Photo By Sgt. Charlie Helmholt | Two men monitor the start-up of a new Electratherm Organic Rankine Cycle at, the base...... read more read more
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GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - For Joint Task Force troopers assigned to U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the knowledge of where energy comes from and how it drives the mission may elude many.
Power generated here normally comes from diesel generators and four wind turbines, which supplement the generators. These produce anywhere from 5 to 10 percent of the base's power and works in conjunction with the diesel-powered generators.
The huge machines use 20 to 25 thousand gallons of fuel a day to generate the rest of the power needed to support the base.
Recently, a Navy Mobile Utilities Support Equipment team visited GTMO to inspect the generators, upgrade and maintain power equipment valuable to the JTF mission. There are about 50 MUSE technicians in the Navy and they travel the world supporting the mechanical equipment.
MUSE equipment acts as the first backup system in the event that the main power plant on the NAVSTA side cannot properly relay power to the JTF facilities.
If you lost any sort of commercial power, whether it be a switch, whether it be a transformer anything coming from the power plant you would most likely not have power to the JTF side unless it had a backup system, said Petty Officer 2nd Class Cole Einhaus.
In addition to visiting once a year to perform maintenance on the equipment, MUSE acts as a troubleshooting resource for the full-time technicians who monitor and run the generators daily.
“They are the experts on it you know, they work on them, they go to the schools and learn how to break down an engine,” said Joe Campbell, a utilities technician with the Navy Public Works at GTMO. “Their expertise and knowledge is really valuable in making sure these units (generators) operate the way they are supposed to.”
During their annual visit, MUSE breaks the equipment down and performs a myriad of tests on the unit (generator). They test its individual parts and performance as well as checking the historical data ensuring optimal performance when needed.
They are also here to install a test unit, the Electratherm Organic Rankine Cycle, the base main power plant, which is the first of its kind to be used in this type of application.
“It takes the heat from the engine, the coolant and the exhaust, and uses that to convert more power,” said Einhaus. “It’s supposed to make the unit a little more fuel efficient. It’s supposed to run cooler and be better for the engine.”
Energy produced here costs roughly 10 times of the cost to produce it in the U.S. Therefore, any attempt to be energy efficient is great news, said Steven Vickery, utility management branch head at Naval Facilities Engineering Command.
“This mainly comes from the fact that GTMO is displaced,” said Vickery. “We have to make our own water, power and process our own wastewater.”
Vickery has continued the ongoing effort to make GTMO a clean and efficiently-powered place to live and work.
He recently attended an Energy Efficiency Exchange in Phoenix, where he had hopes to acquire additional equipment. He envisioned something similar to the MUSE’s generator, the Electratherm Organic Rankine Cycle, and wants to implement new ideas to, not only waste less, but also save more.
However, Vickery explained the JTF troopers could make a big contribution as well, by turning up the thermostat a little while not at home or switching off the lights when leaving.
“Nobody has to be an energy engineer,” said Vickery. “No one has to have a license behind their name to understand and use basic conservation principles. We all have two hands and it only takes one finger to turn out the lights.”
| Date Taken: | 09.04.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.01.2016 11:54 |
| Story ID: | 190676 |
| Location: | GUANTANAMO BAY, CU |
| Web Views: | 281 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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