The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday filed a 48-page appeal asking the five-member board at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to set aside an application for the Yucca Mountain waste repository project. The agency said that Energy Secretary Steven Chu had the authority to halt the project.

By Kennedy Maize Washington, D.C., July 8, 2010 — It’s become a cliche that government should not try to pick winners and losers in the marketplace. But cliches are useful by the circumstance that they are often correct. So now we come to government loan guarantees, a classic example of government picking winners and losers. […]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed regulations on Tuesday to tackle power plant pollution that drifts across the borders of 31 eastern states and the District of Columbia. Replacing the Bush-era Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), the proposed “transport” rule seeks to reduce power plant emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) to meet state-by-state emission reductions.

Six Japanese companies established a joint venture on Tuesday to propose new nuclear projects abroad. The companies are Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), Chubu Electric, Kansai Electric, Toshiba, Hitachi, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI).

The Department of Energy (DOE) last week offered a $1.45 billion conditional loan guarantee to Spain’s Abengoa to finance the construction and start-up of a concentrating solar power (CSP) generating facility in Solana, Ariz. The facility, which Abengoa claims will be the “largest CSP plant in the world,” will use the first six-hour thermal energy storage system in the U.S.

The DOE awarded a $400 million conditional loan guarantee to Abound Solar Manufacturing for the assembly of thin-film, cadmium-telluride solar modules. The project will allow the manufacturing technology to be commercially deployed for the first time ever.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) last week that will strengthen the working relationship between the two agencies regarding future development of commercial renewable offshore energy projects on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf.

The DOE today announced it would fund 10 projects aimed at developing advanced technologies for capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from coal combustion. The projects, valued at up to $67 million over three years, focus on reducing the energy and efficiency penalties associated with applying currently available carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies to existing and new power plants.

A study released last week by the nonprofit American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) concludes that smart metering initiatives alone are not enough to save energy.

Re: “Natural Gas Piping: It’s Time for Better Risk Control,” by John Puskar, PE (May 2010) Mr. Puskar’s recommendations to address the hazards associated with purging and blowing natural gas from large industrial piping systems are a significant contribution to the dialogue that is taking place on this important subject. Mr. Puskar correctly identifies two […]

The sturdy design of CONSPEC Controls’ new Allen Bradley PLC-Equipped Multi-Channel controller makes it ideal for coal-fired power plants needing to detect carbon dioxide and combustible gases through a variety of sensor types. Preprogrammed and calibrated at the CONSPEC factory, the controller is capable of multipoint detection on a single power and communication line. This […]

A group of 14 international academics from a variety of fields, under the auspices of the London School of Economics and Politics, have produced a paper calling for a new approach to the failed Kyoto Protocol model for dealing with global warming, scrapping the notion of emissions reductions.

The FIFA World Cup, the biggest sports event on the planet, is under way in South Africa through July 11. More than 300,000 fans are expected to attend the global soccer tournament, and hundreds of millions more will be watching on television. But a focus will also be on South Africa itself, which 20 years ago ended apartheid and has spent the following decades in a recovery process. And the pressure is on for Eskom, South Africa’s state-owned utility, which generates nearly 95% of the nation’s power (and 45% of Africa’s total).

Cyberex CyberWave from Thomas & Betts Power Solutions incorporates the Cyberex patented digital static transfer switch design, which increases redundancy and reliability. Additional benefits include a full-color VGA touch screen, which allows for easy operation and monitoring with minimal engagement, as well as Modbus communications and advanced battery management capabilities to ensure accurate system analysis. […]

One of the world’s largest geothermal power stations was officially opened this May on New Zealand’s North Island. A joint venture between Mighty River Power and Tauhara North No. 2 Trust, the new 140-MW Nga Awa Purua Geothermal Power Station increases geothermal’s share of power in New Zealand to around 14%—a proportion that has more than doubled since 2005.

Extreme Outback Products introduced the ExtremeAire Triton, which it says could be the world’s first submersible continuous-duty electric compressor. For uses that include air-suspension inflation, powering pneumatic tools, and actuating air lockers and train horns, the fully sealed Triton has a 100% duty cycle. Crucial components include a 1.5-horsepower fan-cooled motor and other parts shared […]

The gas-rich emirate of Qatar, holder the world’s third-largest gas reserves, inaugurated another massive 2,000-MW gas power plant in the industrial city of Mesaieed, south of the capital Doha this May.

Instrumentation specialist Ashtead Technology has launched the Handy Search, a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) that the company says provides a fast, easy way to examine reinforced concrete, bridges, roadways, tunnels, and buildings for inspection. The Handy Search is also useful for maintenance and quality assurance because it allows users to search for steel reinforcement bars, gas […]

Alstom and Schneider Electric Close AREVA T&D Acquisition Deal. Alstom and Schneider Electric on June 7 closed a €2.29 billion (US$2.75 billion) transaction to acquire AREVA’s transmission and distribution arm, AREVA T&D, after obtaining approvals from relevant competition authorities and the French Commission des Participations et des Transferts. A consortium agreement for the joint acquisition […]

A new continuous particulate emissions monitor and baghouse filter leak analyzer incorporates automatic self-checks (zero and span) to ASTM standards to automate compliance with regulatory requirements for periodic instrument validation. The particulate monitor also features system checks to simplify installation and setup and to improve overall performance. Benefits include stack monitoring, detecting filter leaks, eliminating […]

A federal judge recently dismissed a lawsuit in which the plaintiffs alleged that defendants’ production of chemicals and electricity had “added to the ferocity of Hurricane Katrina.” The judge’s reasoning reveals the inherent limitations of courts unilaterally initiating policies to address climate change issues.

Endress+Hauser announced the Deltatop differential pressure (DP) flowmeter for measuring gas, liquid, and steam in ½-inch to 24-inch pipes. The company said that Deltatop is a complete flow monitoring solution, including an averaging pitot tube, and offers customers the most accurate and reliable DP flow technology in the industry. The flowmeter features precision-machined orifice plate […]

It’s no surprise that China leads the world in recent power capacity additions. What may surprise you is the precise mix of options this vast country is relying upon to meet its ever-growing demand for electricity. As a result, this ancient civilization is fast becoming the test bed and factory for the newest generation and transmission technologies.

Degree Controls has introduced AccuSense F333 air velocity sensors, a series of low-cost airflow sensors designed for field systems. The AccuSense F333 provides air velocity measurements within the range of 0.2 m/s to 10 m/s (40–2,000 fpm) while maintaining a ±10% accuracy across a temperature range of 15C to 60C with a 2% or better […]

Regenerative activated coke technology (ReACT) is an integrated multipollutant control approach that removes SO_x, NO_x, and Hg from coal-fired plants by adsorption with activated coke to attain emissions levels found at natural gas–fired plants. One big advantage of this technology is that it uses only a fraction of the water used by conventional wet flue gas desulfurization. A recent license agreement brings this technology to the U.S.

It is clear that energy use will expand in the future as our population and society’s standard of living increase. Meanwhile, the push toward a sustainable lifestyle requires that all resources be utilized efficiently and sparingly. The National Academy of Sciences has identified paradigm shifts from current processes to an ideal vision centered on renewable energy and an atom economy—defined as maximum incorporation of starting materials into final products. These seemingly disparate paths converge if one considers energy production from municipal solid waste (MSW).

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission puts fire at the top of its safety concerns, calculating that fire constitutes half of all reactor safety risks, and lately fire safety has again become a major industry issue. For example . . .

Cap-and-trade programs are featured in at least two U.S. legislative proposals to reduce carbon emissions, usually by around 80% by 2050 using a 2005 baseline. The benefits that accrue from the immense investment required to reach these goals are nebulous and don’t occur until decades after the investment. Based on my back-of-the-envelope analysis, the cost-benefit ratio of these proposals does not pass a cursory cost-benefit analysis.

Circulating fluid bed (CFB) dry scrubbing technologies provide distinct advantages over conventional spray dryer absorber scrubbers for removing SO₂ from flue gases. The CFB also competes well against wet limestone flue gas desulfurization processes typically favored for large boilers firing high-sulfur coals. With high SO₂ removal rates in a dry treatment process, the CFB scrubber appears to be the best of both technologies: a water-stingy scrubber with high SO₂ removal rates.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to propose an emissions standard for mercury and other hazardous air pollutants emitted by coal- and oil-fired electric generating units in March of 2011. The anticipated rule would require emission control to meet the various standards using maximum achievable control technology, as determined by the prescriptive requirements of the Clean Air Act. In response to the expected rule-making, utilities will be required to make technology decisions in order to ensure compliance. One cost-effective approach to compliance may be the use of “co-benefits” from air quality control systems (AQCSs) already in service that are designed to remove other pollutants.