Misplaced Pages

#566433

90-771: Its average electric power production is about 3.3 gigawatts (GW), serving about four million people. Arizona Public Service (APS) owns 29.1% of, and operates the plant. Its other owners are the Salt River Project (20.2%), the El Paso Electric Company (15.8%), Southern California Edison (15.8%), PNM Resources (7.5%), the Southern California Public Power Authority (5.9%), and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (5.7%). APS

180-449: A pultruded fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) structure, FRP cladding , a mechanical unit for air draft , and a drift eliminator. With respect to the heat transfer mechanism employed, the main types are: In a wet cooling tower (or open circuit cooling tower), the warm water can be cooled to a temperature lower than the ambient air dry-bulb temperature, if the air is relatively dry (see dew point and psychrometrics ). As ambient air

270-461: A 45-acre (18 ha) reservoir for use in the plant's wet cooling towers . The nuclear power heated steam system for each unit was designed and supplied by Combustion Engineering, designated the System 80 standard design–a predecessor of the newer standard System 80+ design. Each primary system originally supplied 3.817 GW of thermal power to the secondary (steam) side of each plant. The design

360-890: A March 24, 2009, public meeting, the NRC announced that it cleared the Confirmatory Action Letter (CAL), and has returned Palo Verde to Column 1 on the NRC Action Matrix. The commission's letter stated that "The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has determined that the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station has made sufficient performance improvement that it can reduce its level of inspection oversight." "Performance at Palo Verde has improved substantially and we are adjusting our oversight accordingly," said Elmo E. Collins, NRC's Region IV Administrator. "But we will closely monitor

450-460: A chiller coefficient of performance (COP) of 4.0. This COP is equivalent to an energy efficiency ratio (EER) of 14. Cooling towers are also used in HVAC systems that have multiple water source heat pumps that share a common piping water loop . In this type of system, the water circulating inside the water loop removes heat from the condenser of the heat pumps whenever the heat pumps are working in

540-486: A chimney stack much shortened vertically (20 to 40 ft. high) and very much enlarged laterally. At the top is a set of distributing troughs, to which the water from the condenser must be pumped; from these it trickles down over "mats" made of wooden slats or woven wire screens, which fill the space within the tower". A hyperboloid cooling tower was patented by the Dutch engineers Frederik van Iterson and Gerard Kuypers in

630-433: A circuit from a component is defined to have a negative sign. Thus passive components have positive power consumption, while power sources have negative power consumption. This is called the passive sign convention . In the case of resistive (Ohmic, or linear) loads, the power formula ( P = I·V ) and Joule's first law ( P = I^2·R ) can be combined with Ohm's law ( V = I·R ) to produce alternative expressions for

720-449: A complete cycle of the AC waveform, results in net transfer of energy in one direction is known as real power (also referred to as active power). The amplitude of that portion of energy flow (power) that results in no net transfer of energy but instead oscillates between the source and load in each cycle due to stored energy, is known as the absolute value of reactive power . The product of

810-434: A deep pan with holes or nozzles in its bottom is located near the top of a crossflow tower. Gravity distributes the water through the nozzles uniformly across the fill material. Cross Flow V/s Counter Flow Advantages of the crossflow design: Disadvantages of the crossflow design: In a counterflow design, the air flow is directly opposite to the water flow (see diagram at left). Air flow first enters an open area beneath

900-572: A loop of wire, or disc of copper between the poles of a magnet . For electric utilities , it is the first process in the delivery of electricity to consumers. The other processes, electricity transmission , distribution , and electrical energy storage and recovery using pumped-storage methods are normally carried out by the electric power industry . Electricity is mostly generated at a power station by electromechanical generators , driven by heat engines heated by combustion , geothermal power or nuclear fission . Other generators are driven by

990-514: A method for steam recapture. The steam is charged using an ion beam, and then captured in a wire mesh of opposite charge. The water's purity exceeded EPA potability standards. An HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning) cooling tower is used to dispose of ("reject") unwanted heat from a chiller . Liquid-cooled chillers are normally more energy efficient than air-cooled chillers due to heat rejection to tower water at or near wet-bulb temperatures . Air-cooled chillers must reject heat at

SECTION 10

#1732766071567

1080-436: A pipe with gunpowder residue was found in the bed of a contract worker's pickup truck during normal screening of vehicles. It was confirmed by the local police to contain explosives. Arizona Public Service then initiated a seven-hour security lockdown of the plant, allowing no one to enter or exit the plant. The site declared a Notification of Unusual Event , which is the lowest of four Emergency Plan event classifications . On

1170-416: A small amount of the water to be lost as windage or drift (W) and some of the water (E) to evaporate . The heat required to evaporate the water is derived from the water itself, which cools the water back to the original basin water temperature and the water is then ready to recirculate. The evaporated water leaves its dissolved salts behind in the bulk of the water which has not been evaporated, thus raising

1260-421: A source or a load, depending on the voltage and current through them. For example, a rechargeable battery acts as a source when it provides power to a circuit, but as a load when it is connected to a battery charger and is being recharged. If conventional current flows through the device in a direction from higher potential (voltage) to lower potential, so positive charge moves from the positive (+) terminal to

1350-534: A typical 700 MW th coal-fired power plant with a cooling tower amounts to about 71,600 cubic metres an hour (315,000 US gallons per minute) and the circulating water requires a supply water make-up rate of perhaps 5 percent (i.e., 3,600 cubic metres an hour, equivalent to one cubic metre every second). If that same plant had no cooling tower and used once-through cooling water, it would require about 100,000 cubic metres an hour A large cooling water intake typically kills millions of fish and larvae annually, as

1440-457: Is a design in which the airflow is directed perpendicular to the water flow (see diagram at left). Airflow enters one or more vertical faces of the cooling tower to meet the fill material. Water flows (perpendicular to the air) through the fill by gravity. The air continues through the fill and thus past the water flow into an open plenum volume. Lastly, a fan forces the air out into the atmosphere. A distribution or hot water basin consisting of

1530-469: Is a device that rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a coolant stream, usually a water stream, to a lower temperature. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove heat and cool the working fluid to near the wet-bulb air temperature or, in the case of dry cooling towers , rely solely on air to cool the working fluid to near the dry-bulb air temperature using radiators . Common applications include cooling

1620-417: Is a relatively more important issue for package type cooling towers. Facilities such as power plants, steel processing plants, petroleum refineries, or petrochemical plants usually install field-erected type cooling towers due to their greater capacity for heat rejection. Field-erected towers are usually much larger in size compared to the package type cooling towers. A typical field-erected cooling tower has

1710-517: Is a scalar since it is the surface integral of the Poynting vector . 2021 world electricity generation by source. Total generation was 28 petawatt-hours . The fundamental principles of much electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday . His basic method is still used today: electric current is generated by the movement of

1800-480: Is a so-called 2 × 4, with each of four main reactor coolant pumps circulating more than 60,000 gallons per minute of primary-side water through 2 large steam generators. The main turbine generators were supplied by General Electric . When installed, they were the largest in the world, capable of generating 1.447 GW of electricity each. They remain the largest 60 Hz turbine generators. Unlike most multi-unit nuclear power plants, each unit at Palo Verde

1890-399: Is an independent power plant, sharing only a few minor systems. The reactor containment buildings are some of the largest in the world at about 2.6 million cubic feet (74,000 m) enclosed. The three containment domes over the reactors are made of 4-foot (1.2 m) thick concrete. The facility's design incorporates features to enhance safety by addressing issues identified earlier in

SECTION 20

#1732766071567

1980-421: Is called power factor and is a number always between −1 and 1. Where the currents and voltages have non-sinusoidal forms, power factor is generalized to include the effects of distortion. Electrical energy flows wherever electric and magnetic fields exist together and fluctuate in the same place. The simplest example of this is in electrical circuits, as the preceding section showed. In the general case, however,

2070-574: Is defined as the removal of 12,000 British thermal units per hour (3.5 kW). The equivalent ton on the cooling tower side actually rejects about 15,000 British thermal units per hour (4.4 kW) due to the additional waste-heat–equivalent of the energy needed to drive the chiller's compressor. This equivalent ton is defined as the heat rejection in cooling 3 US gallons per minute (11 litres per minute) or 1,500 pounds per hour (680 kg/h) of water by 10 °F (5.6 °C), which amounts to 15,000 British thermal units per hour (4.4 kW), assuming

2160-400: Is drawn past a flow of water, a small portion of the water evaporates, and the energy required to evaporate that portion of the water is taken from the remaining mass of water, thus reducing its temperature. Approximately 2,300 kilojoules per kilogram (970 BTU/lb) of heat energy is absorbed for the evaporated water. Evaporation results in saturated air conditions, lowering the temperature of

2250-475: Is located on 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of land, and it consists of three pressurized water reactors , each with an original capacity to produce 1.27 GW of electric power. After a power up-rate, each reactor is able to produce 1.4 GW of electric power. The usual power production capacity is about 70 to 95 percent of this. This nuclear power plant is a major source of electric power for the densely populated parts of Southern Arizona and Southern California , e.g.

2340-452: Is not an issue with marine engines , it forms a significant limitation for many land-based systems. By the turn of the 20th century, several evaporative methods of recycling cooling water were in use in areas lacking an established water supply, as well as in urban locations where municipal water mains may not be of sufficient supply, reliable in times of high demand, or otherwise adequate to meet cooling needs. In areas with available land,

2430-658: Is not reprocessed in the United States, the reactors have always operated on fresh UOX fuel. Palo Verde was of such strategic importance that it and Phoenix were purported to be target locations in war plans of the Soviet Union during the Cold War . In March 2003, National Guard troops were dispatched to protect the site during the launch of the Iraq War amidst fears of a terrorist attack. The site and

2520-630: Is supplied by other means, usually from separate boilers . Industrial cooling towers can be used to remove heat from various sources such as machinery or heated process material. The primary use of large, industrial cooling towers is to remove the heat absorbed in the circulating cooling water systems used in power plants , petroleum refineries , petrochemical plants, natural gas processing plants, food processing plants, semi-conductor plants, and for other industrial facilities such as in condensers of distillation columns, for cooling liquid in crystallization, etc. The circulation rate of cooling water in

2610-511: Is the watt , the general unit of power , defined as one joule per second . Standard prefixes apply to watts as with other SI units: thousands, millions and billions of watts are called kilowatts, megawatts and gigawatts respectively. In common parlance, electric power is the production and delivery of electrical energy, an essential public utility in much of the world. Electric power is usually produced by electric generators , but can also be supplied by sources such as electric batteries . It

2700-761: Is the 210 metres (690 ft) tall cooling tower of the Pingshan II Power Station in Huaibei , Anhui Province, China. These types of cooling towers are factory preassembled, and can be simply transported on trucks, as they are compact machines. The capacity of package type towers is limited and, for that reason, they are usually preferred by facilities with low heat rejection requirements such as food processing plants, textile plants, some chemical processing plants, or buildings like hospitals, hotels, malls, automotive factories, etc. Due to their frequent use in or near residential areas, sound level control

2790-619: Is the most important form of artificial light. Electrical energy is used directly in processes such as extraction of aluminum from its ores and in production of steel in electric arc furnaces . Reliable electric power is essential to telecommunications and broadcasting. Electric power is used to provide air conditioning in hot climates, and in some places, electric power is an economically competitive energy source for building space heating. The use of electric power for pumping water ranges from individual household wells to irrigation and energy storage projects. Cooling tower A cooling tower

Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station - Misplaced Pages Continue

2880-410: Is transformed to other forms of energy when electric charges move through an electric potential difference ( voltage ), which occurs in electrical components in electric circuits. From the standpoint of electric power, components in an electric circuit can be divided into two categories: If electric current is forced to flow through the device in the direction from the lower electric potential to

2970-417: Is usually supplied to businesses and homes (as domestic mains electricity ) by the electric power industry through an electrical grid . Electric power can be delivered over long distances by transmission lines and used for applications such as motion , light or heat with high efficiency . Electric power, like mechanical power , is the rate of doing work , measured in watts , and represented by

3060-523: Is what necessitates the cooling tower. Although these large towers are very prominent, the vast majority of cooling towers are much smaller, including many units installed on or near buildings to discharge heat from air conditioning . Cooling towers are also often thought to emit smoke or harmful fumes by the general public and environmental activists, when in reality the emissions from those towers mostly do not contribute to carbon footprint , consisting solely of water vapor . Cooling towers originated in

3150-565: The Federal Aviation Administration and local law enforcement. However the identity of the operator or operators, and the purpose of the incursions remains unknown. In an Arizona Republic article dated February 22, 2007, it was announced that the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) had decided to place Palo Verde into Category 4, making it one of the most closely monitored nuclear power plants in

3240-739: The Phoenix , and Tucson, Arizona , Las Vegas, Nevada , Los Angeles , and San Diego , California metropolitan areas. The Palo Verde Generating Station produces about 35 percent of the electric power that is generated in Arizona. It became fully operational by 1988, took twelve years to build and cost about 5.9 billion dollars. The power plant employs about 2,055 full-time employees. The Palo Verde Generating Station supplied electricity at an operating cost (including fuel and maintenance) of 4.3 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2015. In 2002, Palo Verde supplied electricity at 1.33 cents per kilowatt-hour; that price

3330-407: The kinetic energy of flowing water and wind. There are many other technologies that are used to generate electricity such as photovoltaic solar panels. A battery is a device consisting of one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery (or " voltaic pile ") in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since

3420-511: The 19th century through the development of condensers for use with the steam engine . Condensers use relatively cool water, via various means, to condense the steam coming out of the cylinders or turbines. This reduces the back pressure , which in turn reduces the steam consumption, and thus the fuel consumption, while at the same time increasing power and recycling boiler water. However, the condensers require an ample supply of cooling water, without which they are impractical. While water usage

3510-503: The Arizona Public Service Company reported that since its commissioning, Palo Verde's electricity production had offset the emission of almost 484 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (the equivalent of taking up to 84 million cars off the road for one year); more than 253,000 metric tons of sulfur dioxide ; and 618,000 metric tons of nitrogen oxide. The company noted, "If Palo Verde were to cease operation at

3600-497: The M-Cycle HMX for air conditioning, through engineering design this cycle could be applied as a heat- and moisture-recovery device for combustion devices, cooling towers, condensers, and other processes involving humid gas streams. The consumption of cooling water by inland processing and power plants is estimated to reduce power availability for the majority of thermal power plants by 2040–2069. In 2021, researchers presented

3690-731: The Netherlands on August 16, 1916. The first hyperboloid reinforced concrete cooling towers were built by the Dutch State Mine (DSM) Emma in 1918 in Heerlen . The first ones in the United Kingdom were built in 1924 at Lister Drive power station in Liverpool , England. On both locations they were built to cool water used at a coal-fired electrical power station. According to a Gas Technology Institute (GTI) report ,

Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station - Misplaced Pages Continue

3780-648: The RMS value of the voltage wave and the RMS value of the current wave is known as apparent power . The real power P in watts consumed by a device is given by ℘ = 1 2 V p I p cos ⁡ θ = V r m s I r m s cos ⁡ θ {\displaystyle \wp ={1 \over 2}V_{p}I_{p}\cos \theta =V_{\rm {rms}}I_{\rm {rms}}\cos \theta } where The relationship between real power, reactive power and apparent power can be expressed by representing

3870-657: The UK patent (108,863) for Improved Construction of Cooling Towers of Reinforced Concrete . The patent was filed on 9 August 1917, and published on 11 April 1918. In 1918, DSM built the first hyperboloid natural-draft cooling tower at the Staatsmijn Emma , to his design. Hyperboloid (sometimes incorrectly known as hyperbolic ) cooling towers have become the design standard for all natural-draft cooling towers because of their structural strength and minimum usage of material. The hyperboloid shape also aids in accelerating

3960-527: The United States. The decision was made after the INPO discovered that electrical relays in a diesel generator did not function during tests in July and September 2006. The finding came as the "final straw" for INPO, after Palo Verde had several citations over safety concerns and violations over the preceding years, starting with the finding of a 'dry pipe' in the plant's emergency core-cooling system in 2004. During

4050-570: The accumulation of dissolved minerals in the recirculating cooling water. Discharge of draw-off (or blowdown) is used principally to control the buildup of these minerals. The chemistry of the make-up water, including the amount of dissolved minerals, can vary widely. Make-up waters low in dissolved minerals such as those from surface water supplies (lakes, rivers etc.) tend to be aggressive to metals (corrosive). Make-up waters from ground water supplies (such as wells ) are usually higher in minerals, and tend to be scaling (deposit minerals). Increasing

4140-420: The amount of minerals present in the water by cycling can make water less aggressive to piping; however, excessive levels of minerals can cause scaling problems. As the cycles of concentration increase, the water may not be able to hold the minerals in solution . When the solubility of these minerals have been exceeded they can precipitate out as mineral solids and cause fouling and heat exchange problems in

4230-466: The amount of power that is dissipated: ℘ = I V = I 2 R = V 2 R {\displaystyle \wp =IV=I^{2}R={\frac {V^{2}}{R}}} where R is the electrical resistance . In alternating current circuits, energy storage elements such as inductance and capacitance may result in periodic reversals of the direction of energy flow. The portion of energy flow (power) that, averaged over

4320-522: The apparent power, when the current and voltage are both sinusoids with a known phase angle θ between them: (real power) = (apparent power) cos ⁡ θ {\displaystyle {\text{(real power)}}={\text{(apparent power)}}\cos \theta } (reactive power) = (apparent power) sin ⁡ θ {\displaystyle {\text{(reactive power)}}={\text{(apparent power)}}\sin \theta } The ratio of real power to apparent power

4410-860: The circulating water used in oil refineries , petrochemical and other chemical plants , thermal power stations , nuclear power stations and HVAC systems for cooling buildings. The classification is based on the type of air induction into the tower: the main types of cooling towers are natural draft and induced draft cooling towers. Cooling towers vary in size from small roof-top units to very large hyperboloid structures that can be up to 200 metres (660 ft) tall and 100 metres (330 ft) in diameter, or rectangular structures that can be over 40 metres (130 ft) tall and 80 metres (260 ft) long. Hyperboloid cooling towers are often associated with nuclear power plants , although they are also used in many coal-fired plants and to some extent in some large chemical and other industrial plants. The steam turbine

4500-477: The cooling mode, then the externally mounted cooling tower is used to remove heat from the water loop and reject it to the atmosphere . By contrast, when the heat pumps are working in heating mode, the condensers draw heat out of the loop water and reject it into the space to be heated. When the water loop is being used primarily to supply heat to the building, the cooling tower is normally shut down (and may be drained or winterized to prevent freeze damage), and heat

4590-529: The cooling tower or the heat exchangers . The temperatures of the recirculating water, piping and heat exchange surfaces determine if and where minerals will precipitate from the recirculating water. Often a professional water treatment consultant will evaluate the make-up water and the operating conditions of the cooling tower and recommend an appropriate range for the cycles of concentration. The use of water treatment chemicals, pretreatment such as water softening , pH adjustment, and other techniques can affect

SECTION 50

#1732766071567

4680-412: The direction of the voltage periodically reverses, but the current always flows from the higher potential to the lower potential side. Since electric power can flow either into or out of a component, a convention is needed for which direction represents positive power flow. Electric power flowing out of a circuit into a component is arbitrarily defined to have a positive sign, while power flowing into

4770-611: The end of the original license, replacement cost of natural gas generation—the least expensive alternative—would total $ 36 billion over the 20-year license renewal period." Bechtel Power Corporation was the Architect/ Engineer/ Constructor for the facility initially under the direction of the Arizona Nuclear Power Project (a joint APS/ SRP endeavor), later managed exclusively by Arizona Public Service. Edwin E. Van Brunt

4860-466: The entire system is then: Since the evaporated water (E) has no salts, a chloride balance around the system is: and, therefore: From a simplified heat balance around the cooling tower: Windage (or drift) losses (W) is the amount of total tower water flow that is entrained in the flow of air to the atmosphere. From large-scale industrial cooling towers, in the absence of manufacturer's data, it may be assumed to be: Cycle of concentration represents

4950-443: The fill media, and is then drawn up vertically. The water is sprayed through pressurized nozzles near the top of the tower, and then flows downward through the fill, opposite to the air flow. Advantages of the counterflow design: Disadvantages of the counterflow design: Common aspects of both designs: Both crossflow and counterflow designs can be used in natural draft and in mechanical draft cooling towers. Quantitatively,

5040-464: The first choice because it was in the middle of the desert, it had little or no water supply, and it had prevailing westerly winds. These would have put the Phoenix-Mesa metropolitan area into jeopardy in the event of a major accident. Critics claimed that that site was selected over alternatives because it was owned by a relative of Keith Turley, a person who received almost two million dollars for

5130-436: The heat into the atmosphere instead, so that wind and air diffusion spreads the heat over a much larger area than hot water can distribute heat in a body of water. Evaporative cooling water cannot be used for subsequent purposes (other than rain somewhere), whereas surface-only cooling water can be re-used. Some coal-fired and nuclear power plants located in coastal areas do make use of once-through ocean water. But even there,

5220-440: The higher dry-bulb temperature , and thus have a lower average reverse– Carnot-cycle effectiveness. In hot climates, large office buildings, hospitals, and schools typically use cooling towers in their air conditioning systems. Generally, industrial cooling towers are much larger than HVAC towers. HVAC use of a cooling tower pairs the cooling tower with a liquid-cooled chiller or liquid-cooled condenser. A ton of air-conditioning

5310-412: The higher, so positive charges move from the negative to the positive terminal, work will be done on the charges, and energy is being converted to electric potential energy from some other type of energy, such as mechanical energy or chemical energy . Devices in which this occurs are called active devices or power sources ; such as electric generators and batteries. Some devices can be either

5400-402: The hot process streams which need to be cooled or condensed, and the absorbed heat warms the circulating water (C). The warm water returns to the top of the cooling tower and trickles downward over the fill material inside the tower. As it trickles down, it contacts ambient air rising up through the tower either by natural draft or by forced draft using large fans in the tower. That contact causes

5490-402: The indirect–dew-point evaporative-cooling Maisotsenko Cycle (M-Cycle) is a theoretically sound method of reducing a working fluid to the ambient fluid’s dew point, which is lower than the ambient fluid’s wet-bulb temperature. The M-cycle utilizes the psychrometric energy (or the potential energy) available from the latent heat of water evaporating into the air. While its current manifestation is as

SECTION 60

#1732766071567

5580-409: The land. Keith Turley was the president of APS, and also a member of the " Phoenix 40 ". Units 1 and 2 went into commercial operation in 1986 and Unit 3 in 1988. On November 18, 2005, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced approval of power up-rates at two of Palo Verde's reactors. According to the NRC press release, "The power up-rates at each unit, located near Phoenix, Arizona, increases

5670-446: The late 1970s. These units were cancelled for economic-risk reasons before the permits were issued. Those two additional units would not have been on the same geometric arc as the three existing units; instead, they would have been arranged south of Unit 3 on a north–south axis. The existing units are the only commercial reactors in use in the United States that were engineered to operate on 100% MOX fuel cores. Because nuclear fuel

5760-575: The letter P . The term wattage is used colloquially to mean "electric power in watts". The electric power in watts produced by an electric current I consisting of a charge of Q coulombs every t seconds passing through an electric potential ( voltage ) difference of V is: Work done per unit time = ℘ = W t = W Q Q t = V I {\displaystyle {\text{Work done per unit time}}=\wp ={\frac {W}{t}}={\frac {W}{Q}}{\frac {Q}{t}}=VI} where: I.e., Electric power

5850-419: The material balance around a wet, evaporative cooling tower system is governed by the operational variables of make-up volumetric flow rate , evaporation and windage losses, draw-off rate, and the concentration cycles. In the adjacent diagram, water pumped from the tower basin is the cooling water routed through the process coolers and condensers in an industrial facility. The cool water absorbs heat from

5940-530: The nearby town of Tonopah remain a focus of homeland security, ranking in importance with Arizona's major cities, military bases, ports of entry, and tourist sites. As in all nuclear power plants in the United States, security guards working there are armed with rifles. They check identification and search vehicles entering the plant. Other security measures protect the reactors, including X-ray machines, explosive "sniffers", and heavy guarded turnstiles that require special identification to open. On 2 November 2007,

6030-531: The negative (−) terminal, work is done by the charges on the device. The potential energy of the charges due to the voltage between the terminals is converted to kinetic energy in the device. These devices are called passive components or loads ; they 'consume' electric power from the circuit, converting it to other forms of energy such as mechanical work , heat, light, etc. Examples are electrical appliances , such as light bulbs , electric motors , and electric heaters . In alternating current (AC) circuits

6120-414: The net generating capacity of the reactors from 1,270 to 1,313, and 1,317 megawatts of electric power respectively, for Units 1 and 3. On April 21, 2011, the NRC renewed the operating licenses for Palo Verde's three reactors, extending their service lives from forty to sixty years. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's estimate of the risk each year of an earthquake intense enough to cause core damage to

6210-620: The nights of September 29 and September 30, 2019, the airspace over the facility was violated by aerial drones . On the first night, five or six drones were reported to be flying around Unit 3, which houses one of the site's reactors. At least four were reported during the second incursion on September 30. Subsequent investigations involved the Nuclear Regulatory Commission , the FBI , the Department of Homeland Security ,

6300-414: The offshore discharge water outlet requires very careful design to avoid environmental problems. Petroleum refineries may also have very large cooling tower systems. A typical large refinery processing 40,000 metric tonnes of crude oil per day (300,000 barrels (48,000 m ) per day) circulates about 80,000 cubic metres of water per hour through its cooling tower system. The world's tallest cooling tower

6390-521: The operation of commercial nuclear reactors. The design is also one of the most spacious internally, providing exceptional room for the conduct of operations and maintenance by the operating staff. The Palo Verde 500 kV switchyard is a key point in the western states' power grid and is used as a reference point in the pricing of electricity across the southwest United States. Many 500 kV power lines from companies like Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric send power generated at

6480-621: The organisms are impinged on the intake screens . A large amount of water would have to be continuously returned to the ocean, lake or river from which it was obtained and continuously re-supplied to the plant. Furthermore, discharging large amounts of hot water may raise the temperature of the receiving river or lake to an unacceptable level for the local ecosystem. Elevated water temperatures can kill fish and other aquatic organisms (see thermal pollution ), or can also cause an increase in undesirable organisms such as invasive species of zebra mussels or algae . A cooling tower serves to dissipate

6570-513: The plant to Los Angeles and San Diego via Path 46 , respectively. In addition, due to both the strategic interconnections of the substation and the large size of the generating station, the Western Electricity Coordinating Council considers a simultaneous loss of 2 of the 3 units the worst-case contingency for system stability. The owners applied for a construction permit for two additional units in

6660-450: The plant. We are reducing our oversight, but not our vigilance." To address safety concerns, 58 nuclear sirens were installed within a 10-mile radius of the plant. This area is designated as the EPZ (Emergency Planning Zone). The sirens will wail periodically in the event of any nuclear emergency. The selection of the site for Palo Verde was controversial. Critics claim that the site was not

6750-780: The quantities as vectors. Real power is represented as a horizontal vector and reactive power is represented as a vertical vector. The apparent power vector is the hypotenuse of a right triangle formed by connecting the real and reactive power vectors. This representation is often called the power triangle . Using the Pythagorean Theorem , the relationship among real, reactive and apparent power is: (apparent power) 2 = (real power) 2 + (reactive power) 2 {\displaystyle {\text{(apparent power)}}^{2}={\text{(real power)}}^{2}+{\text{(reactive power)}}^{2}} Real and reactive powers can also be calculated directly from

6840-660: The reactor at Palo Verde was 1 in 26,316, ranking it #18 in the nation according to an NRC study published in August 2010. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a plume exposure pathway zone with a radius of 10 miles (16 km), concerned primarily with exposure to, and inhalation of, airborne radioactive contamination, and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80 km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity. The 2010 U.S. population within 10 miles (16 km) of Palo Verde

6930-432: The salt concentration in the circulating cooling water. To prevent the salt concentration of the water from becoming too high, a portion of the water is drawn off or blown down (D) for disposal. Fresh water make-up (M) is supplied to the tower basin to compensate for the loss of evaporated water, the windage loss water and the draw-off water. Using these flow rates and concentration dimensional units: A water balance around

7020-521: The simple equation P = IV may be replaced by a more complex calculation. The closed surface integral of the cross-product of the electric field intensity and magnetic field intensity vectors gives the total instantaneous power (in watts) out of the volume: ℘ = ∮ area ( E × H ) ⋅ d A . {\displaystyle \wp =\oint _{\text{area}}(\mathbf {E} \times \mathbf {H} )\cdot d\mathbf {A} .} The result

7110-540: The size of rooms that provide standby power for telephone exchanges and computer data centers . The electric power industry provides the production and delivery of power, in sufficient quantities to areas that need electricity , through a grid connection . The grid distributes electrical energy to customers. Electric power is generated by central power stations or by distributed generation . The electric power industry has gradually been trending towards deregulation – with emerging players offering consumers competition to

7200-422: The systems took the form of cooling ponds ; in areas with limited land, such as in cities, they took the form of cooling towers. These early towers were positioned either on the rooftops of buildings or as free-standing structures, supplied with air by fans or relying on natural airflow. An American engineering textbook from 1911 described one design as "a circular or rectangular shell of light plate—in effect,

7290-645: The technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power source for many household and industrial applications. According to a 2005 estimate, the worldwide battery industry generates US$ 48 billion in sales each year, with 6% annual growth. There are two types of batteries: primary batteries (disposable batteries), which are designed to be used once and discarded, and secondary batteries (rechargeable batteries), which are designed to be recharged and used multiple times. Batteries are available in many sizes; from miniature button cells used to power hearing aids and wristwatches to battery banks

7380-424: The traditional public utility companies. Electric power, produced from central generating stations and distributed over an electrical transmission grid, is widely used in industrial, commercial, and consumer applications. A country's per capita electric power consumption correlates with its industrial development. Electric motors power manufacturing machinery and propel subways and railway trains. Electric lighting

7470-492: The treated sewage of several nearby municipalities to meet its cooling needs. Up to 26 billion US gallons (~100,000,000 m³) of treated water are evaporated each year. This water represents about 25% of the annual overdraft of the Arizona Department of Water Resources Phoenix Active Management Area. At the nuclear plant site, the wastewater is further treated and stored in an 85-acre (34 ha) reservoir and

7560-582: The upward convective air flow, improving cooling efficiency. These designs are popularly associated with nuclear power plants . However, this association is misleading, as the same kind of cooling towers are often used at large coal-fired power plants and some geothermal plants as well. The steam turbine is what necessitates the cooling tower. Conversely, not all nuclear power plants have cooling towers, and some instead cool their working fluid with lake, river or ocean water. Typically lower initial and long-term cost, mostly due to pump requirements. Crossflow

7650-407: The water flow causing splashing. Film fill is composed of thin sheets of material (usually PVC ) upon which the water flows. Both methods create increased surface area and time of contact between the fluid (water) and the gas (air), to improve heat transfer. With respect to drawing air through the tower, there are three types of cooling towers: On 16 August 1916, Frederik van Iterson took out

7740-422: The water processed by the tower to a value close to wet-bulb temperature , which is lower than the ambient dry-bulb temperature , the difference determined by the initial humidity of the ambient air. To achieve better performance (more cooling), a medium called fill is used to increase the surface area and the time of contact between the air and water flows. Splash fill consists of material placed to interrupt

7830-425: Was 4,255, an increase of 132.9 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within 50 miles (80 km) was 1,999,858, an increase of 28.6 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Phoenix (47 miles (76 km) to city center). Electric power Electric power is the rate of transfer of electrical energy within a circuit . Its SI unit

7920-497: Was cheaper than the cost of coal (2.26 cents per kW·h) or natural gas (4.54 cents per kW·h) in the region, but more expensive than hydroelectric power (0.63 cents per kW·h). Also in 2002, the wholesale value of the electricity produced was 2.5 cents per kW·h. By 2007, the wholesale value of electricity at the Palo Verde Generating Station was 6.33 cents per kW·h. At the time of its 2011 license renewal,

8010-526: Was granted a 20-year license extension to operate through 2045 for Unit 1, 2046 for Unit 2, and 2047 for Unit 3, with the option to submit a subsequent license renewal application for extended operation. The Palo Verde Generating Station in the Arizona desert is the only large nuclear power plant in the world that is not near a large body of water. The power plant cools and condenses the steam that it produces by using treated sewage water from several nearby cities and towns . The Palo Verde Generating Station

8100-594: Was the key APS executive in charge of engineering, construction, and early operations of the plant. William G. Bingham was the Bechtel Chief Engineer for the project. Arthur von Boennighausen was one of the Owner's Representatives for Arizona Public Service. At its location in the Arizona desert, Palo Verde is the only nuclear generating facility in the world that is not located adjacent to a large body of above-ground water. The facility evaporates water from

#566433