Power Engineering articles from March 2009

Power Engineering archives from March 2009

To the editor: clarification.(Feedback)(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2009... A story in February's issue about circulating fluidized bed technology could have created a misunderstanding about Dominion's plans for the burning of biomass at a power station now under construction in Wise County, Va. [ILLUSTRATION...

Decision time for ultra-supercritical.(Opinion)(Viewpoint essay)
March 1, 2009... Las Vegas, Nev.-based NV Energy decided last month to postpone plans to build the first phase of the Ely Energy Center, a 1,500 MW ultra-supercritical coal-fired power plant in the east central part of the state. The company faced a July...

Flexible power's environmental profile.(Clearing the Air)(Editorial)
March 1, 2009... Wind generation is touted as a clean solution to our focus on greenhouse gas emissions. However, while customers demand electricity 24/7, the wind blows sporadically. This leads to demand for a flexible power plant design capable of following...

Responding to new directives.(View on Renewables)(Tenaska Solar LLC)(Soltage LLC)
March 1, 2009... When Tenaska Solar LLC announced in December its equity investment in Soltage LLC for expanding the development of solar-generated electricity, surprise seemed to register among power producers, their vendors and traditional investment groups....

Politics aside, challenges remain.(Nuclear Reactions)(Editorial)(Conference notes)
March 1, 2009... As the Obama Administration and the new Congress settle into office, one issue both entities will have to address is how they will support (or not) new nuclear plant development. Early signs are cautiously favorable, but incomplete. While...

Clark plant a safe bet for Las Vegas.(Managing the Plant)(NV Energy)
March 1, 2009... NV Energy's Clark station in Las Vegas, Nev. is a large and unique natural gas-fired generating facility. Located in an area that was once miles from the heart of Las Vegas, the city and its fast-growing suburbs have since spread out and...

Do industry fundamentals suggest a strong recovery?(Startup)(energy industry)(Discussion)
March 1, 2009... Analysts and executives alike looked ahead to a post-recession world during two days of discussions at CERA Week, the annual energy industry event held in Houston February 9-13. Some projects are on hold and capital expenditure budgets are...

Entergy nuclear spinoff in "rolling readiness" mode.(Startup)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Entergy said ongoing financial market turmoil and a longer than expected regulatory approval process have led it to take a "rolling readiness posture" with regard to spinning off its portfolio of nuclear generating assets. "This strategy...

SME adds gas and wind to its coal-fired project.(Startup)(Southern Montana Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Southern Montana Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative will seek permitting and financing to build an 80 MW natural gas-fired facility on the same site as the utility's $900 million coal-fired Highwood Generating Station, whose...

A generator to match resource variability?(Startup)(ExRo Technologies Inc.)(Interview)
March 1, 2009... The conventional electric generator has never been ideal for generating power efficiently from wind. Its ability to do it efficiently with water often depends on having the steady flow of it assured with large hydroelectric dams spanning large...

Mitsubishi Heavy industries.(Business Briefs)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Mitsubishi Heavy Industries signed an agreement with GE to study CO-developing steam turbines for combined-cycle gas turbine, power plants. The companies will integrate their technologies under the co-development and will aim to create a new...

Sempra generation.(Business Briefs)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Sempra Generation completed its first solar energy project, a 10 MW photovoltaic power-generation facility adjacent to the company's existing 480 MW El Dorado Energy power plant 40 miles southeast of Las Vegas, Nev. El Dorado Energy Solar is...

Duke energy's.(Business Briefs)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Utility regulators in North Carolina approved Duke Energy's plan to place solar panels on hundreds: of rooftops in the state. The $50 million plan will help Duke meet state requirements to generate electricity from renewable energy sources....

PCL Construction Services Inc.(Business Briefs)(Vestas)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... PCL Construction Services Inc. won a contract to build a 600,000 wind tower manufacturing plant for Vestas in Pueblo, Colo. The new facility is slated to open later this year. Vestas opened its first North American facility, earlier this year...

Tennessee valley authority.(Business Briefs)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... A federal court has ordered the Tennessee Valley Authority to install scrubbers on six boilers at its Widows Creek plant, TVA's second-oldest coal fired station. The scrubbers will cost TVA at least another $158 million on top of more than $3...

Luminant and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.(Business Briefs)
March 1, 2009... Luminant and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. formed a joint venture to develop Comanche Peak Units 3 and 4 using MHI's US-Advanced Pressurized, Water Reactor. The joint venture, known as Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Co., will fund project...

CEO of Hawaiian Electric Co..(Personnel & Promotions)(appointment of Richard M. Rosenblum)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Richard M. Rosenblum became president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric Co. effective January 1, replacing T. Michael May, who stepped down as president and CEO in August. Rosenblum was formerly senior vice president of generation for Southern...

Sargent & Lundy's fossil power technologies group.(Personnel & Promotions)(appointments of)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Timothy S. Laughlin has been named senior vice president in Sargent & Lundy's fossil power technologies group with responsibility for the direction of new generation, retrofit and environmental services projects for several clients. Thomas J....

Mike Rencheck.(Personnel & Promotions)(appointment by AREVA Inc.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Mike Rencheck, formerly senior vice president and chief nuclear officer for AEP's Cook nuclear plant, has been named president and CEO of Areva NP. Prior to joining AEP, Rencheck was director of nuclear engineering and projects for Florida...

Joseph N. Jensen.(Personnel & Promotions)
March 1, 2009... Joseph N. Jensen has been named senior vice president and chief nuclear officer of AEP's D.C. Cook nuclear plant, replacing Mike Rencheck.

Wisconsin Public Service Corp.(Construction & Contracts)(acquisation of enXco )(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Wisconsin Public Service Corp. and enXco reached an acquisition and sale agreement for the 99 MW Crane Creek Wind parm to be built in Howard County, Iowa. In the turnkey transaction, enXco will build the farm and turn it over to WPS. enXco will...

American superconductor.(Construction & Contracts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... American Superconductor received its first order for a D-VAR system to meet dynamic reactive compensation requirements for a 220 kV transmission grid in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, China. Reactive power compensation is necessary to stabilize...

Interstate power and light.(Construction & Contracts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Interstate Power and Light said Iowa regulators set a lower return on equity and a lower construction cap than it requested to build the 649 MW hybrid coal-fired Sutherland Generating Station Unit 4. Iowa utility regulators set a return on...

Emerson process management.(Construction & Contracts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Emerson Process Management received a contract from Basin Electric Power Cooperative to digitally automate its new 385 MW Dray Fork coal-fired plant in Gillette, Wyo. In total, the new system will manage more than 4,600 hard I/O points.

Thermal Engineering International.(Construction & Contracts)(Zachry Industrial Inc.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Babcock Power subsidiary Thermal Engineering International received a contract from Zachry Industrial to convert existing condensers, previously used in steam cycle gas/oil boilers at Topaz Power Group's Barney Davis and Nueces Bay Energy...

Siemens Energy.(Construction & Contracts)(Kleen Energy Systems LLC)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Siemens Energy will provide a turnkey 345 kV GIS substation for the 620 MW Kleen Energy combined cycle power plant in Connecticut along with the major rotating and plant control equipment for this project under separate contracts. The new plant...

Covanta Holding Corp.(Mergers & Acquisitions)(acquisation of Ridgewood Maine LLC and Indeck Energy Services)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Covanta Holding Corp. purchased two biomass energy facilities from Ridgewood Maine LLC and Indeck Energy Services. Covanta acquired the two nearly identical facilities, in West Enfield and Jonesboro, Maine, for around $52 million. The...

Enercon Services Inc.(Mergers & Acquisitions)(acquisation of NISYS Corp.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Enercon Services Inc. acquired NISYS Corp. Inc., an engineering and consulting firm located in Duluth, Ga., that will become part of Tulsa, Okla.-based Enercon's power generation services group.

Constellation energy.(Mergers & Acquisitions)(acquisation by The Goldman Sachs Group Inc.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Constellation Energy reached a definitive agreement to divest the majority of its London-based energy-related commodities business to Goldman Sachs. The safe is part of a plan to increase Constellation's liquidity and reduce collateral...

Siemens.(Mergers & Acquisitions)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Siemens has informed Areva it will exercise the option to sell shares of Areva NP's capital, 34 percent of which have been held by Siemens, thus ending all share capital ties. Once the transaction is completed, Areva NP will be a wholly-owned...

Zachry Holdings has completed acquisition of Southerland Associates, an engineering.(Mergers & Acquisitions)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Zachry Holdings has completed acquisition of Southerland Associates, an engineering, construction and fabrication services company based in Charlotte, N.C. The acquisition allows Zachry to develop a regional employment and craft training center...

Effective motor management: a well designed program can cut downtime, energy costs and motor costs.
March 1, 2009... Motors often fail without warning and when they do the primary concern is getting the affected systems up and running as quickly as possible. If a replacement is readily available, the failed motor is usually replaced and sent out for repair....

PE online question of the week.
March 1, 2009... PE online question of the week What makes a coal-fired generating technology "clean"? No carbon emissions 13% Carbon emissions no higher than a natural gas plant 42% Level of supercritical...

How new coal plants help achieve environmental goals: a compelling case can be made for building more coal plants to reduce [CO.sub.2].
March 1, 2009... Presently 52 percent of electric power in the United States is generated by coal. The U.S. has coal reserves per capita which for exceed any other country. Energy security and world competitiveness are greatly enhanced by the use of coal. The...

Improving pumping system efficiency at coal plants: the industry must employ ultramodern technologies when building or upgrading.
March 1, 2009... The most cost-effective approach to addressing our power generation energy crisis is energy conservation. Improving the efficiency of energy systems will play a major role in solving the energy and environmental problems of the future. ...

Fuel blending with PRB coal.(Powder River Basin)
March 1, 2009... A major design factor for the coal handling facilities at both new and existing plants has been coal blending. Many new power plants are considering the ability to blend coals as an important part of the basic coal handling facility to allow...

Optimization technology contributes to ramp rate improvement: Minnkota power co-op can now respond more efficiently to load swings.(Field Notes)(Minnkota Power Cooperative Inc.)
March 1, 2009... The Milton R. Young Station, a two-unit, lignite-fired power generating facility located near the town of Center, N.D., consistently ranks among the nation's lowest-cost coal-fired generating plants. Young Unit 1 is owned and operated by...

Integration of ultrasound tools promotes power plant health.(Field Notes)
March 1, 2009... To efficiently meet rising demand, the power generation industry is increasingly integrating advanced and automated monitoring, control and analytical tools. Fast and pinpoint-accurate, ultrasonic detection, condition-based monitoring and...

Turbine problems threatened new plant commissioning: bearing problems were repaired without turbine disassembly.(Field Notes)(Mechanical Solutions Inc.)
March 1, 2009... Just weeks before the commissioning deadline at a new power plant, problems with one of a pair of steam turbine/generator sets surfaced. Hundreds of thousands of dollars per day in liquidated damages would be due if the problem wasn't solved....

Bearing failure prevented at Oregon wind farm.(Field Notes)
March 1, 2009... Encouraging results from recent up-tower testing at a wind farm in Oregon indicate that the conductive-microfiber bearing protection ring is preventing generator bearing damage. Designed by the Electro Static Technology engineering team to...

Polymer valves.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Groth Corp. announces a new fine of relief valves designed for environments too corrosive for metallic or fiberglass valves. Constructed of non-metallic, corrosion resistant materials, these valves will operate in highly caustic environments...

Redflex brochure.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Through its Redflex line of rubber products, Red Valve supplies expansion joints, reducers, fittings, elbows, ductwork connections, vibration pipe. All products are made to the highest quality standards and conform to all FSA guidelines. Parts...

Oil-Glo dye.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Maintenance specialists rely on fluorescent leak detection to pinpoint leaks in all types of industrial equipment, including milling and injection-molding machines, hydraulic tanks, fork lifts, gear boxes, punch presses and other equipment that...

Blasch ceramics.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Tubular air heaters, or air preheaters, are used in a variety of processes to capture heat from combustion and use it to preheat air coming into the boiler or furnace. Plant operators often find serious damage within the first few inches of...

Fluke multimeters.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Fluke Corp. announced a user-downloadable firmware upgrade for the Fluke 8845A/8846A Precision Digital Multimeters that delivers more functionality from the instruments. The Fluke 8845A and 8846A 6.5 Digit Precision Multimeters can be used on...

Ash extractor.(Products)
March 1, 2009... United Conveyor Corp. unveiled the VAX Vibratory Ash Extractor for dry bottom ash handling. Designed to improve operational efficiencies at utility facilities, the VAX is suitable for pulverized bituminous and sub-bituminous coal boilers, and...

Airpot video.(Products)
March 1, 2009... Airpot introduces the first three in series of online technical product videos, which illustrate pneumatic control of unwanted motion using Airpot dashpots, snubbers and air-bearing actuators. Dynamic systems often produce unwanted motion and...

UFOops!(Generating Buzz)(Unidentified flying object)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Alien life enthusiasts the world over were thrilled in January when a wind turbine in eastern England was damaged, perhaps by a UFO strike. According to reports, which included supermarket tabloids, local residents were jarred awake around...

Drive toward climate change.(Generating Buzz)(Climate Action Partnership)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... The U.S. Climate Action Partnership issued a paper in January calling for an 80 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Ralph Izzo, chairman, president and CEO of PSEG, says nothing less than the complete electrification of the U.S....

EE motto: "be prepared".(Generating Buzz)(Commonwealth Edison Co.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Ever been caught with no power in a winter storm? Well, if you have a hybrid car, your backup generator may be parked in the garage. Seems an enterprising Boston electrical engineer hooked up his house to his Toyota Prius during a...