www.rejinpaul.

com
FATIMA MICHAEL COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
Senkottai Village, Madurai Sivagangai Main Roa, Madurai -625 020
An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Institution
REGULATION 2013

ME 6701 POWER PLANT ENGINEERING (R-2013) LTPC

30 0 3

OBJECTIVES:
Providing an overview of Power Plants and detailing the role of Mechanical Engineers in their
operation and maintenance.

UNIT I COAL BASED THERMAL POWER PLANTS 10

Rankine cycle - improvisations, Layout of modern coal power plant, Super Critical Boilers, FBC
Boilers, Turbines, Condensers, Steam & Heat rate, Subsystems of thermal power plants Fuel and
ash handling, Draught system, Feed water treatment. Binary Cycles and Cogeneration systems.

UNIT II DIESEL, GAS TURBINE AND COMBINED CYCLE POWER PLANTS 10

Otto, Diesel, Dual & Brayton Cycle - Analysis & Optimisation. Components of Diesel and Gas
Turbine power plants. Combined Cycle Power Plants. Integrated Gasifier based Combined Cycle
systems.

UNIT III NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS 7

Basics of Nuclear Engineering, Layout and subsystems of Nuclear Power Plants, Working of
Nuclear Reactors : Boiling Water Reactor (BWR), Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), CANada
Deuterium-Uranium reactor (CANDU), Breeder, Gas Cooled and Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors.
Safety measures for Nuclear Power plants.

UNIT IV POWER FROM RENEWABLE ENERGY 10

Hydro Electric Power Plants Classification, Typical Layout and associated components including
Turbines. Principle, Construction and working of Wind, Tidal, Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV),
SolarThermal, Geo Thermal, Biogas and Fuel Cell power systems.

UNIT V ENERGY, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES OF POWER PLANTS 8

Power tariff types, Load distribution parameters, load curve, Comparison of site selection
criteria,relative merits & demerits, Capital & Operating Cost of different power plants. Pollution
control technologies including Waste Disposal Options for Coal and Nuclear Power Plants.

TOTAL : 45 PERIODS
OUTCOMES:
Upon completion of this course, the students can able to understand different types of power
plant, and its functions and their flow lines and issues related to them.
Analyse and solve energy and economic related issues in power sectors.

TEXT BOOK:
1. Nag. P.K., "Power Plant Engineering", Third Edition, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Company
Ltd., 2008.

REFERENCES:
1. El-Wakil. M.M., "Power Plant Technology", Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Company Ltd.,
2010.
2. Black & Veatch, Springer, "Power Plant Engineering", 1996.
3. Thomas C. Elliott, Kao Chen and Robert C. Swanekamp, "Power Plant Engineering
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UNIT I - COAL BASED THERMAL POWER PLANTS

THERMAL POWER PLANT:

A thermal power station is a power plant in which the prime mover is steam driven.
Water is heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical
generator. After it passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and
recycled to where it was heated; this is known as a Rankine cycle. The greatest variation in the
design of thermal power stations is due to the different fuel sources. Some prefer to use the
term energy center because such facilities convert forms of heat energy into electricity. Some
thermal power plants also deliver heat energy for industrial purposes, for district heating, or for
desalination of water as well as delivering electrical power. A large proportion of CO2 is
produced by the worlds fossil fired thermal power plants; efforts to reduce these outputs are
various and widespread.

The four main circuits one would come across in any thermal power plant layout are

-Coal and Ash Circuit

-Air and Gas Circuit
- Feed Water and Steam Circuit
- Cooling Water Circuit

Coal and Ash Circuit

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Coal and Ash circuit in a thermal power plant layout mainly takes care of feeding the boiler with
coal from the storage for combustion. The ash that is generated during combustion is collected at
the back of the boiler and removed to the ash storage by scrap conveyors. The combustion in the
Coal and Ash circuit is controlled by regulating the speed and the quality of coal entering the
grate and the damper openings.
Air and Gas Circuit
Air from the atmosphere is directed into the furnace through the air preheated by the action of a
forced draught fan or induced draught fan. The dust from the air is removed before it enters the
combustion chamber of the thermal power plant layout. The exhaust gases from the combustion
heat the air, which goes through a heat exchanger and is finally let off into the environment.
Feed Water and Steam Circuit

The steam produced in the boiler is supplied to the turbines to generate power. The steam that
is expelled by the prime mover in the thermal power plant layout is then condensed in a
condenser for re-use in the boiler. The condensed water is forced through a pump into the feed
water heaters where it is heated using the steam from different points in the turbine. To make
up for the lost steam and water while passing through the various components of the thermal
power plant layout, feed water is supplied through external sources. Feed water is purified in a
purifying plant to reduce the dissolve salts that could scale the boiler tubes.
Cooling Water Circuit
The quantity of cooling water required to cool the steam in a thermal power plant layout is
significantly high and hence it is supplied from a natural water source like a lake or a river. After
passing through screens that remove particles that can plug the condenser tubes in a thermal
power plant layout, it is passed through the condenser where the steam is condensed. The water is
finally discharged back into the water source after cooling. Cooling water circuit can also be a
closed system where the cooled water is sent through cooling towers for re -use in the power
plant. The cooling water circulation in the condenser of a thermal power plant layout helps in
maintaining a low pressure in the condenser all throughout.
All these circuits are integrated to form a thermal power plant layout that generates electricity to
meet our needs.
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Rankine cycle - improvisations

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Super Critical Boilers

Supercritical steam generators (also known as Benson boilers) are frequently used
for the production of electric power. They operate at "supercritical pressure". In
contrast to a "subcritical boiler", a supercritical steam generator operates at such a high
pressure (over 3,200 psi/22.06 MPa or 220.6 bar) that actual boiling ceases to occur, and
the boiler has no water - steam separation. There is no generation of steam bubbles within
the water, because the pressure is above the "critical pressure" at which steam bubbles
can form. It passes below the critical point as it does work in the high pressure turbine
and enters the generator's condenser. This is more efficient, resulting in slightly less fuel
use. The term "boiler" should not be used for a supercritical pressure steam generator, as
no "boiling" actually occurs in this device.
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FLUIDIZED BED BOILERS:

The major portion of the coal available in India is of low quality, high ash content
and low calorific value. The traditional grate fuel firing systems have got limitations and
are techno-economically unviable to meet the challenges of future. Fluidized bed
combustion has emerged as a viable alternative and has significant advantages over
conventional firing system and offers multiple benefits compact boiler design, fuel
flexibility, higher combustion efficiency and reduced emission of noxious pollutants such
as SOx and NOx. The fuels burnt in these boilers include coal, washery rejects, rice husk,
bagasse & other agricultural wastes. The fluidized bed boilers have a wide capacity
range- 0.5 T/hr to over 100 T/hr.

Fuel and Ash handling Equipments

Coal needs to be stored at various stages of the preparation process, and
conveyed around the CPP facilities. Coal handling is part of the larger field of bulk
material handling, and is a complex and vital part of the CPP.
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Stockpiles
Stockpiles provide surge capacity to various parts of the CPP. ROM coal
is delivered with large variations in production rate of tones per hour (tph). A
ROM stockpile is used to allow the wash plant to be fed coal at lower, constant rate. A
simple stockpile is formed by machinery dumping coal into a pile, either from dump
trucks, pushed into heaps with bulldozers or from conveyor booms. More controlled
stockpiles are formed using stackers to form piles along the length of a conveyor, and

wider stockpiles reduce the land area required to store a set tonnage of coal. Larger coal
stockpiles have a reduced rate of heat lost, leading to a higher risk of spontaneous
combustion.
Stacking
Travelling, lugging boom stackers that straddle a feed conveyor are commo nly used
to create coal stockpiles.

Reclaiming
Tunnel conveyors can be fed by a continuous slot hopper or bunker beneath
the stockpile to reclaim material. Front-end loaders and bulldozers can be used to push
the coal into feeders. Sometimes front-end loaders are the only means of reclaiming
coal from the stockpile. This has a low up-front capital cost, but much higher operating
costs, measured in dollars per tonne handled. High-capacity stockpiles are commonly
reclaimed using bucket-wheel reclaimers. These can achieve very high rates

Ash Handling:
Ash Handling Systems is the none / un combusted portion or residue, after taking
combustion of any Solid fuel is usually coal. And any coal contains some non combustible
portion which is called ash. Content of that coal.
There are different types of ashes.
. Bottom ash
fly ash

Bottom ash is the residue which remains in the solid form at the bottom and fly ash is the
light particle which goes out along with exhaust gases, and usually they are collected in
chimneys.
Taking their so formed ash away from the Plant / Boiler is called "ASH HANDLING
SYSTEM" This is done in either
Mechanical conveying
Pneumatic conveying
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Mechanical system requires conveyors, and Pneumatic system requires

compressed air to carry out the ash.

1. Ash Handling Systems

2. Bulk Material Handling Systems
3. Conveyors And Material Handling Equipments
Process Equipments And Storage Equipments
Portable Handling Equipments
4. Rotary Equipments

5. Pneumatic Conveying Systems

6. Magnetic Equipments
7. Vibratory Equipments
Spares
8. Overhead Bag Handling Systems

DRAUGHT SYSTEMS:

Most boilers now depend on mechanical draught equipment rather than

natural draught. This is because natural draught is subject to outside air
conditions and temperature of flue gases leaving the furnace, as well as the
chimney height. All these factors make proper draught hard to attain and
therefore make mechanical draught equipment much more economical.

There are three types of mechanical draught:

Induced draught:
This is obtained one of three ways, the first being the "stack effect" of a heated
chimney, in which the flue gas is less dense than the ambient air surrounding the
boiler. The denser column of ambient air forces combustion air into and
through the boiler. The second method is through use of a steam jet. The steam
jet oriented in the direction of flue gas flow induces flue gasses into the stack and
allows for a greater flue gas velocity increasing the overall draught in the
furnace. This method was common on steam driven locomotives which could not
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simply using an induced draught fan (ID fan) which remove s flue gases from the furnace
and forces the exhaust gas up the stack. Almost all induced draught furnaces operate with a
slightly negative pressure.

Forced draught: Draught is obtained by forcing air into the furnace by means of a fan (FD
fan) and ductwork. Air is often passed through an air heater; which, as the name suggests,
heats the air going into the furnace in order to increase the overall efficiency of the boiler.
Dampers are used to control the quantity of air admitted to the furnace. Forced draught
furnaces usually have a positive pressure.

Balanced draught: Balanced draught is obtained through use of both induced and forced
draught. This is more common with larger boilers where the flue gases have to travel a
long distance through many boiler passes. The induced draught fan works in conjunction
with the forced draught fan allowing the furnace pressure to be maintained slightly below
atmospheric.
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SURFACE CONDENSOR:

Surface condenser is the commonly used term for a water-cooled shell and tube
heat exchanger installed on the exhaust steam from a steam turbine in thermal
power stations These condensers are heat exchangers which convert steam from its
gaseous to its liquid state at a pressure below atmospheric pressure. Where cooling
water is in short supply, an air-cooled condenser is often used. An air-cooled
condenser is however significantly more expensive and cannot achieve as low a
steam turbine exhaust pressure as a water cooled surface condenser.

Surface condensers are also used in applications and industries other than the
condensing of steam turbine exhaust in power plants.

In thermal power plants, the primary purpose of a surface condenser is to condense

the exhaust steam from a steam turbine to obtain maximum efficiency and also to
convert the turbine exhaust steam into pure water (referred to as steam condensate)
so that it may be reused in the steam generator or boiler as boiler feed water.

STEAM TURBINE

The steam turbine itself is a device to convert the heat in steam to mechanical
power. The difference between the heat of steam per unit weight at the inlet to the
turbine and the heat of steam per unit weight at the outlet to the turbine represents
the heat which is converted to mechanical power. Therefore, the more the
conversion of heat per pound or kilogram of steam to mechanical power in the
turbine, the better is its efficiency. By condensing the exhaust steam of a turbine at
a pressure below atmospheric pressure, the steam pressure drop between the inlet
and exhaust of the turbine is increased, which increases the amount of heat
available for conversion to mechanical power. Most of the heat liberated due to
condensation of the exhaust steam is carried away by the cooling medium (water or
air) used by the surface condenser
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WWW.VIDY UNIT II DIESEL, GAS TURBINE AND COMBINED CYCLE POWER PLANTS

DIESEL POWER PLANT:

Figure shows the arrangements of the engine and its auxiliaries in a diesel
power plant. The major components of the plant are:

a) Engine

Engine is the heart of a diesel power plant. Engine is directly connected through a
gear box to the generator. Generally two-stroke engines are used for power
generation. Now a days, advanced super & turbo charged high speed engines are
available for power production.

b) Air supply system

Air inlet is arranged outside the engine room. Air from the atmosphere is filtered by
air filter and conveyed to the inlet manifold of engine. In large plants
supercharger/turbocharger is used for increasing the pressure of input air which
increases the power output
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c) Exhaust System

This includes the silencers and connecting ducts. The heat content of the exhaust gas is utilized
in a turbine in a turbocharger to compress the air input to the engine.

d) Fuel System

Fuel is stored in a tank from where it flows to the fuel pump through a filter.
Fuel is injected to the engine as per the load requirement.

e) Cooling system

This system includes water circulating pumps, cooling towers, water filter etc.
Cooling water is circulated through the engine block to keep the temperature of the
engine in the safe range.

f) Lubricating system

Lubrication system includes the air pumps, oil tanks, filters, coolers and pipe lines. Lubricant
is given to reduce friction of moving parts and reduce the wear and tear of the engine parts.

g) Starting System

There are three commonly used starting systems, they are;

1) A petrol driven auxiliary engine,

2) Use of electric motors,

3)Use of compressed air from an air compressor at a pressure of 20 Kg/cm

h) Governing system

The function of a governing system is to maintain the speed of the engine

constant irrespective of load on the plant. This is done by varying fuel supply
to the engine according to load.

Advantages of diesel power plants

1. More efficient than thermal plant

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2. Design, Layout etc are simple and cheap

3. Part load efficiency is very high
4. It can be started quickly
5. Simple & easy maintenance
6. No problem with fuel & dust
handling 7. It can be located in the
heart of town 8. Less cooling water
required.

Disadvantages

1. There is a limitation for size of a diesel

engine 2. Life of plant is comparatively less
3. Noise pollution is very
high

GAS TURBINE POWER PLANT:

A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of internal

combustion engine. It has an upstream rotating compressor coupled to a
downstream turbine, and a combustion chamber in-between.

Energy is added to the gas stream in the combustor, where fuel is mixed with
air and ignited. In the high pressure environment of the combustor, combustion
of the fuel increases the temperature. The products of the combustion are
forced into the turbine section. There, the high velocity and volume of the
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gas flow is directed through a nozzle over the turbine's blades, spinning the
turbine which powers the compressor and, for some turbines, drives their
mechanical output. The energy given up to the turbine comes from the
reduction in the temperature and pressure of the exhaust gas.

Energy can be extracted in the form of shaft power, compressed air or thrust or
any combination of these and used to power aircraft, trains, ships, generators,
or even tanks.

Theory of operation

Gasses passing through an ideal a gas turbine undergo three

thermodynamic processes. These are isentropic compression, isobaric
(constant pressure) combustion and isentropic expansion. Together these make
up the Brayton cycle.

In a practical gas turbine, gasses are first accelerated in either a centrifugal or

radial compressor. These gasses are then slowed using a diverging nozzle
known as a diffuser, these process increase the pressure and temperature of the
flow. In an ideal system this is isentropic. However, in practice energy is lost to
heat, due to friction and turbulence. Gasses then pass from the diffuser to a
combustion chamber, or similar device, where heat is added. In an ideal
system this occurs at constant pressure (isobaric heat addition). As there is
no change in pressure the specific values,
accompanied by a slight loss in pressure, due to friction. Finally, this larger
volume of gasses is expanded and accelerated by nozzle guide vanes
before energy is extracted by a turbine. In an ideal system these are gasses
expanded isentropicly and leave the turbine at their original pressure. In
practice this process is not isentropic as energy is once again lost to friction
and turbulence.

If the device has been designed to power to a shaft as with an industrial

generator or a turboprop, the exit pressure will be as close to the entry pressure
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as possible. In practice it is necessary that some pressure remains at the

outlet in order to fully expel the exhaust gasses. In the case of a jet engine
only enough pressure and energy is extracted from the flow to drive the
compressor and other components. The remaining high pressure gasses are
accelerated to provide a jet that can, for example, be used to propel an
aircraft.
COMBINED POWER CYCLES:

In electric power generation a combined cycle is an assembly of heat engines

that work in tandem off the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy,
which in turn usually drives electrical generators. The principle is that the exhaust
of one heat engine is used as the heat source for another, thus extracting more useful
energy from the heat, increasing the system's overall efficiency. This works because
heat engines are only able to use a portion of the energy their fuel generates (usually
less than 50%).

The remaining heat (e.g., hot exhaust fumes) from combustion is generally
wasted. Combining two or more thermodynamic cycles results in improved overall
efficiency, reducing fuel costs. In stationary power plants, a successful, common
combination is the Brayton cycle (in the form of a turbine burning natural gas or
synthesis gas from coal) and the Rankine cycle (in the form of a steam power
plant). Multiple stage turbine or steam cylinders are also common.

LOAD DURATION CURVE:

A load duration curve (LDC) is used in electric power generation to

illustrate the relationship between generating capacity requirements and capacity
utilization.

A LDC is similar to a load curve but the demand data is ordered in

descending order of magnitude, rather than chronologically. The LDC curve
shows the capacity utilization requirements for each increment of load. The height of
each slice is a measure of capacity, and the width of each slice is a measure of the
utilization rate or capacity factor. The product of the two is a measure of electrical
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energy (e.g. kilowatthours).

Integrated Gasifier based Combined Cycle systems.(IGCC)

Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) is emerging as a best available

technology to utilize low quality or contaminated energy resources, coal or oil.
It can meet emission limits not achievable by other conventional or advanced
competing technologies.
In particular IGCC offers refiners the possibility of reducing to zero the production of
residual fuel oil, an increasingly undesired product, while at the same time, co-
producing electricity, hydrogen and steam.
It also drastically cuts SO2 emissions.

IGCC is a combination of two leading technologies.

The first technology is called coal gasification, which uses coal to create a clean-
burning gas (syngas).
The second technology is called combined-cycle, which is the most efficient method of
producing electricity commercially available today.
Coal Gasification:
The gasification portion of the IGCC plant produces a clean coal gas (syngas) which
fuels the combustion turbine.
Coal is combined with oxygen in the gasifier to produce the gaseous fuel, mainly
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hydrogen and carbon monoxide.

The gas is then cleaned by a gas cleanup process.
After cleaning, the coal gas is used in the combustion turbine to produce electricity.
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UNIT III NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS

NUCLEAR ENERGY:

Nuclear Energy is the use of sustained Nuclear fission to generate heat and do useful
work. Nuclear Electric Plants, Nuclear Ships and Submarines use controlled
nuclear energy to heat water and produce steam, while in space, nuclear energy decays
naturally in a radioisotope thermoelectric generator. Scientists are experimenting
with fusion energy for future generation, but these experiments do not currently
generate useful energy.

Nuclear power provides about 6% of the world's energy and 1314% of the world's
electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of
nuclear generated electricity. Also, more than 150 naval vessels using nuclear
propulsion have been built.

Nuclear power is controversial and there is an ongoing debate about the use of nuclear
energy. Proponents, such as the World Nuclear Association and IAEA, contend that
nuclear power is a sustainable energy source that reduces carbon emissions.
Opponents, such as Greenpeace International and NIRS, believe that nuclear power
poses many threats to people and the environment.
Some serious nuclear and radiation accidents have occurred. Nuclear power
plant accidents include the Chernobyl disaster (1986), Fukushima I nuclear
accidents (2011), and the Three Mile Island accident (1979).[10] Nuclear-powered
submarine mishaps include the K-19 reactor accident (1961), the K-27 reactor accident
(1968), and the K-431 reactor accident (1985). International research is continuing
into safety improvements such as passively safe plants, and the possible future use
of nuclear fusion.
NUCLEAR FUSION:

In nuclear physics, nuclear chemistry and astrophysics nuclear fusion is the

process by which two or more atomic nuclei join together, or "fuse", to form a single
heavier nucleus. This is usually accompanied by the release or absorption of large
quantities of energy. Large-scale thermonuclear fusion processes, involving many
nuclei fusing at once, must occur in matter at very high densities and
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temperatures.
The fusion of two nuclei with lower masses than iron (which, along with nickel,
has the largest binding energy per nucleon) generally releases energy while the fusion
of nuclei heavier than iron absorbs energy. The opposite is true for the reverse
process, nuclear fission.
In the simplest case of hydrogen fusion, two protons must be brought close enough
for the weak nuclear force to convert either of the identical protons into a neutron,
thus forming the hydrogen isotope deuterium. In more complex cases of heavy ion
fusion involving two or more nucleons, the reaction mechanism is different, but
the same result occurs smaller nuclei are combined into larger nuclei.
Nuclear fusion occurs naturally in all active stars. Synthetic fusion as a
result of human actions has also been achieved, although this has not yet been
completely controlled as a source of nuclear power (see: fusion power). In the
laboratory, successful nuclear physics experiments have been carried out t hat
involve the fusion of many different varieties of nuclei, but the energy output has
been negligible in these studies. In fact, the amount of energy put into the process has
always exceeded the energy output.
Uncontrolled nuclear fusion has been carried out many times in
nuclear weapons testing, which results in a deliberate explosion. These
explosions have always used the heavy isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium (H-
2) and tritium (H-3), and never the much more common isotope of hydrogen
(H-1), sometimes called "protium".

Building upon the nuclear transmutation experiments by Ernest

Rutherford, carried out several years earlier, the fusion of the light nuclei
(hydrogen isotopes) was first accomplished by Mark Oliphant in 1932. Then,
the steps of the main cycle of nuclear fusion in stars were first worked out
by Hans Bethe throughout the remainder of that decade.

Research into fusion for military purposes began in the early 1940s as
part of the Manhattan Project, but this was not accomplished until 1951
(see the Greenhouse Item nuclear test), and nuclear fusion on a large scale in
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an explosion was first carried out on November 1, 1952, in the Ivy Mike
hydrogen bomb test. Research into developing controlled thermonuclear
fusion for civil purposes also began in the 1950s, and it continues to this day.

TYPES OF REACTORS:

Pressurized water reactors (PWRs) constitute a majority of all western nuclear

power plants and are one of two types of light water reactor (LWR), the other
type being boiling water reactors (BWRs). In a PWR the primary coolant
(water) is pumped under high pressure to the reactor core where it is heated
by the energy generated by the fission of atoms. The heated water then flows to
a steam generator where it transfers its thermal energy to a secondary
system where steam is generated and flows to turbines which, in turn,
spins an electric generator. In contrast to a boiling water reactor, pressure in
the primary coolant loop prevents the water from boiling within the reactor.
All LWRs use ordinary light water as both coolant and neutron moderator.
PWRs were originally designed to serve as nuclear propulsion for
nuclear submarines and were used in the original design of the second
commercial power plant at Shippingport Atomic Power Station.

PWRs currently operating in the United States are considered

Generation II reactors. Russia's VVER reactors are similar to U.S. PWRs.
France operates many PWRs to generate the bulk of their electricity

Several hundred PWRs are used for marine propulsion in aircraft carriers,
nuclear submarines and ice breakers. In the US, they were originally designed
at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for use as a nuclear submarine power
plant. Follow-on work was conducted by Westinghouse Bettis Atomic
Power Laboratory.[1] The first commercial nuclear power plant at
Shippingport Atomic Power Station was originally designed as a pressurized
water reactor, on insistence from Admiral Hyman G. Rickover that a
viable commercial plant would include none of the "crazy thermodynamic
cycles that everyone else wants to build."
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The US Army Nuclear Power Program operated pressurized water reactors

from 1954 to 1974.

Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station initially operated two

pressurized water reactor plants, TMI-1 and TMI-2. The partial meltdown of
TMI-2 in 1979 essentially ended the growth in new construction nuclear
power plants in the United States.

Pictorial explanation of power transfer in a pressurized water reactor. Primary coolant

is in orange and the secondary coolant (steam and later feedwater) is in blue.

Nuclear fuel in the reactor vessel is engaged in a fission chain reaction, which
produces heat, heating the water in the primary coolant loop by thermal conduction
through the fuel cladding. The hot primary coolant is pumped into a heat exchanger
called the steam generator, where it flows through hundreds or thousands of tubes
(usually 3/4 inch in diameter). Heat is transferred through the walls of these tubes
to the lower pressure secondary coolant located on the sheet side of the exchanger
where it evaporates to pressurized steam. The transfer of heat is accomplished
without mixing the two fluids, which is desirable since the primary coolant might
become radioactive. Some common steam generator arrangements are u-tubes or
single pass heat exchangers. In a nuclear power station, the pressurized steam is fed
through a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator connected to the
electric grid for distribution. After passing through the turbine the secondary coolant
(water-steam mixture) is cooled down and condensed in a condenser. The condenser
converts the steam to a liquid so that it can be pumped back into the steam generator,
and maintains a vacuum at the turbine outlet so that the pressure drop across the
turbine, and hence the energy extracted from the steam, is maximized. Before
being fed into the steam generator, the condensed steam

(referred to as feedwater) is sometimes preheated in order to minimize

thermal shock.

The steam generated has other uses besides power generation. In nuclear ships
and submarines, the steam is fed through a steam turbine connected to a set
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of speed reduction gears to a shaft used for propulsion. Direct

mechanical action by expansion of the steam can be used for a steam-powered
aircraft catapult or similar applications. District heating by the steam is used
in some countries and direct heating is applied to internal plant applications.

Two things are characteristic for the pressurized water reactor (PWR)
when compared with other reactor types: coolant loop separation from the
steam system and pressure inside the primary coolant loop. In a PWR, there
are two separate coolant loops (primary and secondary), which
are both filled with demineralized/deionized water. A
boiling water reactor, by contrast, has only one coolant loop, while more
exotic designs such as breeder reactors use substances other than water for
coolant and moderator (e.g. sodium in its liquid state as coolant or graphite as a
moderator). The pressure in the primary coolant loop is typically 1516
megapascals (150160 bar), which is notably higher than in other nuclear
reactors, and nearly twice that of a boiling water reactor (BWR). As an
effect of this, only localized boiling occurs and steam will recondense
promptly in the bulk fluid. By contrast, in a boiling water reactor the primary
coolant is designed to boil.
PWR Reactor Vessel

Coolant

Light water is used as the primary coolant in a PWR. It enters the bottom of
the reactor core at about 275 C (530 F) and is heated as it flows upwards
through the reactor core to a temperature of about 315 C (600 F). The
water remains liquid despite the high temperature due to the high pressure in
the primary coolant loop, usually around 155 bar (15.5 MPa 153 atm, 2,250
psig). In water, the critical point occurs at around 647 K (374 C or 705 F)
and 22.064 MPa (3200 PSIA or 218 atm).
Pressure in the primary circuit is maintained by a pressurizer, a separate
vessel that is connected to the primary circuit and partially filled with water which is
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heated to the saturation temperature (boiling point) for the desired pressure by
submerged electrical heaters. To achieve a pressure of 155 bar, the press urizer
temperature is maintained at 345 C, which gives a subcooling margin (the difference
between the pressurizer temperature and the highest temperature in the reactor core)
of 30 C. Thermal transients in the reactor coolant system result in large
swings in pressurizer liquid volume, total pressurizer volume is designed around
absorbing these transients without uncovering the heaters or emptying the
pressurizer. Pressure transients in the primary coolant system manifest as temperature
transients in the pressurizer and are controlled through the use of automatic heaters and
water spray, which raise and lower pressurizer temperature, respectively.

To achieve maximum heat transfer, the primary circuit temperature, pressure

and flow rate are arranged such that subcooled nucleate boiling takes place
as the coolant passes over the nuclear fuel rods.

The coolant is pumped around the primary circuit by powerful pumps, which
can consume up to 6 MW each. After picking up heat as it passes through the
reactor core, the primary coolant transfers heat in a steam generator to water
in a lower pressure secondary circuit, evaporating the secondary coolant to
saturated steam in most designs 6.2 MPa (60 atm, 900 psia), 275 C (530
F) for use in the steam turbine. The cooled primary coolant is then
returned to the reactor vessel to be heated again.

Moderator

Pressurized water reactors, like all thermal reactor designs, require the fast
fission neutrons to be slowed down (a process called moderation or
thermalization) in order to interact with the nuclear fuel and sustain the chain
reaction. In PWRs the coolant water is used as a moderator by letting the
neutrons undergo multiple collisions with light hydrogen atoms in the water,
losing speed in the process.

Advantages:
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PWR reactors are very stable due to their tendency to produce less power
as temperatures increase; this makes the reactor easier to operate from a
stability standpoint as long as the post shutdown period of 1 to 3 years has pumped
cooling.

PWR turbine cycle loop is separate from the primary loop, so the water in the
secondary loop is not contaminated by radioactive materials.
PWRs can passively scram the reactor in the event that offsite power is lost to
immediately stop the primary nuclear reaction. The control rods are held
by electromagnets and fall by gravity when current is lost; full insertion safely shuts
down the primary nuclear reaction. However, nuclear reactions of the fission products
continue to generate decay heat at initially roughly 7% of full power level, which
requires 1 to 3 years of water pumped cooling. If cooling fails during this post-
shutdown period, the reactor can still overheat and meltdown. Upon loss of coolant
the decay heat can raise the rods above 2200 degrees Celsius, where upon the hot
Zirconium alloy metal used for casing the nuclear fuel rods spontaneously explodes in
contact with the cooling water or steam, which leads to the separation of water in to
its constituent elements (hydrogen and oxygen). In this event there is a high danger
of hydrogen explosions, threatening structural damage and/or the exposure of
highly radioactive stored fuel rods in the vicinity outside the plant in pools
(approximately 15 tons of fuel is replenished each year to maintain normal PWR
operation).

Disadvantages

The coolant water must be highly pressurized to remain liquid at high temperatures.
This requires high strength piping and a heavy pressure vessel and hence
increases construction costs. The higher pressure can increase the consequences of
a loss-of-coolant accident.[14] The reactor pressure vessel is manufactured from
ductile steel but, as the plant is operated, neutron flux from the reactor causes this
steel to become less ductile. Eventually the ductility of the steel will reach limits
determined by the applicable boiler and pressure vessel standards, and the pressure
vessel must be repaired or replaced. This might not be practical or economic, and so
determines the life of the plant.
Additional high pressure components such as reactor coolant pumps, pre ssurizer,
steam generators, etc. are also needed. This also increases the capital cost and complexity of a
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PWR power plant.

The high temperature water coolant with boric acid dissolved in it is corrosive to carbon steel
(but not stainless steel); this can cause radioactive corrosion products to circulate in the
primary coolant loop. This not only limits the lifetime of the reactor, but the systems that
filter out the corrosion products and adjust the boric acid concentration add
significantly to the overall cost of the reactor and to radiation exposure. Occasionally, this has
resulted in severe corrosion to control rod drive mechanisms when the boric acid solution
leaked through the seal between the mechanism itself and the primary system.

Natural uranium is only 0.7% uranium-235, the isotope necessary for thermal reactors. This
makes it necessary to enrich the uranium fuel, which increases the costs of fuel
production. If heavy water is used, it is possible to operate the reactor with natural
uranium, but the production of heavy water requires large amounts of energy and is hence
expensive.

Because water acts as a neutron moderator, it is not possible to build a fast neutron
reactor with a PWR design. A reduced moderation water reactor may however achieve a
breeding ratio greater than unity, though this reactor design has disadvantages of its own.

NUCLEAR WASTE AND ITS DISPOSAL:

Radioactive waste is a waste product containing radioactive material. It is usually the

product of a nuclear process such as nuclear fission, though industries not
directly connected to the nuclear power industry may also produce radioactive
waste.
Radioactivity diminishes over time, so in principle the waste needs to be isolated for
a period of time until it no longer poses a hazard. This can mean hours to years for
some common medical or industrial radioactive wastes, or thousands of years for
high-level wastes from nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons reprocessing.

The majority of radioactive waste is "low-level waste", meaning it has low levels of
radioactivity per mass or volume.
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The main approaches to managing radioactive waste to date have been segregation
and storage for short-lived wastes, near-surface disposal for low and some
intermediate level wastes, and deep burial or transmutation for the long-lived, high-
level wastes.
A summary of the amounts of radioactive wastes and management approaches for
most developed countries are presented and reviewed periodically as part of the
IAEA Joint Convention on Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of
Radioactive Waste Management.

Types of radioactive waste

Although not significantly radioactive, uranium mill tailings are waste. They are
byproduct material from the rough processing of uranium-bearing ore. They are
sometimes referred to as 11(e)2 wastes, from the section of the U.S. Atomic Energy
Act that defines them. Uranium mill tailings typically also contain chemically
hazardous heavy metals such as lead and arsenic. Vast mounds of uranium mill
tailings are left at many old mining sites, especially in Colorado, New Mexico, and
Utah.

Low level waste (LLW) is generated from hospitals and industry, as well as the
nuclear fuel cycle. It comprises paper, rags, tools, clothing, filters, etc., which
contain small amounts of mostly short- lived radioactivity. Commonly, LLW is
designated as such as a precautionary measure if it originated from any region of an
'Active Area', which frequently includes offices with only a remote possibility of
being contaminated with radioactive materials. Such LLW typically exhibits no
higher radioactivity than one would expect from the same material disposed of in a
non-active area, such as a normal office block. Some high activity LLW requires
shielding during handling and transport but most LLW is suitable for shallow land
burial. To reduce its volume, it is often compacted or incinerated before disposal.
Low level waste is divided into four classes, class A, B, C and GTCC, which means
"Greater Than Class C".
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Intermediate level waste (ILW) contains higher amounts of radioactivity and in

some cases requires shielding. ILW includes resins, chemical sludge and metal
reactor fuel cladding, as well as contaminated materials from
reactor decommissioning. It may be solidified in concrete or bitumen for disposal.
As a general rule, short-lived waste (mainly non-fuel materials from reactors) is
buried in shallow repositories, while long-lived waste (from fuel and fuel-
reprocessing) is deposited in deep underground facilities. U.S. regulations do not
define this category of waste; the term is used in Europe and elsewhere.

Spent Fuel Flasks are transported by railway in the United Kingdom. Each flask is
constructed of 14 in (360 mm) thick solid steel and weighs in excess of 50 tons

High level waste (HLW) is produced by nuclear reactors. It contains fission

products and transuranic elements generated in the reactor core. It is highly
radioactive and often thermally hot. HLW accounts for over 95% of the total
radioactivity produced in the process of nuclear electricity generation. The amount of
HLW worldwide is currently increasing by about 12,000 metric tons every year, which
is the equivalent to about 100 double-decker buses or a two-story structure
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FIG : PRESSURIZED WATER REACTOR (PWR)

FIG : CANDU REACTOR

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Safety measures for Nuclear Power plants:

Nuclear power plants in Japan have multiple safety measures, which are designed on the
assumption that they must ensure the safety of the neighboring communities so that there will be no
adverse impacts on their health.

Nuclear power plants are designed to prevent abnormal incidents from occurring. Even if abnormal
incidents occur, nuclear plants are also designed to prevent the potential spreading of abnormal incidents
and leakage of radioactive materials around plants, which may cause adverse impacts on the surrounding
environment.

Japanese power plants utilize redundant safety measures to keep residential communities around them
safe at all times. Measures to be put into action in order to ensure safety during unusual events can be
summarized in the following three points:

1. To shut down operating reactors

2. To cool down reactors so as to remove heat from nuclear fuel

3. To contain radioactive materials

Nuclear operators monitor environmental radiation around their facility and radioactivity in
environmental samples in order to confi rm that there is no harmful effect on the surrounding
environment.

Local governments as well as utilities independently measure radiation dose in the air by
radiation monitoring systems around nuclear power plants. In addition, they periodically collect
seawater, soil and agricultural as well as sea products to measure and analyze them for
radioactive material content and to ensure that power plants have no adverse impact on the
surrounding environment.

Recognizing the severity of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station where
all power sources for units 1, 2, 3 and 4 failed due to the tsunami, the electric power companies
in Japan have committed to reinforcing safety assurance measures at their nuclear power plants
focusing on measures against tsunami.
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Determined to avoid a repeat of this accident, the electric power companies have been taking
both tangible and intangible measures since immediately after the accident, starting with
emergency safety measures including the installation of additional emergency power source
vehicles and fire engines, as well as upgrading procedure manuals and conducting drills.

The electric power companies have taken diverse measures to ensure that these measures are
effective, such as reinforcing the on-site communication system and preparing high-dose
resistant protective clothing to allow necessary actions to be taken even in case of a severe
accident. The companies are also taking medium- to long-term measures which include installing
additional permanent emergency power supply units on high ground, constructing coastal levees,
modifying watertight facilities, and large-capacity temporary seawater pumps, in case of a station
blackout and loss of sea water cooling systems, and to increase their safety margin.

To enable these efforts to be constantly and objectively evaluated, the Japan Nuclear Safety
Institute (JANSI), evaluating the safety improvement activities of electric power companies and
giving them technical advice, and the Nuclear Risk Research Center (NRRC), using Probabilistic
Risk Assessment (PRA) and proposing solutions based on RD, were established. The electric
power companies take to heart the evaluations and recommendations and are striving to achieve
the highest safety level in the world.

H
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UNIT IV POWER FROM RENEWABLE ENERGY

HYDRO-ELECTRIC POWER PLANT:

Hydroelectric power (often called hydropower) is considered a renewable energy source. A

renewable energy source is one that is not depleted (used up) in the production of energy.
Through hydropower, the energy in falling water is converted into electricity without using up
the water.

Hydropower energy is ultimately derived from the sun, which drives the water cycle. In the water cycle,
rivers are recharged in a continuous cycle. Because of the force of gravity, water flows from high points
to low points. There is kinetic energy embodied in the flow of water.
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Flowing water is directed at a turbine (remember turbines are just advanced waterwheels). The flowing
water causes the turbine to rotate, converting the waters kinetic energy into mechanical energy

Construction and working of Wind:

All renewable energy (except tidal and geothermal power), ultimately comes from the sun

The earth receives 1.74 x 1017 watts of power (per hour) from the sun

About one or 2 percent of this energy is converted to wind energy (which is about 50-100 times
more than the energy converted to biomass by all plants on earth

Differential heating of the earths surface and atmosphere induces vertical and horizontal

air currents that are affected by the earths rotation and contours of the land WIND.

~ e.g.: Land Sea Breeze Cycle

Winds are influenced by the ground surface at altitudes up to 100 meters.

Wind is slowed by the surface roughness and obstacles.

When dealing with wind energy, we are concerned with surface winds.

A wind turbine obtains its power input by converting the force of the wind into a torque (turning
force) acting on the rotor blades.
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The amount of energy which the wind transfers to the rotor depends on the density of the air, the
rotor area, and the wind speed.

The kinetic energy of a moving body is proportional to its mass (or weight). The kinetic energy
in the wind thus depends on the density of the air, i.e. its mass per unit of volume.
In other words, the "heavier" the air, the more energy is received by the turbine.at 15 Celsius air
weighs about 1.225 kg per cubic meter, but the density decreases slightly with increasing
humidity.

LARGE TURBINES:

Able to deliver electricity at lower cost than smaller turbines, because

foundation costs, planning costs, etc. are independent of size.
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Well-suited for offshore wind plants.

In areas where it is difficult to find sites, one large turbine on a tall tower uses the
wind extremely efficiently

SMALL TURBINES:

Local electrical grids may not be able to handle the large electrical output
from a large turbine, so smaller turbines may be more suitable.

High costs for foundations for large turbines may not be economical in
some areas.

Landscape considerations

Wind power generators convert wind energy (mechanical energy) to

electrical energy.

The generator is attached at one end to the wind turbine, which provides the
mechanical energy.

At the other end, the generator is connected to the electrical grid.

The generator needs to have a cooling system to make sure there is no

overheating.
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TIDEL POWER PLANT:

Barrage not need, limiting total costs

Two types- vertical axis and horizontal axis

Davis Hydro turbine.. Successfully tested in St. Lawrence Seaway

Two types- vertical axis and horizontal axis

Davis Hydro turbine.. Successfully tested in St. Lawrence SeawayBarrage

not need, limiting total costs

Presently costly

Expensive to build and maintain

A 1085MW facility could cost as much as 1.2 billion dollars to

construct and run

Connection to the grid

Technology is not fully developed

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Barrage style only produces energy for about 10 hours out of the day

Barrage style has environmental affects

Such as fish and plant migration

Silt deposits

Local tides change- affects still under study

SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM (SPV)

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SOLAR THERMAL POWER PLANT

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GEO-THERMAL POWER PLANT:

Geothermal energy is present within the land and the sea

Internal heat is from initial world accretion from gathering dust and

compression of the earth and from radioactive decay

This energy can be useful in heating and cooling of air and water, but is somewhat costly to use

Active geyser areas are limited in area, but provide much hotter water or steam

The energy is inexhaustible in principle, yet local extraction will cool the immediate area in a few
years

Extraction of energy from deep (~20,000 ft) hot rock is not economic yet

HDR Hot, dry rock: has no natural steam but may receive injected water to emit steam

Head the height of water the hydraulic height of the water (1 psi = 2.31 ft H2O)

For artesian wells, the height that the water will stand above ground level in a pipe

Heat Quality the temperature of the heat

Ground Source Heat Pump extracts from ground or rejects heat to ground to/from and air
conditioning heat pump

Active geysers supply steam or hot water for heating in The Geysers, California (824 MWe)

Hot, dry rock (HDR) offers potential for injecting water and using the resultant steam to spin a
turbine

At a lower thermal level, an air conditioner can extract heat from the ground for winter heating or
insert energy into the ground to gai

Geothermal energy is limited in extent as extracting the heat usually exceeds the replenishment
rate
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Hot, dry rock (HDR) is widespread and offers new resources in areas where geyser activity is
unknown

Direct low-temperature heat transfer for home systems is practical as long as low maintenance is
designed into the system

Sources of high temperature water or steam are limited and the cost of extraction, maintenance,
and operation will remain high in comparison with other sources of energy

Geothermal energy likely to remain at 1% of world energy [Kruger, 1973]

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BIO -GAS PLANT:

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FUEL CELL POWER SYSTEM

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MICRO FUEL CELL:

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UNIT V ENERGY, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES OF POWER PLANTS

POWER TARIFF TYPES

In economic terms, electricity (both power and energy) is a commodity capable

of being bought, sold and traded. An electricity market is a system for effecting
purchases, through bids to buy; sales, through offers to sell; and short-term trades,
generally in the form of financial or obligation swaps. Bids and offers use supply
and demand principles to set the price. Long-term trades are contracts similar to
power purchase agreements and generally considered private bi-lateral transactions
between counterparties.
Wholesale transactions (bids and offers) in electricity are typically cleared
and settled by the market operator or a special-purpose independent entity
charged exclusively with that function. Market operators do not clear trades but
often require knowledge of the trade in order to maintain generation and load
ba lance. The commodities within an electric market generally consist of two types:
Power and Energy. Power is the metered net electrical transfer rate at any given
moment and is measured in Megawatts (MW). Energy is electricity that flows
through a metered point for a given period and is measured in Megawatt Hours
(MWh).Markets for power related commodities are net generation output for a
number of intervals usually in increments of 5, 15 and 60 minutes. Markets for energy
related commodities required by, managed by (and paid for by) market operators to
ensure reliability, are considered Ancillary Services and include such names as
spinning reserve, non-spinning reserve, operating reserves, responsive reserve,
regulation up, regulation down, and installed capacity.
In addition, for most major operators, there are markets for transmission
congestion and electricity derivatives, such as electricity futures and options,
which are actively traded. These markets developed as a result of the restructuring

Load distribution parameters, load curve:

A graphical plot showing the variation in demand for energy of the consumers on a source
of supply with respect to time is known as the load curve. If this curve is plotted over a time
period of 24 hours, it is known as daily load curve . If its plotted for a week, month, or a year,
then its named as the weekly, monthly or yearly load curve respectively. The load duration
curve reflects the activity of a population quite accurately with respect to electrical power
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consumption over a given period of time. To understand the concept better its important that
we take the real life example of load distribution for an industrial load and a residential load,
and have a case study on them, to be able to appreciate its utility from the perspective of an
electrical engineer.
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COMPARISION OF SITE SELECTION:

Site selection for a desalination plant can be one of the most important decisions in planning a desalination
project. The decision affects both the project cost and potentially the project schedule. The increasing concern of
governments (to meet their multiple demands within limited budgets), lending institutions, and the general public
with locating acceptable sites for industrial plants and facilities is a worldwide trend. The sitting challenge affects
all industries: desalination plants are no exception. The current approach to site selection of any desalination
facility must take into account a multitude of non-technical factors in addition to engineering/economic factors. It
can no longer be assumed that sitting decisions based primarily on technical decisions, regardless of how
important, will always be acceptable to governments, regulatory .agencies, financing institutions, or the public.
It appears that a systematic approach to making sitting decisions ,properly documented and presented, is
what may be needed to avoid some of the potential road blocks to the development of a project. For the
sits election, it is assumed that a preliminary study has been completed. This can be in the form of a
master plan for an entire counterman engineering evaluation of the desalination options for a given city or
region. These plans or studies will have identified or at least narrowed the choices of such major
parameters as:
Type of desalination process (e.g. multi-stag
e flash, multi-effect distillation, reverse
osmosis).
Dual purpose desalination/power requirement (will a power plant be co-located with
the desalination facility).
Production capacity of the desalination
plant and power plan
t, if required.
Type of energy required (steam
, electricity, fuel, etc.).

CAPITAL AND OPERATING COST OF POWER PLANTS:

Traditional sources like EIA have generally raised estimates of power plant costs beyond inflation
Reported prices for actual new plants varied by a factor of two for specific technologies, and
sometimes change by over 50% for a single unit
Carbon constraints will change relative costs
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IHS CERA reported in 2009 that new power plant prices had roughly doubled since 2000.
Bureau of Labor Statistics provided insights into why.
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The study borrows from EPAs analysis of HR 2454, passed by the House in June 2009
EPA estimated allowance prices ranging from $16 - 100/tonne CO2 for 2012-2050 (2005 $s)
This cost study assumes that new units come on line in 2020
Average allowance price for 2020-2050 = $50/tonne
The period of 2020-2050 was assumed
Note historic volatility of natural gas and stability of coal and nuclear fuel prices
2020-2050 averages (2008 $/mmBtu)
Gas: $8.25
Coal: $2.09
Nuclear: $0.79

ANNOUNCED PRICES ARE USEFUL BUT NOT DISPOSITIVE:

Detailed capital cost information on specific projects is typically proprietary, and companies
usually do not define what is included in publicly reported capital costs
Specific situations can be atypical, like adding a unit to an existing site.
Announced costs often include escalation up to the point of construction, and interest charges
during construction
Announced costs often change prior to and during construction, especially for new designs. The
report cites specific cases where reported prices rose above initial estimates by
20-50% for coal units
100% for a nuclear unit
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Cost estimates from even a few years ago do not reflect current market conditions.
Most reports give EIAs data high credibility and either use them directly, or as a starting point
I found EIAs estimates to be reasonable, but applied two adjustments:
Nuclear plant costs have increased for next generation units, and continue to be in flux
EIA incorporates certain wind energy costs in separate stages of their modeling process,
so they do not appear in the tabulated costs
Cost of electricity from new plants will be much higher than from existing plants
In the absence of Loan Guarantees, financing costs for nuclear units may be higher than for other
options.
Each technology has significant cost uncertainties, and could enjoy improvements from RD&D.
NUCLEAR POWER LOOKS TO NEXT GENERATION
Over 20 licensing applications are before NRC

Only Advanced designs qualify for tax incentives and loan guarantees

Advanced designs are large limited fabrication facilities

Advanced designs may receive greater NRC scrutiny

Escalation matters: 84% of COE is capital

Both IHS CERA and recent announced plant capital cost estimates show large increases in recent
years

MIT Future of Nuclear Power doubled nuclear capital cost estimates from 2003 report, to 2009
update

Financing matters

Without loan guarantees we will not build nuclear power plants. M.J. Wallace, Co-CEO,
UniStar Nuclear, quoted in NY Times, 7-31-2007.

We would expect that the plant operators would default on the borrowing that financed its capital
costs. p.12, CBO Cost Estimate report on nuclear loan guarantee proposed for S. 14, 5-7-2003.

Moodys June 2009 report implied a more negative rating position for companies borrowing to
fund nuclear units.
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POLLUTION CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES:

AIR POLLUTION CONTROL :

Techniques Without Using Emissions Control Devices:

Process Change

Wind, Geothermal, Hydroelectric, or Solar Unit instead of Fossil fired Unit.

Change in Fuel

e.g. Use of Low Sulfur Fuel, instead of High Sulfur fuel.

Good Operating Practices

Good Housekeeping

Maintenance

Plant Shutdown

PARTICULATE

Cyclones

Electrostatic Precipitators

Fabric Filter

Wet Scrubbers
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GASES

Adsorption Towers

Thermal Incernation

Catalytic Combustion

GENERAL METHODS FOR CONTROL OF SO2 EMISSIONS:

Change to Low Sulfur Fuel

Natural Gas

Liquefied Natural Gas

Low Sulfur Oil

Low Sulfur Coal

Use Desulfurized Coal and Oil Increase Effective Stack Height

Build Tall Stacks

Redistribution of Stack Gas Velocity Profile

Modification of Plume Buoyancy

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Flue Gas Desulfurization:

SO2 scrubbing, or Flue Gas Desulfurization processes can be classified as:

Throwaway or Regenerative, depending upon whether the recovered sulfur is discarded or

recycled.

Wet or Dry, depending upon whether the scrubber is a liquid or a solid.

Flue Gas Desulfurization Processes

The major flue

gas desulfurization ( FGD ), processes are :

Limestone Scrubbing

Lime Scrubbing

Dual Alkali Processes

Lime Spray Drying

Wellman-Lord Process
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Limestone Scrubbing:

Limestone slurry is sprayed on the incoming flue gas. The sulfur dioxide gets absorbed
The limestone and the sulfur dioxide react as follows :

CaCO3 + H2O + 2SO2 ----> Ca+2 + 2HSO3-+ CO2

CaCO3 + 2HSO3-+ Ca+2 ----> 2CaSO3 + CO2 + H2

The equipment and the processes are similar to those in limestone scrubbing Lime
Scrubbing offers better utilization of the reagent. The operation is more flexible. The
major disadvantage is the high cost of lime compared to limestone.
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The reactions occurring during lime scrubbing are :

CaO + H2O -----> Ca(OH)2

SO2 + H2O <----> H2SO3

H2SO3 + Ca(OH)2 -----> CaSO3.2 H2O

CaSO3.2 H2O + (1/2)O2 -----> CaSO4.2 H2O

WELLMAN LORD PROCESS:

NUCLEAR WASTE AND ITS DISPOSAL:

Radioactive waste is a waste product containing radioactive material. It is usually the

product of a nuclear process such as nuclear fission, though industries not
directly connected to the nuclear power industry may also produce radioactive
waste.
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Radioactivity diminishes over time, so in principle the waste needs to be isolated for
a period of time until it no longer poses a hazard. This can mean hours to years for
some common medical or industrial radioactive wastes, or thousands of years for
high-level wastes from nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons reprocessing.

The majority of radioactive waste is "low-level waste", meaning it has low levels of
radioactivity per mass or volume.

The main approaches to managing radioactive waste to date have been segregation
and storage for short-lived wastes, near-surface disposal for low and some
intermediate level wastes, and deep burial or transmutation for the long-lived, high-
level wastes.
A summary of the amounts of radioactive wastes and management approaches for
most developed countries are presented and reviewed periodically as part of the
IAEA Joint Convention on Safety of Spent Fuel Management and the Safety of
Radioactive Waste Management.

Types of radioactive waste

Although not significantly radioactive, uranium mill tailings are waste. They are
byproduct material from the rough processing of uranium-bearing ore. They are
sometimes referred to as 11(e)2 wastes, from the section of the U.S. Atomic Energy
Act that defines them. Uranium mill tailings typically also contain chemically
hazardous heavy metals such as lead and arsenic. Vast mounds of uranium mill
tailings are left at many old mining sites, especially in Colorado, New Mexico, and
Utah.

Low level waste (LLW) is generated from hospitals and industry, as well as the
nuclear fuel cycle. It comprises paper, rags, tools, clothing, filters, etc., which
contain small amounts of mostly short- lived radioactivity. Commonly, LLW is
designated as such as a precautionary measure if it originated from any region of an
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'Active Area', which frequently includes offices with only a remote possibility of
being contaminated with radioactive materials. Such LLW typically exhibits no
higher radioactivity than one would expect from the same material disposed of in a
non-active area, such as a normal office block. Some high activity LLW requires
shielding during handling and transport but most LLW is suitable for shallow land
burial. To reduce its volume, it is often compacted or incinerated before disposal.
Low level waste is divided into four classes, class A, B, C and GTCC, which means
"Greater Than Class C".

Intermediate level waste (ILW) contains higher amounts of radioactivity and in

some cases requires shielding. ILW includes resins, chemical sludge and metal
reactor fuel cladding, as well as contaminated materials from
reactor decommissioning. It may be solidified in concrete or bitumen for disposal.
As a general rule, short-lived waste (mainly non-fuel materials from reactors) is
buried in shallow repositories, while long-lived waste (from fuel and fuel-
reprocessing) is deposited in deep underground facilities. U.S. regulations do not
define this category of waste; the term is used in Europe and elsewhere.

Spent Fuel Flasks are transported by railway in the United Kingdom. Each flask is
constructed of 14 in (360 mm) thick solid steel and weighs in excess of 50 tons

High level waste (HLW) is produced by nuclear reactors. It contains fission

products and transuranic elements generated in the reactor core. It is highly
radioactive and often thermally hot. HLW accounts for over 95% of the total
radioactivity produced in the process of nuclear electricity generation. The amount of
HLW worldwide is currently increasing by about 12,000 metric tons every year, which
is the equivalent to about 100 double-decker buses or a two-story structure.