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Title: World’s Largest Solar Plant Just Torched Itself
Source: [None]
URL Source: http://gizmodo.com/the-world-s-larg ... just-torched-itself-1777767880
Published: May 22, 2016
Author: George Dvorsky
Post Date: 2016-05-22 02:15:37 by Tatarewicz
Keywords: None
Views: 79
Comments: 7

Gizmodo... Misaligned mirrors are being blamed for a fire that broke out yesterday at the world’s largest solar power plant, leaving the high-tech facility crippled for the time being. It sounds like the plant’s workers suffered through a real hellscape, too. Damaged steam ducts and water pipes. (Image: San Bernardino County Fire Department via AP)

A small fire was reported yesterday morning at the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System (ISEGS) in California, forcing a temporary shutdown of the facility. It’s now running at a third of its capacity (a second tower is down due to scheduled maintenance), and it’s not immediately clear when the damaged tower will restart. It’s also unclear how the incident will impact California’s electricity supply.

Putting out the blaze was not easy task, either. Firefighters were forced to climb 300 feet up a boiler tower to get to the scene. Officials said the fire was located about two-thirds up the tower. Workers at the plant actually managed to subdue the flames by the time firefighters reached the spot, and it was officially extinguished about 20 minutes after it started.

Located on 4,000 acres of public land in the Mojave Desert, the sprawling concentrated solar thermal plant is equipped with 173,500 heliostats—each with two mirrors—that focus sunlight on boilers located on top of three 459-foot towers. The tremendous heat created by the concentrated solar power produces steam that drives turbines to produce electricity. The plant, the largest of its kind in the world, features a gross capacity of 392 megawatts, enough to power 140,000 homes. Each of the computer-controlled solar-reflecting mirrors is about the size of a garage door. This image shows one of the plant’s three towers when it’s functioning properly and online. (Image: Aioannides)

A spokesperson for the plant said it’s too early to comment on the cause, but it appears that misaligned mirrors are to blame. The Associated Press quoted Mike McClintock, the San Bernardino County fire captain, who said that some mirrors delivered sunlight to a different level on the third unit, causing electrical cables to catch fire.

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Inevitably, the incident reveals the inherent dangers of concentrated solar power as well as the need to ensure that the mirrors are always on target. Concentrated solar power plants, in addition to being a menace to themselves, can also pose a hazard to local wildlife. Last year, a plant in Nevada torched over a hundred birds when they flew through the plant’s “flux field.”

It’s yet another setback for the Ivanpah facility. For the past few months, the plant has been unable to meet the output levels stipulated in its power purchase agreement, and it was given an extension until July 31, 2016 to improve performance. This fire obviously isn’t going to help.

[AP] George Dvorsky@dvorsky

George is a contributing editor at Gizmodo and io9.

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#1. To: Tatarewicz (#0)

It's a New Age Three Mile Island -- heh!!!

These passive energies are hell on Mother nature. Man's first order of business should be less population -- that'll slash most or all the main problems right there. In graying societies the govt can take the money it would have spent on war and asinine socialism and just qualitatively ease 'em to their reward. Surely the treasury can erase zeroes as well as create them out of thin air?

(My nephew was his son's pal or something. See Heemeyer in wikid if you dare -- horrible sordid tale.)

--------------------------------------------------------------

Tagline:The African population of Zimbabwe had increased from an estimated 300,000 in 1890 to 7 million in 1980. This phenomenal increase was the result of the development of a modern infrastructure, first-world health standards and the bountiful crop harvests produced by the white Rhodesian farmers.
By July 2006, the population had almost doubled to 13 million, the result of a symbiotic relationship that had been forged between the 3,400 commercial farmers and the other inhabitants. (IMPACT newsletter March-July 2005)

NeoconsNailed  posted on  2016-05-22   2:44:52 ET  (1 image) Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#2. To: NeoconsNailed (#1)

Regarding KILLDOZER, once Heemeyer sealed himself inside it was a one way trip. He had no way of removing the concrete box that he lifted onto his dozer using his shop crane.

The YOU TUBE vids actually show a dual between the dozer and a road grader, shot from a chopper. (helicopter, not a motorcycle)

The dozer won.

"A noble spirit embiggens even the littlest man."___ Lisa Simpson

HOUNDDAWG  posted on  2016-05-22   18:45:56 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#3. To: NeoconsNailed (#1)

I understand that HIV was invented to keep the black population under control. But it backfired on them and infected many others, such as fags. I think that those blacks in Zimbabwe are breeding like rabbits and need some sort of birth control. ;)

"When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke

BTP Holdings  posted on  2016-05-22   19:04:18 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#4. To: NeoconsNailed (#1)

Surely the treasury can erase zeroes as well as create them out of thin air?

Debt repudiation is the only answer to our troubles here.

Not one dollar collected by the IRS goes to decrease the debt, or even pay the interest. All they are doing is sucking up the excess cash to keep inflation under control. ;)

"When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke

BTP Holdings  posted on  2016-05-22   19:07:51 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#5. To: BTP Holdings (#4)

The great Dr. Clarkson wrote and I edited a 2-page spread in the Spotlight newspaper mandating repudiation. We all miss him terribly.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Tagline:The African population of Zimbabwe had increased from an estimated 300,000 in 1890 to 7 million in 1980. This phenomenal increase was the result of the development of a modern infrastructure, first-world health standards and the bountiful crop harvests produced by the white Rhodesian farmers.
By July 2006, the population had almost doubled to 13 million, the result of a symbiotic relationship that had been forged between the 3,400 commercial farmers and the other inhabitants. (IMPACT newsletter March-July 2005)

NeoconsNailed  posted on  2016-05-22   21:39:11 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#6. To: NeoconsNailed (#1) (Edited)

It's a New Age Three Mile Island -- heh!!!

These passive energies are hell on Mother nature.

Not at all. Solar power and water power are the two sources of power that produce no emissions whatsoever.

There is no toxic byproduct, no radiation that'll linger for millions of years.

Now if they could put up screens to keep the fish from going through the water ducts, and sonic emitters to keep birds away from the solar power stations, there'd be no "collateral damage" either..


"After tomorrow those SOB's will never embarrass me again. That’s not a threat. That’s a promise.” – LBJ to his mistress Madeleine Brown on the eve of JFK assassination

FormerLurker  posted on  2016-05-22   21:55:40 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#7. To: FormerLurker (#6)

Minor details :-{

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/11/death-calif-solar-farms-71- species-bird-found-enti/

http://instituteforenergyresearch.org/analysis/big-winds-dirty-little- secret- rare-earth-minerals/

My tagline is (in case nobody was wondering) a further indictment of do- goodery. Nothing wrecks the environment like quadrupling the population:

--------------------------------------------------------------

Tagline:The African population of Zimbabwe had increased from an estimated 300,000 in 1890 to 7 million in 1980. This phenomenal increase was the result of the development of a modern infrastructure, first-world health standards and the bountiful crop harvests produced by the white Rhodesian farmers.
By July 2006, the population had almost doubled to 13 million, the result of a symbiotic relationship that had been forged between the 3,400 commercial farmers and the other inhabitants. (IMPACT newsletter March-July 2005)

NeoconsNailed  posted on  2016-05-23   0:29:11 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


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