1) Load cycling capabilities of German Nuclear Power Plants
2) Coal Combustion Products and REACH - Update 1/2011
3) Training Requirements for Waste Disposal Workers in Nuclear Facilities
7) VGB-B108 - Rules for the creation of denominations and their application for power plant engineering
In the debate on whether lifetime extension of existing nuclear power plants facilitates or impedes the increased use of renewable energy sources in power generation, one claim being made is that nuclear power plants can only be operated to meet base-load demand at more or less constant power output. In fact, as early as the seventies nuclear power plants in Germany were designed to compensate load changes over a large range.
http://www.vgb.org/en/load_cycling_capabilities_npp.html
On December 1, 2010, the extended deadline for REACH registration of pre-registered substances produced with more than 1,000 tonnes per year ended. Registration dossiers for calcium sulfate (natural and FGD-gypsum), SDA-product, ashes from wet and dry bottom boilers, ashes from fluidized bed combustion boilers as well as for cenospheres were prepared and used for the registration of the substances at the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).
Update information (status 31.01.2011) regarding sameness criteria, registration and contact details of parties responsible for the registration dossiers of specific CCPs are available by the following link:
http://www.ecoba.com/reach_ccps.html
Supplementing the "Recommendation on Minimum Requirements on the Training of Radiation Protection Workers", issued in autumn 2009, VGB has now published a "Recommendation on Minimum Training Requirements for Waste Disposal Workers in Nuclear Facilities". The described skill level is comparable to that of a radiation protection worker, but differs in the individual requirements with a focus on waste disposal.
The Document is available for download:
http://www.vgb.org/en/waste_management.html
The VGB Research Foundation has rewarded outstanding achievements by young university graduates (age limit: 35 years) working in the field of power and heat generation with the Heinrich-Mandel Prize for over 25 years. The prize is endowed with 10,000 Euro and is awarded annually on the occasion of the VGB Congress POWER PLANTS. The work that is to be honoured in this way can relate either to new findings in the operation of power and heat generation plants, or to important research results.
Based on the award guideline, all VGB member companies as well as the Board, and the Technical and Scientific Advisory Boards of VGB have the right to propose candidates by April 30, 2011.
http://www.vgb.org/en/research_mandel.html
The Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM), one of the Institutes of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, is working on the production of three certified reference materials for the analysis of coals. The materials are hard coal, furnace coke and brown coal. The materials shall be certified for calorific value, moisture, volatiles, ash, C, H, N, S, Cl and a series of trace elements, according to ISO and/or ASTM methods (where available). The materials have already been processed and tested for homogeneity and stability.
IRMM is looking for qualified laboratories performing certification measurements for the concluding certification intercomparison. IRMM aims to collaborate with expert laboratories to ensure a high reliability of the assigned certified values. For this reason IRMM makes a pre-selection based on demonstrated competence for the analyses in question. A request for tender will then be sent to those pre-selected laboratories.
Registration till March 15, 2011.
More Information:
mailto:andreas.wecker@vgb.org
The VGB Job Market is offering prospective persons the possibility to develop their career in the range of power and heat generation. You can find current vacancies on our homepage.
http://www.vgb.org/en/jobmarket.html
Further information about VGB-B108 "Rules for the creation of denominations and their application for power plant engineering" can be viewed at the following link:
http://www.vgb.org/shop/b108.html
The aim of this publication is to provide reliability data that can be used in probabilistic safety analyses (PSAs). The Centralized Reliability and Events Database (ZEDB) gathers and analyzes operating experience gained at a large number of nuclear power plants. The ZEDB use the two-stage Bayesian models to calculate plant-specific and generic reliability data. The publication provides the results of these analyzes.
The published bundle of several reports (VGB-TW805e) already includes the basis edition (December 2006), the 1st upgrading (December 2007), and the 2nd upgrading (December 2008). The 3rd upgrading (June 2010) of the report will be available presently.
Further information:
http://www.vgb.org/vgbmultimedia/DBs_Statistiken/KKW/Komponenten/TW805e_DescriptionContents.pdf
The publication can be ordered online:
http://www.vgb.org/shop/tw805e.html
Main topics of the January/February issue are: Sustainable energy for Europe: towards 2020 and beyond Addressing the challenges facing the European electricity industry; Facing the challenges - New structures in the energy business; Renewable energies in Europe - opportunities and challenges; The future of our energy supply.
Abstracts of all articles are available here:
http://www.vgb.org/en/current_issue.html