote monitoring software installed, make sure it is the latest version and test communications equipment and cables. Check messages can be sent and received. 

 The Power Protection Guide covers all aspects of operating UPS systems including testing and maintenance.  Merry Christmas!

I’ve been reading about Energy Star, a joint labeling initiative by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy and I wondered if such a system would catch on in the UK?  Energy Star is a voluntary labeling program designed to identify and promote energy-efficient products. In 1992, the EPA introduced it and computers and monitors were the first products to be labeled. Over the past decade, it has been a driving force behind the more widespread use of such technological innovations as LED traffic lights, efficient fluorescent lighting, power management systems for office equipment, and low standby energy use.  Is energy-efficiency enough of an initiative to influence purchasing decisions on computer equipment? To date it would seem not with processing power more likely to be the top criterion and energy-efficiency somewhere near the bottom. However, experts are now saying that the lifetime cost of running high-end computer equipment may equate to as much as five times its capital cost. With our UPS products, we ensure energy-efficiency is top of the list. The Energy Saving Trust (funded by the UK Government) developed a scheme for household white goods, which has been embraced by manufacturers as a marketing and sales tool. But what really makes consumers and business managers take notice, it would seem, is money.  The reason why the Energy Star initiative is so successful is because it enables purchasers to apply for rebates on their capital purchases and energy bills. Results are already adding up. Americans, with the help of Energy Star, saved enough energy in 2006 alone to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of 25 million cars — all while saving $14 billion on their utility bills.

A report the other day stated that oil production and demand will max out within 10 years. After this we can expect a slow reduction in oil production and the need to (1) develop technologies to make more use of heavier oils that we will require even more energy to turn them into useable fuels, and (2) move further towards renewables. Riello UPS is already working within the solar energy field and has an exciting solar powered inverter development programme with active markets in Spain, Germany, Italy and France. In the UK we will be developing sales channels for these products in 2008.

Now the UK may not be considered one an ideal choice for solar power but the efficiency of today’s solar cells means that energy can be ‘harvested’ on even what we would consider dull days. Wrexham itself, which is where Riello UPS has one of its UK bases is actually a centre of excellence for solar panels with Sharp (the number one supplier of solar panels) being situated within the Wrexham industrial area.

Wednesday saw the final event in our 2008 Power Protection and Business Continuity roadshow. We closed the season at Old Trafford which remains a favourite venue for Riello UPS for a number of reasons. Our seminars are always well received and this is in no part thanks to the partners we work with who include some of the leading companies within the power protection field – UPS Systems, Vycon, Cummins, PFC Engineering, Furse, Secure IT, Denco and Sinetica. Thank you to everyone who attended. We will be posting podcasts of the various presentations to a new TEC website during 2008 and announcing details of next year’s programme in due course. In the mean time if you have any specific questions on UPS, power factor correction, generators, fly wheels, lightning protection, secure data environments, air conditioning or remote monitoring please contact us direct or visit our partner page.