Renewable Energy Alternatives: A Best Practices Manual for Stantec Consulting
Jenna Beatty, Jenny Lund, and Calvin Robertie
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Department of Civil Engineering
Advised By: Fred Hart, Suzanne LePage, and Klaas Rodenburg (Stantec Consulting)
Abstract
Methods/Process
BPM Application
The goal of this project was to develop a Renewable Energy Best
Practices Manual for Stantec Consulting Ltd. The manual will be used
by Stantec employees for assessing renewable energy alternatives at a
specific location. The information researched for each option was
current technology, best location, cost range, efficiency, and
downsides/environmental impacts. The manual also includes a
checklist and comparison table of each of the renewable energy
alternatives, as well as fossil fuels.
In this project the feasibility of future renewable and sustainable
energy alternatives was analyzed. In order to reach the final goal of
creating a BPM, the following steps were taken:
• Research renewable energy alternatives, ensuring validity of the
resources used.
An arbitrary site was chosen to analyze using the BPM. The analysis
process is as follows:
•Determine most applicable system using comparison table. Solar
panels and GSHP were eliminated, leaving micro-hyropower as the
best option.
•Determine power requirements necessary for a typical home by
creating a load variation chart.
Topic
Biomass
Subcategories
 Wood
 Waste-to-Energy
 Algae
 Landfill Gas
 Biodiesel
Geothermal
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Background
•Renewable energies increasingly need to be used to preserve our Earth.
Despite the fact that renewables are being rapidly developed, traditional
power generators still create most of the power consumed.
Hydropower
Solar
Wind
Ground Source (GSHP)
Deep Well
Micro-Hydro
Tidal
Wave
Photovoltaic
Concentrated
Onshore
Offshore
• Determine the feasibility considerations of a particular
renewable energy option.
• Compile findings into a BPM
• Develop a checklist to help determine which renewable energy
option is most applicable in a particular situation.
•On a 2030 timeline there is an expected increase in renewable used,
however due to the growing population there is also an expected increase
in traditional power usage.
Results
• Determine actual power generated knowing turbine efficiency
•Perform a feasibility study to ensure the site is suitable for a microhydropower system.
•Design system.
•A BPM with detailed information on the topics listed above
•A comparison table complies all of the technologies, as well as fossil
fuel data, to compare data. Below is an example of the table.
Landfill Gas
• Various organizations and engineering firms are working to develop
renewable energy technologies, Stantec included.
•No document with a compilation of renewable energy information.
•Stantec needed a resource to provide to it’s engineers to quickly bring
them to speed on the current technologies available.
•Determine power generated by the river using the stream flow and
head differential.
Open Loop GSHP
PV Solar
Technology
Vertical Wells Well/Surface Water
Single Crystal
Location
Existing Fills
Near Surface Water
Anywhere
Cost
$0.04/kW
$2,500/ton of
heating/cooling
$0.10 /kW
Efficiency
40% to 80%
300% to 600%
5% to 20%
Downsides
Low Heating
Capacity
Environmental
Regulations
Toxic
Chemicals Used
in Panels
General Info.
Clean Water Needed Expensive
•The checklist allows an engineer to get a better understanding of the
renewable energy alternative and can use it to determine if it is viable
or not.
Conclusions/Recommendations
•All the World’s power could come from renewable resources
•A huge financial investment is needed.
•Hybrid power plants (a combination of traditional and renewable
energy) should be considered.