In This Issue
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NewsTHE BIG PICTURE: A Spotlight on Oil-Fired Power
Discussions about fossil-fueled power capacity are typically centered on coal and natural gas. The former is seeing a marked decline amid climate concerns, and the latter is seeing unprecedented growth, owing to relatively low prices. Seemingly forgotten, but still a major source of power, are plants fired with petroleum liquids. In 2017, according to the […]
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GeothermalElectric Power Trends and Opportunities
I was recently reviewing a report issued last year by BMI Research, a Fitch Group company. The Megatrends 2050 Special Report , as it is called, suggests there are three main trends that will transform the
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CoalPower Plants of the Future: 21st Century Coal-Fired Steam Generator
Coal-fired plants have been powering the electric grid for more than a hundred years, but the technology being used in them is not stagnant, as many advancements have been made. One new design—the Clean
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NewsHow Nuclear Hybrids Could Redefine the Industry’s Future
The world’s nuclear sector is struggling to stay economically afloat amid a deluge of renewables and natural gas power, and reinvigorating it will require operational flexibility from new or existing
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SolarFertile Ground for Community Solar Gardens
Community solar projects, also known as solar farms or solar gardens, are maturing and moving forward. Minnesota leads the nation with 559 MW of capacity on the ground, and other states are following with new
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NewsVolcanic Rock Offers New Take on Energy Storage
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE), known for its wind turbines used in both large onshore and offshore projects, in June began operation of an electric thermal energy storage (ETES) system in Germany
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NewsEquipment Showcase: Coatings and Corrosion Control
A major part of maintaining a power plant at peak efficiency is dealing with or preventing damage from corrosion and corrosive objects that can enter air and water intake systems, including pipes and fluid
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NewsPOWER Digest [August 2019]
VW Chooses MHPS to Modernize Cogen Plant. Volkswagen AG (VW) in early July said it chose Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Europe (MHPS Europe) to build a gas-and-steam power plant in Wolfsburg, as part of the
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Carbon CaptureConsidering the True Costs of Carbon-Reducing Technologies
The hard realities of an energy system based on renewables will soon be with us, causing far more problems than are realized. Renewables don’t offer a quick fix, and we need to get the transition from
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NewsNovel Nuclear Wastewater Treatment Ready for Market
An innovative nuclear wastewater treatment approach that could provide a cost-effective alternative to fixed-column ion-exchange plants is poised to enter the nuclear market. Atkins, a company that
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NewsApplying IEEE 1584 in Power Generation Facilities
An arc flash is the explosive energy released when an electrical fault causes an arc. This rapid release of energy causes excessive temperatures in addition to air and metal in the path of the arc expanding
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NewsThe Power of a ‘Green’ Decommissioning, Remediation, and Redevelopment Plan
Economic pressures coupled with new and proposed regulations to reduce air emissions and regulate cooling water use and the management and disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCRs) continue to drive the
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Top PlantSCR Project Upgrades Two Units at Four Corners
The numbers tell the story of how the addition of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology helped an iconic New Mexico coal-fired plant reduce its emissions, keeping the plant in operation and continuing
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NewsHealy 2: The Story of a Coal Unit’s Remarkable Resiliency
Coal is the reason that Healy, Alaska, exists. To ensure low-cost power and reliability to interior Alaska—a remote place that is bereft of gas and has little sun—and sustain regional employment, Golden
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NewsThe World-Class Coal Power Efficiency of Rheinhafen-Dampfkraftwerk Block 8
Efficiency has become the mantra of modern coal power. The 912-MW hard coal–fired RDK 8, a unit that operates in Germany’s challenging power market, achieved a 47.5% net thermal efficiency through
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Top PlantCirculating Fluidized Bed Combustion Is a Winner
New coal power plant technology is being developed by various companies around the world, but there are some pretty efficient and reliable designs already commercially available. Circulating fluidized bed
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NewsA Powerful Investment in Education, and the Community
A new coal-fired combined heat and power (CHP) plant at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, replacing old boilers in place since the 1960s, improves the efficiency of the campus’ heating and cooling system
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BiomassBiomass Power: Stalled in the Market, Stalled in Washington
After flowering between 2008 and 2014, power from biomass has withered in the face of market forces. Furthermore, lawmakers in Washington, D.C., have resisted regulatory action that could boost the industry
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O&MHow to Make Shutdown, Turnaround, and Outage Events Successful
Shutdown, turnaround, and outage events are extremely complex, with multiple stakeholders all focused on minimizing the time assets are offline, delivering their scope on budget, and ensuring zero safety
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Connected PlantAutomated Plant Startups Reduce Fixed and Fuel-Related Costs
State-of-the-art automation systems are common at power plants these days. Still, many plants start up units in a very manual way. When startups were rare, the implications were minimal, but as units cycle
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GasAdding Fog for Power Augmentation and Emission Reduction
A pilot project was initiated by China’s largest energy provider to test the effectiveness of fog-based power augmentation for a gas turbine at a compressor station. The system provided a significant