| Power plant products
RWE considers wooden towers for wind farms
Modvion and RWE Renewables Sweden AB are entering a partnership to supply wooden towers to RWE’s future onshore wind farms. RWE has ambitious plans to increase its production capacity while reducing its carbon footprint. The goal with this partnership is to verify the wooden tower technology and prepare for RWE to use it in future wind farms, once the towers are available in the market, and RWE has signed a Letter of Intent to that effect.
Lars Borisson, head of Onshore Origination & Development Nordics at RWE Renewables commented: “We see that modular towers in laminated wood have significant market potential and can contribute to lowering the cost of new renewable electricity production by replacing steel and concrete with environmentally friendly and climate-smart wood.” Maria-Lina Hedlund, CFO and acting CEO at Modvion, commented: “Our technology can help the wind industry dramatically reduce emissions, while facilitating taller towers to reach stronger winds.” Even if steel continues to be used to construct many parts of the wind turbines, wooden towers have the potential to become an important complementary material in tower construction. According to a survey carried out by Modvion, almost four out of ten Swedes feel more positive about wind power if the towers are built of wood. The wind industry wants taller turbines and Modvion’s patented wind turbine tower is believed to provide a cost-effective solution. Laminated wood is stronger than steel proportionate to its weight, which means lighter towers and less need for reinforcement. The
towers are built in modules that can be easily transported, without the need for special transport, road closures and lengthy permit procedures. Growing trees bind carbon dioxide, which is stored in the wood products, while building with wood enables emission reductions in production compared to conventional materials such as steel and concrete. According to a life-cycle analysis from the Swedish research institute RISE, using a wooden tower reduces emissions by 90% when compared to a conventional steel tower of the same height and load.
“A conventional tower is responsible for the largest portion of emissions that arise from the production of wind turbines. By using wood, the tower becomes carbon negative, storing more carbon than is emitted during production”, says Hedlund.
Modvion will be installing its first commercial wind turbine during 2023. A 2 MW WTG will be installed on the tower, which, including the blades, will stand 150 metres tall. Modvion has plans for a larger installation, which will use a 6MW turbine, one of the most powerful used on land.
‘Breakthrough’ in gas engine lubricants
Following a collaboration agreement in 2020 between ExxonMobil and Innio, the two companies have produced Jenbacher N Oil 40, a high-performance, long-life lubricant formulated to meet the evolving needs of Jenbacher natural gas engines. ExxonMobil and Innio are calling this a breakthrough for the natural gas engine industry, producing new performance milestones for Innio’s Jenbacher engines. After field validation that involved over 8 million hours of operation in more than 800 units, the results show that the new lubricant formula can almost double oil drain intervals and reduce life-cycle costs by up to 30%. These results are said to be shared by all the company’s type 2, 3, 4, 6 and 9 natural gas
engines. In an early ‘adopter’ engine where the product had been in use for over 35 000 hours, the customer achieved oil drain intervals of up to 7000 hours in its Jenbacher J612 F engine.
Elisabetta Scossa, Europe commercial manager of energy at ExxonMobil, commented: “Thanks to the product’s exceptional wear protection and detergent properties, it can help reduce life-cycle costs by up to 30%” As well as extending drain intervals and reducing lifetime costs the new oil is said to reduce waste oil disposal costs, increase engine reliability and help avoid unscheduled maintenance.
N Oil 40’s well-balanced base oil and additive combination is said to help stabilise Total Base Number retention, which allows operators to rely on long oil drain intervals and extended oil-condemning limits without compromising the protection of critical engine parts.
www.modernpowersystems.com | April 2023 | 39
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