Speakers and Abstracts

Has Home Solar Reached its Time in the Sun?

Dr. Chris Iceman, Dr. Julien Smith, Gilles Charriere

Abstract:

We address the ins and outs of installing solar at the local level on your own home. Our presentation will center around the advantages and disadvantages on the path to owning a mini-power plant. Currently no independent power generation outside of the grid program will be a topic of this discussion, such as battery backups. Useful discussion will include the cost/benefit of home solar and environmental impacts, as well as a brief overview of national and local infrastructure programs to make solar more affordable. Additionally we will display the live monitoring programs during the presentation so that everyone can experience kilowatts of excitement. We welcome all questions and hope for a diverse and active discussion of the aforementioned topics.

Biography:

Julien Smith and Chris Iceman are Valparaiso University professors and love solar energy. Dr. Smith has been working locally with Project Neighbors and the solar installations they have done in Valpo while Dr. Iceman recently worked with a multi-state company, Tron Solar. Both professors now have panels on their roofs soaking up the rays! Julien has experience with a custom install he completed personally and Chris ventured down the contractor route...but both remain exceedingly happy that they each now have their own little power plant assisting their neighborhoods while plugged into the grid.

Gilles Charriere has lived in the Valparaiso area since 2000. His real job, when he is not playing with solar panels, is to fly airplanes for United. In a “previous life” he was an electrician for the French navy. Almost 5 years ago, he installed his first solar system, as a do-it-yourself project. It was so rewarding that he consequently offered to help friends and non-for-profit install theirs. He is involved with his 6th project at this time. He has a NABCEP PV Associate certification and has attended several classes covering areas such as the National Electric Code, mounting hardware, batteries, micro-inverters, etc. In other words, he is quite passionate about Solar.

Energizing Hoosiers for Solar and an Equitable Clean Energy Transition

Dan Robinson

Abstract:

Each of us can help create a safer, healthier future for everyone if we promote an equitable energy transition here in Indiana and across the U.S. Doing so means not only exploring our own energy habits but also coming together with other concerned people to advocate for a just transition to a sustainable energy system. During this presentation, we’ll look at the work of Solar United Neighbors in the Hoosier state as one example of how we can help each other go solar in our communities but also advocate for just solar and energy policy at the state level.

Biography:

A native Hoosier and Purdue grad, Dan Robinson serves as the Indiana Program Associate for Solar United Neighbors, a nonprofit organization working in Indiana and across the U.S. to help people go solar, come together and fight for their energy rights. Dedicated to empowering individuals and communities to create a better world, his work is focused on promoting justice and equity through solar energy. His career has included community organizing, serving as a local elected official, communications work, and educating for social justice. Dan's experience has taught him how challenging it can be to go solar on your own, so he's eager to provide support and guidance to help Hoosiers take that step. Doing so allows them to create a sustainable, democratic energy system by going solar!

Future of H₂ Economy

Dr. Alexey Silakov

Abstract:

Hydrogen gas (H2) is a vital non-renewable resource used in a wide variety of essential industries, such as ammonia and fertilizer production, steel production etc. Hydrogen is also one of the promising clean-energy carriers that gains popularity as an alternative energy source due to global efforts to combat climate change. The hydrogen economy encapsulates all aspects of hydrogen utilization, including hydrogen production, transportation, storage, and utilization. Unfortunately, there is a lot we still need to learn about every aspect of using hydrogen. Most importantly, since hydrogen as an H₂ gas is virtually non-existent on Earth, it must be produced from available sources. Currently, most H₂ is produced via so-called steam-methane reforming, which requires methane, water, and a lot of energy to generate H₂ with a byproduct of carbon dioxide. Most commonly, industrial H₂-production uses non-renewable fossil fuels, which, on its own, makes the production environmentally harmful, and the H₂ gas produced costly. Currently, H₂-production is responsible for about 8% of total greenhouse gas emissions. Solar energy systems may provide a renewable energy solution to this problem. Similarly, cheap renewable energy solutions are needed for storing and transporting H₂ gas. In this talk, I will discuss the modern challenges of adopting a Hydrogen economy. I will also outline the directions modern science takes to solve such challenges and present my view of the future of a hydrogen-based economy and its dependence on solar energy.

Biography:

Dr. Alexey Silakov received his M.S. in Kazan State University (Russia) in 2003, and his PhD in Heinrich Heine University of Düsseldorf (Germany). His PhD project and his first postdoctoral work were performed in the Max Planck Institute for Bioinorganic Chemistry (currently known as MPI for Chemical Energy Conversion) under the supervision of Prof. Wolfgang Lubitz. After that, Dr. Silakov moved to the US, where he did his second postdoctoral research project at the Penn State University under the supervision of Prof. Michael Green. In 2017, Dr. Silakov assumed the position of Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the Penn State University. His research interests center on understanding the function of complex metallocofactors in enzymes and how such catalytic entities are tunned by the protein environment for maximum efficiency and specificity. His focus is on biological systems that can potentially be utilized in future biohybrid renewable energy technologies. One of his current research subjects is [FeFe] hydrogenase, an enzyme that can produce hydrogen with staggering efficiency and minimal energy input.

Solar at Night: Solar Thermochemistry to Produce Solar Fuels and Enable Long Duration Energy Storage

Dr. Luke Venstrom

Abstract:

Solar photovoltaic and wind energy are now the cheapest sources of energy on the planet on a levelized cost of energy basis. It is thus no surprise that in 2021 these two sources of energy represented 70% of new utility-scale electricity-generating capacity in the United States. But is there a ceiling on the growth of these promising renewable energy sources? In this presentation, we will first consider the challenges faced by an energy system that is increasingly reliant on intermittent sources of renewable electricity generation. I will then show how concentrated solar energy and chemistry can be combined to offer potential solutions to these challenges by producing solar fuels for transportation and/or long-duration energy storage. Finally, I will present some of the work completed by the interdisciplinary Solar Energy Research Group at Valparaiso University to develop a solar fuel production process.

Biography:

Dr. Luke Venstrom is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Valparaiso University where he co-directs the James S. Markiwiecz Solar Energy Research Facility, home to the only solar furnace at a primarily undergraduate engineering college. He is a graduate of Valparaiso University (B.S.) and the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities (M.S., Ph.D.). His research broadly encompasses the thermal fluid sciences, with a focus on renewable energy systems and, in particular, high-temperature solar thermal and electrothermal chemistry. He was the 2019-2020 Valparaiso University Research Professor and the 2021 recipient of the Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Work for his integration of undergraduate students into cutting-edge, high-temperature concentrated solar energy research.

Bringing the Mammoth Solar Farm to Northwest Indiana

Nick Cohen and Nathan P. Origer

Abstract:

By 2024, the largest solar energy farm in the U.S, valued at $1.5 billion, will be fully operational and spanning two counties in Northern Indiana. In this session, the CEO of Doral Renewables and Pulaski County representatives will discuss what it took to make this possible.

Biography:

Nick Cohen has 15-years global experience leading energy project development. For nine years he served as Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of EmberClear, a developer of utility scale energy projects. Before co-founding Doral LLC, Mr. Cohen managed development of energy and desalination projects for Chicago-based Invenergy, a leading developer, owner operator of renewables. Doral LLC currently maintains a $6 billion project portfolio that includes the $1.5 billion Mammoth Solar Project in Starke and Pulaski Counties, Indiana. Mr. Cohen earned a BS in Business Administration from Drexel University and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Nathan P. Origer has been the executive director of the Pulaski County Community Development Commission since April 2011. A resident of rural North Judson, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Notre Dame and a master’s degree in community planning. He is fourth-generation in rural northwestern Indiana, and his family owns farmland in both Starke and Pulaski Counties. He and his wife own a hyper-needy dog and a variable number of farm cats. His sanity currently hinges on successful resolution of Major League Baseball negotiations and a speedy start to the season, preferably without the universal designated hitter.

Renewable Energy in Germany: A History of ‘Energiewende’

Dr. John Golbeck

Abstract:

Representing a full-scale transformation of German society, ‘Energiewende’ (Eng: energy turning point) aims to de-carbonize Germany energy by the year 2050. No other nation has established such an ambitious goal, and Germany is well on its way toward achieving it. Renewable energy sources (photovoltaic, wind, and biomass), accounting for 3.4% of Germany’s electricity generation in 1990, grew to 37.8% in 2018, and in one remarkable March 2019, renewables supplied an astounding 54.5% of Germany’s electricity needs, thanks to unseasonably sunny weather and consistently steady winds. The growth in renewables is all the more surprising considering that most of Germany lies at the same latitude as southern Canada. In fact, the capital, Berlin, is farther north than Calgary, Alberta. Solar irradiance is thus at a low ebb during the winter months and the country is frequently under partial cloud cover. The rapid increase in renewables is the result of five factors that played out during the years since 1970: 1) the grassroots student protest movement that began in the early 1970s; 2) the impact of the 1970s energy crisis and the German response; 3) the founding of the Green Party in 1979; 4) the effect of the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents that catalyzed the climate change movement; and 5) the political compromises that stemmed from the coalition government formed from the Social Democratic Party and the Green Party. I will spend the next 50 minutes drawing a straight line through these five factors and I will outline major challenges to meeting this goal that have arisen during the last decade that currently do not appear to have easy solutions.

Biography:

John Golbeck received his B.S. in Chemistry from Valparaiso University (1971), and his Ph.D. in Biological Chemistry from Indiana University (1976), the latter under the supervision of Prof. Anthony San Pietro. His postdoctoral studies were carried out in Biophysics at Martin Marietta Laboratories, Baltimore, MD, with Dr. Bessel Kok. After spending 9 years in industry, Dr. Golbeck took faculty positions at Portland State University, at the University of Nebraska, and at The Pennsylvania State University, where he is currently Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Professor of Chemistry. He has spent academic leaves at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1984), the Centre d’Etudes Nucl´eaires de Saclay (1992), the Freie Universität, Berlin (2002 and the summers of 2003 through 2009), the Humboldt University in Berlin (2010), Brock University (2018), and he was an External Senior Fellow of the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies in Germany (2015). His research interests involve study of the protein factors that confer thermodynamic and kinetic properties to redox-active cofactors in photosynthetic complexes, the structural makeup of Type I reaction centers from anaerobic bacteria, the composition of electrically conductive bacterial nanowires in Shewanella oneidensis, and the modification of Photosystem I to produce hydrogen. Prof. Golbeck is a member of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Biophysical Society of America, and the International Society for Photosynthesis Research, where he served in the positions of Secretary and Treasurer for over a decade.

Bringing the Mammoth Solar Farm to Northwest Indiana

Nathan P. Origer

Abstract:

Biography:

Earthtones Speakers - to be announced