U.S. wind power is on a roll, with wind farms sprouting like weeds. But in the near future, utilities may end up paying higher prices for wind capacity because state…
Power
Monthly Issue | May 15, 2006
Nuclear hot streak continues U.S. nuclear power plants kept operating at high levels of safety and efficiency in 2005, according to performance indicators compiled by the World Association of Nuclear…
Desalination, Italian style Reverse osmosis (RO) technology has been available for all aspects of water treatment for the past 40 years. The use of RO desalination systems grew rapidly following…
Steven F. Greenwald and Christopher A. Hilen Utility regulators in California and other states have begun subjecting power plants to extensive oversight of their O&M activities. These oversight programs…
The Valley of the Sun went off the water wagon on March 4, ending a record 136 consecutive days without measurable rainfall. That first 0.05-inch sip, followed by a 0.18-inch…
The hurricane season of 2005 produced two of the most destructive storms in U.S. history: Katrina, a Category 3 hurricane that made its second landfall in Buras, La., on August…
Recent, widespread additions of scrubbers and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems at U.S. coal-fired power plants have significantly reduced concentrations of the pollutants SO2 and NOx in America’s air. But…
The alchemy of burning any solid fuel-including coal-requires mixing fuel and air in just the right proportion at just the right time. Get the recipe wrong, and reduced efficiency and…
Three years ago, an article in POWER described how Cheng Power Systems, by modifying the combustors of several popular gas turbines, had used steam injection to lower the units’ NOx…
If engineered well and drained properly, a simple finned-tube heat exchanger can help maximize a fossil-fueled power plant’s combustion efficiency, capacity, and air pollution reduction. Use the guidelines in this…