Six Recent Power Industry Innovations

Recent innovations in the power industry arena have arisen in several categories: customer/end users, power industry field work, and hardware/software new developments. Six advancements enhancing efficiencies and producing strides for clean, green energy stand out as potential power industry future-looking innovative progress milestones: recharging stations for electric cars; sensor products; nanomaterials; voice responsive repair integration; regenerative hardware; and processor design upgraded software. A quick summary of these six advancements showcases power industry ingenuity with a look at the successes on the move to already become business as usual within the next decade.

One of the most encouraging power industry innovations built for the customer or end users is the support of electric powered vehicles’ recharging stations. Electric powered vehicles can recharge on personal chargers or at service stations equipped with heavy-duty charging portals for longer mileage drives. Estimates based on the support for actual use of electric powered vehicles are given by measuring kwH (kilowatt hours) by miles when using home-based or personal charging equipment. Public charging stations are supported by underwriting costs and taxes, although they do still require fees to “juice up”. “There are federal incentive programs to help cover infrastructure costs or the cost of the charging station itself. Utility rebates covering up to 100% of the costs are sometimes available,” (Jerry; Boyd, Chanice; February 11, 2022).

Sensor products are catching on as popular energy saving devices with increased mobility and response efficiency. Most of them are meant for the customer or end user decisions to implement. Portable gas detectors, limit switches with adjustable power system operative components, and remote personal monitoring custom cell robots are on the cusp of becoming the norm when determining the best energy usage innovations for customers and power system product end users. For those considering a new power system upgrade or renovation, sensor products coming as part of the “package deals” offered by energy companies should be explored first before embracing add-on sensor products with the possibility of sensor product installation incompatibilities.

Another power industry arena for innovations is power industry field work. Nanomaterials have revolutionized power industry field work. They come in wire structures with lower resistance to achieve better connectivity to the Smart Grid; are used in keeping friction at a minimum during jobs in the power industry field (creating a less accident prone environment); and nanomaterials are used for suiting up in body suits to harness kinetic motion creating electricity. Maintenance integration with the nanomaterial based wires by voice responsive power system self-repairs ensures quicker responses to power emergencies and lower risk factors to field work energy community employees. A “research group is developing nanoparticles intended to use sunlight to generate steam for use in running power plants,” and “a nano-engineered polymer matrix is used in one style of high efficiency light bulbs,” (Nanotechnology and Energy; Copyright ©2007 - 2019 Hawk's Perch Technical Writing, LLC). As the familiarization with nanomaterials continues to develop, new innovations will follow with expanded possibilities for power industry inventions.

New hardware and software innovations continue applications to improve energy efficiencies, costs, and resiliency. Hardware innovations tend to focus on collectibles to help conserve and renew energy. For example, renewable energy cooling systems such as the two-phase liquid immersion datacenter server protection, utilized by Microsoft, uses a boiling point and steam closed loop to keep core computer components at comfortable operating temperatures. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory on similar uses by other companies and power industry leading innovators “the technology provides an option to cool electronics by the direct contact flow of dielectric fluid (coolant) into a sealed enclosure housing all the electronics of a single server.” Software upgraded processors for energy aware programs are struggling to keep up with system-wide connection needs and new approaches to include innovative solutions enabling energy community system evolutions. Continually working to improve software for intra energy community use and interactive associate hardware system communication, the power industry software innovations are leading the way to complete automation and full service operation with limited maintenance needs.

Within the power industry it is an exciting time to explore the innovations driving people and communities into the future. These innovations are current and the power industry is working hard to continue developing the cutting edge of new and proven technologie. As clean, green energy has become a commitment of populations both struggling and more well-equipped, each and every innovative stride has become a shining feather in the power industry’s well earned achievements. While all of the power industries’ innovations are not listed, it is possible to note a few and come away encouraged by the amazing developments of the power industries’ work.

References

Jerry; Boyd, Chanice; February 11, 2022.
Applications of Nanocomposite Materials in Drug Delivery || Polymer–ceramic nanocomposites for controlled drug delivery; Jabeen, Fakhra, 2018.