The Fayette Power Project (FPP, aka the Sam K. Seymour Power Station) is a three-unit, coal-fired generating plant sited near La Grange, Texas (Figure 1). Units 1 and 2, each with a nominal rating of 600 MW, are co-owned by the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and Austin Energy (AE). LCRA is a conservation and […]

Reducing NOx emissions from large utility coal-fired boilers has been a primary focus of the U.S. power generation industry since passage of the 1970 Clean Air Act and subsequent legislation. By the early 1990s, nearly all such boilers had installed some form of low-NOx burner (LNB) technology and/or overfire air (OFA) — the least expensive […]

Ninety years ago America was at war, and producers of coal (principally anthracite) were struggling to meet demand. It’s hard now to conceive of coal as the universal fuel, but there was a time when it was used in the U.S. to heat homes, schools, and libraries as well as to make steel and manufacture […]

April 1884 POWER reported on the latest offering from Philadelphia-based Southwark Foundry and Machine Co. (Figure 1) as its lead story. "This is a self-contained, high speed auto­matic cut-off engine. It has been designed with special reference to simplicity, and solidity of parts, and to heavy and continuous work. 1. The Southwark engine was the […]

During the past year, the debate over the structure of the nation’s electricity systems has continued at a steady clip. It seems that almost every month a new study or report is issued that proclaims the advantages or disadvantages of one market structure over another. Although a report or study may have value, the Community […]

Control pollution and slagging on a shoestring / Keeping HRSGs young, cool, and clean / Natural air conditioning

  The debate over retail choice has resurfaced, triggering in the minds of many consumer advocates California’s failed deregulation attempt and its fallout—rolling blackouts, bankrupt utilities, and government bailouts with crippling long-term consequences. Before allowing a chorus of "oh no, not again" to cloud the debate, state policy makers should realize that allowing generators to […]

The term "nuclear renaissance" is on the lips of many in the nuclear power industry today, for good reason. The federal executive branch is friendly to nukes; a nationwide shortage of baseload generation looms; the nuclear industry has vastly improved its performance in running its 20th-century plants; and a new generation of plant designs is ready for the road.

Carbon capture and sequestration have many technical hurdles to leap in coming years. The capture and reuse of CO2 to enhance oil recovery preceded the current clamor over climate change, and that experience is often used as an example that the process is a viable way to handle this greenhouse gas. This article explores options for the first part of the process: CO2 separation and capture.

Hyperbolic cooling towers have a distinctive shape, but that form is subordinate to function—natural-draft cooling is cheaper than mechanical-draft cooling. The lower operating costs are offset to some degree by the higher cost of protecting internal tower surfaces from swings in humidity that foster corrosion damage. Learn how one utility added cathodic protection when it repaired its corroded hyperbolic tower, giving it a new lease on life.