Overview Case Study: Power Plant for Surry, Virginia Background
Energy Trends Energy Sources Environmental Impacts Infrastructure
and Energy
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Case Study: Surry Power Plant Surry County is located near
Richmond, VA Proposed $4 billion, 1,500 megawatt, coal power
plant
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Case Study: Surry Power Plant Benefits Site has easy rail and
highway access Coal is the most affordable means of production Coal
is an important part of VAs economy Create 200 permanent jobs,
2,000 temporary jobs
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Case Study: Surry Power Plant Whats not to like? Chesapeake Bay
Foundation concerned about: air and water pollution, increased CO,
global warming, and failure to support clean energy Because of
these roadblocks, the energy supply has trouble meeting the energy
demands
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Background: Energy Concerns Demand for energy in the US is
constantly increasing New power producing facilities are needed to
meet demand Non-sustainable energy plants are the easiest and least
expensive to build and maintain Even when benefits greatly outweigh
negatives, approval is still hard to achieve because of
environmental impacts
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Background: Mathematics Energy = Force x Distance Measured in
Joules (J) or British Thermal Units (BTU) Power: The rate of energy
use Measured in Watts (W) = J/sec
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Background: Mathematics Example 1: Estimate the number of
households that can be supported by a 100 MW electrical power
generating facility. Assume each household uses 1,000 kWh per
month
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Background: Mathematics Solution 1: Use dimensional analysis to
find the Watts per household Divide the total power plant output by
the power per household to find the supported homes.
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Background: Mathematics Example 2: Household power usage is
considered residential energy use, which is only 33% of the power a
community needs. Power plants usually operate below full capacity
in order to improve the lifespan of the plant. This plant only
operates at 80%. Determine the actual number of households powered
by the facility.
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Background: Mathematics Solution 2: Multiply the full capacity
household by the plant output percentage, and the percentage
delegated to residential use. Plant capacity percentageResidential
use percetage
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Energy Trends
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Energy is used for transportation, industrial production,
residential and commercial use, etc Total energy use includes both
electricity and fuel Industrial demand decreased since 1990, why?
Shift from industry to service economy Total energy consumption
tripled since 1950 Need for more power plants evident
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Energy Trends: Predictions Use projections to estimate future
demand Demand depends on population as well as total energy use
Useful to look at energy us per capita
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Energy Trends: Predictions Two projections for total US energy
use per capita If population increases but demand per individual
decreases, total demand may remain constant
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Energy Sources Either Renewable or Non-renewable Non-renewable:
Coal, petroleum, natural gas, nuclear Renewable: Wind, solar,
biomass, hydropower
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Energy Sources
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Renewable Sources Accounts for approx. 10% of electrical
generation 8% hydropower Expected to increase Societal shift to
clean energy Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards Renewables aside
from hydro expected to increase from 2% to 7% of total electricity
production by 2030
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Energy Sources Non-Renewable Sources Coal is the most widely
used Natural gas increase due to low price in the 1990s Nuclear
power growth impeded by policy Disasters impact public eye Japan
March 2011
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Energy Sources: Nuclear 20% of electricity in the US produced
through nuclear power Minimal direct emissions 19 states have no
nuclear power plants Large coal economy 6 states have over 50% of
energy generated through nuclear power No new plants constructed
since 1977
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Energy Sources: Nuclear Yucca Mountain Nuclear waste repository
Cancelled in 2009 Under the Obama Administration funding for
development of Yucca Mountain waste site was terminated The US GAO
stated that the closure was for political, not technical or safety
reasons. This leaves United States civilians without any long term
storage site for high level radioactive waste
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Energy Sources: MSW MSW Municipal Solid Waste Source of energy
through direct combustion WTEF Waste to Energy Facilities
Facilities to combust the MSW to generate electricity More common
in densely populated regions Can take the place of a 100 acre
landfill in only a few acres Primary disadvantage is air
pollution.
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Environmental Impacts Air Pollution Primary Contaminants CO 2
Carbon Dioxide Greenhouse gas NO x and SO x - Nitrogen and Sulfur
oxides Acid rain and respiratory problems NO 2 - Nitrogen Dioxide
ground level ozone formation (i.e. smog)
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Environmental Impacts Air Pollution Primary Contaminants
(cont.) CO Health problems Hg Mercury Small amounts in coal yield
high amounts in atmosphere Deposits in land and water, accumulates
in fish VOCs volatile organic compounds Benzene Touline Vinyl
Chlorides
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Environmental Impacts
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Energy and Infrastructure (E&I) Cost Capital costs O&M
(operation and maintenace) Cost projections necessary to evaluate
power plant feasibility Conservative projection: high cost of
energy Risky projection: low cost of energy Must provide a range of
projections due to changing prices of resources
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E&I: Transportation Population increased 70% since 1960
Fuel consumption more than tripled in same period Fuel consumption
depends on miles traveled and fuel efficiency
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E&I: Buildings Buildings account for: 40% of total energy
use 14% total water consumption 72% total electricity consumption
39% CO 2 emissions Green Buildings More energy efficient Some
buildings being retrofitted for energy savings Payback Period:
amount of time it takes for energy savings to surpass higher
capital cost of green buildings
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E&I: Wastewater Treatment facilities very energy intensive
due to pumping, aeration, etc Optimizing energy use: Proper
equipment specification Installing more efficient pumps Potential
to generate energy Organic solids removed from wastewater can be
digested and produce methane Methane (CH 4 ) = natural gas
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E&I: Landfills Methane is produced in landfills Landfill:
Ann Arbor, Michigan 7.5 year period 43,600 MWh produced Valued at
$2.5 million Could power ~ 1000 homes End product is CO 2, however
it emits no more than a coal plant of the same caliber