by Jeff Ihnen | Oct 21, 2020 | Energy Rant
I recently delivered an electrification presentation for Wisconsin Public Utility Institute’s Energy Utility Basics course. While introducing myself, I said, “I’m an engineer, and I can’t help it.” I also said the answer to the question, “Can we ___?” is...
by Jeff Ihnen | Oct 14, 2020 | Energy Rant
Way back in April, I had generated a list of non-energy benefits of the COVID. One was the lack of traffic. That made driving easier and running a little safer with less hassle. Second, my, uh, wellness trainer stopped making trips to Europe, so rather than being gone...
by Jeff Ihnen | Oct 7, 2020 | Energy Rant
Last week in Thermal Storage for Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEBs), I introduced the importance of phase changes from solid to liquid to vapor, and the reverse, to our modern world. Benefits include heating, cooling, and refrigeration for all types of uses,...
by Jeff Ihnen | Sep 30, 2020 | Energy Rant
Aside from efficiency being a core component of my thermos-fluids courses in engineering school, phase changes were also captivating to me. Phase changes from solid (ice) to liquid (water) to vapor (steam) have been used for hundreds of years, and more recently, the...
by Jeff Ihnen | Sep 23, 2020 | Energy Rant
The batteries are coming! Maybe. I recently participated in an EPA-sponsored webinar to explore the results of a couple of case studies of lithium-ion batteries used to shave and shape building electrical loads. The technology is more nascent or even embryonic than I...
