Publications

• Using Multi-Criteria Decision Making and Linear Programming to Improve Federal
  Fleet Acquisition Strategies by Kristin Deason (Sentech)
  
  To reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy, address climate change, and improve environmental quality, the U.S. government requires federal agencies to take a leadership role in purchasing alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs), using alternative fuel, and reducing petroleum consumption. These requirements, while serving as an important component of the overall U.S. energy strategy, create challenges for federal fleet managers, many of whom oversee large, geographically dispersed fleets that perform a diverse array of functions.
  
  SENTECH, Inc. has developed and piloted a methodology to help agencies address these challenges. This methodology uses a structured approach to develop strategies for complying with federal fleet requirements while using agency resources as efficiently as possible. Specifically, the methodology employs multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) methods to identify and quantify agency priorities, in combination with a linear programming model to optimize the purchase of fleet vehicles based on these priorities. This paper presents an overview of this methodology and its capabilities.
• Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies--Status, Challenges, and Future Opportunities by JoAnn Milliken (U.S. Department of Energy [DOE]), David Bogomolny (Sentech, Inc.), and Joseph Stanford (Sentech, Inc.) Sentech analysts assisted in the writing of this paper for presentation at the "Hydrogen Technologies for the Developing World" Forum in Moscow, April 22-23, 2008. The paper summarizes the DOE strategy for overcoming the obstacles to the commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, and it provided key insights into the highly successful processes employed by DOE for involving stakeholders in all stages of its Hydrogen Program.
  
• Fuel Cell Sufficiency by JoAnn Milliken, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program Manager, and Joseph Stanford, Senior Analyst, Sentech, Inc.
  This article appeared in Issue 17 of "Freight Transport Review," a journal of PSCA International, Ltd., a firm that specializes in publications for public service professionals in the United Kingdom. It highlights what the Program views as the most significant potential benefits of fuel cells in a variety of sectors and how these relate to the development of the Program's strategy. It also documents some of the Program's key accomplishments and examples of progress to date.
• Renewable Hydrogen Production Around the Globe (June 2008)
  Renewable hydrogen production technologies offer a promising way to reduce greenhouse gases and other emissions. Many countries have launched projects to demonstrate the feasibility of these technologies in complete systems, collect data, and educate the public. In association with the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy (IPHE), Sentech, Inc. is conducting a survey of international renewable hydrogen production demonstration projects. The research will result in the publication of an educational report that is intended to be a valuable information source to policy makers, researchers, and the general public. This paper provides an overview of the project’s vision as well as preliminary findings.
• "Montana Should Take Lead on Renewable Energy" by Ted James, Sentech
  Article published in the Great Falls Tribune on May 2, 2008
  Green-collar jobs are growing, more renewable technologies are being commercialized, and there is a likely prospect of federal regulation of carbon in the next five years that will modify the business case for low-cost power generation. And Great Falls - a small community when compared to the juggernauts of energy use in America - is at a critical crossroads in the wider picture of influencing our country's energy future...
• Evaluation of Geothermal Hydrogen Production on the Big Island of Hawaii (2006)
  Sentech analysts and engineers were engaged in a project for U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Hydrogen and Geothermal Programs to perform an analysis to determine the quantity and cost of hydrogen that could be produced from known and forecast geothermal energy reserves on the Big Island of Hawaii. The project consisted of two phases: economic assessment and deployment planning.  To document the analysis, Sentech produced a report entitled “Economic Assessment of Hydrogen Generation for Transportation Applications Using Geothermal Energy on the Island of Hawaii.”  Building on this analysis, in the second phase, an investigation was conducted to determine whether and under what circumstances renewable hydrogen could compete with conventional energy carriers.  Based on this evaluation, a deployment strategy was developed along with a report entitled “A Rational Renewable Hydrogen Deployment Scenario for the Island of Hawaii.” 
  
• 2006 Update of Business Downtime Costs
  The objective of this paper — drafted for the Distributed Energy Program of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and cited in the Energy Policy Act 2005-mandated DOE study on the potential benefits of distributed generation and cogeneration — was to assess the cost of power outages to businesses in the commercial and industrial sectors using the best and most current data available, short of surveying a statistically significant pool of building owners. Using existing studies, a compilation can be made of data that 1) applies to a wider set of “industry” types, 2) reflects more current downtime costs, 3) accounts for the time duration factor of power outages, and 4) includes the range of costs imposed by real-world outages in a well-defined market.
• Protecting Critical Energy Infrastructure and Helping Communities Recover from Disaster with Distributed Energy Assets
  Following the terrorist attacks in 2001, the Northeast blackout in 2003, and natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, there is a new awareness of the need to protect critical infrastructure and facilities, to prepare for energy emergencies, and to have the capability to respond to emergencies and to help with the recovery of affected communities. Distributed energy assets (DEA) include onsite energy systems that are grid-integrated, standalone, deployable, dispatchable, and islandable. Examples of DEA cover a wide range of technologies: electric generators such as reciprocating engines, microturbines, turbines, fuel cells, Organic Rankin Cycle, Stirling engines, and solar photovoltaics (PV’s); combined heat and power (CHP) systems; solar thermal absorption cooling systems; electrical and thermal storage systems; and communications systems, smart local control systems, and demand response mechanisms for energy networks. These technologies can provide technically viable and economically feasible solutions that make America less vulnerable to energy emergencies caused by extraordinary events: natural disasters, accidents, and deliberate attacks.
• CHP in Food & Beverage Processing Industries
  This website was developed in conjunction with the U.S. Combined Heat and Power Association (CHP) and details the CHP opportunities, potential, market drivers, industry leaders, and relevant initiatives of cogeneration in nine food & beverage processing subsectors (by NAICS).
• Distributed Energy Case Study Database
  U.S. Department of Energy’s Distributed Energy Program searchable website with over 300 documented case studies from across the country.