The transition to renewable energy technologies in the United States is well on its way, with a renewed focus under a new administration.
As many wonder where we’ll get the minerals and metals needed to fuel the switch, some industry experts are saying that the nation’s aging energy grid needs attention before our clean energy dreams can come true – an effort that would further increase the demand for metals.
Here’s a look at how renewables are ramping up in the US, and what changes the energy grid needs to get there.
Renewables Going Strong
The last decade has seen substantial growth in the nation’s renewables sector, according to a recent report from Environment America, which states that in 2019, 10% of America’s electricity came from wind, solar, and geothermal sources – up from 2.7% just nine years prior. Further progress the report notes includes:
- In 2019, the US made more than 30 times the amount of solar energy it did compared to 2010.
- Wind power in 2019 was three times what it was in 2010.
- Between 2010 and 2019, utility-scale battery storage increased 20-fold.
The report also highlights the still-significant growth potential for clean energies, calling on data from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory that says America could meet its current electricity demand 75 times over with solar energy and more than 10 times over with wind.
Renewed Focus
Even despite a blow from the pandemic, the trend toward renewables remains strong, and looks to be ramping up as the Biden administration puts legislation in place to accelerate the move away from fossil fuels.
On March 2nd, members of the House Committee on Energy & Commerce introduced the CLEAN (Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation) Future Act – a bill that aims to combat the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions head-on.
The bill includes a Clean Electricity Standard (CES) which would mandate that the nation’s power industry reach a goal of 100 percent carbon-free electricity no later than 2035, with action starting in 2023 and an 80 percent benchmark goal in 2030.
The following day, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres implored wealthy nations to double down on renewables and end the use of coal by 2030 if we are to avoid exceeding the 1.5°C rise in global temperature.
New Infrastructure Needed
While renewables are making progress, many in the industry say renewable energy goals cannot be fully realized without an overhaul to the nation’s aging energy infrastructure.
The US recently received a C- infrastructure grade from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) in their 2021 report – while far from good, it was an improvement on the D+ the nation received in the previous 2017 grading.
Much of the infrastructure that makes up the nation’s energy grid requires more than a facelift, having gone beyond its expected life span. While many utilities are racing to make upgrades in an effort to maintain reliability, more expansive changes will be needed to meet the ever-growing and changing needs of the sector – a sentiment echoed by the ASCE in their report.
For example, many are worried about how widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) will affect the grid on a large scale as well, as one or two vehicles in a neighborhood have the potential to max out the system limits of an ill-prepared grid, according to data referenced by Utility Dive.
Further, smart technologies based around a digitized grid system should be implemented to help customers use energy more efficiently. And technologies designed to make the US less vulnerable to cyber attack, like was seen in the recent hack on Oldsmar’s Florida water utility, are also needed.
The nation also needs to invest in a more connected grid system that allows power to flow between regions as needed, according to pv magazine. In addition to helping to manage the fluctuating loads and consumption of variable renewable energy, it would create a more stable system less susceptible to widespread outages. This is especially important given the increasing intensity of climate-change-fueled storms taking out power, like the one that recently put millions of Texans in the dark.
Metals Needed
It is well recognized that clean energy technologies are significantly more metal-intensive than fossil fuel technologies, with demand expected to surge as much as 1000% for some metals, according to the World Bank.
And while many anticipate the surge in metals that a renewable energy-based society will require for building wind and solar farms (and other technologies to facilitate mass adoption), fewer have considered how updating the nation’s energy grid to meet clean energy goals could add to that demand.
Metals play an increasingly important role in the energy infrastructure system, employed in everything from power lines to circuit boards. Upgrading the existing grid on a smarter, more reliable platform will undoubtedly require significant amounts of metals, with the most impact likely to be around:
Further, the metals needed for electric vehicles and charging stations will also be substantial.
The Need for Metal Recovery
All of this – EVs, a grid overhaul, and the building of renewable energy technologies – puts additional emphasis on the need to create a closed-loop economy that not only extracts metals and processes them in a sustainable manner, but that maximizes available resources through advanced metal recovery and recycling systems.
The FEECO Innovation Center, with several batch- and pilot-scale test rotary kilns, continues to work with customers on metal recovery feasibility testing, as well as developing process parameters for commercial-scale production and equipment. The facility also offers testing around agitation agglomeration (pelletizing), a technique often used in extractive metallurgy to improve metal recovery in downstream furnaces. The data gathered during testing can then be used to build commercial-scale equipment.
Conclusion
The transition to a renewable energy future is well underway in the US – the success of which will depend on the nation’s ability to meet the technical demands of the changing energy landscape through a modernized energy grid. The pursuit of this new clean energy future will put pressure on metal demand like never seen before, necessitating a closed-loop system that extracts metals sustainably and recovers them at the end of their life cycle.
Since 1951, FEECO has been providing the mining industry with custom mining and mineral processing equipment, including for metal recovery. Our process development services and comprehensive parts and service support, paired with our equipment’s reputation for reliability, have made us a preferred provider for everyone from startups to the world’s largest mining companies. For more information on our capabilities, contact us today!