Diagram from the Global Energy Network Institute. Click for a larger image.

As the Tokyo Electric Company continues rolling blackouts and electric users try to reduce energy consumption, the question becomes: Why is Japan short of electricity?

The easy answer is that nearly 20% of the operating nuclear power plants in Japan are shut down, due to the earthquake and the tsunami. The more complex answer involves the convoluted history of electrical power in Japan and the Japanese electrical grid.

Perhaps alone among modern nations, Japan has a divided electrical grid. South of Tokyo, the grid operates on a 60 hz frequency. From Tokyo northward, the grid operates at a frequency of 50 hz.

In simple terms, the electricity in half the country cannot be used in the other half. Trying to do so would result in damage, electrical fires and other related mayhem. Tokyo is in the region that has all of the shut down reactors and is suffering the lack of generation capacity.

The Tokyo Electric Company introduced electricity to Japan in the late 1800′s. It bought its equipment from Germany. Other electric providers bought from the U.S., from General Electric, and that is why the separation developed. There are only four points where the electricity is converted from one frequency to the other, and their capacity is severely limited in comparison to the current need.

For more information on this topic:
The Japanese Electrical Grid: A Major Problem for Economic Recovery
A Country Divided: Japan’s Electric Bottleneck
The Japanese Situation
Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan

Southern Company teams up with EPRI to develop a Smart Grid project to demonstrate a broad array of technologies.

The Electric Power Research Institute, Inc. (EPRI) conducts research and development relating to the generation, delivery and use of electricity for the benefit of the public. An independent, nonprofit organization, EPRI brings together its scientists and engineers as well as experts from academia and industry to help address challenges in electricity, including reliability, efficiency, health, safety and the environment. EPRI also provides technology, policy and economic analyses to drive long-range research and development planning, and supports research in emerging technologies. EPRI’s members represent more than 90 percent of the electricity generated and delivered in the United States, and international participation extends to 40 countries. EPRI’s principal offices and laboratories are located in Palo Alto, Calif.; Charlotte, N.C.; Knoxville, Tenn.; and Lenox, Mass.

Airman 1st Class Dakota Parker, left, of Brownsboro, Texas, and Senior Airmen Brittany Sculley, of Blair, Neb., both assigned to Misawa Air Base, Bioenvironmental Engineering Department, recalibrate a radiation detection instrument following an air sample test at Misawa Air Base. The department's field team is conducting frequent tests of atmospheric radiation levels and water contamination to ensure the safety of service and family members as efforts continue on base in support of Operation Tomodachi. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Devon Dow

The Bioenvironmental Engineering Department at Misawa Air Base stepped up its efforts to ensure local water and air conditions remain within standards, March 21.

The department’s field team is conducting frequent tests of atmospheric radiation levels and water contamination to ensure the safety of service and family members as efforts continue on base in support of Operation Tomodachi.

“We have not detected any changes in either air or water, but we will continue to constantly monitor,” said Technical Sgt. Laura Andrews of Eastlake, Ohio, assigned to Misawa Air Base, Bioenvironmental Engineering Department. “The test we are conducting are routine, we are just performing more. With that said, we already have a good idea of what the radiation levels in our area should be.

“We are here to protect the people and want to ensure levels stay within the status quo, while continually keeping our chain of command informed of our findings,” she added.

Air samples are being taken every three hours from various areas on base using a radiation detection instrument. The team checks the filter on the instrument and posts their findings in a logbook to catalog the radiation levels for any changes.

For water, the team conducts samples of water resources on base in search of any traces of bacteria. When the sample is taken, it is brought back to their lab, and goes through a series of tests, placed in an incubator for 24 hours and evaluated for any abnormalities.

While there have been no substantial findings of uncommon increases in radiation or water contamination, Andrews said the amplified testing is important.

“This is the right thing to do,” she said. “We have had an influx of military personnel arrive to the base in the past week and we need to do our part in ensuring that they and everyone on base are working in a safe environment.”

Andrews acknowledged that there is a lot of misinformation about radiation on the Internet, but with her unique perspective, she says Misawa residents need not panic.

“There are a lot of concerns [about radiation] from individuals and families back home; I still have my family here,” she said. “If I thought my children were in danger for a minute I would make the necessary arrangements to send them back to the U.S. where family could take care of them.

“I believe that most people don’t have a full understanding of what radiation is, and find it hard to wrap their mind around it,” said Andrews. “Our testing helps validate the safe conditions here.”

DVIDS
Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Devon Dow

An LC-130 Hercules from the 109th Airlift Wing, New York Air National Guard takes off as part of Operation Deep Freeze, Feb. 2, 2011, in Antarctica. The 55th year for Operation Deep Freeze began in October 2010 as an LC-130 Hercules, equipped with retractable ski-wheels, departed to support the U.S. Antarctic Program and the National Science Foundation's research at international sites throughout the Antarctic continent. The 109th AW is the only organization in the world that flies the ski-equipped LC-130s. Headquarters Air Mobility Command courtesy photo

I saw some of these guys at work in the wreckage of Christchurch on New Zealand TV a couple of days ago.

All 26 members of the New York Air National Guard’s 109th Airlift Wing, currently deployed in support of Operation Deep Freeze, are safe and unharmed after a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the New Zealand capitol of Christchurch today.

The Air Guard wing will remain in Christchurch and are scheduled to begin returning home this week on two of the unit’s three LC-130 Hercules cargo planes, which are a ski-equipped version of the C-130 Hercules used in the Arctic and Antarctic, Air Force Col. Timothy LaBarge said today.

“We’re making very good progress to have everybody depart New Zealand per schedule,” he said.

Another LC-130 will remain in New Zealand for planned maintenance.

The Guardmembers were in Christchurch as part of Operation Deep Freeze, which runs from mid-October to mid-February, assisting the National Science Foundation in Antarctica with climate change research.

Christchurch is a maintenance and re-fueling location for Operation Deep Freeze.

The Guard’s mission had completed Feb. 13, and the Guardmembers were already scheduled to return back to New York, regardless of the earthquake, LaBarge said.

At the time of the earthquake, most of the 109th Airlift Wing was either at the airport, which is located about eight miles from the center of Christchurch, or in one of two nearby hotels, he said.

The extent of damage to the hotels is currently unknown, but the airport had water, electricity and food, he said.

LaBarge added that, if called upon, the Guard will provide any assistance to the earthquake victims if possible.

By Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Orrell
National Guard Bureau

The Navy is still testing railguns, really really fast railguns.

High-speed camera image of the Office of Naval Research Electromagnetic Railgun located at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, firing a world-record setting 33 mega-joule shot, breaking the previous record established Jan. 31, 2008. The railgun is a long-range, high-energy gun launch system that uses electricity rather than gunpowder or rocket motors to launch projectiles capable of striking a target at a range of more than 200 nautical miles with Mach 7 velocity. A future tactical railgun will hit targets at ranges almost 20 times farther than conventional surface ship combat systems.

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) achieved a milestone Dec. 10 when it successfully conducted a world-record 33-megajoule shot of the Electromagnetic Railgun aboard Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division.

“Today’s railgun test demonstrates the tactical relevance of this technology, which could one day complement traditional surface ship combat systems,” said Rear Adm. Nevin Carr, chief of naval research.

“The 33-megajoule shot means the Navy can fire projectiles at least 110 nautical miles, placing Sailors and Marines at a safe standoff distance and out of harm’s way, and the high velocities achievable are tactically relevant for air and missile defense,” he said. “This demonstration moves us one day closer to getting this advanced capability to sea.”

Besides the extended ranges, the railgun also improves safety for Sailors and Marines because it will eliminate the need for a high-energy explosive warhead and traditional gun propellants. Removing explosives and chemicals will reduce the munitions logistic chain.

A megajoule is a measurement of energy associated with a mass traveling at a certain velocity. In simple terms, a one-ton vehicle moving at 100 mph equals a megajoule of energy.

In 2008, ONR conducted a 10-megajoule shot for media and visitors at Dahlgren. Today’s demonstration showed researchers are steadily progressing toward developing a gun that could hit targets almost 20 times farther than conventional ship combat systems. A 33-megajoule shot, for example, could potentially reach extended ranges with Mach 5 velocity, five times the speed of sound.

The Department of the Navy’s Office of Naval Research provides the science and technology necessary to maintain the Navy and Marine Corps’ technological advantage. Through its affiliates, ONR is a leader in science and technology with engagement in 50 states, 70 countries, 1,035 institutions of higher learning, and 914 industry partners. ONR employs approximately 1,400 people, comprising uniformed, civilian and contract personnel.

U.S. Navy
By Geoff Fein, Office of Naval Research Public Affairs