POWER [September 1, 2014]

Andong Combined Cycle Power Plant, Andong, South Korea

For a country focused on wooing big businesses, constructing large industrial complexes, and building new administration offices, having a reliable electricity supply is vital. But with few natural resources, flexible…

CPV Sentinel Energy Project, Desert Hot Springs, California

Awash in a sea of wind turbines, California’s Coachella Valley needed reliable peaking generation to back up its intermittent wind power. Competitive Power Ventures answered the call with the eight-unit,…

Jingqiao Power Plant, Beijing, China

The Municipal Government of Beijing through its operating companies is making enormous investment into its power and energy infrastructure, particularly combined heat and power facilities and renewable energy projects. The…

New York University Cogeneration Plant, New York City

NYU needed to repower its decades-old cogeneration system and cut emissions at its main campus in Lower Manhattan. The new gas turbine–based system cut the university’s energy bills by $5…

Quisqueya I & II, San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic

With a huge gold mine set to increase the load on an already overstressed grid, the mine owners and a Dominican generation company found a way to power mine operations…

Ulsan 4 Combined Cycle Power Plant, Ulsan Metropolitan City, South Korea

Combined cycle plants have the advantages of being extremely efficient and can be built in two phases when power needs peak unexpectedly. Ulsan 4 was built in response to the…

10 Energy Takeaways from the U.S.-Africa Summit

The Aug. 4–6 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit shed light on the power plights faced by sub-Saharan African countries, but it also highlighted their massive power potential and the array of solutions…

Boiler Chemical Cleaning: Doing It Correctly

Like some of those tests your doctor is always after you to get, boiler chemical cleaning is something that most of us would rather not think about but that we…

EPA's New 316(b) Rule and the Opportunity of Social Costs

Though “social costs” may be a new term of art in the power industry, it is about to become a critical one. Here’s what you need to understand about the…

How to Design the Collector Pipe for Condensate Return Lines

While several methods exist for sizing collector pipes on steam lines, the results obtained from the various approaches can be quite different. This article will show how design parameters can…

How to Use “Honeypots” to Overcome Cybersecurity Shortcomings

Cybersecurity threats facing the power industry have escalated dramatically in the past few years, as state-sponsored, organized crime, and hacktivist groups all seek to infiltrate U.S. energy infrastructure for cyber-espionage…

Reciprocating Engines Expand Roles

Once merely a staple of backup and distributed generation, reciprocating engines are now challenging other resources for utility-scale generation—in addition to carving out some new niches. Grant County is a…

What's Needed to Address U.S. Geothermal's Deep-Seated Challenges?

Geothermal generation is clean, renewable, and cost-effective over the long term, and the U.S. has vast untapped geothermal resources. So why is it still operating on the sidelines?   For…

The Northeast's Natural Gas Challenge

The experiences of the electric and gas markets in the Northeast this past winter highlighted better than any article, speech, or prediction the interesting and urgent challenges and opportunities arising…

What Went Wrong with SMRs?

At the graveyard wherein resides the “nuclear renaissance” of the 2000s, a new occupant appears to be moving in: the small modular reactor (SMR). This is a statement that might…

Digital Writing Solution Allows Timely Updates to Drawings and Field Reports

Skilled maintenance and service teams inspect critical infrastructure, perform preventive maintenance, and quickly respond to issues to keep service levels high. It is critical that such teams work with as-built…

New Disaster Preparedness Approaches for Nuclear Plants

To ensure that its nuclear plants do not meet the same fate as those damaged and destroyed by the March 2011 events at the Fukushima Daiichi plant—should they be hit…

A Nuclear Status and Trend Overview

The world’s nuclear power generation capacity is slated to grow between 17% and 94% through 2030, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) forecasts in its 2013 Annual Report, released this…

Above-Average Growth Reported for Nuclear, Renewables in 2013

Despite stagnant economic growth globally, primary energy consumption surged in 2013, with growth for nuclear power and renewables in power generation expanding at above-average rates, BP said in its recently…

Australia Kills Carbon Price, Faces Murky Carbon Future

Australia in July became the first nation to abolish a price on carbon, after the Senate passed the Abbott government’s repeal bills by a vote of 39–32. Yet the country’s…

China Commissions 13.9-GW Hydropower Project

Commissioning of all 18 generating units at China’s 13.9-GW Xiluodu Hydropower Station has been completed, making it the world’s third-largest hydroelectric project (Figure 5), China Three Gorges Corp. announced in…

Commercial-Scale Carbon Capture Project Starts Construction in Texas

Construction on a $1 billion commercial-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) system—one of the world’s largest to use post-combustion capture technology—began this July at NRG Energy’s W.A. Parish Unit 8…

Hong Kong Mulls How to Best Replace Coal Power

Since March, Hong Kong has been contemplating two options as it prepares to phase out its coal-fired power plants—which currently produce more than half of its electricity—to improve an enduring…

POWER Digest (September 2014)

EU Doles Out €1 Billion in Funding for Renewable Projects Under NER 300. The European Commission on July 10 awarded €1 billion ($1.34 billion) to 19 renewable energy projects and…

POWER for All

No, this isn’t a column about the value of providing electricity to everyone everywhere (though that is a worthy goal toward which several nations and nonprofits are working). It’s about…