Tour of Cheswick Coal-fired Power Plant, Saturday, March 23 2013

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Today, we took a tour of a coal-fired power plant in Cheswick, about 30 minutes from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Our guide, Kevin, a nuclear engineer who had studied while in the Navy, led us through the process of the generation of electricity, from coal to the outlet. He started by explaining the geologic history of Pennsylvania and the process by which coal forms, as well as why it's so efficient to use as a fuel compared to wood, even though it's comprised of much of the same material. After spending a while in the project planning room/classroom, it was time to begin our tour.

But remember, safety first!

The day we visited, the power plant was not operating after censors detected a possible safety hazard in one of the machines. The power plant was completely shut down and the maintenance crew was busy taking care of the problem when we arrived. Kevin showed us how coal is crushed into a fine powder in order to increase surface area and efficiency, then how it is used as a fuel to create steam in order to spin a generator. The generator consists of a tube covered in wire, with a strong magnet. When in motion, it creates a flow of electrons, which can then be sent through the power grid as electricity.

Our tour ended on the roof of the cooling stack building.

The entire album of photos can be viewed here

Week 6: Exhibit Design (Electricity and Circuits)

Week 6: Exhibit Design (Electricity and Circuits)

Week 6, on March 7^th, 2013, we focused on what it takes to make a good exhibit. Mandi and Mary Ann, also associated with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, are working on a project that makes interactive exhibits to bring to festivals in order to spark interest about some vital topics concerning energy. We tested the activities with the teens in order to refine them and get some feedback. We did 5 experiments total:

•        Using a lemon as the power source à Making series and parallel circuits in order to make a small bulb light up 

•        Using water and a mill type structure to generate energy for small lights, and a buzzer

•        Using a fan and a propeller to generate energy for small lights, and a buzzer

•        Using solar cells and a bright light to generate energy for small lights, and a buzzer 

•        Using an alcohol based fuel substance to boil water and generate energy to exhibit the use of fossil fuels

 

We learned that it takes a lot more reusable energy to generate as much power as it would for a smaller amount of fossil fuel. Reusable energy is more underdeveloped because of this setback.

To tie into exhibit design we also posted the pros and cons about the activities on the whiteboard. This helped us to see everything about the exhibits that stood out and to refine the activity. We also watched a short video on exhibit design in order to see what strategies professional businesses use. This was a very positive lesson because it taught us more about teamwork and about the refining process in order to make great exhibits! We all agree that no idea is a bad idea, and by posting all ideas and pruning them down as a team we can make better progress.

Photos from exhibit design can be found here and here

Week 5: Personal Energy Audit

Week 5: Personal Energy Audit

To evaluate the amount of energy the members of EnergyNet use in a single day, we spent Thursday, February 28^th, 2013, on personal energy audits. We used function equations in an excel spreadsheet in order to convert the amount of energy per individual task (i.e. transportation, showering, cooking, etc.) to watts to calculate an ultimate raw number at the end of the session. We found that refrigerators use a ton of energy!! Most of the energy used in a day for one of us came from the refrigerator. Transportation was another chart topper. This audit made us take into account some of the frivolous ways we may be wasting energy. 

After personal energy audits, we calculated a family scenario in which case we determined how much a large family would use. Some of our equations needed to be refined in order to get a more accurate account but overall we learned that multiple laptops, phones, and computers in a home use a lot of energy.

Next week we plan to focus on exhibit design to better understand what goes into making an exhibit interactive and fun.

Week 4: Albert Koller Talk and Museum Exploration

Week 4:  Albert Koller Talk and Museum Exploration

After learning about renewable energy last week, EnergyNet went up to the geology hall, February 21^st, 2013, to meet Albert Koller, a geologist and invertebrate paleontologist, to get a more in depth perspective on fossil fuels and properties associated with them. Since coal is the primary source of energy in Pennsylvania, we learned about the composition of the resource, and how it is used. Koller also touched upon facts about Marcellus Shale, an extensive source of natural gas that is contained beneath the state of Pennsylvania and neighboring states.

After the lecture, we explored exhibits within the museum to get ideas for activities that we can make for the museum. The halls we explored were:

1. Discovery Room
2. Geology Hall
3. American Indian
4. Population Impact
5. Charlie and Kiwi

After the exploration, we headed back down to the classroom to document the day on our mindmap, a continuity diagram that maps what we have learned each week, and how our activities are associated with energy and the environment.

Next week we plan to do personal energy audits in order to figure out what our daily energy consumption is.

Week 3: Visit to Phipps Conservatory and the Center for Sustainable Landscape

Week 3: Visit to Phipps Conservatory and the Center for Sustainable Landscape

On February 14^th, 2013, EnergyNet ventured out of the museum and to the Phipps Conservatory and the Center for Sustainable Landscape to explore sustainable ways to power a building! We took a tour of the Phipps to see how much energy is required to power rooms that need to mimic conditions that exotic and foreign plant life need in order to live and prosper. For example, the orchid room needs a lot of energy in order to keep the room at a certain temperature and moisture because the flower needs very specific living conditions.




After exploring the Phipps, we headed over the Center for Sustainable Landscape, a building that uses zero net-energy. We learned that the building has an underground filtration and sequestration system for storm water, uses solar panels, geothermal, and sustainable insulation. All of these methods produce and conserve energy with less environmental impact.

 

We learned about different ways to produce energy, free of fossil fuels. Currently, coal is the fossil fuel that most of Pennsylvania gets its energy from. Coal is an expendable resource, so learning about independent energy is important so we can make exhibits to demonstrate this to the public.

This week’s visit helped us to get ready for next week to meet Albert Koller, a geologist, and invertebrate paleontologist at the Carnegie Museum. He will take us up to the geology hall and teach us about fossil fuels, the importance of Marcellus shale, and some aspects of exhibit design.

Week 2: Meal Mapping

Week 2: Meal Mapping

Week 2, on February 7^th, 2013, was focused on mapping all of the energy and environmental impact that go into making a plated meal. We mapped the energy use for two different types of meals, and for each meal, made two separate maps associated with high impact production and low impact production. The two mapped meals were:

•         Fish, rice, carrots, apple pie, and a drink (high impact + low impact)

•         Eggplant lasagna, salad, ice cream and cookies, and a drink (high impact and low impact)

After separating into groups and documenting all the different forms of energy that pertain to the production, transportation, packaging, etc, of each individual product in the meal we presented our results to the group. We found that more local and organic methods cost less, are more sustainable, and are better for the environment. Things associated with high impact include importing, high rates of transportation, and factory packaging.

View all Week 2 photos here.

Next week we plan to go to Phipps Conservatory and the Center for Sustainable Landscape to learn about the energy use associated with “green buildings”. The Phipps Conservatory is an indoor botanical garden that harbors multiple gardens and a mock Indian Forest. The Center for Sustainable Landscape is a building that has zero net energy, and in some cases provides energy for the Phipps Conservatory.