In This Issue
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CoalTop Plants: Riverside Repowering Project, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Xcel Energy has completed the third and final project required by its 2003 Metropolitan Emissions Reduction Project agreement: repowering the Riverside Plant with a gas-fired 2 x 1 combined-cycle plant and tearing down the old coal-fired plant. Saved from demolition was the Unit 7 steam turbine system that now serves the new plant. Xcel staff expertly managed the project to an on-time start-up and accepted many important construction tasks, harkening back to the days when utilities took a more active role in the design and construction of projects.
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SolarSwiss Solar Plane Prototype Designed to Fly Day and Night
The first aircraft designed to fly day and night propelled solely by solar energy was unveiled at Dübendorf airfield, Switzerland, in late June. The Solar Impulse has the wingspan of a Boeing 747-400 and the weight of an average family car (1,600 kg) (Figure 4). More than 12,000 solar cells mounted onto the wings will […]
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O&MTop Plants: Royal Pride Holland Commercial Greenhouse Cogeneration Plant, Middenmeer, North Holland Province, Netherlands
At Royal Pride Holland’s commercial tomato greenhouse, green thumbs and green energy go hand in hand. With a total energy utilization of 95% in this application, GE’s new Jenbacher J624 natural gas – fired engines offer the innovative greenhouse an economical supply of on-site electrical and thermal power, as well as CO2 fertilization, to support its operations.
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HydroScotland Officially Opens 100-MW Glendoe Hydro Plant
In late June, Scotland officially opened the Glendoe Hydro Scheme, a 100-MW project whose construction near Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands was the region’s biggest civil engineering project in recent times. Planning for the project began in 2001, and it took three years to build. Today, the project has the highest head — the […]
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Waste to Energy
Biomass Electricity More Efficient than Ethanol, Researchers Say
Biomass — plant matter that’s grown to generate energy — converted into electricity could result in 81% more transportation miles and 108% more emissions offsets than ethanol, according to U.S. researchers. In addition, the electricity option would be twice as effective at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The study, published in the May 22 issue […]
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CoalCombined-Cycle Carbon Capture: Options and Costs, Part I
Uncertainty about CO2 emissions legislation is prompting power plant owners to consider the possibility of accommodating "add-on" CO2 capture and sequestration solutions for coal-fired plants in the future. Those same plant owners may be overlooking the possibility that future natural gas – fired combined cycles will also be subject to CO2 capture requirements. This month we examine the capture options. In a future issue, Part II will present the installation and operating costs of different carbon capture technologies.
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BusinessDOE Funds Electrification of Transportation Sector
On August 5, President Barack Obama announced that 48 new advanced battery and electric drive projects will receive $2.4 billion in funding from the Department of Energy under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The announcement marks the single largest investment in advanced battery technology for hybrid and electric-drive vehicles ever made. DOE funds will […]
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GasNew Natural Gas–Fired Projects on an Upswing
Over the past decade, the development of new natural gas – fired generating assets has been similar to an amusement park roller coaster ride — very high peaks and the lowest of lows, with fast and stomach-churning movement between. Expect the ride to continue into the near future.
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