Shifting from coal to natural gas would have limited impacts on climate—and it could even slightly accelerate global warming at least through 2050—suggests a new study from the federally funded National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).

By Kennedy Maize Washington, D.C., September 12, 2011, 9:30 a.m. — There are multiple reports this morning of an explosion at the French nuclear site at Marcoule. According to the BBC, one person has been killed and four injured. Few details are available. This morning’s New York Times said French nuclear regulators had confirmed the […]

By Kennedy Maize Washington D.C., September 9, 2011 — Pondering the collapse of solar PV manufacturer Solyndra and the earlier business failures of Evergreen Solar and SpectraWatt, all recipients of Department of Energy loan guarantees, several points seem clear to me. The first is that the Obama administration has made a mistake by investing economic […]

California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) last week signed into law a bill that extends an expedited permitting process previously limited to large-scale solar projects to wind and geothermal projects planned for installation in California’s Mojave and Colorado Deserts.

President Obama on Friday scuttled the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) smog rule, saying that he had underscored the importance of reducing regulatory burdens and uncertainty. The decision has dealt a blow to environmental groups—which are contemplating legal action—and won the Democratic president praise from Republicans and industry groups.

Solyndra, the manufacturer of cylindrical solar photovoltaic panels, which had been granted the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) first ever loan guarantee funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, on Tuesday filed for bankruptcy protection. The move follows the California company’s decision last week to shut down its Fremont factory and lay off 1,100 employees and contractors because it could not compete with low-cost manufacturers from other countries.

Louisiana-based engineering firm the Shaw Group on Tuesday said it would sell its 20% stake in nuclear plant company Westinghouse back to partner Toshiba—forcing the Japanese company to raise its holding to 87%. Shaw said it would continue to work as a consortium team member with Westinghouse in the deployment and commercialization of the third-generation AP1000 reactor currently under construction in China and the state of Georgia.

Analysis from research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan shows that the steam and gas turbines market in Europe—which has seen an all-time low in the past two years—is expected to pick up in the medium-to-long term, even though the sector has been hard-hit by uncertainties concerning carbon trading, power industry legislation, and commodity price surges.

All nuclear plants in the U.S. continued to operate safely, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said as it announced it had issued mid-cycle assessment letters to the nation’s 104 operating commercial nuclear plants.

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday awarded more than $145 million for 69 projects in 24 states to help shape the next generation of solar energy technologies as part of its SunShot Initiative. That announcement was followed yesterday by one concerning funding for a more established renewable power generation technology. The DOE and Department of the Interior announced nearly $17 million in funding over the next three years for research and development projects to advance hydropower technology.

By John Egan Lafayette, Colo., September 5, 2011 — “A live electric wire just fell on a bus full of senior citizens—what do you do?” No, that wasn’t a line from Dennis Hopper in the movie Speed. In fact, it was an interview question I was asked when I was being interviewed to become a […]

China in July flicked on its experimental fast reactor—the first built in the nation, and the first of many more to come. The China Experimental Fast Reactor (CEFR), whose development began in 1995, is a pool-type sodium-cooled reactor with a thermal output of 65 MW and an electrical output of 20 MW. The reactor is housed in a 44,000-square-meter (473,610-square-foot) building.

Marcellus Shale gas has increased recoverable natural gas reserves in the U.S. by about a third over estimates prepared a few years ago. Europe is also exploring shale gas as an alternative to problematic Russian gas supplies and low proven natural gas reserves. POWER contributors in the U.S. and UK examine the comparative economic value, public acceptance, and political implications of these massive shale gas reserves.

(WEB EXCLUSIVE) Much has transpired during the nearly six months following the Great East Japan Earthquake—a 3-minute, magnitude 9.0 temblor that generated a series of tsunami waves as tall as 38.9 meters (130 feet), killed more than 25,000 people, and set off the worst nuclear disaster in 25 years.

A brush fire that spread and detonated explosives stored at the Evangelos Florakis naval base in Mari on the southern coast of Cyprus on July 11 killed 13 people, injured 62 others, and severely damaged the Vassilikos Power Station—an oil- and gas-fired plant that supplied almost 60% of the island nation’s power. Cyprus, which was once considered an “economic miracle,” has been battling crippling power shortages that have beleaguered its financial and tourism sectors since the blast and left it on the verge of economic collapse.

Recent advances in water laboratory instrumentation—from improved sample conditioning to advanced online instruments—have reached the market. Here’s a look at the equipment you’ll find in the best-equipped power plant laboratory this year.

Since a landmark 2008 deal that lifted global sanctions and allowed countries to conduct nuclear trade with India, the nation struggling to keep up with domestic power demand has signed deals with the U.S., France, Russia, Canada, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Argentina, Namibia, and, in August, South Korea, for construction of large nuclear power plants (in technical collaboration with foreign vendors) or for nuclear fuel.

As barriers to new coal-fired generation expand and enthusiasm for nuclear plants wanes, the commissioning of natural gas–fired plants promises to increase. However, gas plants pose hazards, too. An explosion last year that was caused by unsafe use of natural gas to blow residue from a gas pipeline during commissioning of a gas-fired power plant has focused regulator and industry attention on finding safer alternatives for this task. Fluor shares its gas pipeline cleaning best practices.

In Spain this June, a new 19.9-MW concentrated solar power (CSP) tower in Fuentes de Andalucía, Seville, reached the unprecedented milestone of storing thermal energy to its fullest capacity and supply power for an uninterrupted 24-hour period.

The major economic hurdle for renewable power generation technologies continues to be substantial installation costs. But another cost is associated with continuous load-balancing, made possible by backstopping that variable generation with dispatchable generators that typically consume expensive fossil fuels. Bottom line: Who pays for the capacity firming or backstopping resources?

One of the world’s first breakwater wave power stations was commissioned this July by Ente Vasco de Energia (EVE), an energy agency in the northern Basque region of Spain. The €2.3 million ($3.3 million) project in Mutriku uses oscillating water column technology developed by Voith Hydro’s Wavegen, based in Inverness, Scotland. The technology is integrated into a concrete power station built on a breakwater or coastal protection project.

Moyno introduced the Moyno 2000 WA and WB close-coupled pumps designed for lower-pressure, lower-flow applications that do not require the full features and benefits of the Moyno 2000 GI pump. The Moyno 2000 WA (shown here) and WB models are ideal for municipal and industrial applications that require the transfer of highly viscous fluids and […]

As it does for sectors such as global defense and transportation, nanotube technology holds great promise for the energy sector—and, in particular, for power generation. This July, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) said carbon nanotubes showed potential as an innovative approach to storing solar energy, and Rice University scientists claimed they were closer to developing a unique wire that could transmit power with few losses.

Cat Pumps launched a new series of glycol pumps developed to supply triethylene glycol for natural gas dehydration systems. System reliability, especially of the pump, is essential to minimize production interruptions and costly equipment failures. The TEG triglycol pumps have been field-proven in the most rigorous dehydration systems, Cat Pumps says. The electric engine–driven TEG […]

What the summer heat wave, and one utility’s less-than-stellar response, teaches us about communicating with customers.

Australia Pursues Carbon Tax. Australia’s Prime Minister Julia Gillard on July 10 laid out an ambitious plan to cut national greenhouse gas emissions by 5% of 2000 levels by 2020 by imposing a A$23 (US$23.4) per metric ton carbon tax, starting next year. If parliament approves the plan before year-end, the carbon tax will increase […]

Air Liquide America Specialty Gases equipment group recently announced the introduction of a comprehensive line of “industrial grade” equipment for use with gases commonly used in welding, cutting, and other industrial applications, as well as with liquid cryogenics. The equipment is ideally suited for use with Air Liquide brands of industrial gases such as ALIGAL, […]

While the vast power of one form of energy below Earth’s crust (tectonic plate shifts) doomed the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan last March, using another form—heat and steam—is getting renewed attention in the wake of the Japanese meltdown.

Now that many flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems are reaching middle age, corrosion repairs of structural and process vessels are becoming more common. Corrosion is caused by condensates of acids formed during the FGD process, which accelerate pitting and crevice corrosion, particularly in scrubbers where high sulfate solutions are present. Scrubbers lined with 2205 duplex stainless steel are among the most vulnerable to pit or crevice corrosion, from both chlorides and fluorides.

It is fair to say that 2011 is bringing some uncertainty into the nuclear energy industry. The tsunami and subsequent events at Fukushima present Japan and our industry with new challenges but also serve as a catalyst for continuous improvement. In the U.S., we are learning from these events and improving our operations, designs, and emergency response approaches to make our plants safer, more efficient, and more environmentally friendly.