At their inaugural showcase on October 5 in Roseville, the Growth Factory put on a jam-packed day of speeches, workshops, pitches and booth exhibits.  The theme was seizing the opportunity to support local innovators as a way to build a robust technology-based economy in our region.

We were a partner with the Growth Factory in putting on this event, and we had many opportunities to highlight what the companies in our clean tech cluster were doing.  We had a total of nine companies being showcased:  Three companies at our booth (Thermeshade, CR Flight, and XeroHome) and three others had their own (LiCAP Technologies, JAPA, and SOAR Optics), and three more cluster companies did 3-minute pitches (EVLife,  AscentOS, and Onsight Technology).  In addition, we ran a workshop on opportunities to grow businesses that contribute to the carbon neutral goal.  

One of the most interesting sessions was an interview with John Bissell, Co-CEO of Origin Materials, reflecting on what they had accomplished and what worked for them.  John noted that in their culture, there is little patience with explanations that are quick sound bites.  These can be very misleading for teams and for investors.  Instead, Origin goes to lengths especially with investors, to present the subtleties of why they make the decisions they do so that there are fewer surprises.  Since Origin boasts a number of long-standing investors and partners, that is a good indication their approach is sound.  The temptation to oversimplify and give brief answers is strong, but as John noted it could lead to trouble.  Good advice. 

Throughout the event were sessions on alternative ways to find funding, views from the VC community, and support resources throughout the region.  There were probably 500 attendees.  The region hasn’t had this kind of robust startup showcase for years.  The Growth Factory will likely repeat it next year, given this year’s success.  We will be out there encouraging many more of you to take advantage of this opportunity to get exposure and do important networking.  It is a good first step to getting a serious meeting with many investors.  

Kudos to Monique Brown and the team at Growth Factory for such a good event. 

We love creative ways to install solar.  Ever hear of Floatavotaics?  It is one solution to lowering the cost of mounting solar panels, now by far the largest cost in making an installation.  Floating PV systems use solar arrays that float on bodies of water, such as reservoirs, lakes, and even the sea in some cases. This technology has been increasingly adopted around the world as an innovative and efficient way to generate solar power, particularly in regions where land is scarce or expensive. There are other benefits with floating solar such as water conservations and improved panel efficiency. 

In the US, towns facing land and energy shortages are putting floatovoltaics on their reservoirs, like in Healdsburg, California..  There is also the opportunity to pair floatovoltaics with hydro power, using the same electrical infrastructure. Floatovoltaics has taken off in Asia with China’s Dezhou Dingzhuang Solar Farm reaching 320 MW of capacity Just under 3 years ago (2021) the Biden Administration opened up federal land for Floating PV.   

Some Benefits Highlighted.

Efficient land use: Floating PV installations can be particularly useful in densely populated areas or regions with limited available land. They can be installed on man-made reservoirs, lakes, or even on the sea, freeing up land for agricultural use, conservation, or other developments.

Water conservation: By covering the surface of the water bodies, floating solar panels reduce water evaporation, which can be particularly beneficial in dry regions. They can also limit the growth of harmful algae by blocking sunlight.

Improved energy efficiency: The cooling effect of water helps to keep the solar panels at a lower temperature, which can improve their efficiency as photovoltaic panels typically lose efficiency as temperature increases. Moreover, the surrounding water can be naturally cooler than the ambient air temperature in many places, enhancing this effect.

Apparently, Floatovolatics initially looks like a great solution but face their own set of significant challenges. A big one is higher-than-expected installation and maintenance costs relative to land-based systems. Costs are driven by challenges around anchoring and ensuring the stability of the system, especially in the case of sea-based installations. There could also be potential impacts on local ecosystems from operating or from damaged panels.

This is one of many creative ideas to lower costs for solar farms.  We are trying to watch a number of them–vertical installation of panels, the use of a specially-built solar awning, and installations right on the ground.  Creative minds at work. 

Networking Session Was Fun

On September 28 we held another informal networking session at Lucid Winery (1015 R Street).  Folks had a number of lively discussions around the room…and enjoyed the drinks and pizza.  Topics included:  Welcoming some recent transplants to the area, the addition of a new staff member at Venture Catalyst, a clever new liquid cooling system for hard-working data centers, the possibility of a nuclear renaissance, a new flame-retardant wrap for EV battery packs.

Seeing our colleague and former CleanStart Executive Director, Ingrid Rosten, was especially good.  She has been swamped being CEO of a number of innovative companies along with running nonprofits she started.  We wonder when she sleeps.

Working from home and driving to build that new business is reducing the social contacts we used to have.  Our networking sessions give folks a chance to recharge and get restimulated.  That’s why we call them PowerUp!  We all need a jolt every once in a while.

Don’t miss our next one.  We will be back at Lucid Winery on October XX.  Sign up now before you forget.  It will be good to see you.

It has been nearly 50 years since California began in earnest to eliminate waste in the use of energy in the home with the adoption of energy-efficient building codes and appliance efficiency standards.  In those five decades, those codes and standards have been updated and extended many times. You would think that there would be little more that would be squeezed out of this sector.  This is illustrated by looking at the differences in energy consumption per person in the residential sector in some similar states.  

Annual Residential Energy Use Per Capita – 2018

(EIA Data)

There is a big BUT though. The average home in California is nearly 45 years old and the price of energy is higher in California. Increased energy efficiency has helped, but most homes were built well after the state’s efficiency standards and higher energy prices discourage consumption.

Our MeetUp on August 24 demonstrated the surprising reality that more and more ways are being discovered that can reduce home energy use and shrink energy bills, as well as ways to displace carbon emissions from the home.  In part this comes from advances in end-use technology (LED lights replacing incandescent bulbs for example) but also from helping customers look at their energy use and discovering ways they can save more. 

Diana Eastman talked about her innovation, Thermeshade.  It is a shade screen that cuts out over 50% of the heat gain or loss through a window, even if it already is an efficient window.  The screen material is lightweight and almost transparent.  This is so much better than tinting the windows or putting on the heavy plastic shade screens that you can barely see through.  It is an easy retrofit and can be removed and used again if residents move.  Windows is about R1-R2.  They are not good at blocking heat gains (summer) or losses (winter).  Thermeshades are such an easy retrofit. 

Mudit Saxena of XeroHome showed off his AI-based software that can tell a resident where they are losing the most money and creating the most carbon emissions—without ever going to the home.  The app uses building permits, utility bills, property sales data, and Google Earth to make a good estimate of what must be going on in the home.  This is so much easier than the old way of having an on-site energy audit done one by one.  The City and SMUD have paid XeroHome to make their tool available to residents here.  The tool in a matter of hours analyzed all 185,000 residential units in the City and made that information available on a confidential basis to the residents.  The tool looks at both energy cost savings as well as reductions in carbon emissions, showing how dual-use heat pumps and induction stoves can be much better investments than most would think, especially with all the incentives available.  XeroHome takes all those into account in coming up with a return on investment.

Jerry Pepper, an Energy Specialist with SMUD, briefed the crowd on all the incentives and programs SMUD has to encourage more savings in the residential sector.  SMUD sees gaining more efficiencies and emissions reduction in the residential sector as vital to achieving its zero carbon goals.  He also laid out the utility’s plan to address upgrading entire neighborhoods at a time.  Priority neighborhoods are those that are disadvantaged.  Pepper listed these opportunities available in the neighborhood program:

• Renter – Apartment: eligible for an advanced power strip, fan, and LED light bulbs 

• Renter – House: eligible for a programmable thermostat, advanced power strip, LED light bulbs, insulation, and minor efficiency upgrades*

• Homeowner: eligible for some heating and cooling repairs or replacements, energy efficiency upgrades (or switching from gas to electric appliances), and electrical vehicle chargers

And for the disadvantaged areas, SMUD would also provide:

1.  Rate Assistance

Reduce bills via rate discounts:

• Energy Assistance Program Rate (EAPR)
• EAPR for non-profits (residential and commercial
• Medical Equipment Discount Rate (MED Rate)

1. Dwelling Assistance

Reduce energy burden, by improving energy efficiency and creating a safer, healthier home

• Virtual and in-person energy assessments and education
• Weatherization, energy efficiency, building & transportation electrification, and solar
• Energy saver bundles for renters

1. Bill Assistance

Reduce bills by applying funds: 

• EnergyHELP
• HEAP
• Community-based organizations
• Churches & Tribe commitments

1. Outreach & Education

Educate and inform:

• Networking and community meetings
• Workshops & trainings for communities
• Video, phone, email, and in-person energy education
• Outreach and communication about programs

By no means did we cover in this MeetUp all the things that could yield more savings in the home?  It is a topic we will continue to cover.

Here’s one we didn’t see coming:  Using the concrete slab on which your house is built as a 10 kWh storage unit at almost no additional cost.  How?  MIT researchers say to add carbon when it is poured.  The carbon creates its own electrode net.  It is not really a battery, but a capacitor instead—just a huge one.  In a capacitor, no electrochemistry is involved.   It just holds a separate positive and negative charge.  Usually, one thinks of capacitors as not delivering much energy.  But that’s different if it is as big as the slab foundation on a home or a big commercial building.  We have no idea how practical this discovery is or what it will cost, but it is not ready for prime time yet.  Read more about it here.

Putting Level 2 EV chargers in multifamily housing is one of the hottest areas of attention in the whole EV industry. A lot of people live in multifamily housing and want to do the majority of their charging there. Check out this article on all the options being proposed, many with innovations to reduce cost. The most intriguing are ways to share existing circuit capacity in a building so that huge utility service upgrades can be avoided. The article makes reference to about two dozen companies trying to break through in this market and how they are doing it. If you have any interest in opportunities in the multifamily market, be sure to read this article. It could save you a lot of time researching what solutions are out there.

Sometimes you just have to see a technology to “get it”. That’s what happened when we made the journey to the backwoods of El Dorado County to see what CR Flight was doing at its development shop. The article we published on them in April of 2021, based on an interview, has consistently been among the top 5 most-read articles we have ever done. It racks up substantial new views every month. We wanted to find out why. 

The answer is that CR Flight has done something pretty remarkable, which you cannot appreciate properly until you see it in operation. Clearly, they have impressed some substantial motor manufacturers with their demos at trade shows because they now have some of them very eager to get their hands on the technology.

In a nutshell, here is what the CR Flight team has done: In a standard electric motor, you bolt the shaft down, and the outside spins. That spinning part is the rotor, and it is an outside cover with permanent magnets. The inside part has all the coils and wires and it is called the stator. It doesn’t move. However, a lot of force is exerted on the mount to try to turn it in the opposite direction from the rotor. Newton’s Third Law and all that.

CR Flight’s out-of-the-box idea is to let them both spin and put a propeller on both the rotor and the stator. In this configuration, the stator is now an armature and is no longer static. A lot more thrust can be delivered from the same motor with less electricity being used. In fact, by actual measurement, 27 to 47% more thrust is needed because that sounds like magic; you have to see it to believe it. No laws of physics are violated. It just takes some clever engineering, which is now fully patented, to make it work. And a willingness to ignore people who said it was impossible.

What that added thrust means is drones that can deliver much larger packages, electric airplanes that are lighter and can go much farther on a single charge, and motors that can last much longer because they are running cooler as the armature is now spinning and sucking air through the motor.

The additional benefit of the counter-rotating props is that they cancel out the torque of the single propeller and the wasteful spill of energy, creating a spinning cone of air that provides lift. The energy now all goes into downforce. In the usual way of creating counter-rotating props, a complicated shaft-within-a-shaft design, and some gears are needed, all of which add a lot of weight. In the CR Flight approach, it is just some parts that bolt on either side of the motor case itself.

For a manufacturer of electric motors, the great advantage of CR Flight’s innovation is that it does not require any changes to the internals of the motor. Just modifications added outside of the motor housing.

For the past two years, CR Flight has been gathering data and documenting each of its claims. It has some enthusiastic followers now that have become believers, including one of the manufacturers of popular axial-flux electric motors for aircraft. It seems to be just the right innovation for these times when drones and electric passenger aircraft are looking for ways to squeeze out more range and carry heavier loads. These are not incremental improvements made by CR Flight, these are breakthrough-scale improvements that could be the key to getting the whole electric aircraft industry off the ground, pun intended.

The team is looking at other applications for its invention. The most obvious is to employ the same insight into electric drive motors for watercraft. Early test results show just about the same dramatic improvements in performance.

Their next step is to manufacture a small volume of products on behalf of interested manufacturers to get them hooked on the technology. Then they want to license several manufacturers to employ their innovation in particular markets.

Keep an eye on these guys.

Back in November, we alerted you to a potentially significant development in non-lithium long-duration storage.  One of the companies was Form Energy, which based its battery on oxidizing and reducing iron. Oxidized iron is, of course, also known as rust.  Clearly, iron is a lot cheaper and more abundant than lithium.  An iron-air battery was an old idea, but Form was touting a 100X improvement in cycle life with an initial 1 MW product that could hold 150 MWh of energy.  That put it squarely in the “desirable” range as a commercial product.  This first system is going to Great River Energy in Minnesota but has not yet been installed.

Now Form has signed a contract for two 10 MW, 1,000 MWh systems with XCEL Energy and a 15 MW system with a 1500 MWh capacity with Georgia Power.  As one commenter noted, the Georgia Power system would hold more MWh than all the other utility storage systems installed in the country to date.

Form’s battery releases energy slowly, so it is not really a technology ideal for EVs.  But slow discharge is perfect for long-duration applications.

You can read more about this update from this article and the company’s news release.

Did you miss out on our latest networking event? Well, no worries, because we’ve got something exciting coming up that you won’t want to miss! Picture this: an exciting networking session where you can kick back and relax at Lucid Winery. We recently had one on June 22, and let me tell you, it was a blast!

This wasn’t our first rodeo, though. We’ve already done one session like this before [blog], and it was a hit. Lucid Winery (next to the Fox and Goose on R Street) is the perfect spot for a meetup, and their drinks are pretty darn interesting too. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed!

We had a bunch of new faces join us along with our old pals. It was fantastic getting to know everyone and hearing about all the cool stuff they’re working on. Plus, we had the pleasure of co-hosting the event with JCT Growth, a Roseville-based company that specializes in helping businesses grow faster through Search Engine Optimization. Their work might seem like magic to the uninitiated, but if you want to take your business to the next level, Jesse and his team can work wonders. They’ve got some seriously practical advice to offer.

Speaking of connections, let me tell you a story. Our friend Adam Busch, who volunteered to help us out with a Techstars Weekend for cleantech companies a while back, introduced us to JCT. It just goes to show that you never know when an opportunity like that will lead to a valuable connection. It was so great to catch up with Adam again!

By the way, we purposely choose venues near the state agencies involved in clean tech. It’s a strategic move because we want to make it convenient for you to swing by after work. Trust me, you won’t regret it. You never know what you might learn or who you might meet. More connections mean more opportunities, right?

And hey, don’t just take my word for it. Check out what some of our attendees had to say:
[Insert awesome testimonials here]

So, mark your calendars and save the date for our next event. You won’t want to miss it! September 28th, 2023.
Come join us for an evening of great company, interesting conversations, and who knows, maybe even a little bit of magic. Can’t wait to see you there!