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King, J

Publications and source records attributed to King, J.

6 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2012

Decarbonizing the Electric Sector: Combining Renewable and Nuclear Energy using Thermal Storage

Both renewable and nuclear energy can provide significant contributions to decarbonizing the electric sector. However, a grid employing large amounts of wind and solar energy requires the balance of the system to be highly flexible to respond to the increased variability of the net load. This makes deployment of conventional nuclear power challenging both due to the technical challenges of plant cycling and economic limits of reduced capacity factor. In the United States nuclear power plants generally provide constant, base load power and are most economic when operated at constant power levels. Operating nuclear power plants in load-following modes decreases the plants' annual energy output and increases the levelized cost of energy, decreasing economic competitiveness. One possible solution is to couple thermal energy storage to nuclear power plants. This would enable the reactor to remain at nearly constant output, while cycling the electrical generator in response to the variability of the net load. This paper conceptually explores combinations of wind, solar, and nuclear that can provide a large fraction of a system's electricity, assuming the use of thermal energy storage that would allow nuclear power to provide load following and cycling duty while operating at a constant reactor power output.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2011

Operating Reserve Implication of Alternative Implementations of an Energy Imbalance Service on Wind Integration in the Western Interconnection: Preprint

During the past few years, there has been significant interest in alternative ways to manage power systems over a larger effective electrical footprint. Large regional transmission organizations in the Eastern Interconnection have effectively consolidated balancing areas, achieving significant economies of scale that result in a reduction in required reserves. Conversely, in the WesternInterconnection there are many balancing areas, which will result in challenges if there is significant wind and solar energy development in the region. A recent proposal to the Western Electricity Coordinating Council suggests a regional energy imbalance service (EIS). To evaluate this EIS, a number of analyses are in process or are planned. This paper describes one part of an analysis of theEIS's implication on operating reserves under several alternative scenarios of the market footprint and participation. We improve on the operating reserves method utilized in the Eastern Wind Integration and Transmission Study and apply this modified approach to data from the Western Wind and Solar Integration Study.

17 WIND ENERGY↗