POWER
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IIOT
Report: Blockchain Not Well-Suited to Transactive Energy
Blockchain—a distributed database technology that allows a network of parties to securely transact with each other—has been hailed as a game-changing innovation in the power sector for its potential to
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Safety
Equipment Showcase: Tools and Safety Products
The safety of workers and equipment is an important consideration for power generation facilities, just as it is for other worksites. Power plants feature multiple pieces of complex machinery that can present
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News
POWER Digest [December 2019]
Israeli Group Supports Construction of 1.3-GW Gas-Fired Plant. The Israeli National Infrastructure Committee on Nov. 4 approved a plan to build Israel’s largest privately run power plant, saying the facility
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Renewables
Decarbonization: Utilities Leading the Way
Decarbonization is a word that seems to be used quite regularly these days. For the power industry, it refers to the shift in electric generating resources from carbon-heavy coal to carbon-free nuclear or
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Connected Plant
Unlocking Value at the Grid-Edge: Extending the Reach of the Utility Control Room
Just 10 years ago, the magnitude of behind-the-meter distributed energy resources (DERs) at the edge of the grid was not materially significant. All that has changed, and we’re now at an inflection point: by
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News
Worm Gear Technology Helps CSP Plant Stay Locked on Target
Solar power generation continues to increase, with forecasts from BloombergNEF (BNEF) calling for global solar generation to make up 22% of the world’s electricity by 2050, up from about 2% today. BNEF has
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Commentary
International Business: Before You Enter a New Market, Do Your Due Diligence
As an attorney who has spent the majority of his career litigating and settling international commercial disputes, I have experienced several instances where U.S. companies jump at the opportunity to expand
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Coal
Smarter Monitoring for Coal Ash Remediation
Total suspended solids probe can help coal-fired power plants reduce compliance risks and avoid additional sampling. Water plays an essential role in coal ash remediation, but managing that process often comes
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News
Using Technology to Tackle Power Plant Emissions
Power plant owners and operators have a range of systems available to help reduce pollutants at their facilities, depending on a number of factors. And industry experts agree—there is no “one size fits
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Hydrogen
Why Power-to-Gas May Flourish in a Renewables-Heavy World
While still in its infancy, power-to-gas provides a promising approach to convert renewable power into “green” hydrogen and methane, furnishing the renewables sector with a potentially lucrative array of
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Renewables
Redevelopment Project Converts Site from Coal to Renewables
The former Brayton Point coal plant’s transformation into an East Coast logistics and manufacturing center, renewable energy hub, and international seaport is a symbolic milestone representing the first of
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Coal
Is Chasing Grid Demand Killing Your Large Coal Boiler? Here Are Four Concerns to Address
Operating pulverized coal-fired boilers under low-load conditions presents several challenges. This article offers tips to keep units in the best possible operating condition. In today’s energy market with
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IIOT
New Monitoring and Analytics Tools Improve Plant Performance
Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies can help make electric generating plants more efficient while increasing availability. The electric power industry is going through a transformational change
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News
Decarbonizing with Energy Storage Combined Cycles
Low asset utilization is an increasing financial challenge for both conventional and renewable assets, which are sometimes curtailed due to over-generation at various times of day. Integrating large-scale
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News
Culture Is Key to Optimizing Plant Efficiency
The power industry faces many challenges, which require a dedicated workforce to overcome. How can a company get everyone pulling in the same direction? It starts with a strong culture. The electric utility
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News
Russia Offers to Expand Nuclear Power in Africa
South Africa is the only country on the African continent with nuclear power generation, but Russia is working to make nuclear power a reality for more African nations. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke
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News
Protecting Critical Infrastructure from Drone Intrusions
Drones represent a classic good news/bad news scenario. The good news is great. The bad news is terrifying. On the good news front, drones can keep utility-sector workers safely on the ground, with the
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IIOT
EAM Solutions Stretch Capabilities of Lean Plant Maintenance Teams
Of the many challenges power and industrial plant maintenance teams face, stretching the capabilities of their ultra-lean staff is one of the most critical. Assets can range from industrial generators, to
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Commentary
Hydrocarbon Molecules Know No Borders: The U.S.-Mexico Natural Gas Dilemma
Natural gas traders once spoke of the North American continent as a potential seamless natural gas trading market, where market synergies could be perfected and hydrocarbon molecules could flow freely to the
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News
Evolution of Nuclear Power Continues with Operation of First EPR
Unit 1 at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant in China is the site of a milestone for nuclear technology. It also illustrates cooperation between France and China, using the lessons learned from earlier projects
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News
Solar Projects Show Rapid Growth in Middle East
Solar power continues to make inroads in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and other parts of the Persian Gulf region. The Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA) in late September said it
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News
Poland Pushing Back Against EU Goal to End Coal-Fired Generation
Polish officials have said it is “not possible” for the country to meet the European Union’s (EU’s) goal of cutting net carbon emissions to zero by 2050, and as such the government will continue to
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Business
Public vs. Private: The Debate Continues
In the September issue of POWER , I wrote about a public utility (JEA) that is exploring privatization, and in October, I looked at a city (Boulder, Colorado) that is exploring municipalization. While I think
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Nuclear
Extended Power Uprate Is a Winning Strategy for Nuclear Plant
The Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant completed an extended power uprate (EPU) that increased the total capacity of the facility’s three units by about 465 MW. The addition is an important part of the Tennessee
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News
Equipment Showcase: Boilers, Burners, Combustion
Boiler and burner manufacturers, along with suppliers of combustion control systems, work with the power generation sector along with other industries. They provide equipment for low- and high-pressure steam
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Infographics
THE BIG PICTURE: The Diffusion of Nuclear Technology
A historical analysis of nuclear power technology by researchers from the German Institute for Economic Research suggests that none of the 674 reactors developed globally since 1945 were developed based on “economic grounds”—as private investments in the context of a market-based competitive system. Until the 1950s, only four major countries dominated nuclear technology by establishing independent […]
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News
France Scraps Fast Nuclear Reactor Demonstration
France’s nuclear research agency, Commissariat à l’énergie atomique (CEA), in September confirmed it abandoned plans to build a prototype Advanced Sodium Technological Reactor for Industrial
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Connected Plant
Evolutionary Triumph: China’s First ACPR1000
Completion of the first ACPR1000 reactor at Yangjiang 5 within a mere 58 months marks a major achievement for China’s lengthy efforts to commercialize the first-of-its-kind 1,000-MW evolutionary
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News
Is Small Beautiful? Maybe Not When It Comes to Wind Power
Wind power has become a major electric generating source in the U.S. and elsewhere, based on the reality that this renewable energy technology, beloved of the environmental community that has long embraced the
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Fuel
Dependable Renewable Energy for the Power Grid
Although wind and solar facilities receive most of the renewable power publicity, biomass offers a reliable baseload solution for power generators. State-of-the-art circulating fluidized bed boilers are a