Story tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National ...( Energy-- Power forward . . . T...)

Energy-- Power forward . . .

The recently-opened Dell Regional Childrens Medical Center in Austin, Texas, is demonstrating the future in self-sufficient power, with the help of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Working with researchers in ORNLs Buildings Technology Center, the medical facility has installed a combined heat and power system that delivers power to the facility at greater than 70 percent efficiency compared to electric grid-based systems that operate at about 30 percent efficiency. The system does so by using a high-efficiency gas turbine to produce about 4.5 megawatts of electricity, then capturing the waste heat to produce steam and cooling for the hospital. The system operates in parallel with the grid, selling back excess power. This technology has the potential of lessening demand on the power grid by creating self-sufficient systems for large commercial facilities and even apartment and housing developments of the future. [Contact: Larisa Brass (865) 574-4163; brasslm@ornl.gov]

Environment Award-winning recipe . . .

Groundwater contaminants at Dover (Del.) Air Force Base are proving no match for a concoction formulated by Environmental Sciences Division researchers Aleisa Bloom, George DeLong and a team in charge of cleaning up the Superfund site. In fact, the 102,000-gallon mixture of water, sodium lactate, emulsified vegetable oil and nutrients injected at 53 locations at multiple depths has placed the clean-up more than two years ahead of schedule. This and other remediation efforts at Dover recently earned the base the coveted Environmental Restoration Program of the Year Award from the Department of Defense. While various approaches can be effective, Bloom noted that the accelerated anaerobic bioremediation of tetrachloroethene and trichloroethene has exceeded their expectations. Funding for the effort is provided by DOD. [Contact: Ron Walli, (865) 576-0226;
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Contact: Ron Walli
wallira@ornl.gov
865-576-0226
DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory
12-Jul-2007