As nuclear reactor fleet ages, engineers ask,' Is 80 the new 40?'
Nov. 20 - (New York Times/Greenwire) -Could nuclear power plants last as long as the Hoover Dam?
With nuclear providing always-on electricity that will become more cost-effective if a price is placed on heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions, utilities have found it is now viable to replace turbines or lids that have been worn down by radiation exposure or wear. Many engineers are convinced that nearly any plant parts, most of which were not designed to be replaced, can be swapped out.
"We think we can replace almost every component in a nuclear power plant," said Jan van der Lee, director of the Materials Ageing Institute (MAI), a nuclear research facility inaugurated this week in France and run by the state-owned nuclear giant EDF.
"We don't want to wait until something breaks," he said. By identifying components that are wearing down and replacing them, he said, suddenly nuclear plants will find that "technically, there is no age limit."
Indeed, as U.S. regulators begin considering the extended operations of nuclear plants -- the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) expects the first application for an 80-year license could come within five years or less -- perhaps the largest lingering question is one of basic science: How do heavy doses of radiation, over generations, fundamentally alter materials like steel and concrete?
"It's taken many years for us to understand the problem," said Gary Was, a fellow and former director of the University of Michigan's Phoenix Energy Institute and an expert in aging materials. "Thirty years ago, we didn't have techniques to see these changes." More>
»Nuclear engineering research at the University of Michigan's Phoenix Memorial Lab
New $10-million Department of Energy center to focus on plasma research
Nov. 13 - A new center at the University of Michigan College of Engineering will enable fundamental research on low-temperature plasmas—ionized gases with vast potential for practical technological advancements in fields such as energy, lighting, microelectronics and medicine.
The Center for Predictive Control of Plasma Kinetics: Multi-phase and Bounded Systems is funded by a $10-million, 5-year grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The research that will be conducted at the center could lead to more efficient solar cells, finer-featured microchips and new medical tools that cut and heal tissues with plasma- activated chemistry, rather than heat, as lasers do. Plasma surgical tools could allow wounds to heal faster, said Mark Kushner, the George I. Haddad Collegiate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Kushner is the new center's director. More>
Also visit http://mipse.umich.edu/
U-M energy institute director tapped to help shape state’s wind future
Nov. 17 - Dennis Assanis, director of the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute at the University of Michigan, has been tapped by Gov. Jennifer Granholm to help shape the state’s strategy to harness offshore wind energy.
He will serve on the Great Lakes Wind Council, an advisory body within the Department of Energy, Labor, and Economic Growth that provides citizens with a public forum to begin to identify where, in the Great Lakes, wind energy systems may be prudently sited.
According to a report issued in September by the council, 20 percent of the 38,000 square miles of state-owned Great Lakes bottomlands has potential for offshore wind development. Within this area, 537 square miles are considered to be most favorable to the sustainable development of offshore wind energy.
The council’s report recommends a package of legislative and rule changes to help guide the development of offshore wind energy. Recommended changes would facilitate the permitting, leasing, construction, and monitoring of offshore wind projects while protecting natural resources.
Assanis is the Jon R. and Beverly S. Holt professor of engineering and an Arthur F. Thurnau professor. The energy institute develops, coordinates and promotes multidisciplinary energy research and education at the U-M.
The council must provide a report of its activities to the governor no later than Nov. 15, 2010, and complete its work by Dec. 31, 2010.
Grant supports smart materials to heat up car efficiency
Nov. 03 - Energy efficiency in cars is heating up with a Department of Energy grant the University of Michigan engineers are receiving through its partnership with General Motors.
The Smart Materials and Structures division of the GM/U-M Automotive Research Institute will work to develop devices that convert waste heat from car engines into electricity with part of a $2.65 million award from the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). More>
More energy highlights November 25, 2009
Oct. 26 - Powering a Green Planet: Sustainable Energy, Made Interactive
Oct. 21 - Costs of plug-in cars key to broad consumer acceptance
Oct. 16 - U-M part of new solid-state lighting association
Oct. 14 - Energy institute and Fraunhofer announce new AETT seed grant winners
Oct. 05 - President Coleman launches multifaceted sustainability initiative