EPRI Journal articles from September 1993

EPRI Journal archives from September 1993

Discovery; ceramic filaments for higher lamp efficiency.
September 1, 1993... Scientists at Superkinetic, Inc., of Santa Fe, New Mexico, may have come up with a way to make a better light bulb - using ceramic fibers instead of tungsten alloys as filaments in incandescent lamps. The potential advantages include much...

Discovery; light may inhibit corrosion.
September 1, 1993... Researchers at Pennsylvania State University are shining a light on materials used in critical power plant components - not to examine them better, but to protect them from corrosion. Photoinhibition of the corrosion process is a "seductively...

Discovery; electric charge reduces tillage energy.
September 1, 1993... The application of a modest electric charge to conventional tillage tools may significantly reduce the amount of energy farmers need to plow their fields. The phenomenon at work is electroosmosis: an electric charge applied to the tilling blade...

Digging into pollution prevention. (waste reduction and recycling)
September 1, 1993... John Cook didn't climb the corporate ladder and become a vice president at Illinois Power Company just to shovel fertilizer. But that's exactly what he found himself doing one frigid winter day this year. And he's proud of it. "I don't know of...

Human performance in the spotlight. (research on high levels of brightness in the workplace)
September 1, 1993... Over the last decade, scientists have learned with increasing certainty that the daily cycle of sunlight and darkness, quite apart from affecting our vision, exerts a powerful biological influence on humans. For nearly all mammals, the...

Zebra mussels; the assault continues. (mussels cause problems in fresh-water industrial operations)
September 1, 1993... THE STORY IN BRIEF Over the past seven years, zebra mussel infestation has spread relentlessly, fouling up utility cooling intakes and other industrial operations that draw fresh water. The striped invader has flourished in all of the Great...

Electrification for developing countries.
September 1, 1993... The future of developing nations hinges to a large extent on the growth of electrification, according to Dr. Hisham Khatib of the World Energy Council's committee for developing countries. But in trying to make electricity widely available, the...

Fuzzy logic in the utility industry; something fuzzy's in the air.
September 1, 1993... Some problems in life are ill suited to precision. For example, consider the frustration of having to park a car exactly 6 inches from the curb when "close to the curb" is really where you want to be. Technical problems that require the rapid...

Polymer research; from tires to cables.
September 1, 1993... What's good for making packages last until they're opened, or even for making automobile tires last 50,000 miles, isn't necessarily what's best for insulating utility cables. After all, the rubber on your car is probably good for only about...

On-site power; fuel cell demonstration planned.
September 1, 1993... San Diego Gas & Electric Company is one of a handful of electric utilities that have begun bringing power generation to customers' backyards. The utility, working in cooperation with EPRI, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Gas Research...

Monitoring the performance of heat pump water generators.
September 1, 1993... More than 100 commercial customers of Georgia Power Company are getting their hot water from the most energy-efficient technology available today - and are enjoying the added benefit of essentially free supplemental space cooling - thanks to...

Puget demonstrates soil cleanup with thermal desorption. (contamination with hydrocarbon compounds)
September 1, 1993... Cult fans of the television miniseries "Twin Peaks" might recognize the former railyard as the location for the opening scene, in which a central character is found dead. But to Puget Sound Power & Light Company, the site has been a real-life...

Remote PV water pumping confirmed as cost-effective utility service. (photovoltaic systems)
September 1, 1993... Over 250 water-pumping systems powered by photovoltaic (PV) systems have been installed by ranchers, farmers, homeowners, and private organizations in western and midwestern states in the past five years. To quantify the performance and...