Thermal Power Plant Performance Analysis

This book presents reliability-based tools used to define performance of complex systems and introduces the basic concepts of reliability, maintainability and risk analysis aiming at their application as tools for power plant performance improvement.

Power Plant Performance discusses the different procedures and practices involved in the operation of power plants. The book is divided into four parts. Part I covers general considerations such as steam cycles; the sampling, analysis, and assessment of coal; and pumping – its related terms, the different types of pumps, and the determination of sizes and efficiency. Part II tackles the important measurements in power plants such as temperature, pressure, and gas and water flow. Part III deals with the operation of power plant components such as the boiler, turbine, and condensers. Part IV tackles other related topics such as steam turbine heat consumption tests; plant-operating parameters; and the costs of outages. The text is recommended for professionals involved in the development, maintenance, and operation of power plants, especially those who would like to be familiar with the basics.

Thermal power plants are significant process industries for engineering specialists. The power sector has been facing several crucial issues over the past few years. The primary challenge is to meet the increasing power demand in a sustainable and efficient manner. Practicing power plant engineers not only look after the maintenance and operations of the plant, but also look after a variety of activities like research and development, starting from power generation to the environmental evaluation of the power plants. This book discusses features, operational matters, advantages and limitations of power plants, as well as the benefits of renewable power generation. It also elucidates thermal performance evaluation, fuel combustion matters, performance monitoring and modeling, component fault diagnosis and prognosis, functional analysis, economics of plant operation and maintenance, and environmental facets. This book discusses numerous issues related to both coal fired and gas turbine power plants. It will be beneficial for undergraduate and research oriented students, and for engineers working in power plants.

Thermal Power Plants theme is a component of Encyclopedia of Energy Sciences, Engineering and Technology Resources in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty Encyclopedias. The Theme on Thermal Power Plants presents three main topics which are then expanded into multiple subtopics, each as a chapter. The first topic covers the basic theory including fossil fuel combustion, nuclear fission, thermal fluids and thermodynamic cycles. It then deals with those aspects important to the maintenance of high efficiency and good reliability such as exergy analysis, material characteristics and life extension. The second topic deals with the production of steam. Although this is only the heat receiving part of the steam cycle it is consistent with the general layout of the power plant where the fossil fuel fired boiler or nuclear fission reactor is a separate and distinct part with its own ancilliary equipment. Fossil boilers and nuclear reactors both produce steam but are so different that each is covered separately in its respective series of chapters. The third topic deals with the generation of power utilizing the steam produced in the boiler or reactor. Several chapters cover steam turbine design and operation. Since power must be produced to exactly match the demand, consideration is given to operational constraints and protective devices. Heat rejection in cooling towers is important where no large body of water exists and is addressed in one chapter. Gas turbines are used for peak power generation and, with steam turbines, for combined cycle plants so are dealt with in two chapters. Conversion of mechanical power from the turbine to electrical power for distribution to the consumer is an important aspect and is covered by the last chapter. These three volumes are aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College Students Educators, Professional Practitioners, Research Personnel and Policy Analysts, Managers, and Decision Makers, NGOs and GOs.

The analysis of the reliability and availability of power plants is frequently based on simple indexes that do not take into account the criticality of some failures used for availability analysis. This criticality should be evaluated based on concepts of reliability which consider the effect of a component failure on the performance of the entire plant. System reliability analysis tools provide a root-cause analysis leading to the improvement of the plant maintenance plan. Taking in view that the power plant performance can be evaluated not only based on thermodynamic related indexes, such as heat-rate, Thermal Power Plant Performance Analysis focuses on the presentation of reliability-based tools used to define performance of complex systems and introduces the basic concepts of reliability, maintainability and risk analysis aiming at their application as tools for power plant performance improvement, including: · selection of critical equipment and components, · definition of maintenance plans, mainly for auxiliary systems, and · execution of decision analysis based on risk concepts. The comprehensive presentation of each analysis allows future application of the methodology making Thermal Power Plant Performance Analysis a key resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students in mechanical and nuclear engineering.

Thermal power plants are one of the most important process industries for engineering professionals. Over the past decades, the power sector is facing a number of critical issues; however, the most fundamental challenge is meeting the growing power demand in sustainable and efficient ways. Practicing power plant engineers not only look after operation and maintenance of the plant, but, also look after range of activities including research and development, starting from power generation to environmental aspects of power plants. The book Thermal Power Plants - Advanced Applications introduces analysis of plant performance, energy efficiency, combustion, heat transfer, renewable power generation, catalytic reduction of dissolved oxygen and environmental aspects of combustion residues. This book addresses issues related to both coal fired and steam power plants. The book is suitable for both undergraduate and research higher degree students, and of course for practicing power plant engineers.

This book illustrates operation and maintenance practices/guidelines for economic generation and managing health of a thermal power generator beyond its regulatory life. The book provides knowledge for professionals managing power station operations, through its unique approach to chemical analysis of water, steam, oil etc. to identify malfunctioning/defects in equipment/systems much before the physical manifestation of the problem. The book also contains a detailed procedure for conducting performance evaluation tests on different equipment, and for analyzing test results for predicting maintenance requirements, which has lent a new dimension to power systems operation and maintenance practices. A number of real life case studies also enrich the book. This book will prove particularly useful to power systems operations professionals in the developing economies, and also to researchers and students involved in studying power systems operations and control.

Thermal Cycles of Heat Recovery Power Plants presents information about thermal power plant cycles suitable for waste heat recovery (WHR) in modern power plants. The author covers five thermal power cycles: organic Rankine cycle (ORC), organic flash cycle (OFC), Kalina cycle (KC), steam Rankine cycle (SRC) and steam flash cycle (SFC) with the working fluids of R123, R124, R134a, R245fa, R717 and R407C. The handbook helps the reader to understand the latest power plant technologies suitable for utilizing the waste heat generated by thermal industrial processes. Key Features: - Comprehensive modeling, simulation, analysis and optimization of 5 power cycle types with different working fluids - Clear information about the processes and solutions of thermal power cycles to augment the power generation with improved energy conversion. - Simple, reader friendly presentation - bibliographic references after each chapter for further reading This handbook is suitable for engineering students in degree courses and professionals in training programs who require resources on advanced thermal power plant operation and optimal waste heat recovery processes, respectively. It is also a handy reference for energy conversion efficiency in heat recovery power plants. The book is also of interest to any researchers interested in industrial applications of thermodynamic processes.