The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) and Qnergy, the leader in pioneering solutions for the distributed methane challenge, have announced the completion of a three-year partnership resulting in the development of a stand-alone, hybrid NanoGrid Power Generation Package based on Qnergy’s PowerGen platform.
Ideal for electric vehicle (EV) charging, this hybrid technology creates an opportunity for a network of distributed, autonomous, resilient, and reliable charging stations powered by propane or other portable fuel. The PowerGen is a unique product, capable of serving the needs of many distributed, small, prime-power loads without the complications associated with deploying typical grid technology at remote or stand-alone job sites.
“We appreciated the opportunity to partner with Qnergy and bring together the clean and portable benefits of propane with the incredible reliability and low-maintenance requirements of their PowerGen product,” says PERC’s Jim Bunsey. “This combination creates a clean, efficient, resilient, and versatile solution to distributed power challenges.”
Qnergy’s PowerGen series, driven by a unique, externally heated Stirling engine, is a thermal-powered generator, engineered to operate with minimal maintenance requirements while supplying grid-quality power. Capable of operating on multiple fuel sources, including propane, natural gas, and carbon-neutral renewable fuels, the generator provides a resilient power solution that can be customized to meet a wide range of customer challenges. The demonstration module can be made portable with a smaller liquified petroleum gas (LPG) tank, enabling customers to transport the system within a charging network, based on commuter charging demand.
The partnership featured a first-of-its-kind demonstration of a PowerGen NanoGrid module combined with a Parafour Innovations refilling station, which provided charging for multiple EVs or onsite propane tank refilling. Qnergy uses the Parafour equipment to refill tanks for its small fleet of propane forklifts, but the equipment is dually capable of filling LP-equipped fleet or commuter vehicles. The PowerGen hybrid met key performance metrics while delivering configurable user power and energy. Additionally, PowerGen boasts low-NOx and CO2 emissions, far below EPA requirements from a small propane-powered generator.
“PERC has been an outstanding partner to work with, and their support and collaboration have been pivotal in identifying opportunity and achieving these breakthroughs,” says Qnergy’s CEO, Dr. Ory Zik. “This technology is a testament to Qnergy’s ability to deliver customized products for the most unique customer situations. Implementation and continued development of these solutions is key to reducing emissions and building a more sustainable future.”
For more information on Qnergy’s methane abatement and remote power solutions, visit: https://qnergy.com/productlines/.
ABOUT PERC
The Propane Education & Research Council is a nonprofit that provides leading propane safety and training programs and invests in research and development of new propane-powered technologies. PERC is operated and funded by the propane industry. For more information, visit Propane.com.
ABOUT QNERGY
Qnergy is dedicated to solving the distributed methane challenge. Leveraging the exceptional capabilities of our linear Free Piston Stirling Engine, we harness low-grade, otherwise polluting, methane into useful power. We have already deployed thousands of units, leading to emission reduction of millions of tonnes of CO2e.