Electricity Distribution 101

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Excerpt: The technology for reaching the goal of energy independence is available today. The only thing lacking is a strong national energy policy and a modern electric transmission grid. The U.S. operates about 164,000 miles of highvoltage electric transmission lines. These are divided into five grid …

Monitoring transformers key to predictive maintenance

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Excerpt: Mike Dickinson, Pacific Coast Transformers, www.pacificcresttransformers.com Transformers serve as a hub for collection and distribution of energy changing the voltage level at different locations of the grid. They are a key component of the Smart Grid, loosely defined as an automated, widely dis …

Transmission lines get a green light in Texas

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Excerpt: MISO's Board of Directors has unanimously approved MISO's Transmission Expansion Plan 2011 (MTEP11), a comprehensive long-term regional plan for the electric grid that will bring more than $2 billion in annual benefits for decades to come for energy consumers throughout the Midwest. The plan was …

New lab to help utilities ‘see’ grid of the future

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Excerpt: This article comes from NREL With the simple flick of a light switch, you connect to "the machine," the North American electric grid. It’s the world's most complex transmission and distribution system — also is referred to as the world's largest machine. That same machine has run reliably o …

Grid plan to smartly connect 11 utilities across 5 states

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Excerpt: Software that lets a utility in Washington cut power consumption by up to 50% will soon get a big test. This demonstration is part of a project that will attempt to knit together aging and fragmented grid infrastructure across five states and 11 utilities. The project will involve 95 smaller eff …

Electrolyzer to provide energy storage for wind-hydrogen installation

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Excerpt:   A manufacturer of hydrogen generation and fuel cell products says it has been selected by the City of Herten, Germany to store hydrogen generated from wind power. Herten is a major German hydrogen cluster for electro-mobility as well as renewable energy projects. Renewable wind ener …

Power-storage control for islanding, peak shaving, and more

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Excerpt: The Smart Grid SMS Storage Management System is said to provide an interface between a stored power source and the utility grid. It consists of a master control system and a 2-MW, 2.5-MVA power conversion system (PCS). The PCS has two inverters, each rated 1 MW and 1.25 MVA. When coupled with st …

Another reason we build wind turbines

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Excerpt: A recent report covers the full picture of how electric vehicles by land, water and air will be externally charged because they are increasing in number. Most electric vehicles will have a plug in feature. The charger-market value will increase more than fivefold over the decade, but car charging wi …

Can software improve the grid?

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Excerpt: GE engineers say, yes, and they have done so with the company’s Intelligent Platforms software. Proficy Grid Manager, a range of tested grid optimization software for local utilities, delivers real-time information and analytics to help utilities improve operational reliability and efficiency, …

FERC requires filing OATT for generator lead line

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Excerpt: This article comes from law firm Foley Lardner LLC (foley.com) FERC's recent Sky River decision highlights issues for owners of generator lead lines regarding the use of such lines by unaffiliated third parties. Sky River LLC owns a wind project and an interest in an associated lead line to conne …