Hungry for Power

Posted on by farlane
power | time traveler series | by brian day

power | time traveler series | by brian day

You may have heard that the owners of Pallisades Nuclear Plant plan to restart 70s-era facility in 2025, but did you hear that they also plan to fire up two smaller reactors on the site?

Holtec International, the company that owns and wants to restart the closed Palisades nuclear plant, is already working on preliminary site plans for a pair of 300-megawatt SMRs (Small Modular Reactors) previously announced for the industrial site along Lake Michigan in Covert Township.

…Advanced nuclear technology expert Staffan Qvist, Swedish engineer and scientist, said SMRs come with “inherent safety” measures using the basic physics of the plant’s design and engineering. He said SMRs will generate smaller loads of electricity than classic nuclear plants but will cost much less to build. Qvist said the Holtec SMR-300 is a primarily water-cooled design, and he likened it to a shrunken down version of a conventional pressurized water reactor (but)… Nuclear critic Kevin Kamps, of watchdog group Beyond Nuclear, said trying to restart the old nuclear plant and co-locate new modular units was setting up the site for “Fukushima-like domino-effect meltdowns.”

You can read more in mLive, but I think the thing that may be of most interest is WHY these plants are being restarted in the first place. Scientific American has a great look at how Artificial Intelligence (AI) uses a ridiculous amount of power & is on track to use a whole lot more.

I featured this photo of the Fermi plant in southeast Michigan from Brian’s amazing series called The Time Traveller way back in 2011. Check out his latest work on Instagram & for sure dig into some of his other photo series on his website.

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Edison Sault Hydroelectric Plant

Posted on by farlane

Sault Ste Marie Edison Water Treatment Plant

Sault Ste Marie Edison Water Treatment Plant, photo by Matt

Matt linked over to Top Plants: Edison Sault Hydroelectric Plant Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in PowerMag, which says (in part):

Hydroelectric projects are unique in that as long as the water is flowing and the mechanicals are periodically upgraded, there are few reasons their turbines won’t continue making electricity into the next century. The energy source may be renewable, but so is the plant itself. An exceptional example is Michigan’s 107-year-old Edison Sault Hydroelectric Plant, which combines historic architecture with modern technology to successfully generate 25 to 30 MW of electricity when operating at full load.

…Excavation of the hydropower plant’s canal began in September 1898 and was completed in 1902. Concurrently, construction of the Edison Sault Electric Hydroelectric Plant began in March 1900 and was completed in 1902. Official opening of the facility was held on October 25, 1902. At the time of completion, the plant was second only to Niagara Falls in terms of hydro development.

The facility is constructed of stone and steel. Much of the stone that was used was excavated from the power canal during its construction. Additional stone was used on other local landmarks throughout the City of Sault Ste. Marie.

You can read on for more (including diagrams) and visit the Cloverland Electric Cooperative Hydroelectric Plant page for more!

View Matt’s photo background bigtacular and see more in his Michigan Vacation slideshow. Speaking as someone who’s seen a fair amount of Michigan vacation photos – nice vacation Matt!!

More from Sault Ste. Marie on Michigan in Pictures!