Quantalux, LLC articles

There’s been a lot of controversy about the Green New Deal. While we like some of the “big” ideas in the plan, there are many other smaller, less news-worthy ways that can readily enhance energy sustainability. One way is for individual states to make sure that their building code makes it easy to incorporate new energy innovations.

Why? There’s no question that today’s electrical vehicles and solar arrays will be joined by tomorrow’s battery storag

A utility in Oregon recently announced the largest wind-solar-storage project in the U.S that will generate nearly 380 MW of energy.  This is a good example of how utilities are storing energy from intermittent sources (like wind or solar) in grid-scale batteries.  Grid-scale batteries are the perfect match to wind and solar installations, storing energy during peak production and releasing power during nighttime or during periods without wind. As wind and solar becomes more cost-co

Many municipalities and companies are trying to figure out how to responsibly dispose of the over 34 million tons of food waste that is generated each year. (This is roughly 15% of the total landfill volume in the US.) The current option of landfilling leaves much to be desired: the natural decomposition of organic matter results in increased methane emissions, and leachate can migrate to the ground water.

Landfills certainly have their place for trash disposal, but when it comes to f

On the topic of wastewater, most people are understandably of the “flush and forget” variety. But today’s wastewaster professionals recognize that in the long term, our approach to sewage treatment needs to be less about “processing” wastewater, and more about “recovery” of  limited resources such as water and energy

Many wastewater treatment plants are intrigued with the idea of increasing biogas production by accepting food waste, but are concerned with process stability. As part of a Phase I SBIR from the USDA, Quantalux is developing a software decision tool called Q-Calc that provides operators with the ability to predict the digester’s health and stability when adding food waste to manure or sludge. Q-Calc uses biochemical parameters to assess a wide range of key parameters such as Or

For the last year, Quantalux and students/staff at Michigan State University have been building a pilot scale anaerobic digester (“Pilot AD”). This mobile unit can process manure, food waste and FOG (Fats, Oils and Greases), and is designed to be used as a test-bed to explore feedstock recipes and the biogas potential of mixed food/manure feedstocks.

The Pilot AD includes a thermophilic first stage and mesophilic second stage.  A dual-stage system has t

Quantalux was awarded a contract by the City of Ann Arbor to assess the potential for operating a biodigester for the local region. Our partners on this project are Swedish Biogas in Flint, MI, who are experts in co-feedstock management and digester operation/management. In this contract, we surveyed available feedstocks at businesses and food processors, coordinated with existing disposal entities, and developed a set of financial models to identify the required scale of the projec

It is tough to be a small dairy farmer these days. We’ve been interviewing small dairy operations in Michigan and have found first-hand that smaller dairy farms (typically family owned) are being challenged by rapidly changing feed costs and milk prices. Of course, energy costs also have a strong impact on farm profitability. The farms we interviewed told us at least 10 and 15% of their gross revenue goes to paying their energy bills. Right now, fossil-fuel costs are manageable at about