TPT July 2009

G lobal M arketplace

Companies offering tubular skylight kits include Solatube (Vista, California); Sun Pipe (Palatine, Illinois); and Sun-Dome (Riviera Beach, Florida). Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) Newark, Delaware, is the first US city to license a V2G recharging station, thus advancing a plan for enabling owners of electric cars to re-sell battery power to the national energy grid. Potentially, an all- electric-drive car needn’t merely charge up: it can also send billable power the other way. In describing V2G, the Christian Science Monitor referenced the giant Eastern-states power grid PJM (Valley Forge, Pennsylvania), the world’s largest competitive wholesale electricity market: A computer inside the [V2G] car communicates with the grid. Through the connection, PJM can ask for extra juice from the car’s battery to balance fluctuating demand on the grid. The car’s dashboard computer checks the vehicle’s battery level and — if there is enough charge to drive home — can sell the excess energy back to the power company at a profit. (“My Ride? It’s a Power Plant,” 24 April) For more than a decade, Willett Kempton, a University of Delaware professor, has promoted his vision of an electric-car owner plugging a cable into a socket just above the front bumper and earning $1,000 to $2,500 a year for power pumped back into the system. Now, Dr Kempton’s research and his test car have caught the attention of persons in high places, notably President Barack Obama who mentioned vehicle-to-grid cars during a TV appearance in April.

to American airline workers. Nor would US limitations on foreign ownership apply, since the partnership is to be based overseas. Ms Johnsson also posed the question whether such “potentially contentious and structurally awkward arrangements” are financially feasible. Aviation consultant Robert Mann commented, “It’s hard to imagine how this makes money.” › The venture might also raise safety concerns, since it is unclear who would oversee the new airline. Brian Havel, associate dean and director of the International Aviation Law Institute at DePaul University College of Law, in Chicago, said that the regulatory framework “isn’t as airtight as it should be” in these issues. He said that the uncertainties here constitute “an entirely unintended and brilliant consequence of Open Skies.” For its part, United Airlines considers the venture with its Irish partner viable; and, since Madrid is a market that United would not be able to serve on its own, that it would expand the American company’s global reach. The No 3 carrier in the US moreover dismissed any suggestion that underqualified pilots would be at the controls of the flights. A spokeswoman told the Tribune , “We and all of our partners meet or exceed all [US Federal Aviation Agency] requirements for flying commercial aircraft.” › Ms Johnsson of the Tribune pointed out that the United-Aer Lingus venture is not an innovation. Major airlines worldwide outsource flying to smaller cities to regional carriers, which customarily hire pilots at the beginning of their careers to fly turbo- props or jets with fewer than 100 seats. And, she wrote, “British Airways last year spun off OpenSkies, a subsidiary that uses new hires rather than unionised employees to man its all-business-class flights between New York, Paris, and Amsterdam.” Energy The growing emphasis on energy conservation at home and workplace benefits companies specialising in the reduction of heat load and electricity consumption. Here, from the US, is a pair of innovations of more than usual interest: skylights that leverage sunlight; and a method for the resale of vehicle battery power. Tubular skylights As described by James Dulley of the Detroit Free Press , these “simple devices that rely on super reflectivity” transfer sunlight to an interior without the heat gain of ordinary skylights. Less expensive than standard rectangular models, the circular units are no more of a challenge to install. A tube with a reflective interior, typically 9 to 14 inches in diameter, is placed in an opening cut from the roof into the ceiling of the room below. So that no indoor air is lost, and to ensure against leakage, the tube is sealed tight. (“Tubular Skylight Saves Electricity,” 3 May) The effectiveness of the tubular skylight can be gauged from Mr Dulley’s warning that the daylight admitted can be too strong. Adjustable dimmer flappers may be needed for regulation. For tall roofs, extra lengths of reflective tubing can be installed to extend reflective power, although at a penalty to brightness. At 10 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity, annual savings of about $36 can be expected for a typical room in a residence. By way of comparison, the use of compact fluorescent bulbs saves about $10 a year.

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J uly 2009

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