Transmission:
The newest postings are at the top of each heading.
This shows how difficult building new lines for wind and solar projects can be.
Investors in California utilities fear that some fires may have been caused by transmission lines sparking in high winds.
Achieving 100% renewables in the Jacobson WWS plan will require an inordinate number of new transmission lines and gas generation backup.
There is a limit to the maximum size of AC grids and China has broken up its grid to smaller ones connected through DC lines.

Microgrid News:
Micro nuclear reactor should be perfect for a microgrid.
Alaskan microgrid improves "resilience".
These ideas being developed in Hawaii will also need to be implemented elsewhare.
This is a well written article about Puerto Rico's grid woes and the potential role microgrids could play in a new rebuilt PR grid.
HEB grocery stores in Houston were able to stay open thanks to a microgrid system when Hurricane Harvey took down the grid.
Microgrids offer many benefits listed on the last two pages of this presentation.

Conservation News:
Here is why load modifications and conservation frequently fails to work as intended.
Study finds that conservation and energy efficiency alone will not result in a sustainable future.
This example shows energy efficiency improvements typically result in increased consumption if the energy costs are lower.
The Israelis have a new water production scheme that has eliminated water shortages in the region. We can do the same here.

Solar News:
Solar growth in Texas outpaces California solar growth.
The Sierra Club knows that Ivanpah Solar is both an environmental disaster as well as an engineering failure.
How to halve the cost of residential solar in the US.
China reaches grid parity with solar sooner than expected.
Large solar plant in Texas cost 1 $/watt.
My comment on the Cost of Solar vs Nuclear.
How to halve the cost of residential solar in the US.
Austin has lowest cost solar in the US (or world?).
Solar farms in Puerto Rico were destroyed by Maria which shows there is a need for better hurricane proofing in future installations.
Plug and Play Solar; utilities must now assume these are on their systems.
The duck has finally landed in California.

Wind Power News:
800 MW wind farm has a $3 billion cost for $3.75/watt.
NREL advances wind development in 2020 studies.
Excess UK wind with low prices must be stored if it's to be used at times when wind doesn't produce enough power.
Grid operator warns wind will not fill the nuclear gap in the winter in Sweden. Stop nuclear at any cost - even if it means destroying our planet!
Older wind farms in ERCOT are being repowered triggering a need to rewrite some rules for assessing the impact of repowerings.
The US can handle more wind off the east coast but will environmentalists allow it to happen?
These researchers have discovered that you MUST use natural gas to back up wind power. This is not good.
Bird kills are not a good thing to discover about wind power, which is a continuing problem for some windy locations.
China's wind is more constrained causing the Chinese wind to generate less energy than in the US.
Germany slows wind growth to allow transmssion upgrades to keep up with new wind.
The killing of eagles is legalized. How intelligent is that?
Here is a report on wind's impact on bird populations, something to keep in mind as wind farms increase in number.
North Carolina coastal residents want wind farms to be at least 8 miles off shore to get them out of sight.
The UK government has decided they don't want wind farms covering the countryside.
Bird nesting activities in great plains are reported to be interrupted by wind farms.

Geothermal, Water, and Bio News:
Water purification system makes electricity as it cleans the water.
Fewer biofuels, more green space: Climate action researcher calls for urgent shift.
Here is a study showing burning wood pellets like Austin Energy and the plant in Gainesville has no CO2 advantages, a huge waste of money and time.
A decline in snowpack in the western US means that there will be less hydro generation energy available.
Droughts are going to drive the reliability of the western states more and more as we transition off fossil fuels.
Why biomass remains an economic challenge even in timber rich Georgia.
15% of Norway's hydro power today comes from melting glaciers due to climate change.
Bio fuels are found to not be completely carbon neutral.
The facts about biomass, a world wide disaster in the making.

Energy Storage News:
Ludington Pumped Storage Plant on Lake Michigan operates like a giant battery to store energy.
Lithium extraction from the Salton Sea broadcast on 60 minutes.
New iron - air battery could be a game changer.
New sulfur sodium battery could be a game changer.
New aluminum sulfur battery offers full charging in under a minute.
COPS26 storage winning battery design.
Australian aluminum air battery out performs Li Ion.
Extending the life of Li Ion batteries to 10,000 cycles.
New sodium battery concept does away with the anode.
New liquid metal battery storage technology looks very promising.
Researchers look for lower cost battery materials.
University of Texas discovers how to make a cobolt free Li ion battery.
University of Texas liquid metal battery at room temperature.
New proton battery is developed.
New Li extraction process is developed.
Eventually we will get hydrogen atom transport into the energy storage role.
Silicon replaces carbon in a new Li-ion battery design.
Achieving 100% renewables in the Jacobson WWS plan will require an inordinate number of new transmission lines and gas generation backup.
Rooftop solar plus batteries is twice as expensive power as power from the grid.
Prof John Goodenough at the University of Texas has a glass separator for Li-ion and Na-ion that also prevents dentrites.

Coal CO2 & CCS News:
Impact of 8000 coal plants world wide.
TVA continues its shift away from burning coal.
A coal plant tower is taken down.
John Oliver sued by a coal company over his broadcast about coal mining and coal miners.
The Soletair demo plant developed in Finland uses carbon dioxide to produce renewable fuels and chemicals.

Oil and Gas News:
Fracking is suspect in causing global spike in methane release due to its fingerprint.
California's natural gas leak was found to be worsened by a series of management decisions to not relace defective parts properly.
Natural Gas fuel cells by Bloom Energy in Southern California looks promising.
Fracking and other human activities are causing Texas earthquakes study suggests.
US Navy synthesizes fuel from seawater at a projected cost of 3 to 6 dollars per gallon.
A proposal to create jet fuel from seawater on nuclear powered aircraft carriers.

Nuclear Fission News:
Bill Gates move ahead to build a sodium nuclear plant even without permissions.
Building an MSR test reactor at Abilene Christian University by 2025.
France to build six new nuclear plants.
Construction Permit Application for the Kairos Power Hermes reactor.
China will complete a 2 MW thorium nuclear test reactor at the end of 2021.
Molten-Salt Reactor Choices - Kirk Sorensen of Flibe Energy @ ORNL MSRW 2020.
University of Utah is testing various salts for a Thorium reactor.
Thorcon advanced nuclear power plant design.
Germany has lost it's senses in closing its nuclear power plants.
Michael Shellengerberger gives a good assessment of wind solar hydro and nuclear power today and their problems.
Micro nuclear reactor might be just what is needed to serve remote small load centers, too remote for transmission lines.
Latest updates on creating jet fuel from seawater on nuclear powered aircraft carriers.
Michael Shellenberger talks about the different kinds of nuclear power risks.
World Nuclear News predicts nuclear will rebound because of five reasons listed here in this article.
How the UAE is pioneering peaceful civilian nuclear energy in the Middle East; $25bn/5380MW < $5/W.
Russians have a concept of burning up nuclear weapons grade waste in a thorium reactor which makes commercial power at the same time.
If you think nuclear power is declining you haven't been keeping up with China.
New molten salt reactor is making progress toward being approved for commercial service.
The real problem for advancing nuclear is raising the cash needed to finance it.
Contrary to popular opinion there is no linkage between countries with nuclear power and those with nuclear weapons.
Here is a medical report on the impact of radiation in Japan after Fukushima.
Maine town once flush in cash is now in financial crisis after their local nuclear plant closed.
Illinois protects nuclear plants from closure to protect jobs and taxes.
Scientists find that nuclear power will be necessary to stave off human induced climate change.
Six communities around Diablo Canyon nuclear plant sue to keep the plant running.
Power Engineering magazine makes a case for nuclear power.
Michael Shellenberger TED talk on how fear of nuclear power is hurting the environment.
Per Peterson's nuclear plant concepts and in particular the Mk1 PB-FHR design.
Major advances have been made for extracting uranium from sea water.
Bill Gates talks about the need for an energy miracle.
US restarts PU 238 production for space missions.
Union of Concerned Scientists says nuclear cost and construction schedule needs to be fixed.
Russia will build a 4800 MW nuclear plant in Egypt. The plant is financed through energy sales.
A proposal to create jet fuel from seawater on nuclear powered aircraft carriers.
Shutting down San Ofofre was caused by non nuclear faulty equipment the builder and plant insurer Mitsubishi failed to honor.
China's aggressive nuclear plant building program and policies, note the closed fuel cycle policy.
New Russian reactor vessel has an expected life of 120 years.
Fine tuning radiation exposure requires a recognition low dosages may not be as harmful, i.e not follow a linear response.
Where is the most dangerous place on Earth for death from radioactivity? The answer is: The lungs of cigarette smokers!
The Integral Fast Reactor seems to have been one of the US government's best kept secrets. (ppt)
The Russians issue a report on their BN600 sodium cooled fast neutron breeder reactor.

Nuclear Fusion News:
General Atomics fusion progress.
Promises fusion in a few years.
Welcome to Fusion city USA.
Japan has a new process for fusing Boron with Hydrogen.
UK reaches fusion energy threshold.
The MIT SPARC fusion uses a new super conducting magnet.
New nuclear fusion advancement.
Nuclear fusion advancement.
China holds fusion 120 million C for 100 seconds.
Navy reopens LENR (cold fusion) discussion and research.
Concept for a compact tokamak design.
Commonwealth fusion R&D backed by Bezos and Gates.
New construction at ITER may allow ignition experiments.
Utilizing relativistic effects for laser fusion: A new approach for clean power.
UK will attempt to get a fusion plant working by 2024.
Princeton scientists find a way to create a plasma for fusion without the use of large magnets.
Chinese station of extreme light that can tear apart space time linking gravity with light with nonlinear electronics.
Chinese Tokamak reaches 100 million degrees C record temperature for 10 seconds producing 10 MW.
Princeton not to be outdone by MIT also has new fusion stability ideas they want to test.
MIT researchers are trying to stabalize tokamak type plasmas using microwaves.
MIT newly formed company launches a novel approach to fusion power.
Latest LPP Fusion information.
Controlling electrons from causing heating losses brings fusion one step closer.
S Koreans are making progress in fusion.
MIT reports progress on their fusion project.
Keep up with Tri Alpha tweets.
October 2015 Tri Alpha youtube promotional video.
August 2015 Tri Alpha update on their concept.
Germany fires up its stellarator fusion reactor experiment.
Here is a a small advancement in the ignition of nuclear fusion.
Proposal to use lasers to create muons and thus deuterium fusion and the source.
Scientists make breakthrough in understanding nuclear fusion.
Tokamak fusion modeling shows ITER may work better than expected allowing smaller reactors.
Univ of Washington prsents their concept of a fusion reactor.

2015-2021 Energy and CO2 articles.