Source: Bloom Energy
Engineering materials manufacturer II-VI Inc. (Saxonburg, Pa.; www.ii-vi.com) has selected clean energy company Bloom Energy (San Jose, Calif.; www.bloomenergy.com) to build a 2.5-megawatt microgrid power system to support its manufacturing facility in Warren, N.J. The Bloom Energy Server site was up and running within nine months of the two companies first starting to work together.
The II-VI microgrid addresses growing power needs at the company’s Warren facility, which has ramped up production in the past year to meet demand for its 3-D sensing technology. With the local electric utility unable to supply more power quickly enough to keep up with its growth, II-VI sought an onsite grid-independent power solution to keep growing and to grow ‘greener’.
Bloom Energy Servers generate electricity from natural gas or biogas via an electrochemical reaction rather than combustion. As a result, they generate virtually no smog-forming emissions By using Bloom Energy Servers as its primary source of power, II-VI is reducing CO2 emissions by 15 million lbs per year relative to the power the company would have bought from the New Jersey grid. The Energy Servers deployed in Warren are Bloom’s fourth generation of product, which generate approximately 500 kW of power in a footprint about half the size of a 30-ft shipping container, says the company. The systems are modular and can scale to tens of MWs.
Bloom Energy Servers also use virtually no water in normal operation. By comparison, to produce one megawatt per hour for a year, combustion-based grid power draws approximately 156 million more gallons of water.
In addition to delivering significant sustainability benefits, the new microgrid provides II-VI with increased energy security. Bloom Energy Servers utilize underground natural gas infrastructure, which is not susceptible to the impact of severe weather.
Because the servers are fuel-flexible, users can choose the fuel source that best fits their needs based on availability, cost and carbon footprint. Bloom Energy Servers deployed since 2012 running on natural gas produce nearly 60% less carbon emissions compared to the average of U.S. combustion power generation. Bloom Energy Servers can also utilize renewable biogas to generate carbon-neutral electricity. As of 2018, approximately 9% of the deployed fleet of Energy Servers, by megawatts deployed, utilized biogas. In both cases, the Energy Servers emit virtually no criteria air pollutants, including NOx or SOx, says Bloom.
“We faced two significant challenges bringing production levels up at our Warren facility. First, we needed a solution that would deliver power in months not years. Second, we wanted to decrease our overall carbon footprint,” said Dr. Giovanni Barbarossa, Chief Technology Officer and President Laser Solutions, II-VI Incorporated. “Bloom Energy delivered on both fronts. We’re excited to be working with them to fulfil our energy demands now and into the future.”
“Electricity is the lifeblood of high tech manufacturing, and a reliable, high quality power supply is vital to the world’s most advanced manufacturing companies,” said KR Sridhar, founder, chairman and CEO of Bloom Energy. “We’re proud to be an American manufacturer helping another American manufacturer achieve impressive growth, reliability and sustainability.”