Me Lab 3
Me Lab 3
Me Lab 3
BICOL UNIVERSITY
College of Engineering
Legazpi City, Albay
S.Y. 2018-2019
Prepared by:
Andes, Jerome V.
Magno, Aaron
Orencillo, Rolly
Serrano, Dwight Chester
Supeña, Arnie
BSME 5B
INTRODUCTION
Power Plant
A power plant is an industrial facility used to generate electric power with the help of one or
more generators which converts different energy sources into electric power.
Electricity is a secondary energy source, which means that electricity is obtained from the
conversion of other primary sources of energy, such as coal, natural gas, nuclear, solar, or wind
energy. The energy sources used to make electricity can be renewable or non-renewable, but
electricity itself is neither renewable or non-renewable. The power plant is the location in which
the energy conversions take place.
Traditionally, large power plants have been located in sub-urban regions away from cities, as
they need a vast area of land and sometimes water. All electricity produced in a power plant is
alternating current (AC). The type of electric current found in your home is direct current (DC).
In general, power plants can be divided into two categories - conventional and non-conventional
power plants.
Conventional power plants are:
Fossil fuel power plants: Generates electric power by burning fossil fuels like coal,natural
gas or diesel.
Nuclear power plants: Controlled nuclear reaction is maintained to generateelectricity.
Hydroelectric power plants: Electricity is produced by building dams on suitable rivers.
Non-conventional power plants are:
Wind power plants: The kinetic energy of wind is used to create power.
Solar power plants: Generates power by collecting solar radiation.
Geothermal power plants: Uses the natural heat found in the deep levels of the earth to
generate electricity.
Biomass power plants: Natural organic matter is burnt to produce electricity.
A plant designed to convert the heat from the combustion of a fuel into mechanical energy by
means of steam. Mechanical energy is generally not the end product of a steam power plant but
is transformed by electric generators into electric power, which is then transmitted to consumers;
this type of steam power plant is called a steam electric power plant. When steam is produced in
an atomic steam-generating plant, the plant is called an atomic power plant or an atomic electric
power plant.
Steam power plants consist of one or a group of steam boilers and one or more steam power
sources (steam engines or steam turbines) with auxiliary mechanisms, apparatus, and
instruments. The simplest steam power plant is the steam power unit, which is composed of a
fire-tube boiler on which a piston steam engine is mounted. High-power steam power plants
consist of steam boilers and steam turbines with condensing equipment. The modern trend is to
design steam power plants in boiler-turbine units (with power ratings of 300 megawatts or more)
that are not interconnected for steam and water. This makes it possible to use short steam pipes
with a minimum number of fittings, which is very important with high steam parameters
(pressure to 24 meganewtons per sq m [240 kilograms-force per sq cm]) and temperatures of
570°C and above. Some of the steam generated in a steam power plant is often used for domestic
or industrial purposes, such as heating, cooking, and drying. Steam power plants are used on
riverboats and oceangoing vessels (steamships), as well as in railroad transportation (steam
locomotives) and, occasionally, in steam automobiles.
Working fluid cycle steam power plant is a closed cycle, which uses the same fluid repeatedly.
First, the water is filled into the boiler to fill the entire surface area of heat transfer. In the boiler
water is heated by the hot gases of combustion fuel with air so that turned into vapor phase.
Steam produced by boiler with pressure and temperature are directed to do work on the turbine to
produce mechanical power in the form of rotation.
The former steam out of the turbine, and then flowed into the condenser to be cooled with
cooling water that turned to water. Condensate water is then used again as boiler feed water.
Thus the cycle goes on and repeats.
Rotation of turbine is used to turn a generator that is coupled directly to the turbine. So when the
turbine rotates, the generator output terminals generate electricity. Although working fluid cycle
is a closed cycle, but the amount of water in the cycle would decrease. The reduction is due to
the leakage of water either intentional or unintentional
A steam power plant works on Modified Rankine Cycle which are:-
1. Reheat Rankine Cycle.
2. Regenerative Rankine Cycle.
A Rankine cycle is modified in order to make the best use of heat energy and to increase the
efficiency of the cycle.
Ideal Rankine Cycle:
here,
Process 1–2(Isoentropic compression process-in compressor): The working fluid is
pumped from low to high pressure. As the fluid is a liquid at this stage, the pump requires
little input energy.
Process 2–3(Isobaric heat addition process-in boiler): The high-pressure liquid enters a
boiler, where it is heated at constant pressure by an external heat source to become a dry
saturated vapour.
Process 3–4(Isoentropic expansion process-in turbine): The dry saturated vapour
expands through a turbine, generating power. This decreases the temperature and pressure
of the vapour, and some condensation may occur.
Process 4–1(Isobaric heat rejection process-in condenser): The wet vapour then enters a
condenser, where it is condensed at a constant pressure to become a saturated liquid.
Steam is an important medium of producing mechanical energy. Steam has the advantage that, it
can be raised from water which is available in abundance it does not react much with the
materials of the equipment of power plant and is stable at the temperature required in the plant.
Steam is used to drive steam engines, steam turbines etc. Steam power station is most suitable
where coal is available in abundance. Thermal electrical power generation is one of the major
methods. Out of total power developed in India about 60% is thermal. For a thermal power plant
the range of pressure may vary from 10 kg/cm2to super critical pressures and the range of
temperature may be
from 250°C to 650°C.
METHODOLOGY
In addition to the above equipment the plant requires various auxiliaries and accessories
depending upon the availability of water, fuel and the service for which the plant is intended. The
flow sheet of a thermal power plant consists of the following four main circuits :
(a) Feed water and steam flow circuit.
(b) Coal and ash circuit.
(c) Air and gas circuit.
(d) Cooling water circuit.
A steam power plant using steam as working substance works basically on Rankine cycle. Steam
is generated in a boiler, expanded in the prime mover and condensed in the condenser and fed
into the boiler again. The different types of systems and components used in steam power plant
are as
follows :
(a) High pressure boiler
(b) Prime mover
(c) Condensers and cooling towers
(d) Coal handling system
(e) Ash and dust handling system
(f) Draught system
(g) Feed water purification plant
(h) Pumping system
(i) Air preheater, economizer, super heater, feed heaters.
Figure 2.11 shows a schematic arrangement of equipment of a steam power station. Coal
received in coal storage yard of power station is transferred in the furnace by coal handling unit.
Heat produced due to burning of coal is utilized in converting water contained in boiler drum
into steam at suitable pressure and temperature. The steam generated is passed through the
superheater. Superheated steam then flows through the turbine. After doing work in the turbine
the pressure of steam is reduced. Steam leaving the turbine passes through the condenser which
is maintained the low pressure of steam at the exhaust of turbine. Steam pressure in the
condenser depends upon flow rate and temperature of cooling water and on effectiveness of air
removal equipment. Water
circulating through the condenser may be taken from the various sources such as river, lake or
sea. If sufficient quantity of water is not available the hot water coming out of the condenser may
be cooled in cooling towers and circulated again through the condenser. Bled steam taken from
the turbine at suitable extraction points is sent to low pressure and high pressure water heaters.
Air taken from the atmosphere is first passed through the air pre-heater, where it is heated by flue
gases. The hot air then passes through the furnace. The flue gases after passing over boiler and
superheater tubes, flow through the dust collector and then through economiser, air pre-heater
and finally they are exhausted to the atmosphere through the chimney.
Steam condensing system consists of the following :
(a) Condenser
(b) Cooling water
(c) Cooling tower
(d) Hot well
(e) Condenser cooling water pump
(f) Condensate air extraction pump
(g) Air extraction pump
(h) Boiler feed pump
(i) Make up water pump.
Classification
Types of Boilers
Economizer
The economizer is a feed water heater, deriving heat from the flue gases. The
justifiable cost of the economizer depends on the total gain in efficiency. In turn
this depends on the flue gas temperature leaving the boiler and the feed water inlet
temperature. A typical return bend type economizer is shown in the Figure 2.11.
Air Pre-heater
The flue gases coming out of the economizer is used to preheat the air before
supplying it to the combustion chamber. An increase in air temperature of
20 degrees can be achieved by this method. The pre heated air is used for
combustion and also to dry the crushed coal before pulverizing.
Soot Blowers
The fuel used in thermal power plants causes soot and this is deposited on the
boiler tubes, economizer tubes, air pre heaters, etc. This drastically reduces the
amount of heat transfer of the heat exchangers. Soot blowers control the formation
of soot and reduce its corrosive effects. The types of soot blowers are fixed type,
which may be further classified into lane type and mass type depending upon the
type of spray and nozzle used. The other type of soot blower is the retractable soot
blower. The advantages are that they are placed far away from the high
temperature zone, they concentrate the cleaning through a single large nozzle
rather than many small nozzles and there is no concern of nozzle arrangement with
respect to the boiler tubes.
Condenser
The use of a condenser in a power plant is to improve the efficiency of the power
plant by decreasing the exhaust pressure of the steam below atmosphere. Another
advantage of the condenser is that the steam condensed may be recovered to
provide a source of good pure feed water to the boiler and reduce the water
softening capacity to a considerable extent. A condenser is one of the essential
components of a power plant.
Cooling Tower
The importance of the cooling tower is felt when the cooling water from the
condenser has to be cooled. The cooling water after condensing the steam
becomes hot and it has to be cooled as it belongs to a closed system. The Cooling
towers do the job of decreasing the temperature of the cooling water after
condensing the steam in the condenser.
The type of cooling tower used in the Columbia Power Plant was an Inline
Induced Draft Cross Flow Tower. This tower provides a horizontal air flow as the
water falls down the tower in the form of small droplets. The fan centered at the
top of units draws air through two cells that are paired to a suction chamber
partitioned beneath the fan. The outstanding feature of this tower is lower air
static pressure loss as there is less resistance to air flow. The evaporation and
effective cooling of air is greater when the air outside is warmer and dryer than
when it is cold and already saturated.
Superheater
The superheater consists of a superheater header and superheater elements. Steam
from the main steam pipe arrives at the saturated steam chamber of the superheater
header and is fed into the superheater elements. Superheated steam arrives back at
the superheated steam chamber of the superheater header and is fed into the steam
pipe to the cylinders. Superheated steam is more expansive.
Reheater
The reheater functions similar to the superheater in that it serves to elevate the
steam temperature. Primary steam is supplied to the high pressure turbine. After
passing through the high pressure turbine, the steam is returned to the steam
generator for reheating (in a reheater) after which it is sent to the low pressure
turbine. A second reheat cycle may also be provided.
SUPER HEATER
The nominal control of reheat steam temperature is by tilting the burners. The super
heater steam temperature is controlled by spraying water.
Other control methods that are according to the need and design are :
(a) Excess Air Control
(b) Flue Gas Recirculation
(c) Gas by-pass Control
(d) Control of Combination Superheaters
(e) Adjustable Burner Control
Excess Air Control
The steam outlet temperature of a convection superheater may be increased at
partial load by increasing the excess air supply. The reduced gas temperature
decreases the furnace heat absorption for the same steam production. The
increased gas mass flow with its increased total heat content serves to increase the
degree of superheat.
Low pressure feed water heaters are used in the condensate system between the
condensate pump discharge and boiler feed pumps, and utilize low pressure turbine
extraction or auxiliary turbine exhaust steam for heating the condensate.
High pressure feed water heaters are used in the feed water system between the boiler
feed pump discharge and the boiler, and utilize high pressure turbine extraction steam for
heating the feed water. The condensate or feed water temperature increase for each feed
water heater will be in the range of 28 to 56 degrees C with the actual value determined
by turbine manufacturer‟s stage location of steam extraction nozzles. Depending on
turbine size, some turbines offer alternate number of extraction nozzles with usually a
choice of using the highest pressure extraction nozzle. The selection, in this case, of the
total number of feed water heaters to use should be based on economic evaluation.
Advantages
(a) Fuel economy.
(b) Longer life of the boiler.
(c) Increase in steaming capacity.
A feedwater heater is a power plant component used to pre-heat water delivered to a
steam generating boiler. Preheating the feedwater reduces the irreversibilities involved in
steam generation and therefore improves the thermodynamic efficiency of the system.
This reduces plant operating costs and also helps to avoid thermal shock to the boiler
metal when the feedwater is introduced back into the steam cycle.
In a steam power plant (usually modeled as a modified Rankine cycle), feedwater heaters
allow the feedwater to be brought up to the saturation temperature very gradually. This
minimizes the inevitable irreversibilities associated with heat transfer to the working
fluid (water).
Air Preheaters
An air preheater or air heater is a general term to describe any device designed to heat air
before another process (for example, combustion in a boiler) with the primary objective
of increasing the thermal efficiency of the process. They may be used alone or to replace
a recuperative heat system or to replace a steam coil.
In particular, this article describes the combustion air preheaters used in large boilers
found in thermal power stations producing electric power from e.g. fossil fuels,
biomasses or waste
The purpose of the air preheater is to recover the heat from the boiler flue gas which
increases the thermal efficiency of the boiler by reducing the useful heat lost in the flue
gas. As a consequence, the flue gases are also sent to the flue gas stack (or chimney) at a
lower temperature, allowing simplified design of the ducting and the flue gas stack. It
also allows control over the temperature of gases leaving the stack (to meet emissions
regulations, for example).
Types
Steam Power Plant
There are two types of air preheaters for use in steam generators in thermal power
stations : One is a tubular type built into the boiler flue gas ducting, and the other
is a regenerative air preheater. These may be arranged so the gas flows
horizontally or vertically across the axis of rotation.
Tubular Type
Construction Features
Tubular preheaters consist of straight tube bundles which pass through the
outlet ducting of the boiler and open at each end outside of the ducting.
Inside the ducting, the hot furnace gases pass around the preheater tubes,
transferring heat from the exhaust gas to the air inside the preheater.
Ambient air is forced by a fan through ducting at one end of the preheater
tubes and at other end the heated air from inside of the tubes emerges into
another set of ducting, which carries it to the boiler furnace for combustion.
Problems
The tubular preheater ductings for cold and hot air require more space and
structural supports than a rotating preheater design. Further, due to dust-laden
abrasive flue gases, the tubes outside the ducting wear out faster on the side facing
the gas current. Many advances have been made to eliminate this problem such as
the use of ceramic and hardened steel.
Many new circulating fluidized bed (CFB) and bubbling fluidized bed (BFB)
steam generators are currently incorporating tubular air heaters offering an
advantage with regards to the moving parts of a rotary type.
Dew Point Corrosion
Dew point corrosion occurs for a variety of reasons. The type of fuel used, its
sulfur content and moisture content are contributing factors. However, by far the
most significant cause of dew point corrosion is the metal temperature of the
tubes. If the metal temperature within the tubes drops below the acid saturation
temperature, usually at between 88°C and 110°C, but sometimes at temperatures
as high as 127°C, then the risk of dew point corrosion damage becomes
considerable.
Regenerative Air Pre-heaters
There are two types of regenerative air pre-heaters: the rotating-plate regenerative
air preheaters and the stationary-plate regenerative air preheaters.
Rotating-plate Regenerative Air Pre-heater
The rotating-plate design consists of a central rotating-plate element installed
within a casing that is divided into two (bi-sector type), three (tri-sector type) or
four (quad-sector type) sectors containing seals around the element. The seals
allow the element to rotate through all the sectors, but keep gas leakage between
sectors to a minimum while providing separate gas air and flue gas paths through
each sector.
Tri-sector types are the most common in modern power generation facilities. In
the tri-sector design, the largest sector is connected to the boiler hot gas outlet.
The hot exhaust gas flows over the central element, transferring some of its heat to
the element, and is then ducted away for further treatment in dust collectors and
other equipment before being expelled from the flue gas stack. The second,
smaller sector, is fed with ambient air by a fan, which passes over the heated
element as it rotates into the sector, and is heated before being carried to the boiler
furnace for combustion. The third sector is the smallest one and it heats air which
is routed into the pulverizers and used to carry the coal-air mixture to coal boiler
burners. Thus, the total air heated in the air preheater provides: heating air to
remove the moisture from the pulverised coal dust, carrier air for transporting the
pulverised coal to the boiler burners and the primary air for combustion.
Stationary-plate Regenerative Air Preheater
The heating plate elements in this type of regenerative air preheater are also
installed in a casing, but the heating plate elements are stationary rather than
rotating. Instead the air ducts in the preheater are rotated so as to alternatively
expose sections of the heating plate elements to the upflowing cool air.
As indicated in the figure, there are rotating inlet air ducts at the bottom of the
stationary plates similar to the rotating outlet air ducts at the top of the stationary
plates.
FURNACES
LA MONT Boiler
A forced circulation boiler was first introduced in 1925 by La Mont. The arrangement of
water circulation and different components are shown in the figure. The feed water from
hot well is supplied to a storage and separating drum (boiler) through the economizer.
Most of the sensible heat is supplied to the feed water passing through the economizer. A
pump circulates the water at a rate 8 to 10 times the mass of steam evaporated. This
water is circulated through the evaporator tubes and the part of the vapour is separated in
the separator drum. The large quantity of water circulated (10 times that of evaporation)
prevents the tubes from being overheated.
The centrifugal pump delivers the water to the headers at a pressure of 2.5 bar above the
drum pressure. The distribution headers distribute the water through the nozzle into the
evaporator. The steam separated in the boiler is further passed through the super-heater.
Secure a uniform flow of feed water through each of the parallel boiler circuits a choke
is fitted entrance to each circuit. These boilers have been built to generate 45 to
50 tonnes of superheated steam at a pressure of 120 bars and temperature of 500°C.
Recently forced circulation has been introduced in large capacity power
Benson Boiler
The main difficulty experienced in the La Mont boiler is the formation and attachment of
bubbles on the inner surfaces of the heating tubes. The attached bubbles reduce the heat
flow and steam generation as it offers higher thermal resistance compared to water film :
(a) If the boiler pressure was raised to critical pressure (225 atm), the steam and
water would have the same density and therefore the danger of bubble
formation can be completely avoided.
(b) Natural circulation boilers require expansion joints but these are not
required for Benson as the pipes are welded. The erection of Benson boiler
is easier and quicker as all the parts are welded at site and workshop job of
tube expansion is altogether avoided.
(c) The transport of Benson boiler parts is easy as no drums are required and
majority of the parts are carried to the site without pre-assembly.
(d) The Benson boiler can be erected in a comparatively smaller floor area. The
space problem does not control the size of Benson boiler used.
(e) The furnace walls of the boiler can be more efficiently protected by using
small diameter and close pitched tubes.
(f) The superheater in the Benson boiler is an integral part of forced circulation
system, therefore no special starting arrangement for superheater is
required.
(g) The Benson boiler can be started very quickly because of welded joints.
(h) The Benson boiler can be operated most economically by varying the
temperature and pres- sure at partial loads and overloads. The desired
temperature can also be maintained constant at any pressure.
(i) Sudden fall of demand creates circulation problems due to bubble formation
in the natural circulation boiler which never occurs in Benson boiler. This
feature of insensitiveness to load fluctuations makes it more suitable for
grid power station as it has better adaptive capacity to meet sudden load
fluctuations.
(j) The blow-down losses of Benson boiler are hardly 4% of natural circulation
boilers of same capacity.
(k) Explosion hazards are not at all severe as it consists of only tubes of small
diameter and has very little storage capacity compared to drum type boiler.
During starting, the water is passed through the economiser, evaporator, superheater and
back to the feed line via starting valve.
During starting, first circulating pumps are started and then the burners are started to
avoid the overheating of evaporator and superheater tubes.
Performance of the boiler, like efficiency and evaporation ratio reduces with time, due to
poor combustion, heat transfer fouling and poor operation and maintenance.
Deterioration of fuel quality and water quality also leads to poor performance of boiler.
Efficiency testing helps us to find out how far the boiler efficiency drifts away from the
best efficiency. Any observed abnormal deviations could therefore be investigated to
pinpoint the problem area for necessary corrective action. Hence it is necessary to find
out the current level of efficiency for performance evaluation, which is a pre requisite for
energy conservation action in industry.
Purpose of the Performance Test
To find out the efficiency of the boiler
To find out the Evaporation ratio
The purpose of the performance test is to determine actual performance and
efficiency of the boiler and compare it with design values or norms. It is an
indicator for tracking day-to-day and season-to-season variations in boiler
efficiency and energy efficiency improvements
Performance Terms and Definitions
Scope
The procedure describes routine test for both oil fired and solid fuel fired boilers
using coal, agro residues etc. Only those observations and measurements need to
be made which can be readily applied and is necessary to attain the purpose of the
test.
Heat Input
Both heat input and heat output must be measured. The measurement of
heat input requires knowledge of the calorific value of the fuel and its flow
rate in terms of mass or volume, according to the nature of the fuel.
For Gaseous Fuel
A gas meter of the approved type can be used and the measured
volume should be corrected for temperature and pressure. A sample
of gas can be collected for calorific value determination, but it is
usually acceptable to use the calorific value declared by the gas
suppliers.
For Liquid Fuel
The meter, which is usually installed on the combustion appliance,
should be regarded as a rough indicator only and, for test purposes, a
meter calibrated for the particular oil is to be used and over a realistic
range of temperature should be installed. Even better is the use of an
accurately calibrated day tank.
For Solid Fuel
The accurate measurement of the flow of coal or other solid fuel is
very difficult. The measurement must be based on mass, which means
that bulky apparatus must be set up on the boiler-house floor.
Samples must be taken and bagged throughout the test, the bags
sealed and sent to a laboratory for analysis and calorific value
determination. In some more recent boiler houses, the problem has
been alleviated by mounting the hoppers over the boilers on
calibrated load cells, but these are yet uncommon.
Heat Output
There are several methods, which can be used for measuring heat output.
With steam boilers, an installed steam meter can be used to measure flow
rate, but this must be corrected for temperature and pressure. In earlier
years, this approach was not favoured due to the change in accuracy of
orifice or venturi meters with flow rate. It is now more viable with modern
flow meters of the variable-orifice or vortex-shedding types.
The alternative with small boilers is to measure feed water, and this can be
done by previously calibrating the feed tank and noting down the levels of
water during the beginning and end of the trial. Care should be taken not to
pump water during this period. Heat addition for conversion of feed water at
inlet temperature to steam, is considered for heat output.
In case of boilers with intermittent blowdown, blowdown should be avoided
during the trial period. In case of boilers with continuous blowdown, the
heat loss due to blowdown should be calculated and added to the heat in
steam.
Merits and Demerits of Direct Method
Merits
(a) Plant people can evaluate quickly the efficiency of boilers.
(b) Requires few parameters for computation.
(c) Needs few instruments for monitoring.
Demerits
(a) Does not give clues to the operator as to why efficiency of system is
lower.
(b) Does not calculate various losses accountable for various efficiency
levels.
(c) Evaporation ratio and efficiency may mislead, if the steam is highly
wet due to water carryover
Description
The efficiency can be measured easily by measuring all the losses occurring in the
boilers using the principles to be described. The disadvantages of the direct
method can be overcome by this method, which calculates the various heat losses
associated with boiler. The efficiency can be arrived at, by subtracting the heat
loss fractions from 100. An important advantage of this method is that the errors
in measurement do not make significant change in efficiency.
Thus if boiler efficiency is 90%, an error of 1% in direct method will result in
significant change in efficiency, i.e. 90 0.9 = 89.1 to 90.9. In indirect method,
1% error in measurement of losses will result in
Efficiency = 100 – (10 0.1) = 90 0.1 = 89.9 to 90.1
The following losses are applicable to liquid, gas and solid fired boiler :
L1 – Loss due to dry flue gas (sensible heat)
L2 – Loss due to hydrogen in fuel (H2)
L3 – Loss due to moisture in fuel (H2O)
L4 – Loss due to moisture in air (H2O)
L5 – Loss due to carbon monoxide (CO)
L6 – Loss due to surface radiation, convection and other unaccounted*.
*Losses which are insignificant and are difficult to measure.
The following losses are applicable to solid fuel fired boiler in addition to above :
L7 – Unburnt losses in fly ash (Carbon)
L8 – Unburnt losses in bottom ash (Carbon)
Boiler Efficiency by indirect method = 100 – (L1 + L2 + L3 + L4 + L5 + L6 + L7 + L8)
Energy Balance
Having established the magnitude of all the losses mentioned above, a simple
energy balance would give the efficiency of the boiler. The efficiency is the
difference between the energy input to the boiler and the heat losses calculated.
STEAM TURBINES
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized
steam, and converts it into rotary motion. It has almost completely replaced the
reciprocating piston steam engine primarily because of its greater thermal efficiency and
higher power-to-weight ratio. Because the turbine generates rotary motion, it is
particularly suited to be used to drive an electrical generator – about 80% of all
electricity generation in the world is by use of steam turbines. The steam turbine is a
form of heat engine that derives much of its improvement in thermodynamic efficiency
through the use of multiple stages in the expansion of the steam, which results in a closer
approach to the ideal reversible process.
Types
Steam turbines are made in a variety of sizes ranging from small 0.75 kW units
(rare) used as mechanical drives for pumps, compressors and other shaft driven
equipment, to 1,500,000 kW turbines used to generate electricity. There are
several classifications for modern steam turbines.
Turbine Efficiency
To maximize turbine efficiency the steam is expanded, generating work, in a number of
stages. These stages are characterized by how the energy is extracted from them and are
known as either impulse or reaction turbines. Most steam turbines use a mixture of the
reaction and impulse designs : each stage behaves as either one or the other, but the
overall turbine uses both. Typically, higher pressure sections are impulse type and lower
pressure stages are reaction type.
Impulse Turbines
An impulse turbine has fixed nozzles that orient the steam flow into high speed jets.
These jets contain significant kinetic energy, which the rotor blades, shaped like buckets,
convert into shaft rotation as the steam jet changes direction. A pressure drop occurs
across only the stationary blades, with a net increase in steam velocity across the stage.
As the steam flows through the nozzle its pressure falls from inlet pressure to the exit Steam
Power Plant
pressure (atmospheric pressure, or more usually, the condenser vacuum). Due to this
higher ratio of expansion of steam in the nozzle the steam leaves the nozzle with a very
high velocity. The steam leaving the moving blades is a large portion of the maximum
velocity of the steam when leaving the nozzle. The loss of energy due to this higher exit
velocity is commonly called the “carry over velocity” or “leaving loss”.
Reaction Turbines
In the reaction turbine, the rotor blades themselves are arranged to form convergent
nozzles. This type of turbine makes use of the reaction force produced as the steam
accelerates through the nozzles formed by the rotor. Steam is directed onto the rotor by
the fixed vanes of the stator. It leaves the stator as a jet that fills the entire circumference
of the rotor. The steam then changes direction and increases its speed relative to the
speed of the blades. A pressure drop occurs across both the stator and the rotor, with
steam accelerating through the stator and decelerating through the rotor, with no net
change in steam velocity across the stage but with a decrease in both pressure and
temperature, reflecting the work performed in the driving of the rotor
Mechanical Efficiency
Mechanical Efficiency of a turbine is the ratio of the brake output to the
internal input. The Mechanical efficiency is an index of the external losses.
SUMMARY
Steam power plants are located at the water and coal available places. Steam is utilized
to run the turbines, in turn gives the power to generator and generator produces the
electricity, the electricity is utilized for lighting, running the industries, for lighting of
offices, schools, etc. Boiler is an important component of the power plants, it produces
the steam.
REFERENCES:
https://www.studentenergy.org/topics/power-plant
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-working-principle-of-a-steam-power-plant
https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Steam+Power+Plant