http://www.powermag.com POWER Mag en-us 2012 Tue, 7 Feb 2012 23:33:59 EST Handheld smart devices providing custom applications and Internet access at the touch of a virtual button are common today. Hidden beneath their touchscreens is a global network of digital technologies that respond to each command. Will these familiar commercial technologies and apps make their way to industrial digital control systems?... http://www.powermag.com/issues/cover_stories/4327.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST Asset management means different things to different people. But it boils down to converting raw data and observations about equipment and components into information and knowledge that is then used, propagated, and shared by workers and digital components to manage performance. Nuclear plants have special asset management needs, given the level of their safety, reliability, and regulatory requirements.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/cover_stories/4328.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST The enhanced plant performance achieved at the 1,477-MW Morgantown Generating Station shows the value of model predictive control in conjunction with intelligent distributed control algorithms. This project update looks at how the project team moved from ramp rate improvements to reducing tube metal temperatures to improved component life.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/cover_stories/4329.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST Control loop performance-monitoring software can help to improve loop performance at electric power plants by automatically collecting data, assessing several aspects of loop performance, and providing the results in reports and user interfaces.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/cover_stories/4330.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST The consideration of power supplies has become critical to the success of converting analog instrumentation and control systems to digital control systems (DCSs). Careful planning is particularly necessary for nuclear power plants, where instrumentation systems are required for safely shutting down a reactor, mitigating the consequences of an accident, and performing post-accident analysis.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/cover_stories/4331.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST Brazil’s power industry has long been dominated by its vast hydro resources, which historically have accounted for over 80% of the country’s generation capacity. With engineering marvels like the massive Itaipú dam and the proposed Belo Monte project, the country is a leader in the development and use of hydroelectricity on a grand scale. But as the 2001 energy crisis proved, dependence on a single source leaves the country vulnerable to severe shortages. Thanks to government programs designed to take advantage of the country’s favorable climate, Brazil is committed to diversifying its energy mix while continuing to maintain a renewable energy focus.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/features/4333.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST In January 2012 a new mercury control system at the Colstrip power plant in Montana reached its first major milestone: two years of operation with mercury emissions below the state regulatory limit. The plant uses Alstom’s unique Mer-Cure technology to capture up to 90% of the mercury leaving the stack.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/features/4337.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST In a power plant, the primary use of vacuum systems is to remove air and other noncondensable gases from the shell side of the condenser in order to maintain design heat transfer and thus design vacuum. If holding condenser vacuum is a persistent problem, one often-overlooked cause is an inadequately sized vacuum system.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/features/4338.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST Compressible fluid flow through control valves will inevitably cause some form of flow-induced vibration in the fluid system. Identifying the type and cause of the vibration requires detective work. Determining the design changes required in the valve and fluid system to prevent the vibration from occurring requires advanced analytical techniques.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/features/4339.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST When then-President George W. Bush signed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, he noted that, “New technologies will help usher in a better quality of life for our citizens.” One provision of the act required an increase in the efficiency of newly manufactured lightbulbs, starting with 100-watt incandescent bulbs in 2012.... http://www.powermag.com/issues/departments/speaking_of_power/4315.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 0:00:00 EST