" All well and good, but I'd still like to know why EIU would spend $40-million on old technology when far more efficient and lower cost alternatives exist.

Within two years, a company named Hyperion Power Generation Inc, Santa Fe, NM, will have available very small nuclear non-weapons grade power modules about the size of a back yard shed, capable of providing electricity for a community of 20,000 homes. Total cost: about $25-million. No need to relocate from the present more-central power plant site right on campus.

Come to think of it, EIU could sell that land adjacent to The Fields subdivision and the county would then have that acerage back on the tax rolls.

Yeah, I'm liking this idea more and more. "

" Let me get this straight. You want a nuclear power plant right in the middle of campus? Really?
And, old technology? Gasification is among the newest techonologies availible to pursue clean energy, and is extraordinarily clean and efficient. You say that they will have this technology in 2 years. We need a new plant now, not 2 years from now, let alone the build time for it.

The entire campus master plan focused moving the plant to the periphery of campus from where it is so that large trucks aren't tearing through the middle of campus, creating a safety hazard. The eventual plan is to gut the existing steam plant structure, and remodel it and create a one-stop shop for student services, freeing up valuable space across campus, hopefully diffusing the need for other new buildings in the foreseeable future.

However, with that being said, Eastern is smack dab in the middle of Charleston. If it is to continue to grow and be attractive to new students, we need more space, which is why that land was bought in the first place. Giving up that land would greatly handcuff Eastern in the future if more space were needed. While I certainly agree that having that land off the tax rolls while it isn't being used is not extremely desirable, but it is vital to make sure that Eastern has space to expand long into the future. Unless, that is, you want to have a situation like we had before Doudna was completed where students are being ferried all over Charleston to go to their classes.

I should also note that a new building is being constructed because the time and money that would be spent trying to renovate the current plant while still keeping it in service for heating, cooling, hot water, and cooking power for the entire campus is simply not economically feasible. "

" EIU Student Rep wrote: "Let me get this straight. You want a nuclear power plant right in the middle of campus? Really?"

Yes, Student Rep, you must be on the Dean's List! Good comprehension skills. A nuclear power module, right in the middle of campus. Or ... we can burn wood chips, off campus - which I guess is your idea of high tech? Gasification is just a new twist on extremely old technology. If you really want clean energy, go nuc! Have you considered what happens when sufficient by-product wood chips are no longer available? If you insist on old tech power sources from old tech supply lines, just burn coal.

Actually, the self-contained nuclear module is available right now (at a far more affordable cost) but, yes, it would take about two years to deliver it. Did you even do a search for Hyperion Power? How long do you think it will take to build the wood burner, Miss-Ants-in-Your-Pants? Get a grip on the limits of your intellect. I have a feeling it'll come in handy for you in the very near future.

Did it ever occur to you that large trucks tearing through the middle of a residential neighborhood is just as objectionable as large trucks tearing through the middle of campus?

Your presumption of Eastern's continued growth (I call it sprawl) implies an entitlement to eminent domain. That's a fairly powerful, and offensive, argument on your part. Better read up on property ownership rights of the private citizen. You want a larger campus? Build up (as in vertical).

I hope youre not graduating anytime soon, my friend. You still have a whole lot to learn. "

" And people, especially those around EIU, are whining now. How much louder do you think they will whine if someone seriously proposed placing a nuclear energy plant of any kind in their back yards.

I am not an electrical engineer by any imagination, but one thing I have never understood is why an electrical power plant can not be self sustaining. Why can't some of the electricity produced be siphoned off the system, on site, to power electric motors to spin the generators that produce the power. "

" Of course, you're right, Jim1969. With these folks it's the "not-in-my-back-yard" mentality. Kind of goes along with the "Support the troops. End the war" theme. Both schools of thought require a head-in-the-sand way of thinking. Most of them live in an extremely sheltered academic environment. They're also the ones who think we should pay more taxes, but Ive never heard of them sending an extra check to the IRS.

By the way, this compact underground, concrete-encased nuclear module is capable of providing power to 20,000 households (thats households, not individuals). That's big enough for the whole EIU campus plus the city of Charleston. Instead, we're gonna burn wood chips - kind of like they do in Nigeria. Lets hear it for EIU. Welcome EIU to the 21st century.

As to your other point, it's called a perpetual motion system. LOL. God managed to do it, but even Einstein couldnt figure out how to duplicate it. "

" Some day that may be an option, but I think the current laws of physics and available technology, are what still defines energy output from energy input. Superconductors may eventually help to bridge the gaps more, but only needing fuel or other means of stored energy to start up the generator, and then it being able to produce a net gain in output is still a long ways off.

EIU should be looking at incorperating some geothermal in its upgrades. LLC should as well. EIU is only opting to update their generation system, and route it through the likely just as old radiators and other systems.

They should have looked at a land swap or purchase south of town. With room for solar, or wind generators, to supliment their options. Many of their buildings should get solar panels on the roof. If they were remotely worried about future expansion, they would not be tying up this space with a power plant. If they produced more energy than they use, it could be sold into the power grid. Any updates should have looked at more, and if it were in a field south of town, or other off campus location, the additional expense of aesthetics would be moot.

Several smaller storage towers are often better than one big one. Each needs its own feed system, so the whole thing isn't down from one part or mechanism having issues or failure. Some of their proposal has its merits, but much of it lacks any vision or basic knowledge in effectively planning for the future. Deffinately not what you should expect from a higher learning institution. "

" Jim asks: "I am not an electrical engineer by any imagination, but one thing I have never understood is why an electrical power plant can not be self sustaining. Why can't some of the electricity produced be siphoned off the system, on site, to power electric motors to spin the generators that produce the power. "

I have asked the same thing over and over and I've never gotten an answer. You could add a perpetual motion motor to the equation and very little energy would go into running the motors. So, EIU grads, why wouldn't this idea work? "

" ////Mike P: EIU should be looking at incorperating some geothermal in its upgrades. LLC should as well.////

Mike, I believe Lakeland did the geothermal thing over a year ago. "

" Becky, Would you let me know where I could purchase a perpetual motion motor? It would make a nice addition to my wind/solar car on days when it's cloudy and the wind isn't blowing. "

" Granger:
Perpetual motion motors:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQAo3O2d8cU

and: http://sgenergycrisis.blogspot.com/2007/09/overunity-perpetual-motion-motor.html

Maybe you should google for info before trying to make someone look foolish and ending up with egg on your own face. "

" Last year I read about a company being the first to do geothermal on a large enough scale to be used in an apartment complex. I think it was around Decatur. "

" Perpetual Motion Motors? Lol. There is no such thing as a true perpetual motion motor because according to the law of thermodynamics perpetual motion is not possible. Anything you come across in a google search that claims to be a perpetual motion or free energy device is a scam, ripoff or hoax. Throughout history thousands of inventors have claimed to have created perpetual motion machines but none of their creations were ever proven to work. "

" As in the other article, the cap and trade tax proposed by the white house would make this project more costly to run and nearly as harmful to the environment due to CO2 emissions. Something to check out! "

" 20 years ago my self sustaining power plant theory may not have been possible due to the materials we had to work with, but with the current alloys and ceramics available things may have and probably changed a great deal.

I think the only real "if" factor in something like this is if an electric motor could be built that would run long enough before needing rebuilt. Other than that I have a strong hunch that it is nothing more than the oil companies being a little too powerful. "

" What is the matter with using windmills?

They store up energy in the batteries for use when there is no wind.

Why aren't we going for that which is the new technology proven to work in other countries and in the US also? "

" I'm with Gringa on the nuke plant.

U of I has had one on campus for 30 years +/-. It has been used as a training tool. The technology has improved much since then.

EIU Student Rep is just a party line mouth piece for Dale Righter and the establishment. A good kid and easily pliable.

Folks are going to whine regardless of whether we get a nuke or wood chip plant. Don't use Illinois coal. It's to close and available in abundance. "