After two years, NORA is almost ready to reveal the answer to the question, “Is the Industry ready to move to 100% renewable liquid heating fuels.”
NORA presented “100% Renewable Fuels Study. How Renewable Diesel/Biodiesel Blends Performed These Past Two Winters” at the Eastern Energy Conference. This presentation took a deep dive into NORA’s 2-year long field study and addressed the overriding question: Is the liquid heating industry capable of moving to 100% renewable liquid heating fuels today?
Jacqueline Hart, new NEFI Chairperson and VP of Operations and Hart Home Comfort, introduced the session and discussed how her company embraced renewable fuels in 2006 because it was “the right thing to do for future generations.” Hart’s company has been participating in NORA’s B100 tests for the last three years, delivering B100 to 10 locations. She added that “While it was not always easy to get a retail truck to the homes with B100, the mission was important, and seeing the research in action has been rewarding.”
NORA President Michael Devine; Dr. Thomas Butcher, Director of NORA Laboratory; and Jason Lawrence, Senior BD Executive at Chevron, then reviewed the logistics, collaborations, and initial results of the program. NORA and its wholesale and retail partners delivered blends of renewable diesel and biodiesel to 121 sites in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. Some properties received RD80/B20 and others a 50/50 blend. The test properties included 84 boilers, 30 furnaces, and seven hot water heaters, from a range of manufacturers and equipment ages, to provide results for as many types of equipment as possible.
These fuels were treated as drop-in replacements for previous fuels. There were no system retrofits and the tanks were not cleaned or emptied, so as to best replicate a real world environment. Butcher called this “a really bold step, working with tanks that may have had sludge and water on their bottoms,” and delivering the fuel on top of what was already there.
Devine noted that the test period ran over the last two heating seasons, “some of the strongest seasons, with the most logistical issues possible,” and complemented the marketers who maintained the integrity of the program. Devine also made a point of acknowledging the work of NORA Research Engineers Neehad Islam and Ryan Kerr, who were in the field, performing all the testing on all the equipment, and who are now working with Dr. Butcher and his team to create the final technical report.
Everyone on the panel emphasized that the results were not yet complete, as the final tests were pulled only a few weeks ago. However, Dr. Butcher noted that they were “overall, very happy with the results.”
The full report and analysis is expected later this year, and will be presented in full in September at both the Southern New England Energy Conference and Pennsylvania Petroleum Association Fall Conference and released to the public. Stay tuned!
