APOLLO 2

SOLAR ENERGY MEETS THE NEW GLOBAL CHALLENGE

SOLAR FACT GUIDE

2002 Update of gas line considerations based on the January 2002 presentation by Dr. Ron Oligney, University of Houston.

Gas Line Futures

Methane Madness

A Hydrogen-Capable Natural Gas Pipeline for Alaska?
(William Leighty, et al. 2004)

Sustainability Future

This paper "Taking a Few Energetic Strides Toward A Sustainable Future" is to date the most concise and descriptive paper attempting the demonstration of ways Alaska could function with sustainable renewable energy. I focus on wind, PV solar, and hydroelectricity as the major sources relying mostly on available data from both my own research and the Federal Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the United States, and past studies by the Corps of Engineers on hydroelectric potential of Alaska. This is to date the best and most concise paper I've written on renewable energy future and most represents the philosophical intent of this website.

A Sustainable Alaska: Could We Do It?

Introduction
Chapter 1 - Energy Conservation and Durable Buildings
Chapter 2 - Wind For Alaska
Chapter 3 - Solar & Photovoltaic Energy
Chapter 4 - Hydrogen: The Solution to Energy Storage(?)
Chapter 5 - Hydroelectricity

Whole Earth Review 1997

This article entitled "Places to Intervene in a System" presents an important, unique view for how one approaches the overarching prospect of changing a paradigm. This article was one of the last major contributions by Donella Meadows, a brilliant creative force for change in America and throughout the world, and a vital thinker in academia (Dartmouth College). The article provides guidance for activism and instructions for becoming an effective agent of change for a better world.

The Short Trip from Bad Teeth to Torture
Or, Toothless in America

July 12, 2002 - This paper "Controlling Indoor Air Quality in Subarctic Houses" is by Richard D. Seifert, Jack W. Schmid Jr., and Dr. Ronald A. Johnson. It is the third technical paper produced this year (2001) by our triumvirate collaboration and the only one of the three on which I, Rich Seifert, am first author. This paper was presented at the 6th Symposium on Building Physics in the Nordic Countries, held in Trondheim, Norway, June 17-19, 2002. It was peer reviewed for acceptance and is published in the proceedings of the conference on-line.
The paper describes interesting insights into the effect of exhaust-only ventilation systems in the climate and conditions of Interior Alaska. Also of intereset are radon implications for exhaust-only ventilation systems.

This paper was presented at the National Association of Corrosion Engineers in Anchorage, Alaska on 27th February, 2001 by Rich Seifert. The paper covers a series of incidents regarding durability of various fasteners and hardware for Arctic and Subarctic climates. The experience is generally confined to the Alaskan context and to residential buildings. All of these fastener and rain shielding connective devices are subject to high stresses, corrosion potential requiring moisture control, and detail execution of high quality. Achieving this quality is one of the major thrusts for building science and contractor licensure education in Alaska. Of additional interest for a case study is the effort to create a tradition of building with an exterior ventilated cladding design for coastal climates in Alaska. The concept involves shielding the wall, and allowing it to dry quickly, preventing corrosion and rot damage in wood construction in a very intense, rain dominated, windy climate. Recommendations for new high quality products, and related research regarding corrosion considerations in construction detailing are included in this paper.

The following is a journal of a trip made (with Jack Schmid), to Japan as an invited scholar to present a keynote address at an international conference at Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan. This fortunate circumstance came about through an earlier visit from a Japanese scientist and professor, Dr. Shintaro Yokoyama who came to visit with me and local ventilation expert Phil Loudon in late December 1999, and got some data for a paper for the conference which I was ultimately invited to attend. And even more wonderful, I was offered money to cover the travel to Sapporo to give a keynote paper on our Alaskan experience.

What follows is a personal journal of a three week long Fulbright Summer Study to Germany in which I, Rich Seifert, participated during June 1999. A Summer Study is very different from a year long Fulbright. But it was definitely one of the best and most stimulating three weeks of educational insight of my professional life. The rich and varied experiences included: a view of the new modern Bundestag in rapidly rebuilding Berlin; a wind presentation on the progress of wind energy efforts in Hamburg; the architectural usefulness and utilization of glass encased photovoltaic panels in a little rust belt Ruhr Valley community called Gelsenkirchen; and the quiet and happy successes of Greenpeace activists, also in Hamburg. There were moments riding in solar cars and watching beautiful Enercon windmills, kinetic sculptures which they are; visiting the chilling basement in the former STASI headquarters in East Berlin where there are 111 miles of files documenting the spying of former East Germans on other East Germans; the unexpected grandeur of the old heart of Leipzig; the tour to the strip-mined, brown coal lignite areas; and the gorgeous drive from Leipzig to Munich punctuated by windmills and rain showers. And finally, Munich and the spectacular visit to Oberösterreich, with its solar and wood pellet family house; and the breathtaking view of Salzburg and the final celebratory meal in the oldest restaurant in Central Europe, the Stiftskellar. One of the benchmark experiences of my professional life, which I want to share with others. It sets a pace for how to proceed toward the renewable energy transition I hope for.

This is a rather unique and unexpected paper drawing analogies between Alaska and desert regions. I was invited to give a paper because of a long and ancient connection I have with a professor in building science, a native of Egypt named Ramy El-Diasty who is now the Dean of the Unted Arab Emirates University, School of Engineering and Architecture. He invited me to give a paper to this conference and at first, even though I thought it was a rather wide leap to make, it turned out to have some very fruitful and interesting comparisons because of the resource base similarities which the United Arab Emirates and Alaska have, and the somewhat similar size of their populations. Both political entities need to address sustainability with the resources they have and that was the focus of this conference. The paper unfortunately, now lacks the graphics I hope we add them shortly and when we do I'll delete this part from the overview. The paper draws very interesting comparisons about various aspects of sustainable architecture, sustainable resource use, and architectural integration of daylighting. A personal journal of this trip can be seen in Abu Dhabi Trip.