POWER
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O&M
How to Increase Power Plant Asset Reliability Using Modern Digital Technology
Digital tools can benefit power plants of all types, yet adding the necessary instrumentation can be costly. However, some of the latest technology doesn’t have to break the bank. Installing WirelessHART
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Legal & Regulatory
POWER Digest [February 2018]
Polish Energy Company Puts Large Coal-Fired Unit Online. Enea , the Polish state-owned energy company, in December inaugurated what it calls the largest coal-fired power generation unit in Europe. The company
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IIOT Power
Unsupervised Machine Learning: The Path to Industry 4.0 for the Coal Industry
Artificial intelligence and machine learning aren’t just fictional pieces of futuristic Hollywood movies. Power plants can deploy these innovative technologies today to more accurately predict the condition
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IIOT Power
Using Artificial Intelligence to Protect the U.S. Power Grid
The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) standard on physical security—known as Critical Infrastructure Protection-014 (CIP-014)—includes six basic requirements, but perhaps the most
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IIOT Power
Six Forces Disrupting the Power Sector
Multiple disparate trends could forcefully reshape power systems around the world. As electricity markets transform, technologies advance, industries converge, consumption patterns change, environmental
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Renewables
Distributed Energy Resources Bring Benefits, Challenges and New Opportunities
Distributed energy resources have changed the power generation sector, disrupting traditional markets and distribution models. Those working in the field tell POWER that research and development will continue
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Renewables
Power Plant Construction and Upgrade Best Practices
Schedule delays and cost overruns can pose problems for complex power plant construction and retrofit projects. Sound planning, accurate modeling, and good communication can lead to successful projects for all
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Legal & Regulatory
What Tax Reform Means for the Energy Industry
One of the most important items on President Trump’s first-year agenda was the implementation of tax reform in the U.S. Republican lawmakers worked tirelessly as the calendar year drew to an end to get a new
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IIOT Oil & Gas
Modernize Gas Turbine Controls with an Eye on the Future
Although it may seem as if gas turbines have only recently become the technology of choice for new U.S. power plants, a lot of gas turbine units have been in service for decades. Control systems have evolved
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IIOT Power
Battery-Gas Turbine Combination Provides Power Plant Flexibility
With a broadening portfolio of generation technologies and rapidly changing demands, effectively combining and integrating diverse technologies is important to a reliable power grid. Siemens’ SIESTART
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O&M
Turbophase Dry Air Injection Optimizes Aero-derivative Combustion Turbines
Turbophase enables combustion turbine owners and power grids to increase flexibility, power, and efficiency, which is critical at a time when dispatch of renewable energy is growing. Combustion turbines
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Press Releases
Connected Plant Conference Show Preview
The Connected Plant Conference is a forum designed for professionals in the power generation and chemical process industries who are leading digital adoption at all stages. Sessions are tailored to offer
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Commentary
Changing the Power Industry Culture
The news has been filled with high-profile sexual harassment cases recently. Although more women seem to be coming forward lately to tell their stories and bring misconduct to light, it’s far from a new
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Commentary
Pressing Forward with Vogtle, a Nuclear MVP
Georgia wasn’t looking for an award or recognition when we set out to build new nuclear reactors in our state. Yet, we now find ourselves as the last team on the field as our commissioners unanimously voted
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Commentary
Commentary: Pressing Forward With Vogtle, a Nuclear MVP
Georgia wasn’t looking for an award or recognition when we set out to build new nuclear reactors in our state. Yet we now find ourselves as the last team on the field as our commissioners unanimously voted to move forward with a new cost and schedule for the Plant Vogtle new nuclear units—keeping the project […]
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O&M
Signs of Aging in Boilers
All power plant equipment has a limited lifetime, but not all components age at the same rate. Some equipment may outlast the useful life of a plant, while other machinery may be replaced more than once
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Renewables
What Is the Future of Independent Power?
Merchant markets for independent power producers in the U.S. are unfavorable, and many companies in the sector have slumping profits—even big losses—as they ponder where to go in the months and years
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Press Releases
Equipment Showcase: Instrumentation and Control
The equipment showcase section includes products from a variety of vendors that serve the power generation industry. POWER magazine will feature a different power-related equipment category in several issues
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Renewables
India’s Ongoing Power Generation Course Correction
It is estimated that nearly 240 million Indians currently do not have access to electricity. In many cases that also means a lack of access to adequate health care or educational opportunities. It is no
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Gas
Efficiency Improvements Mark Advances in Gas Turbines
Engineers from several companies have worked on upgrades to the technology, including designs that emphasize faster starts, quicker ramp-ups, increased efficiency, and better performance in a tight global
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Commentary
Hope in the New Year: Opportunities Abound for the Power Industry
There are challenges facing the power industry in 2018, but there are also a lot of exciting opportunities. Renewable energy and gas-fired generation are expected to continue growing, but changes in federal
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Commentary
How to Build a Regulator-Approved Beneficial Electrification Program
Utilities across the U.S. are aware of beneficial electrification (BE) programs, but wide adoption has been held up by uncertainty about their potential and broader role in the evolving regulated utility
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Connected Plant
Seven Software Tools for Energy Managers
There are many tools available to assist companies as they gain a better grasp on how their energy is being used, and what that means for the goal of efficient energy management. Not all solutions are created
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IIOT Power
Overcoming IIoT, Edge Networking Challenges
As power plants and substations become more connected, the need for rugged networking equipment built to withstand tough conditions is amplified. The military has already gone through the growing pains, so
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Legal & Regulatory
Updates to California’s Proposition 65 Warnings Will Affect Oil Industry Nationwide
Despite recent regulatory reforms relieving the oil industry of certain federal requirements, many oil and gas companies, refineries, and pipeline facilities operating in California are not immune from state regulatory requirements, including some new regulations that become effective August 30, 2018. Even if companies think they are in compliance, they should check again to make […]
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O&M
Collaboration and Innovation Drive Retrofit Success at Plant Barry
The James M. Barry Electric Generating Plant, both a coal-fired and natural gas-fired facility in Bucks, Alabama, sits on the west bank of the Mobile River. The facility’s coal is delivered via the river
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Commentary
Gas Power Generation Thrives, Turbine Manufacturers Struggle
The amount of electricity produced by gas-fired power generation has been increasing steadily in the U.S. for more than 25 years. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that in 1990 about 372.8
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Legal & Regulatory
Europe’s Power Generation Industry Evolves
The European Union (EU) is unequivocally continuing down a path of global climate and energy leadership while bringing online more carbon-neutral fuel systems throughout its 28 member states, closing in on the 2020 goal of a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from 1990 levels. Indeed, the newly released European Environment Agency’s (EEA’s) Trends […]
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Legal & Regulatory
Could Dispute Resolution Boards Keep Combined Cycle Projects on Schedule?
Owners and contractors can run into contractual disputes during combined cycle construction projects. Often, the disagreements snowball into lawsuits, which create a lot of activity in attorney offices, but can actually stop activity at the construction site. Engineers and laborers frequently end up taking off their hard hats and setting down their welding torches to […]
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Legal & Regulatory
The Big Picture: Energy Transitions [INFOGRAPHIC]
An energy transition is underway across the world. Market upheaval, defining events, and recent policy changes have accelerated a shift away from coal toward renewables. Here is how this transformation played out for some of the world’s major economies over the past decade. Graphs show percent of each fuel source of total generation for that […]