An extremely reliable North American bulk power system—one that consistently delivers uninterrupted power to every user—is not a dream that must be made reality. To a large extent, that is what we have today. With the exception of infrequent (and therefore, newsworthy) outages, the system has never been more dependable. Nevertheless, with the great northeast blackout of August 14, 2003, still fresh in memory, Congress saw fit to include electric reliability measures in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Stainless steels and nickel alloys of the C-family are major materials of construction for flue gas desulfurization systems. Both types of materials depend upon the presence of thin, passive, chromium-rich, surface-oxide films to provide the desired corrosion resistance. Corrosion resistance is optimized by proper cleaning before and after fabrication. Here are some guidelines for keeping those materials clean.

Steve Elonka began chronicling the exploits of Marmaduke Surfaceblow—a six-foot-four marine engineer with a steel brush mustache and a foghorn voice—in POWER in 1948, when Marmy raised the wooden mast of the SS Asia Sun with the help of two cobras and a case of Sandpaper Gin. Marmy’s simple solutions to seemingly intractable plant problems remain timeless.

The overriding environmental challenge of our time is climate change. The problem originates from the emission of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide, mainly from the transport and energy sectors. If humanity fails to come to terms with this problem, we will be forced to make dramatic changes in the way we live our lives, but […]

In order to promote coal-based technologies, the U.S. Department of Energy will be assisting the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the selection of projects to receive tax credits. According to the DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy, recent legislation has been designed to advance cleaner coal-based power generation and gasification technologies. The Energy Policy Act of […]

In early 2003 the United States announced its plans to build a zero-emission prototype of the fossil fuel power plant of the future called FutureGen. It is one of the boldest steps toward a pollution-free energy future ever taken by the U.S. It has the potential to be one of the most important advances in […]

Utility customers depend on and expect reliable, affordable electricity for virtually every aspect of their lives. At the same time, electricity producers in the United States are faced with finding cost-effective methods to meet ever-increasing demand and more stringent environmental regulations. Though it’s not a new trend, the frequency with which new regulatory air quality […]

New flue gas desulfurization (FGD) units are being installed at utilities in many parts of the U.S. and a large percentage of the new scrubbers are of the wet limestone type. Although wet limestone scrubbing is a well-developed technology, it may be unfamiliar to employees at plants that have previously not required scrubbers. This article […]

Design techniques and operating experience with Powder River Basin (PRB) coals have advanced significantly over the past 35 years for boilers that were originally designed for this fuel. Today, boiler installations looking to effectively utilize PRB coals fall into two primary categories: units that were initially designed for bituminous or other coals and units that […]

The University of Iowa (UI) Biomass Fuel Project has produced significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, regulated boiler stack emissions, and purchased energy costs. The project utilizes a renewable, biomass fuel source and provides an opportunity for UI to partner with a local industry. UI was approached by Quaker Oats Co., Cedar Rapids Facility in […]

Asheville Power Station’s Unit 1 in Arden, North Carolina, was the first coal-fired unit to be modified with a flue gas desulphurization (FGD) system and placed in service to meet the clean air requirements of the state’s Clean Smokestacks Act. As of November 16, 2005, at least 97% of the sulfur dioxide that had been […]

A coal-fired power plant operating in the western U.S. was experiencing short gearbox life in its coal-pulverizing operation. After an annual gearbox inspection, oil analysis results indicated that the AGMA 6EP (ISO 320) gear oil recommended by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) had failed to provide adequate lubrication and protection. This conclusion was based on […]

The Gasification Technologies Council (GTC, www.gasification.org) was created in 1995 with a straightforward mission: to promote the greater use of gasification as an environmentally and economically preferred alternative for the production of power, fuels, and chemicals from low-value energy sources. Those energy sources include high-sulfur coal, petroleum coke, and wastes. Since that time the GTC […]

Reliant Energy Commits $350 Million for Environmental Upgrades at Two Key Facilities Reliant Energy has announced plans to install state-of-the-art emission control systems at two Pennsylvania power plants, a major step in the company’s strategy for maximizing the long-term value of its power generation assets while reducing air emissions. The utility, Reliant Energy, estimated it […]

Cape Wind’s economics questioned The cited study concludes that the Cape Wind Project will "receive a 25% return on equity, 2.5 times the historical average for all corporations" when the present value of federal production tax credits, Massachusetts green credits, and accelerated depreciation for tax purposes are included. Our elected officials passed these laws, and […]

The sale or merger of any company takes its toll on employees. Though it’s merely a hassle adapting to a different T&E form, the sudden uncertainty about health-care coverage and pension can be truly stressful. For plant managers, the impact is even greater—adapting to a new budgeting process and reporting requirements, not to mention answering hundreds of subordinates’ questions about the future, even before the deal closes. However, plant managers may actually end up better off as a result of a merger or acquisition.

Safer, "virtual" reactor walkdowns; Beating the heat with inlet cooling; Reaching remote substations without fiber; One-year payback for lightning protection systems; Reaching remote substations without fiber

By Quin Shea, Edison Electric Institute The U.S. electric power industry is committed to improving America’s air quality. Progress over the past 25 years has been real and significant and something we all can be proud of. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now proposing a new, lower limit on emissions of particulate […]

  More than 20 states now require their investor-owned utilities to serve a certain percentage of their load with renewable energy by a date certain. Other states are considering following suit. Failure to meet its "renewable power" mandate can subject a utility to financial and other regulatory penalties. If structured and supervised correctly, these initiatives […]

On the following pages, we introduce the magazine’s 12 Top Plants of 2006. Among this year’s winners are two solar energy plants and another that marries fuel cells with heat and waste gas recovery. As those projects make clear, a plant doesn’t have to be big to earn kudos from us. What we typically like […]

Iberdrola is rapidly making a name for itself on the world stage for building large, very efficient combined-cycle plants and for being the largest owner and operator of wind power plants. The utility’s most recent achievement was the successful commissioning of the Arcos de la Frontera Group III project, which marks the commercial debut of General Electric’s Frame 9FB gas turbine.

The world’s largest solar electric system was dedicated in June 2005 in Mühlhausen, Germany. The 10-MW system comprises three separate but interconnected photovoltaic parks in different cities that use an innovative sun-tracking system to maximize their outputs. After one year of operation, all three parks are still going strong—as you’d expect, due to their dearth of moving parts.

A great location, a fish-friendly cooling system, and the extent of environmental remediation needed to permit it distinguish this repowering project on the Hudson River just south of the New York State capital.

The Brooklyn Navy Yard Cogeneration facility supplies critical electricity and steam to New York City. Situated on an historic site, the plant has earned a series of awards and was the first cogeneration plant to be accepted into both the U.S. EPA National Environmental Performance Track and OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program in 2005. Through Delta Power’s unique asset management approach that brings added value to projects, BNYC has reinvented itself from a struggling, prematurely aging facility into one of the nation’s leading plants.

Commercial operation of PacifiCorp’s first new power plant in more than 20 years coincided with the company’s acquisition by MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company this past March. Currant Creek treads lightly on the environment, provides needed power to PacifiCorp’s eastern control area, and has demonstrated its commitment to be a good corporate citizen of the local community. By any account, Currant Creek is a model for how to develop a power project.

With the commercial debut of the first of six planned 470-MW turbines in December 2005, the time has come to pay homage to the sheer size (2,820 MW) and longevity (13 years and counting) of TEPCO’s Kannagawa Hydropower Plant. By the time Unit 2 is commissioned in 2010, and Units 3 through 6 go on-line "in and after 2016," two generations of engineers, technicians, and builders will have worked on the "pure" pumped-storage project since its inception. As if those stats weren’t impressive enough, Kannagawa marks the debut of "splitter runners" for pump-turbines. They increase the effective head of the plant to the highest in the world: 2,142 feet, at a flow of 135,000 gallons/second. That’s a very large pump-turbine, indeed.

It would be easy to dismiss Linden—which is powered by now-ubiquitous GE 7FA gas turbines and D11 steam turbines—as just another cookie-cutter combined-cycle plant. But its size (1,240 MW), key location near New York City, and use of reclaimed water for all cooling water needs makes Linden deserving of recognition as one of POWER’s Top Plants of 2006. Perhaps its most interesting story is how the project survived more than five years from groundbreaking to commissioning.

Why does Monticello, a 30-year-old plant, deserve recognition as one of POWER’s Top Plants of 2006? Because TXU has been blending Powder River Basin (PRB) coal with local lignite at the plant for the past decade, and steady reductions in air-pollutant emission rates have been the result. That positive experience has made the company confident enough to propose building nearly 9,100 MW of new coal- or lignite-fired capacity in Texas by 2010 at a cost of $10 billion. Read on to share some of the lessons that TXU has learned about handling PRB coal safely.

  Learning theorists tell us that one of the key reasons we don’t learn from our mistakes is that we don’t or won’t recognize them as such. We attribute good outcomes to our skill and intelligence and blame bad ones on others or on just plain bad luck. This unhealthy mind-set can be tolerated for […]

Southern California Edison and Bechtel resurrected the 1,054-MW Mountainview power project after a two-year hiatus while meeting aggressive budget and schedule constraints. Edison exercised its option to purchase the project after regulatory approvals were received at light speed, and construction resumed the very day approval was granted. Residents of California’s Inland Empire will enjoy their air conditioners this summer because Mountainview was transformed from a wasteland into a productive plant.