Solar Power
Long history of solar energy
As with hydropower, solar energy has a long history. Many pre-historic cultures used it to warm their dwellings, dry their clothes, and cure their food. The importance of solar energy was so great that most cultures revered the Sun and… Read more
Jul 10, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Energy and Power
Fuses – Principles of design and operation
A fuse consists of a replaceable part (the fuselink) and a fuse holder. Examples of fuse holders are shown in Fig. 1. The simplest fuselink is a length of wire. It is mounted by screw connections in a holder which… Read more
Jul 09, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Energy and Power
Area classification in potentially explosive atmospheres
Area classification defines hazardous areas on the basis of the probability of a flammable atmosphere being present. It is a legal requirement under DSEAR for any employer whose business involves flammable materials in any form, and it results in the… Read more
Jul 08, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Energy and Power
Generator tripping as stability control
Generator tripping is an effective (cost-effective) control especially if hydro units are used. Tripping of fossil units, especially gas- or oil-fired units, may be attractive if tripping to house load is possible and reliable. Gas turbine and combined-cycle plants constitute… Read more
Jul 06, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
SCADA
SCADA communication vulnerabilities
Cyber security engineering is expensive. However, the presence of vulnerabilities requires it. In this section we list vulnerabilities we typically see in SCADA systems. The order in the list of vulnerabilities does not reflect a priority in terms of likelihood… Read more
Jul 04, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Electronics
Designing Raw DC Power Supplies
Every type of electrical or electronic apparatus needs a source of electrical energy to function. The source of electrical energy is called the power supply. The two main classifications of power supplies are line-operated power supplies (operated from a standard… Read more
Jul 03, 2011 | By Sa'ad Eddin
Energy Efficiency
Setting circuit breaker tripping with MS Excel spreadsheet
The protective unit of circuit breaker MUST fulfill: Instantaneous trip setting Im < Iscmin for a circuit-breaker Fusion current Ia < Iscmin for a fuse The protective unit (or device) must satisfy the two conditions: Its fault-current breaking rating must… Read more
Jul 02, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Energy and Power
Fuel cells in power section
In 1839, a British Jurist and an amateur physicist named William Grove first discovered the principle of the fuel cell. Grove utilized four large cells, each containing hydrogen and oxygen, to produce electricity and water which was then used to… Read more
Jul 01, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Wind Power
Large and Small Wind Turbines are Different
Wind turbines are generally divided into two broad categories based on their rated capacity and their intended applications. Small wind turbines are typically less than 50 kW in size, but can be as large as 250 kW and are designed… Read more
Jun 29, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
News
New download! Easy calculate size of solar panels!
For the purposes of this guide, we are assuming that the solar energy generated by the panels will be stored in a battery or number of batteries. The basic principle is to identify the size of panel maintain sufficient charge… Read more
Jun 28, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Energy and Power
Who was James Prescott Joule?
James Prescott Joule was born on Christmas Eve 1818 into a wealthy Salford brewing family. A sickly child, he was tutored at home where he indulged his fascination for electricity by using a voltaic cell to give electric shocks to… Read more
Jun 27, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Biomass Energy
Typical applications of biomass
During Second World War the gasifiers were mainly employed for transportation purposes. However, in recent years the gasifiers have been employed mainly for stationary applications. For generating electricity, the producer gas from the biomass gasifier is first cleaned and cooled… Read more
Jun 26, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Lighting
Technical analysis of LED light
A Light Emitting Diode (LED) is a semiconductor device which converts electricity into light. Each diode is about 1/4 inch in diameter and uses about ten milliamps to operate at about a tenth of a watt. LEDs are small in… Read more
Jun 24, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Environment
How much for the geothermal energy? Impacts, hm?
Geothermal power requires no fuel, and is therefore immune to fuel cost fluctuations, but capital costs tend to be high. Drilling accounts for over half the costs, and exploration of deep resources entails significant risks. A typical well doublet in… Read more
Jun 22, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
Transformers
Buchholz relay on oil transformer with conservator
The Buchholz relay has two oil-filled chambers with floats and relays arranged vertically one over the other. If high eddy currents, local overheating, or partial discharges occur within the tank, bubbles of resultant gas rise to the top of the… Read more
Jun 20, 2011 | By Edvard Csanyi
