EPRI

  • Industry Seeks Clarity on White House Nuclear Strategy

    Propelled in part by the White House Nuclear Fuel Working Group’s (NFWG’s) recent roadmap to strengthen the U.S. nuclear fuel cycle, the nation’s nuclear industry this week blazed ahead on efforts to energize a U.S. commercial fuel supply that it says will be crucial for the widespread development and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors.  At […]

  • Power Sector Resources for Coronavirus Pandemic Response

    As part of POWER magazine’s in-depth coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, its editors are curating a list of resources that may provide actionable information helpful to anyone involved in the world’s vast bulk power systems. Please write to editor@powermag.com if you know of additional resources that should be added to this page.  POWER Magazine’s Live […]

  • EPRI Training Courses Support Nuclear Plant Operations

    The Turkey Point nuclear generating facility in Florida in December 2019 became the first U.S. nuclear plant to receive authorization from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to extend its operating life from 60

  • Electrification: Too Much of a Good Thing?

    Electrification has been a much-touted driver for the global energy transition toward decarbonization. But though an all-electric future could have vast implications for the power and gas sectors, achieving it

  • Electricity Demand Decreases Due to Coronavirus Lockdowns

    A study published by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) shows peak demand and energy use decreased as much as 21% in some areas as a result of actions taken to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The report—COVID-19 Bulk System Impacts: Demand Impacts and Operational and Control Center Practices—was released on March 27. It reviews […]

  • A New Frontier for Nuclear Fuels

    Though much attention has been focused on the exciting realm of nuclear reactor technology innovation, major efforts to improve nuclear fuels—and boost power generation safety and economics—are underway

  • Show Preview – Connected Plant Conference

    The Connected Plant Conference allows for interaction with the industry’s early adopters. Attendees will meet generators who are using the latest connected plant tools. The speaker lineup (Figure 1) provides

  • Increasing Automation for Fossil Energy Plants

    An Electric Power Research Institute study has developed a systematic process for introducing sequence automation to fossil power plants. Researchers are now exploring its implementation in case studies. As

  • Hype and Hope: Artificial Intelligence’s Role in the Power Sector

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is a term power professionals are seeing increasingly to describe sophisticated digital technologies. Could it be the breakthrough that is so highly hyped? There is no argument

  • Innovation Propels Nuclear Power on New Trajectory

    Innovation is ushering in a new age for nuclear power. As well as boosting plant economics, efficiency, and flexibility, advanced technologies could open up new markets to meet soaring demand for heat and

  • Water Chemistry: Power Plant Life and Death

    Power plants that use steam to generate electricity need water. Without it, they can’t do their job. But water and steam are complicated, much as is blood in our veins and arteries. So, water chemistry is a

  • 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

  • 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

  • Operating HRSGs with Elevated Feedwater pH

    Cycle-chemistry guidelines for combined cycle power plants have changed over the years, with pH frequently maintained between 9.6 and 10.0 today. That can cause problems with condensate polisher operation

  • How the U.S. Is Investing in Advanced Coal Technologies

    The U.S. is investing heavily to ensure its future coal-fired power fleet will be cleaner, more efficient, and more flexible, experts said at the 9th International Conference on Clean Coal Technologies in Houston on June 4. The conference—which is taking place this week in the U.S. for the first time—is spearheaded by the IEA Clean […]

  • EMP Threat Real but Limited, EPRI Says in Much-Anticipated Report

    Depending on the hazard field, electromagnetic pulses (EMPs) resulting from detonation of a nuclear weapon at high altitude or in space could cause significant damage to electronics on the bulk power system and even prompt a regional voltage collapse, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) says in much-anticipated findings from its three-year study on high-altitude […]

  • Improving Safety and Efficiency with Reality Capture

    Reality capture uses laser scanning hardware to record the as-built conditions of any environment in a series of scans. These scans, once stitched together, create a holistic picture of structures, equipment

  • Trump Acts on Critical Infrastructure Resiliency Against EMP Threats

    President Trump has signed an executive order (EO) to boost coordination for and national resilience against electromagnetic pulse (EMP) threats—both from nuclear warfare and natural events like solar superstorms. The action suggests new federal mandates to protect critical infrastructure against EMP events and attacks may be on the horizon.  Senior Trump administration officials from the National Security […]

  • Planning for the Future of Intelligent Power Generation

    An Electric Power Research Institute-led collaborative utility project, called I4Gen (Insight through the Integration of Information for Intelligent Generation), is exploring new technologies for digitally

  • Game-Changing Coal Power Technologies

    To be a relevant player in the future power mix, coal power efficiency and costs must improve, and technologies in the realm of research and development promise to do just that. Although most experts agree

  • Advanced Digital Technology Offers Utilities Profound Changes

    Advanced digital technologies, including robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, are transforming the way electric power companies do business, in ways that benefit the companies and their

  • Power Plant Efficiency: A Key to Profitable Performance

    Building power plants is only the first step to generating success. Running plants efficiently, and consistently improving efficiency as they run, is the path to putting profits on the bottom line. Building

  • DOE Lays Out How Power Sector Could Win the Cybersecurity Battle

    Cybersecurity threats are outpacing the energy sector’s “best defenses,” and costs of preventing and responding to cyber incidents are straining company efforts to protect critical infrastructure, the Department of Energy (DOE) warned as it released a comprehensive five-year cybersecurity strategy for the industry. The Multiyear Plan for Energy Sector Cybersecurity, dated March 2018 but which […]

  • Upheaval and Innovation in Wastewater Management

    Regulatory uncertainty, changing resources, and an industrywide drive to cut costs and boost flexibility and efficiency are among a growing list of challenges that are prompting new approaches to treat power

  • EPRI: Electrification to Reshape Power Landscape

    Even in the absence of climate policy, customer adoption of electric end-use technologies over the next 30 years is expected to spur steady growth in energy consumption, a new report assessing U.S. electrification from the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) suggests. The April 3–released report, “U.S. National Electrification Assessment,” is based on findings by EPRI’s […]

  • Disaster Preparedness: The Quest for Transformer Resilience

    Though critical to the nation’s power grid, large power transformers are some of the most vulnerable components in the system. Armed with a shared determination for resiliency, government, industry, grid

  • Reducing Nuclear Plant Operations and Maintenance Costs Through Online Monitoring

    The Electric Power Research Institute’s full spectrum of online monitoring-related research offers nuclear power plant operators guidance for monitoring program implementation. The research results are used

  • Reducing Cycling Damage to Combined Cycle Steam Turbines

    Cycling a combined cycle plant places additional stresses on all equipment, but the impacts extend beyond the gas turbine and heat recovery steam generator. Plant owners and managers are beginning to see

  • UPDATED: Senators Renew Push for Return to Analog in Grid Cybersecurity Bill

    A bill to protect the U.S. power grid from cyber-attacks reintroduced by members of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee urges a “retro” approach to cybersecurity using a novel analog “disrupter” technology to guard computer-connected operating systems. U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Angus King (I-Maine) on January 10 renewed their support of the Securing Energy […]

  • Sylvan Source (SSI) Announces Water Treatment Pilot Test Hosted by Southern California Utility in Collaboration With the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)

    SAN CARLOS, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–SSI announces completion of a pilot test of the SSI Core water treatment system at Southern California Edison’s Mountainview plant in Redlands, CA. “Demands to supply water to a growing population are increasing worldwide and are having profound impacts on the use of limited water resources,” said Richard Breckenridge, program manager at […]