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The decarbonisation of many sectors of the economy, including primarily the energy sector, results in the gradual elimination of hydrocarbon fuels, especially coal. During the transition period, it will be possible to use natural gas, the... more
The decarbonisation of many sectors of the economy, including primarily the energy sector, results in the gradual elimination of hydrocarbon fuels, especially coal. During the transition period, it will be possible to use natural gas, the combustion of which is associated with lower carbon dioxide emissions. Further reduction in this emission is possible with the use of mixtures of natural gas with other gases, e.g., ammonia. Ammonia, widely used in many industries, has recently been described as the emission-free fuel of the future. However, both of these gases are hazardous substances. Natural gas is a flammable gas and ammonia is a toxic gas. This paper presents an assessment of the transport safety of natural gas (methane) and its mixture with ammonia. The uncontrolled release of these substances from a damaged gas pipeline may cause a fire or a toxic hazard. This work presents hazard zones arising in the event of such a failure and determines the impact of various mixture compo...
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The further use of coal as fuel in new power plants depends on the application of technologies reducing CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. For this reason, research is being carried out on the gas capture and storage methods. In future,... more
The further use of coal as fuel in new power plants depends on the application of technologies reducing CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. For this reason, research is being carried out on the gas capture and storage methods. In future, these new technologies will require a new pipeline infrastructure for the transportation of carbon dioxide to storage locations. An important aspect of the transport of CO2 is the assessment of the effects of an uncontrolled release of gas from a damaged pipeline. A reliable assessment of these effects calls for the modelling of the phenomena related to the CO2 leakage. The thermodynamic and flow aspects of the phenomena occurring in a damaged pipeline and in its environment are discussed in this paper. The mathematical models of these phenomena are described and examples of calculations of the changes in CO2 parameters after the damage to the pipeline are presented.
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Polish power technologies mainly use fossil fuels. Despite a significant increase in the installed capacity from renewable sources, it still makes up more than 90% of the total volume of the electricity produced. Another important... more
Polish power technologies mainly use fossil fuels. Despite a significant increase in the installed capacity from renewable sources, it still makes up more than 90% of the total volume of the electricity produced. Another important characteristic of the generation infrastructure is the advanced age of the majority of the blocks (especially 200 MW). At the stage of implementation are currently four coal-fired blocks with a capacity of approximately 1000 MW. Morever one lignite unit of 500 MW is planned. Economic calculations show that the investment for these blocks is justified by the price of electricity PLN 240–270 / MWh. The observation of the wholesale price indicates, however, that they are significantly lower, with the continuous trend of decline (fig. 4). This means that the introduction of new blocks of high-power to the system at the current price of coal is rather unjustified. Consequently, it pointed to the desirability of other technological solutions. One of them is the ...
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According to European Union requirements and directives, the further development of the power industry based on hydrocarbon fuels is only possible with the application of CCS technologies in power plants. These technologies will greatly... more
According to European Union requirements and directives, the further development of the power industry based on hydrocarbon fuels is only possible with the application of CCS technologies in power plants. These technologies will greatly reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Although carbon dioxide is not considered to be a toxic gas and its slight amounts are included in atmospheric air, in big concentrations it can pose a health or even life hazard to both humans and animals. Analyzing the individual stages of CCS technology, it may be concluded that the greatest risk is created by a potential failure of the pipelines transporting CO2. In the case of failure, huge amounts of CO2 may get into the surroundings, increasing its concentration in the closest vicinity of the damaged pipeline. This article identifies potential hazards to the environment resulting from these technologies. The gas transportation stage is considered most dangerous one. Sample results of the cal...
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The finite nature of fossil fuel reserves is driving interest in hydrogen as a renewable, clean-energy source. Combined with the potential of nuclear power and other renewable energy sources, electricity generation from hydrogen is an... more
The finite nature of fossil fuel reserves is driving interest in hydrogen as a renewable, clean-energy source. Combined with the potential of nuclear power and other renewable energy sources, electricity generation from hydrogen is an area rich in prospects. However, the pre-requisite for harnessing power from hydrogen is research not only on the possibility of gas production, use and storage, but also on the safety of each of these stages. Uncontrolled release of hydrogen poses a serious risk to humans and the environment. This article presents potential hazards related to hydrogen production, pipeline transport and storage tanks.
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Natural gas continues to be one of the basic energy sources used as fuel in the power sector, in industries and in households. The potential and attractiveness of this fuel is gaining special significance in the current energy transitions... more
Natural gas continues to be one of the basic energy sources used as fuel in the power sector, in industries and in households. The potential and attractiveness of this fuel is gaining special significance in the current energy transitions from coal-based power engineering to power generation based on renewable energy sources. Natural gas is supplied to consumers mainly through a network of pipelines, which ensures a relatively high reliability of the supply. Still, failures occur due to the corrosion of pipeline walls, material defects or human errors, which can result in uncontrolled release of gas. The released gas can trigger dangerous phenomena, such as fires and explosions. This paper presents an analysis of the causes and effects of damage to a medium-pressure pipeline caused by earthworks carried out within an area where a pipeline is located. Holes in the pipeline due to the impact of an excavator bucket are analysed. The impact of the excavator bucket may cause a rupture eq...
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Energy needs of many countries are largely covered by energy obtained from fossil fuels. This in turn involves environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The growing environmental awareness and the need to prevent climate... more
Energy needs of many countries are largely covered by energy obtained from fossil fuels. This in turn involves environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The growing environmental awareness and the need to prevent climate changes mean that clean energy and alternative energy sources are still a significant research issue. One of the most important technologies for efficient and low-carbon energy generation is the gasification process and synthesis gas production. Worldwide, there are now more than 270 such installations. More installations are under construction. Syngas is a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. Depending on the feedstock, it can also contain smaller amounts of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrogen. The gasification process consists of four stages: syngas production, storage, transport and utilization, e.g. as fuel. Because syngas is mainly composed of flammable and toxic gases, in the event of an uncontrolled release into the atmosphere these processes...
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The possibilities of supervising the operation of thermal turbines enabling the tracking and prevention of events that may lead to serious failures are discussed. The algorithms of the monitoring the thermal stress levels of particular... more
The possibilities of supervising the operation of thermal turbines enabling the tracking and prevention of events that may lead to serious failures are discussed. The algorithms of the monitoring the thermal stress levels of particular components are presented, together with brittle cracking hazards on the grounds of failure diagrams. The algorithms are based on typical quantities measured and recorded by the measurement systems of power units as well as on the component wall evoked by massive shields of the thermocouples. It may be proved that the measurement of the differences in tem- perature enables its comprehensive correlation with the thermal stresses in a given component only in the steady state. The method based on the measurements of the heating up rate may be used in the case of the quasi-stationary state in the component wall (1), which is reached after long-lasting heating up of the component at constant speed. Accordingly, the method is unsuitable for the supervision o...
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Flexible operation of coal-fired power plants contributes to the intensification of the life consumption processes, which is a serious problem especially in the case of units with a long in-service time. In steam turbine rotors, the crack... more
Flexible operation of coal-fired power plants contributes to the intensification of the life consumption processes, which is a serious problem especially in the case of units with a long in-service time. In steam turbine rotors, the crack propagation rate and material wear caused by low-cycle fatigue increase. The aim of the research is an attempt to forecast the development of these processes and to estimate the probability of critical elements damage, such as the high-pressure and intermediate-pressure rotors. In the stress state analyses, the finite element method (FEM) is used, the Monte Carlo method and the second order reliability method (SORM) is apply to calculate the probability of failure. It is proposed to use risk analysis to plan preventive maintenance of the turbine. The optimal intervals for carrying out diagnostic tests and prophylactic repairs is determined for various operating scenarios and various failure scenarios. This enables a reduction of the costs while ens...
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In order to ensure the safety of power generation in Poland and to maintain energy production from coal-fired units with the long in-service time, it is required to develop a strategy for the further operation of the conventional power... more
In order to ensure the safety of power generation in Poland and to maintain energy production from coal-fired units with the long in-service time, it is required to develop a strategy for the further operation of the conventional power plants in conditions of increased flexibility. The presented research focuses on the critical component of the steam turbine, which is the high-pressure rotor. The methodology of the forecasting of crack propagation and growth of life-consumption processes was described, and the probability of a failure in subsequent years was estimated. The development of the identified phenomena depends mainly on the stress increases during start-ups; therefore, these increases were determined to ensure the safety of the turbine’s operation during the assumed period of operation (13 years). The permissible stress for rotor central bore (threatened with crack propagation) was 220 MPa for start-ups which were not carried out “on demand”, and for heat grooves (threaten...
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The operational safety of power units depends upon many factors, including the methods of their operation, their working conditions, age, regularity and range of maintenance. The scope of the paper is the analysis of maintenance options... more
The operational safety of power units depends upon many factors, including the methods of their operation, their working conditions, age, regularity and range of maintenance. The scope of the paper is the analysis of maintenance options for power machines and equipment. The assumed criterion for the selection of the range of repair works is the level of technical risk posed by a given facility below the accepted allowable level. Detailed discussion is focused on the water and steam system of the boiler. The influence of the maintenance on the probability of failure of certain components is described on the grounds of Kijima’s model. For the assumed maintenance periods minimal sets of equipment were determined, the repair of which should secure the operation of the water-steam system for a successive interval with the risk level lower than the allowable one.
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Rapid development of renewable energy sources (RES) can now be observed all over the world. Wind power stations are at the forefront of the trend, but their operation is dependent on highly changeable weather conditions. Favouring energy... more
Rapid development of renewable energy sources (RES) can now be observed all over the world. Wind power stations are at the forefront of the trend, but their operation is dependent on highly changeable weather conditions. Favouring energy obtained from renewable sources necessitates the operation of conventional power plants, coal-fired ones in the first place, as peak-demand units. The problem is that coal-fired power plants are designed for continuous operation and their operation efficiency deteriorates if they are used as peak-demand units. An increased number of start-ups and continuous fluctuations in the power output in a longer time horizon ultimately result in accumulation of wear processes, such as thermal fatigue and cracking. A noticeable effect is a drop in reliability indices and higher operating costs related to expensive start-ups. The paper presents an estimation of the rise in operating costs due to increased operation cyclicity of power units. An assessment is also...
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Fault tree analysis is an advanced method of reliability analysis of complex systems. It makes it possible to estimate the failure probability of the whole system in the function of occurrence probabilities of primary events leading to... more
Fault tree analysis is an advanced method of reliability analysis of complex systems. It makes it possible to estimate the failure probability of the whole system in the function of occurrence probabilities of primary events leading to the system failure. The method can also be applied to assess the risk of complex power engineering facilities. The paper presents the selection procedure of the maintenance intervals for complex systems of power units, taking risk into account. At the stage of risk estimation, the fault tree analysis was used. The calculated risk level was compared to allowable risk. Too high a risk level at present or during further operation necessitates modifications in the schedule of planned maintenance processes. The paper suggests a way to rationally select the scopes and periods of carrying out maintenances of individual system components. An example selection of the maintenance intervals for the turbine set of a power unit was presented.
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The goal of preventive as well as corrective maintenances is to keep or to restore acceptable level of efficiency and safety of operation of given object. Optimization of maintenance processes allows obtaining these effects at possibly... more
The goal of preventive as well as corrective maintenances is to keep or to restore acceptable level of efficiency and safety of operation of given object. Optimization of maintenance processes allows obtaining these effects at possibly lowest costs. Mathematic model of optimization of maintenance intervals having regard to the risk are presented in the paper. Precise calculations were made for steam turbines that operate in power units.
The impact of stress on changes in magnetisation is one of the most complex issues of magnetism. Magnetic methods make use of the impact of stress on permeability, hysteresis and magnetic Barkhausen noise, which are examined with fields... more
The impact of stress on changes in magnetisation is one of the most complex issues of magnetism. Magnetic methods make use of the impact of stress on permeability, hysteresis and magnetic Barkhausen noise, which are examined with fields with a great strength and a small frequency. The paper presents an analysis of the impact of residual stress resulting from inhomogeneous plastic deformations in the notch area on the changes in the strength of the residual magnetic field (RMF). The RMF on the surface of the component is the superposition of the simultaneous effect of the shape, the anisotropic magnetic properties of the material, as well as of the values of the components of a weak external magnetic field (most commonly – the magnetic field of the Earth). Distributions of the RMF components were measured on the surface of samples with a various degree of plastic strain. The finite element method was used to model residual stress in the samples. The impact of residual stress on chang...
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Research was carried out with a view to developing a methodology and algorithms for the determination of the stress-strain state of a ferromagnetic component based on measurements of magnetic properties. The aim of the testing was to... more
Research was carried out with a view to developing a methodology and algorithms for the determination of the stress-strain state of a ferromagnetic component based on measurements of magnetic properties. The aim of the testing was to define the stress-strain state, both as the effect of active stresses resulting from load and after unloading. The studies involved an analysis of changes in the residual magnetic field (RMF) and in the Barkhausen effect caused by the magnetic field (MBE). Good quantitative relationships between active stresses and the number of counts, which is one of the parameters that describe the MBE quantitatively, were found. It was also found that the MBE number of counts could be used as a diagnostic signal to develop correlations for the evaluation of the hardness of some ferromagnetic steels. A method for the evaluation of the first order residual stress in ferromagnetic steels based on residual magnetic field measurements was presented. The values and distri...
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Coal fired power units are having to operate with higher operational flexibility due to changes in the structure of energy systems brought about by the increased production of electric energy from renewable sources. The flexibility at... more
Coal fired power units are having to operate with higher operational flexibility due to changes in the structure of energy systems brought about by the increased production of electric energy from renewable sources. The flexibility at issue relates to frequent changes of generated power and long-running operation at minimum load. By operating in this mode coal fired power units compensate for the stochastic character of energy generated from renewable sources and ensure a desirable reliability level for energy systems, but at the same time it has various impacts on the durability and failure frequency of their component parts. One of the problems which can arise during the operation of turbines working at low loads is increased erosion of the last stage blades of the LP part. This paper presents an analysis of turbine operation conditions which may lead to increased erosion hazards for the blades of the LP part. We address the problem of temperature drop of the re-superheated steam ...