Guide to Gas Turbine Training There are a wide variety of gas turbines in service and planned in the power utility industry. That variety includes: Read More
VARs Explained in 300 Words, Without Equations or Vector Analysis In my experience working at Power Plants, operators generally fall into two categories when it comes to understanding reactive power (VARs): This who sort of … Read More
Coal and Fossil Fuel Plant Emissions Controls Many would say that the coal industry is under attack. The Environmental Protection Agency, politicians, the media, etc., are all trying to make coal clean. … Read More
Emissions Targets and De-Carbonization Drive In August of 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) put into effect a Clean Power Plan (CPP) as an emission guideline for states to follow … Read More
Cooling Tower Factors: Dry & Wet Bulb Temperature, Range & Approach When asked, most operators will provide the purpose of a cooling tower: to reduce the temperature of water to the lowest practicable point. Pressed on … Read More
Issues with Training and Qualification Jobs for Combined Cycle Plants Justifying training and qualification programs for operators in combined cycle power plants is difficult in comparison to older coal-fired Rankine cycle power plants. One big … Read More
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Your Facility The most important part of any facility's technical documentation must come in the form of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Operator error is the most common type … Read More
Analyzing Data to Improve Operational Readiness Collection and analysis of data is key to improving efficiency in power plant operations and thus, maximizing profits. Power plant operators frequently record data on … Read More
Power Plant Training in Protective Relays A protective relay activates in the electrical distribution system, sending a trip signal. Switchgear circuit breakers trip. An entire bus is lost. Equipment shuts down. … Read More
