“Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Kyushu Electric Power constructed a binary cycle geothermal generator (rated power output of 250kW) of small scale using hydro-fluoro-ether (HFE) for an alternative CFC in Yamakawa Power Plant of the latter (Kagoshima Prefecture), and started a two-year demonstration test on February 26. Kawasaki Heavy Industries carried out production and installation of the equipment.

This examination is intended to seek applicability of the “small-scale binary cycle generation” equipment which generates electricity using the power of expanded air brought by the vapor (80 to 120℃) exhausted from a thermal spring or a factory as well as hot water by evaporation of heated water with the alternative CFC of working medium at a low boiling point. If the equipment is found applicable to the geothermal power generation as a result of the examination, they say it could be introduced into a remote island where there are abundant thermal resources.

As the HFE utilizing a working medium has a boiling point of 30℃ or over with ozone depletion potential at zero, it has features to be non-flammable and to give a low global warming effect.

The geothermal generation is greatly hoped as one of the promising renewable energies, and in July 2012, a Feed-in Tariff system of renewable energies was put into force. There is a noticeable trend of support from the government for introduction of a small-scale binary cycle generation as seen in the deregulation of the Electricity Business Act in April of the same year. It seems that much attention will be focused on the demand for an alternative CFC like HFE or HFC245fa in tandem with this movement.”