ABB's Monthly Newsletter:  Products, services, people, technologies & events

December 2012

Feature

 

What does the world’s first reuse of electric vehicle batteries as energy storage mean for smart grid?

Did you know that, in most cases, when a Chevy Volt EV (electric vehicle) battery reaches the end of its life in an automotive capacity only 30% or less of its life will be used? Rather than throw these “spent” batteries onto a landfill or recycle them, General Motors and ABB demonstrated last year how a Chevrolet Volt battery pack could be used to collect energy and feed it back to the power grid to deliver supplemental power to homes or businesses. Five Chevrolet Volt battery packs combined with an ABB inverter and test software could provide two hours of back-up power for up to five average American homes. >> Read more.

 

Highlights

 
Power Service
 

The role of retrofits:  Five reasons to upgrade transmission and distribution equipment

Declining equipment reliability creates increased costs for utilities, including out-of-pocket expense for maintenance and outage-restoration costs, as well the intangible costs of customers irate over an outage. Retrofitting can play an important role in managing system reliability. Learn how retrofitting can deliver five key benefits: safety, reliability, intelligence (sensors & communication), capacity (loads and ratings) and monetary savings. >> Read more.

>> I'd like to talk to someone about Power Service

 
HVDC
 

Renovating the grid for the 21st century

It is an interesting time to be working in the electricity industry. Renewable energy resources are one of the principal driving forces in the industry today. It is one of the fastest-growing sectors as dependency on fossil fuels is trimmed down, the carbon footprint is reduced and greenhouse gasses are lessened. For utilities to be able to harvest this renewable power potential, they must be able to move it efficiently from the remote sites where it is generated to the load centers. Increased bulk transmission capacity is the solution to utility-scale renewable generation. Integrating HVDC technology into the ac grid is the key to that solution. >> Read how to make the high-voltage ac backbone more flexible, controllable and stable.

>> T&D World HVDC special supplement

>> I'd like to talk to someone about HVDC

 
Smart Grid
   

Volt/VAr optimization (VVO) - the next phase of smart grid evolution

Quickly becoming one of the most discussed smart grid applications for the distribution grid, Volt/VAr Optimization (VVO) is an existing concept that, with latest available technology in place, helps utilities and customers experience a variety of benefits through increased efficiency. Some include demand reduction through voltage regulation, energy loss reduction by decreasing VAr flow, and improved power quality/asset health by optimizing the power factor. >> Read more

>> I'd like to talk to someone about Smart Grid

 
Grid Optimization
 

Lessons from large-scale renewable integration studies

A number of large-scale studies have been conducted in the United States and Europe that examine the ability for electric grids to accommodate higher penetrations of variable renewable energy generation. Renewable sources, such as wind and solar, can pose difficulties because their output can vary according to seasonal and daily patterns and be uncertain due to changes in the weather. In general, large-scale integration studies in Europe and the United States find that high penetrations of renewable generation are technically feasible with operational changes and increased access to transmission. This paper describes other key findings such as the need for fast markets, large balancing areas, system flexibility, and the use of advanced forecasting. >> Read more

>> I'd like to talk to someone about grid optimization

 
White Papers
Read White Paper
Overcoming urban power distribution challenges with technology innovations

>> Download Now

Read White Paper
Four approaches to better data center availability    
 

>> Download Now

Videos      

High in the sky skyscraper transformer replacement

>> Watch Now

 

Innovations in DC technology

>> Watch Now

       

Tips for specifying new technology

>> Watch Now

 

New monitoring technologies create new opportunities

>> Watch Now

Educational Opportunities
>> Tropos Networks classroom training
>> Recloser classroom training
>> Smart grid on demand webinars
>> High voltage service classroom training
>> Protective Relay School webinars
>> Automation & Power World
     on demand webinars

>> T&D Protection and Control classroom
      training
>> Ventyx webcasts
>> Ventyx education & training services
     

Events
Power Gen International
December 11-13, 2012
Orlando, FL
Distributech
January 29-31, 2013
San Diego, CA
   
Automation & Power World
March 25-28, 2013
Orlando, Florida
 

For More Information
Click here to learn more about ABB Power Products and Power Systems offerings.
 
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