MILITARY SALUTES NEW ENERGY, PT. 1

Pentagon Prioritizes Pursuit Of Alternative Fuel Sources
Steve Vogel, April 13, 2009 (Washington Post)

"For the Defense Department, the largest consumer of energy in the United States, addiction to fuel has greater costs than the roughly $18 billion the agency spent on it last year.

"By some estimates, about half of the U.S. military casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan are related to attacks with improvised explosive devices on convoys, many of which are carrying fuel. As of March 20, 3,426 service members had been killed by hostile fire in Iraq, 1,823 of them victims of IEDs…"

A personnel energy system. (click to enlarge)

"Spurred by this grim reality, the Pentagon, which traditionally has not made saving energy much of a priority, has launched initiatives to find alternative fuel sources. The goals include saving money, preserving dwindling natural resources and lessening U.S. dependence on foreign sources…

"Other than fueling jet engines, the largest drain on U.S. military fuel supplies comes from running generators at forward operating bases. The Pentagon says that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have required more fuel on a daily basis than any other war in history. Since the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq began in 2001 and 2003, respectively, the amount of oil consumption at forward bases has increased from 50 million gallons to 500 million gallons a year."

The Tactical Garbage to Energy Refinery (TGER). (click to enlarge)

"To help reduce consumption, the Pentagon is using $300 million of the $7.4 billion it received from the economic stimulus package to accelerate existing programs for developing alternative fuels and saving energy…"

"Garbage, for example, is a commodity never in short supply when the Army goes to the field. A battalion-size forward operating base generates a ton of trash a day. The Pentagon is developing mobile units -- small enough to fit on a five-ton flatbed trailer -- that use an anaerobic microbial process to convert garbage into oil."

TGER at Camp Victory in Iraq. (click to enlarge)

"Two prototypes -- known as the Tactical Garbage to Energy Refinery -- were deployed to Iraq in the summer and were initially successful, converting field waste -- paper, plastic, cardboard and food slop -- into biofuel to power a 60-kilowatt generator…

"But the units were not particularly hardy and soon broke down. The stimulus money includes $7.5 million to develop a more rugged model…