My son-in-law works for a company that installs GPS guidance systems in tractors and combines. It is very interesting technology in that it utilizes soil maps and software to guide the tractor so that precision adjustments can be made automatically to seed and fertilizer application rates, tractor speed, plow depth, etc., based on the location in the field. It is a tool for maximizing performance. Ultimately, it could replace the need for a driver.
Today, while installing a positioning tower for one of their guidance systems, he tried to electrocute himself. God must have been watching over him. The tower that he was erecting came close enough to a high-powered electrical transmission line that the electricity arced to the tower he was holding, ran through him and discharged out his foot and into the ground. Most accidents of this nature result in death. It is very similar to being struck by lightening.
We received the call around noon from my daughter who was in route to the hospital where he was being transported by ambulance. She of course was distraught although at the time she called, they thought he was probably OK. We immediately headed toward the hospital which is about 100 miles away.
His accident caused quite a stir, both at the hospital, and at the college campus where both he and my daughter are seniors. Apparently everyone in the hospital knew about his accident. They seemed amazed that the only damage that he suffered was a burn on the inside of one of his feet where the electricity discharged out his foot, through his boot, to the ground. The burned area was about the size of a penny and completely cauterized. It appeared as though a scab had formed over a wound that was many days old. The boot had a tiny hole in it where the spark exited.
At the college campus though, the rumors were still running rampant when we arrived at the hospital. Cell phones rang almost continuously for over an hour from professors and friends checking on our daughter (who is 7+ months pregnant) and son-in-law. The story on campus was that it had blown his foot off completely. Fortunately, they sent a campus-wide e-mail to hopefully dispel the rumor before it grew any more exaggerated.
While in the emergency room, the staff cut all of his clothes off of him, which is standard procedure where burn victims are involved, although totally unnecessary in this case. Fortunately, my daughter was able to reach us when we were near their home so that we could bring him clothes for tomorrow when he is expected to be discharged. When we arrived at the hospital he was lying under a sheet with the various tubes and wires connected to him for monitoring his heart, etc., and handling bodily discharges.
When we knew that all was well and there appeared to be no adverse effects beyond the "holey" foot, we took our daughter to get something to eat. Upon our return, we found him in a hospital gown. A nurse that we had not seen before stuck her head in to see our son-in-law and said, "I just had to come look. All the nurses are talking about how good looking he is and I had to see for myself. It took six of them to get the gown on him!"
He was fortunate. There were many prayers offered on his behalf. That is one of the advantages of attending a small Christian College. I'll be interested to know what nickname he will receive out of this episode. Sparky comes to my mind.
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
Friday, May 4, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
It's Going to Take One Big Mole!
This is interesting in light of my previous post this morning concerning China.
Russia Plans World's Longest Tunnel, a Link to Alaska (Update3)
By Yuriy Humber and Bradley Cook
April 18 (Bloomberg) -- Russia plans to build the world's longest tunnel, a transport and pipeline link under the Bering Strait to Alaska, as part of a $65 billion project to supply the U.S. with oil, natural gas and electricity from Siberia.
The project, which Russia is coordinating with the U.S. and Canada, would take 10 to 15 years to complete, Viktor Razbegin, deputy head of industrial research at the Russian Economy Ministry, told reporters in Moscow today. State organizations and private companies in partnership would build and control the route, known as TKM-World Link, he said.
A 6,000-kilometer (3,700-mile) transport corridor from Siberia into the U.S. will feed into the tunnel, which at 64 miles will be more than twice as long as the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel between the U.K. and France, according to the plan. The tunnel would run in three sections to link the two islands in the Bering Strait between Russia and the U.S.
``This will be a business project, not a political one,'' Maxim Bystrov, deputy head of Russia's agency for special economic zones, said at the media briefing. Russian officials will formally present the plan to the U.S. and Canadian governments next week, Razbegin said.
The Bering Strait tunnel will cost $10 billion to $12 billion and the rest of the investment will be spent on the entire transport corridor, the plan estimates.
``The project is a monster,'' Yevgeny Nadorshin, chief economist with Trust Investment Bank in Moscow, said in an interview. ``The Chinese are crying out for our commodities and willing to finance the transport links, and we're sending oil to Alaska. What, Alaska doesn't have oil?''
Finance Agencies
Tsar Nicholas II, Russia's last emperor, was the first Russian leader to approve a plan for a tunnel under ......
_________________________________________
Follow the link and read the entire article. A tunnel under the Bering Strait? I suppose it is better for us to beat the Chinese to the vast repository of raw materials in Siberia. I can't see them sitting still for it when they will desperately need these materials and the energy over the coming years. It is going to become a matter of priorities for them. Do they invade north into the "storehouse", or head west to the "powerhouse"? If they go north, they get both. Will this country be willing to go to war as an ally of Russia against China to prevent it? We'd better be becoming energy independent quickly!
Russia Plans World's Longest Tunnel, a Link to Alaska (Update3)
By Yuriy Humber and Bradley Cook
April 18 (Bloomberg) -- Russia plans to build the world's longest tunnel, a transport and pipeline link under the Bering Strait to Alaska, as part of a $65 billion project to supply the U.S. with oil, natural gas and electricity from Siberia.
The project, which Russia is coordinating with the U.S. and Canada, would take 10 to 15 years to complete, Viktor Razbegin, deputy head of industrial research at the Russian Economy Ministry, told reporters in Moscow today. State organizations and private companies in partnership would build and control the route, known as TKM-World Link, he said.
A 6,000-kilometer (3,700-mile) transport corridor from Siberia into the U.S. will feed into the tunnel, which at 64 miles will be more than twice as long as the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel between the U.K. and France, according to the plan. The tunnel would run in three sections to link the two islands in the Bering Strait between Russia and the U.S.
``This will be a business project, not a political one,'' Maxim Bystrov, deputy head of Russia's agency for special economic zones, said at the media briefing. Russian officials will formally present the plan to the U.S. and Canadian governments next week, Razbegin said.
The Bering Strait tunnel will cost $10 billion to $12 billion and the rest of the investment will be spent on the entire transport corridor, the plan estimates.
``The project is a monster,'' Yevgeny Nadorshin, chief economist with Trust Investment Bank in Moscow, said in an interview. ``The Chinese are crying out for our commodities and willing to finance the transport links, and we're sending oil to Alaska. What, Alaska doesn't have oil?''
Finance Agencies
Tsar Nicholas II, Russia's last emperor, was the first Russian leader to approve a plan for a tunnel under ......
_________________________________________
Follow the link and read the entire article. A tunnel under the Bering Strait? I suppose it is better for us to beat the Chinese to the vast repository of raw materials in Siberia. I can't see them sitting still for it when they will desperately need these materials and the energy over the coming years. It is going to become a matter of priorities for them. Do they invade north into the "storehouse", or head west to the "powerhouse"? If they go north, they get both. Will this country be willing to go to war as an ally of Russia against China to prevent it? We'd better be becoming energy independent quickly!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Wind Power
This article was taken from the Amarillo Globe News today.
______________________________________________
Region a wind powerhouse
Panhandle among suppliers of top wind user Xcel Energy
By Kevin Welchkevin.welch@amarillo.com
New ratings show the Panhandle and South Plains are already leading players in the wind energy game.
Xcel Energy, which serves parts of the Panhandle through Southwestern Public Service, is the utility that provides its customers the most wind energy in the country, according to the new report from the American Wind Energy Association.
"The Panhandle is possibly becoming the wind power capital of the country and we're in the heart of it," said Xcel spokesman Wes Reeves. "Right now wind is 10 to 15 percent of our capacity at SPS and we will see that grow to possibly 20 percent."
The utility added wind capacity in Texas, Minnesota, North Dakota and Colorado during 2006.
The new Texas power came from four installations in Hansford County in the northern Panhandle that are rated to produce up to 110 megawatts of electricity.
Going with the wind
Utilities using the most wind energy in 2006:
Xcel Energy: 1,323 megawatts
Southern California Edison: 1,026 MW
MidAmerican Energy Holdings: 861 MW
Pacific Gas & Electric: 793 MW
TXU Energy: 704 MW
Xcel buys that power from John Deere Credit and local owners.
One megawatt is enough electricity to power an average of 250 to 300 homes, according to the State Energy Conservation Office.
In 2007, Xcel has added up to 160 megawatts of wind power at the Wildorado Wind Farm largely owned by the Edison Mission Group. Shell Energy's Llano Estacado Wind Ranch at White Deer also serves the utility.
In addition, AWEA ranks the 19th Congressional District as having the most wind power production among districts across the country in 2006.
The district, represented by U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Lubbock, runs from Deaf Smith County southward past Lubbock to Big Spring and Abilene then north toward Wichita Falls.
It had turbines that had a total rating of 1,419 megawatts.
The district's activity is part of what put Texas in first place for the second year among states producing electricity from wind.
Texas had 2,768 megawatts of capacity while California had 2,361, according to the AWEA report.
The expansion of wind energy may not be over.
"There's at least 20 companies that have expressed interest in developing it in Texas," said Susan Williams Sloan, communications specialist for AWEA. "If transmission is built, there will be more projects. That's our limiting factor."
Xcel's goal of 20 percent wind is in line with standard estimates of how much can be handled.
"In Denmark and regions in Germany and Spain, they have 10 to 25 percent. There's a lot to be learned," Williams Sloan said. "Texas is still at less than 5 percent."
_________________________________________________
Wind power is an important part of our future. In this part of the world we certainly have plenty of it!
Some related links:
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/04/global-warming-again.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/03/ethanol-why.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/03/alternative-energy.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/02/global-warming.html
______________________________________________
Region a wind powerhouse
Panhandle among suppliers of top wind user Xcel Energy
By Kevin Welchkevin.welch@amarillo.com
New ratings show the Panhandle and South Plains are already leading players in the wind energy game.
Xcel Energy, which serves parts of the Panhandle through Southwestern Public Service, is the utility that provides its customers the most wind energy in the country, according to the new report from the American Wind Energy Association.
"The Panhandle is possibly becoming the wind power capital of the country and we're in the heart of it," said Xcel spokesman Wes Reeves. "Right now wind is 10 to 15 percent of our capacity at SPS and we will see that grow to possibly 20 percent."
The utility added wind capacity in Texas, Minnesota, North Dakota and Colorado during 2006.
The new Texas power came from four installations in Hansford County in the northern Panhandle that are rated to produce up to 110 megawatts of electricity.
Going with the wind
Utilities using the most wind energy in 2006:
Xcel Energy: 1,323 megawatts
Southern California Edison: 1,026 MW
MidAmerican Energy Holdings: 861 MW
Pacific Gas & Electric: 793 MW
TXU Energy: 704 MW
Xcel buys that power from John Deere Credit and local owners.
One megawatt is enough electricity to power an average of 250 to 300 homes, according to the State Energy Conservation Office.
In 2007, Xcel has added up to 160 megawatts of wind power at the Wildorado Wind Farm largely owned by the Edison Mission Group. Shell Energy's Llano Estacado Wind Ranch at White Deer also serves the utility.
In addition, AWEA ranks the 19th Congressional District as having the most wind power production among districts across the country in 2006.
The district, represented by U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Lubbock, runs from Deaf Smith County southward past Lubbock to Big Spring and Abilene then north toward Wichita Falls.
It had turbines that had a total rating of 1,419 megawatts.
The district's activity is part of what put Texas in first place for the second year among states producing electricity from wind.
Texas had 2,768 megawatts of capacity while California had 2,361, according to the AWEA report.
The expansion of wind energy may not be over.
"There's at least 20 companies that have expressed interest in developing it in Texas," said Susan Williams Sloan, communications specialist for AWEA. "If transmission is built, there will be more projects. That's our limiting factor."
Xcel's goal of 20 percent wind is in line with standard estimates of how much can be handled.
"In Denmark and regions in Germany and Spain, they have 10 to 25 percent. There's a lot to be learned," Williams Sloan said. "Texas is still at less than 5 percent."
_________________________________________________
Wind power is an important part of our future. In this part of the world we certainly have plenty of it!
Some related links:
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/04/global-warming-again.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/03/ethanol-why.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/03/alternative-energy.html
http://panhandlepoet.blogspot.com/2007/02/global-warming.html
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