GE Reinvents the Fridge
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 10.30.08
Over the past few years we have waited for GE's ecomagination to change from pretty pictures to reality, and now we are beginning to see the results. In 2009 they are rolling out "Smart" Energy Management Enabled Appliances that can talk to the electric utility to manage loads and reduce peak power demand. VP Kevin Nolan explains:
''Peak hour energy demand is growing faster than total energy demand. It is imperative that we begin to shift some of the energy load from peak hours to other parts of the day -- helping to avoid the need to build new power plants to meet the demand."
Which is impressive, considering that GE also builds power plants.
Nolan continues:
''At GE, we believe that peak load reduction is the next opportunity in energy saving appliances. We believe that smart, energy management enabled appliances will be the next phase of innovation,'' explained Nolan. ''It's not enough to simply use less power, as Energy Star encourages today, we now need to consume our power more intelligently.''
For example, the automatic defrost feature uses more electricity. If the refrigerator can delay the defrost cycle from occurring during peak energy usage hours, consumers will save money by paying for the same amount of energy, later in the day and at a lower rate.
Washers, dryers dishwashers and ranges will also get smart, with displays that notify users of rate changes and critical peak pricing, and will be programmed to avoid energy use at those times. ("sorry dear, dinner is late because the stove won't turn on") -no, customers will be able to over-ride it and pay through the nose for their kilowatt-hours. GE Press Release
In another move, GE is getting rid of hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) based refrigerants, replacing them with isobutane. This is used in Europe and Asia now to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from HCFCs, but does not have EPA approval in the States, perhaps because it is highly flammable. VP Kevin Nolan says they are dealing with that:
“Our goal is to deliver a new GE Monogram refrigerator that will be ENERGY STAR qualified, and that will conform to GE and third-party safety standards for the use of hydrocarbon refrigerants, including specifically the standards that address any flammability risks associated with the use of hydrocarbon refrigerants."
the NRDC likes the idea:
“The fridge for the 21st century must use less energy and run on refrigerants that don’t add to global warming, while meeting all safety standards,” said David Doniger, climate policy director for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “The companies that win will be those that bring these smarter, cleaner, and safer products to market, and build them here in America. GE is taking an important first step to making the use of efficient, low-GWP refrigerants a reality."
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Now this is encouraging. GE is big, very big, so anything they do has the potential for very big impacts. If they are thinking seriously about power demand management and reducing peak loads (smoothing out peaks and valleys in demand) then we should all be very happy.
Still, we have a long way to go- many people pay the same electric rate all the time, regardless of demand, and it's going to take concerted effort to change that at anything but a snail's pace. A smarter grid and smarter electric meters would be an important step, too.
But the end goal is pretty clear, and I'm glad GE seems to recognize it.
Note that GE also makes wind turbines. Having fridges that can time their energy use to when wind turbines are producing it makes it possible to put more wind turbines on the grid. So they've got a good incentive to make this work. Which is a great thing for the world.
All I saw was they added a clock to the fridge so it defrosts at night. Probably $500 more. This is something they could have done with all refrigerators decades ago.
Refrigerators and air conditioners can be made to heat water as well as be cooled by the incoming flow.