Solana Power Station

Solana Power Station

“The Solana Generating Station is a solar power plant near Gila Bend, Arizona, about 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Phoenix, completed in 2013. When commissioned it was the largest parabolic trough plant in the world and the first U.S. solar plant with molten salt thermal energy storage. It has a total capacity of 280 megawatts (MW) gross, from two 140 MW gross (125 MW net) steam turbine generators, which is enough to power 70,000 homes while avoiding around 475,000 tons of CO2 every year.” (Wikipedia)

With its aim at producing power efficiently, the Solana Power Station is a CST-based station designed to provide six hours of energy storage. This will help it run more than a year, after it reaches capacity. 

This project “is a strong example of how the US has embraced green technologies alongside game-changing drilling techniques that allow the country to extract abundant tight oil and shale gas resources. Renewables have allowed the US‑to hedge its energy bet while remaining a prolific consumer – and producer – of traditional hydrocarbons.” (KPMG)

Importance of Green Building Certification

Importance of Green Building Certification

In the present world, the real estate industry continues to chuck on. But construction of new buildings which don’t meet certain standards have been proven to have a negative impact on the environment for many years. Hence, the society now leans on building certification bodies to 

design more environmentally conscious buildings, which in turn build communities.

But for that, buildings have to be made sustainable first. And, that’s where green buildings come into play. The U.S. EPA says “Green building is the practice of creating structures and using processes that are environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building’s life-cycle from siting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and deconstruction. This practice expands and complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort. Green building is also known as a sustainable or high performance building.” 

One may ask what are the benefits of green buildings? These include reduction of operation costs/creating market for integrating renewable energy, reduced wastage of water/conserving natural resources as well as improving quality of live/maximizing potential of human resources.

One such certification board is the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). LEED is considered to be the premier certification body in the world. ’’Between 2015 and 2018, LEED-certified buildings in the United States are estimated to have $1.2 billion in energy savings, $149.5 million in water savings, $715.2 million in maintenance savings and $54.2 million in waste savings’’ (USGBC).   

Beipanjiang Bridge

Beipanjiang Bridge

China continues to be the world’s fastest growing country in terms of infrastructure. Once again, China has marked its stamp on road infrastructure by opening the world’s highest bridge in Southwest China. 

This bridge has been raised 564 m above, validating its claim. Spanning over 1,364 meters over four lanes, it connects the provinces of Guizhou and Yunnan, and is expected to reduce journey time between the cities of Liupanshui and Xuianwei from five hours to just two. It is going to heavily benefit the truck owners/drivers. Obviously, a lot of time would go in planning & research. So, construction finally started in 2009.  

“The engineering and placement of the bridge was an enormous undertaking. The gorge the bridge crosses was so deep that the structure had to be able to withstand a “strong wind field,” according to a deputy chief engineer at CCCC Highway Consultants Co., LTD.” (IBTimes)

China is home to various other engineering marvels. In fact, even the previous two records for the highest bridge have been held by China. These bridges continue to refurbish the image of China as a modern, vibrant nation. 

(A picture of the bridge, image credits: The Telegraph)