efficiency

As AI demand accelerates, the race is on to bend the power curve before it bends the grid. The first electric refrigerators were mechanical curiosities—loud, bulky appliances that consumed staggering amounts of electricity. But they spread anyway, because the productivity gains were too great to ignore. Daily habits shifted. Food systems reshaped. Household labor changed […]

By retrofitting aging turbines with modern control systems, power generation companies are extending equipment lifespans, enhancing operational efficiency, and tapping into robust global support

For more than a decade, the U.S. coal industry has been in decline — with waning investment, shrinking capacity, and the steady rise of gas and renewables. Yet, in 2025, a different story is emerging. Across the country, coal units once scheduled for quiet retirement are being called back into service in ways few anticipated—driven […]

Indonesia’s 1,760-MW Jawa Satu pairs world-record single-shaft scale with liquefied natural gas–to-power integration. A POWER Top Plant winner, it reinforces reliability for the nation’s most critical

Selecting the best fuel gas compressor technology is critical for plant performance and economics. This comprehensive comparison examines three compressor types to help power plant designers choose the optimal

Steam turbine technology is not stagnant. Advanced designs are incorporating innovations in blade design, advanced materials, precision manufacturing, and high-energy steam cycles, delivering significant

As electricity demand soars during summer heat waves, many power plants find themselves constrained by their ability to cool water efficiently for reuse. Innovative floating cooling technology is enabling

The name Mike Richter is well-known among hockey fans. Richter spent 15 years in the National Hockey League as a goalie for the New York Rangers, including in 1994 when he was a fixture in the net during the team’s Stanley Cup winning season. Richter was also recognized as the most valuable player for the […]

NASA strives to understand the universe, whether that be the stars above us or Earth around us. One way NASA focuses on the Earth is through satellite, ground, and airborne Earth observations and modeling. NASA’s Earth Science projects work to further understand the Earth and its systems to better help humanity now and in the […]

Modern pumping systems and precision control valves are revolutionizing how power generation facilities manage their critical fluid systems, delivering substantial energy savings, reduced emissions, and

Since the industrial revolution, manufacturers and other large industrial operations have often been labeled as environmental polluters. However, this traditional viewpoint is rapidly transforming thanks to the push toward sustainability. Today, there is an undeniable shift. Manufacturers and large facilities alike are seeking to significantly reduce their carbon emissions to align with global and national […]

The U.S. is facing an energy emergency, as escalating electricity demand, unstable fossil fuel markets, and the rapid growth of energy-intensive infrastructure strain the nation’s energy systems. Shallow geothermal energy offers a groundbreaking solution to this crisis by stabilizing the grid, reducing emissions, and delivering cost-effective heating and cooling. This article explores the technological, economic, […]

District energy systems employ a centralized facility to supply heating, cooling, and sometimes electricity for multiple buildings in an area through a largely underground, mostly unseen network of pipes. When district energy systems are utilized, individual buildings do not need their own boilers, chillers, and cooling towers. This offers a number of benefits to building […]

Boiler systems play a crucial role across industrial, institutional, commercial, and other large-scale facilities. The systems are often complex and require meticulous oversight to ensure optimal performance and safety. This is where supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems are vital in supporting the management of boiler rooms. SCADA platforms are advanced systems used to […]

With the global population expected to reach approximately nine to 10 billion by 2050,  and one billion people still without energy access, our energy requirements are not only growing but also evolving. Each equinox reminds us of the essential balance we need to strive for in achieving net zero by 2050. COMMENTARY Crucially, the need […]

The rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-powered workloads and high-performance computing driving a surge in electricity consumption by the data center industry. Worldwide, data centers account for 1-2% of global electricity use, and in the U.S. data centers are responsible for about 2% of total electricity consumption. The demand will continue to grow. Today’s generative […]

MeeFog’s very first installation of inlet air fogging was done at Harbor Cogen in Southern California in 1991 on a GE 7EA turbine where it continues to be used for power augmentation to this day (Figure 1). When it was installed, the fogging arrays were placed upstream of the air filters. Since that time, more […]

Connected infrastructure offers a holistic approach to creating a smarter, greener, and more livable world. More people are moving to urban areas than ever before, even as the impacts of climate change are

As the solar industry matures, pressure for asset owners to deliver higher returns continues to mount.  Not surprisingly, so has the demand to improve operations and maintenance (O&M) efficiency – the single largest component of a utility-scale solar asset’s post-construction budget. Whether an asset owner performs O&M in-house, outsources to a third-party, or utilizes a […]

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) final energy efficiency standards for distribution transformers appear to strike a compromise with industry, softening the agency’s stance on steel requirements for essential transformer components and extending compliance deadlines to five years. The DOE’s final standards issued on April 4 seek to reduce losses in three types of distribution […]

Negotiators from nearly every country in the world closed COP28 with a decision that—for the first time—formally recognizes the necessity of moving away from fossil fuels to achieve Paris Agreement targets. The decision, adopted on the last day of the two-week 28th Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate […]

The use of distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) systems is growing as more homeowners and businesses take control of their energy needs and look for ways to make their electricity supply more reliable and cost-effective. These systems, typically sited on rooftops of residential and/or commercial and industrial buildings, parking garages, or other buildings, are benefiting from […]

Despite a dismal outlook for coal, countries with substantial coal fleets are intensifying efforts to develop new technologies and operational capabilities to improve coal power’s environmental impact

Compressed air is vitally important to all power plants. Although in some cases it is used simply for convenience, such as when operating certain pneumatic tools, in other cases, compressed air is critical to the operation of the plant, such as for air-operated control valves and some fabric filter cleaning systems. In such cases, a […]

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a ubiquitous part of our lives, impacting much of what we do at work and home. AI’s growth trajectory is expected to skyrocket, with new potentials identified to help address and solve today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities. AI advances have been remarkable, but so far relatively little attention has been […]

The Edra Melaka Power Plant (EMPP), the world’s second GE 9HA.02 gas turbine power plant, is the largest combined cycle gas-fired power plant currently in operation in Malaysia. A POWER Top Plant winner, the

Pingshan Phase II, a cutting-edge 1.4-GW ultrasupercritical coal-fired unit, achieves a remarkable net efficiency of 49.37%—making it the world’s most efficient coal-fired power plant. The state-of-the-art

Voith Hydro in 2022 replaced four vertical Pelton turbines at Verbund’s 75-year-old 326-GWh Gerlos 1 pumped storage facility in Austria with a first-of-its-kind horizontal six-nozzle Pelton turbine

Marking a significant inroad to establish a South Korean foothold in the world’s gas turbine technology market, heavy industrial company Doosan Enerbility this summer began commercial operation of its first

Two peaker plants in the southern U.S. found the experience and know-how of a seasoned rotating equipment services provider indispensable during a control system upgrade and a generator rewind project. Every