2019 Showcase Presenting Company Recap – “Decarbonizing Thermal Systems with Renewable Steam” with UMC: Energy & Environment

Presented by Scott DeWees
Recap by guest-contributor Sarah Pristash, NSF Graduate Research Fellow, Department of Chemistry, University of Washington Seattle.

Scott DeWees spoke for University Mechanical Contractors (UMC), Inc., about decarbonizing thermal systems with renewable steam. UMC is an established mechanical operations company celebrating 100 years in business next year. The company builds large heating and cooling systems. While clean energy often focuses on discussions of renewables and storage, UMC believes there is a missing piece in opportunistic use. Central thermal plants are an attractive example of opportunistic use. Steam boilers produce 1-10 MW in thermal load, which can be used to generate electricity and decarbonize the boilers. The boilers can have portions converted to run on electricity and use the electric portions when the energy load makes the pricing competitive, analogous to the Caiso duck chart. UMC is seeking interested partners to collaborate on pilot projects.

You can view their presentation by clicking here for part 1, and here for part 2.