13

Air Pollution Control

Methods

13.1 SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTANTS

Air pollution is characterised by the presenc of toxins and residues in the
air. Its practical recognition dates back to 1307 A.D. when King Edward I
considered the smoke from burming coal as a serious life hazard and banned
the use of coal in lime kilns in London. In more recent times several air
pollution episodes, including the occurrence of 4000 excess deaths in one
week in 1952 in London and 20 deaths and 6000 illness in 1948 in
Pennsylvania (USA), were reported. These air pollution episodes were
identified as the result of exceptionally high concentrations of sulfur oxides
and particulate matter caused by the combustion of fossil fuels, especially
coal, in stationary sources such as power plnts and smelters. Besides this
the air pollution in many cities of the world has been reported to be caused
by the emissions from such mobile sources as passenger cars, buses, trucks,
motor cyeles and other special purpose vehicles. Some other processes such
as evaporation of volatile organic substances, industrial process, solid waste
disposal, grinding and forest fires also contribute to air pollution. Conse-
quently, numerous sources of air pollution are now known. These can be
broadly classified into two categories:
1. Stationary Sources: It includes fossil fuel based power plants,
incinerators, Portland cement plants, nitric acid plants, petroleum
refineries, sewage treatment plants, smelters of various sorts and
domestic appliances.
2. Mobile Sources: A mobile source may be defined as one with a
capability of moving from one place to another; it includes railway
locomotives, ships, air planes and motr vehicles of various sorts.
A typical source-wise contribution of major pollutants in atmospheric air
is shown in Table 13.1.
 118 Encrgy, Ecology and Environment

Table 13.1: Source-wise Percentage Contribution of Major

Pollutants in the Atmosphere

S. No. Source Percentage Contribution

1. Mobilc Sourccs 42
2. Stationary Sources (Power, industrics and domestic) 5
3. Forest Fircs 8
4. Others 15

Yct anothcr hazardous air pollutant which has received considerable

attention in recent years is radan gas. Radon is one of the major pollutants
that one is exposed to inside buildings.
In our present study on air pollution control methods we will, therefore,
focus on the following three critical sources:

1. Thermal Power Plants

2. Vehicular Pollution
3. In-door Air Pollution.

13.2 AIR QUALITY STANDARDs

Seldonn, if ever, the atmospheric air is free from the presence of one pollutant
or the other. Clean air
is, therefore, characterised by the acceptable
concentrations of pollutants which are referred to as our quality standards.
Rescarch and development as well as pollution control efforts of several
countries have enabled the development of these standards. Most of the
work has considered limited
pollutants called eriteria pollutants which includec
the pollutants given in Table 13.2
plus benzene and hydrocarbons. For
example, efforts in USA include the following [8]:
. Air Pollution Control Act of 1955
2. Clean Air Act of 1963
3. Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act of 1965
4. Air Quality Act of 1967
5. Clean Air Act Amendment, 1970
6. Energy Supply and Environmental Co-ordination Act, 1974
7. Clean Air Act Amendment of 1977
All are collectively known as Clean
Air Act. The basic
done in 1970 amendment wherein groundwork was
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
was
required
establish National Ambient Air
to
Quality Standards
Following establishment of National Ambient Air Quality (NAAQS).
the
Standards
(NAAQS) in USA, several other countries like
Gemany (FRG), India
(CPCB-New Delhi) have modified them in minor way such that they
Commensurate with their needs. These
and Secondary.
standards are at two levels: Primary
 Air Pollution Control Methods 119

Primary standards are meant to protcct even the most sensitive individuals
like the elderly and those suffering from respiratory ailments. They are,
therefore, required to include an adequate mnargin of safety over the maximum
contaminant level (MCL) that have been set for public health in
context
with drinking water. The problems concerning the
technological and economic
realization are not considered in the fornmation of these standards.
The Secondary air quality standards are still morc
stringent and they must
protect in addition to public health, the public welfare involving structures,
crops, animals and fabrics. Owing to the problems in their realization they
are as yet not so common. In the
scope of NAAQS two types of standards
are prevalent as follows:

Ambient Air Quality Standards

The acceptable concentration of pollutants (criteria pollutants) in the
atmosphere are expressed in tems of NAAQS. These are outlined in Table
13.2
Table 13.2: The 1990-2000 Status of Ambient Air
Quality
Standards 181
Pollutant Averaging time Concentration
PM-10
Particulate with Annual 50 ug/m
aerodynamic diameter
s 10 um
Sulfur dioxide Annual 80 ug/m
(0.03 ppm)
24 hours 365 ug/m
(0.14 ppm)
1 hour 1310 ug/m
Nitrogen dioxide Annual 100 ug/m
(0.053 ppm)
I hour 470 Hgm
Carbon monoxide 8 hours
10 mg/m
(9 ppm)
hour 40 mg/m
(35 ppm)
Lead 24 hours
150 ug/m
Ozone hour 235 ug/m
(0.12 ppm)
*Ozone is a
secondary pollutant which is formed as a result of reactions in
atmosphere. Volatile Organic Compounds tn
potential for formation of ozone. (VOC) are now used as indicators o
120 Encrgy, Ecology and Environment

Emission Standards
These are allowable rates at which the pollutant can be released from a
sourcc. Table 13.3 [8, 13] portrays the source emission standards for steam-
based clectric power plants. They are often referred to as new source
performancc standards (NSPS). They express allowable concentration of
pollutants corresponding to 10" kJ heat input.

Table 13.3: Allowable Concentration for Steam-Based Electric

Power Plants 181

Pollutants Allowable Concentration

g/10 kJ)
Particulates 13
Nitrogen oxidcs (NO,))
Gas-fircd 86
Oil-fircd 130
Coal-fired 260
Sulfur dioxide (SO,)
Gas or Oil 86
Coal-fired Allowablc emission rates arc
based on the sulfur content and
calorific valuc of the fucl

With regards to allowable emission rates of

control must be used to reduce the emission
SO,, it may be noted that the
by atleast 70% of potential
sulfur emission. If the emission reduction
by control is less than 90%, the
maximum allowable concentration of emission is 260
the emission cannot exceed 520 (g/10° kJ); above 90%
(g/10° kJ).
The emission standards of mobile
sources are set in terms of
grams of
pollutant per km of driving in a typical traffic
typical USA traffic pattern corresponds to 12 km pattern.
For example, the
of driving in 22.8 minutes
and includes 17
stops. Some mobile source emission standards as
in Europe and India are
summarized in Table 13.4.
prevalent
Table 13.4: Mobile Source
Emission Standards (Compiled from [8]
and other Sources)

CO (g/km)
HC+NO, (g/km) PM (g/km)
Petrol Diesel Petrol Diesel Petrol Diesel
1996* 8.68-12.40 5.7 3.4-3.6 2.2
EURO-I 3.16 3.16 1.13 1.13 0.18
EURO-II 2.20 1.00 0.50 0.70-0.90 0.08-0.10
USA
2.12 2.12 0.90 0.90
 Air Pollution Control Methods

13.3 POLLUTION STANDARDS INDEX (PSI

PSI is an air pollution index that is used to report to the public an overall
assessment of air quality on a given day. The methodology adopted for the
derivation of PSI index is as follows:
1. The concentration of various pollutants are converted into correspond-
PSI values using theTable 13.5
[8]
Table 13.5: PSI and Corresponding Concentration
of Pollutants

Index 8-hr CO 1-hr NO0, 24-hr SO, 24-hr TSP TSP x SO, -hr O
mg/m Hg/n Hg/h 10 (ug/nm)* Hg/m
0 0 0 0
50 5 80 75 18
100 10 365 260 235
200 17 1130 800 375 65 400
300 34 2260 1600 625 261 800

Source: [8] and Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 58, 1982,

2. The PSI values of all the pollutants are detemined and the highest
value is used to represent the overall PSI of the day. Subsequently., the
overall PSI is converted into air quality descriptor using the Table
13.6.
Table 13.6: PSI Values and Air Quality Descriptors [8]

PSI Value Descriptor

0-50 Good
51-100 Moderate
101-199 Unhealthy
200-299 Very unhealthy
2 300 Hazardous

13.4 AIR POLLUTION CONTROL METHODS

Fossil fuel utilization processes generate most of air pollutants. It is now
check within
possible to minimize these pollutants and keep them under
at the
specified limits through the adoption of suitable technological optionssources
source of their generations. We consider here
two most critical major
and automobiles. Several devices and
of air pollution: thermal power plants
techniques for the pollution control due to these sources have been proposed
and tested and are presently in use. They may be classified into following

categories:
pollutant emission
1. Precombustion Controls: It involves the check
on

characteristics of fuel itself.

 122 Encrgy, Ecology and Environmçnt
Ca bwFdr
2. Combustion Controls: Reduction of pollutant emissions by improving

the combustion process.

3. Post-combustion Controls: Capture of pollutant cmissions after they
have been generated but before they arc released to the atmosphere.
4. Atmospheric Dilution: Dispersion of pollutants in the atmosphere by
variations.
mcans of smokestack height
Power Plants
13,4.1 Emission Controls in Thermal

A thermal power plant is a nmajor of environmental pollution. In the

source

from coal, oil and gas a number of pollutants

process of power generation
are released into air, water and
soil. This section deals with the control of
various pollutants that arc rcleascd into atmospheric air through emissions
from the smoke stack. The stack cmissions from a coal-based power plant
consist of fly ash as a particulate matter and oxides of nitrogen, carbon and
sulfur as gaseous pollutants while in case of oil and gas-bascd power plants,
the emissions are only the gaseous pollutants. Coal is the most abundant and
has long lasting reserves. Its availability is domestic to several countries and
has exhibited stable prices; the world coal reserves of approximately 1040
billion tonnes may last for more than 250 ycars. Coal-based power generation
has, thercfore, received considerable attention. For example, in India the
consumption ofcoal-was 273 million tonnes in 1995-96, out of which power
sector consumed 67%, steel 13%, cement 4% apd rest 16% in other industrics
suchas brick-kilns,refractories and textiles etc.
The air polution control related activities in coal-based power plants
received attention in late 40's. At the outset tall stack concept was
implemented to dilute the concentration of particulates; it was followed by
the use of such post-combustion equipments as bag houses and electrostatic
precipitators. Subsequently, as a result of the increased awareness of thec
phenomena of acid rains, the devices for the control of NO, and SO, havec
also come in use. Simultaneously, the clean power technologies based on
combined cycle systems and indirect coal combustion have been implemented
in some countries. A very important power generation option in this context
is Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) technology which offers
promise of reduced atack emissions and escalated power plant efficiencies
of 47-50%.

Precombustion Controls
Coal is predominantly aromatic and is one of the most carbon intensives
amongst the fossil fuels. Coal from different mines has different ash, moisture
and energy content. Depending upon quality (grade) it generates pollutants
in its utilization in power plants. The sulfur content of coal is often expressed
terms of pounds of SO2» generated per million Btu of heat (lb/MBtu).
This in terms of SI system of unit corresponds to g/10° kJ of heat input.
 Air Pollution Control Mcthods

According to NSPS, emission of SO, in coal plants is restricted to 1.2 Ib

MBtu (520 g/10 kJ). The coal which meets this emission rate without
controls is referred to as compliance coal or low sulfur coul. Precombustion
control of pollution involves measures to obtain better and less polluting
coal fucl. An obviously effective tcchnique could be homogenization and
blending to obtain relativcly better and cleaner fuel. To control sulfur
emissions high sulfur content coal may be substitutcd with low sulfur content
coal or with the blend of the two. The approach is refcrred to as fuel
switching and can reduce SO, emission from 30 to 90%. The other
precombustion control approach currently used is beneficiation of coal to
get rid of unwanted mineral matter contents and other microconstituents. It
involves the removal of sulfur wlhich in the coal is either bound into organic
coal molecules or in the form of inorganic pyrite (Fe$,). The physical coal
washing may be used to wash away FeS, having 3.6 times grcater specific
gravity than coal. Desulfurisation of coal may also be carried out by organo-
solvo refining. This technology is still at the research stagc.
The coal washing process also reduces the ash contents and incrcascs the
calorific value of the fuel wlhich in tunn reduces the coal transportation and
pulverization costs. The sulfur bound in organie molecules of the coal may
be removed by chemical and biological methods; it is referred to as refining
of coal. For example, organosolvo-refining wherein solvent extraction of
impurities yields supcr clean coal with low ash. This technique is also in the
research stage.

Combustion Control Techniques

It involves the improvement of combustion process for it to be cleaner and
morc efficicnt. Fluidized bed combustion (FBC) is a promising technology
in this regard. The basic characteristics of this technology are as follows:
Combustion chamber contains finely divided particles such as sand.
Combustion air entering from below lifts these particles until they form
a bubbling bed.
Start up burners heat the bed to 800-950°C. Subsequently, combustible
material (crushed fuel) is fed into the bed. It ignites almost immediately.
FBC can burn a large variety of fuels from high rank commercial fuels
to low grade and waste fuels.
For small scale power generation generally bubbling FBC are used.
However, for large scale FBC due to deeper fluidized bed circulating
FBC boilers are used. These are the conventional boilers. They operate
at atmospheric pressure and, therefore, are often referred to as atmospheric
FBC (AFBC) boilers.
Pressurized FBC are used to generate gas which can be expanded through
a gas turbine.

For sulfur removal FBC boiler fuel is mixed with limestone (CaCO3) or
dolomite (CaCO3 MgCO3; MgcO, component does not take part in the
124 Encrgy, Ecology and Environment

reaction). Generally 3.15 kg of CaCO, is mixed for 1 kg of sulfur removal.

The crushed mixture is held in
suspension (fluidized) by the air stream
injected from the bottom of the bed. Sulfur oxide released during combustion
reacts with the limestone to form solid calcium sulphate as follows:

CaCO t
SO, + 1/2 0,> CaS0, +
CO
If the temperature cxcccds the cquilibrium value, the endothemic reaction
proceeds as follows:
CaCO Ca0 + C0,
CaO+S0, + 1/2 O, > CaSOO4
Thus sulfur of the fucl is removed in the form of solid calcium
sulphatec
which falls to the bottom of the furnace and is removed. There are
processes
for regeneration of lime for reuse as the additive. However, the prescnt
cconomics oflen indicate a preference for once-through limestone system.
In FBC boilers, sulfur removal rates can be higher than 90 percent. The
heat transferfrom combustion region to the boiler tubes is also more efficient
because fluidized particles are in direct contact with boiler tube and heat is
transferred by conduction rather than by less efficicnt convection and
radiation. The higher heat transfer
at about half the
cfficiency enables the boiler to operate
temperature (= 700-800°C) of conventional boilers
temperature (1400-1600°C). This greatly reduces the formation of NO,. In
FBC boilers, coal with
higher ash content can also be burned without fouling
the heatexchanger, since the operational temperature may be kept below the
melting point of ash.
Operating experience with the FBC systems has shown that their emissions
often show NO, values lower than the
stringent present-day world over
norms of 650
mg/Nm'. However, further reduction of NO, is possible through
the techniques as follows:
. Low Excess Air Technology: Wherein the amount
of air made available
for combustion is controlled to the minimum amount
required for
complete combustion.
2. Second Generation Low
N0, Burner: It involves two stages of air
feed; in step 1 due to starvation of air CO is formed,
and in the other stage
Na is released
complete
combustion takes place.
Póst-Combustion Technologies
Stack emissions from a coal-based power plant consists of fly ash as a
particulate matter and oxides of
nitrogen,
carbon and sulfur as gaseous
pollutants. The emissions from oil- and
gas-fired plants consist of only
gaseous pollutants. In older power plants cyclone type mechanical dust
collectors were used. Presently, electrostatic
precipitator (ESP) are the main
choice as fly ash collector. An electrostatic
precipitator is basically an
equipment wherein high DC voltage is applied on the stream of dust laden
 Ar Pollution Control Methods 125

gascous particles which are charged to saturation and collected on electrodes.

ESP is available for both the horizontal as well as vertical gas flows. Yet
another device used for post-combustion pollution control is fabric filter. It
is by far the most efficient collector of fly ash and is used in industries. In
fabric filter the dust laden gas is passed through a suitably shaped fabric
resulting in the deposition of dust on the fabric. The quality of the fabric
determines the performance of the bag filters. Fabrics like fibre glass and
teflon are capable of withstanding higher temperatures (upto 250°C) and
resist chemical erosion and are, therefore, often used in fabric filters.

13.4.2 Emission Controls in Mobile Sources

C The mobile sources include different types of vehicles such as highway road
vehicles, rail locomotives, ships and aireraft. The highway vehicles include
vchicles.
passenger cars, buses, trucks, molorcycles, and other special purposc
These are by far the most important in terms of urban air pollution. For
example, in India every third vehicle operates in one of the 22 metropolitans.
New Delhi alone accounts for about 8% of vehicular population. The overall
vehicular population has seen tremendous outburst and the road network
growth has not kept pace with it. Since independence the vehicle population
has increased 100 folds, whereas the length of road network has increased

by only seven fold. Sectorwise growth of air pollution is illustrated in Table

13.7, which indicates that last three decades have witnessed continuous
deterioration of urban air quality in the country due to vehicular pollution.

Table 13.7: Sectorwise Time Variation of Air Pollution in Urban India

Sector 1970-71 1980-81 1990-91 1999-2000 2000-2001

(h) (o) (%)
Industry and 56 40 29 25 20

powcr plants
Vchicular 23 42 63 70 72
Domestic 21 18 8 5 8

The auto vehicles are powered by engines based on different power

cycles. The engines are fueled by variety of products which upon internal
combustion or otherwise generate power and emissions through the exhaust

systems. The generation of emissions is, therefore, a strong function of

engine and the fuel injection mechanism. It, therefore, makes sense to review
the operation of IC engines and fuel injection systems; the simplest IC
engine is two-stroke spark ignited piston engine. It is used in mopeds,
scooters, motorbikes etc. The air fuel ratio is the key factor in determining
the generation of power and emissions in IC engines. Let us, therefore,
consider the stoichiometry of gasoline combustion [8] involving an average
formulation of gasoline which can be represented as C,H2n-1(n= 7) and its
126 Energy, Ecology and Environment

complete combustion in air (wlich contains 3.76 moles of N, + one molc

of O,). Neglecting the fomation of nitrogen oxide the combustion process
can be expressed as follows:
CH1t 10.25 O, + 38.54 N, 7 CO, + 6.5 H,O + 38.54 N
This equation can be uscd to determine the masses of all the constituents

as follows:
Mass of one mole of C,}H = 97 g

Mass of 10.25 mole of O, = 328 g

Mass of 38.5 mole of N, = 1079 g

Air fuel ratio (R) corresponding to

complete combustion =(328+ 1079)/97
= 14.5

turn results in
R 14.5 corresponds to fucl rich mixture which in
<
and hence production of
incomplete combustion due to scarcity of oxygen
of oxygen also
carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons. The scarcity
lowers the combustion temperature and hence the production
of NOx. The
R> 14.5 to lean fuel mixture. It helps to reduce
carbon monoxide
corresponds
and hydrocarbon. In extreme cases the lean mixture lowers flame temperature

and reduces NOx.

Besides the air fuel ratio the emission characteristics depend on such
factors as ignition timing, compression ratio, combustion chamber geometry
and on modes of driving such as idling, accelerating or decelerating. Yet
other factors which influence the emissions include:

Engine blow by along the piston to crankshaft

Evaporative losses from fuel tank as well as carburetor
In contradistinction to gasoline engine the diesel engine has no carburetor.
The air-fuel mixture is injected directly into the cylinder, where under the
influence of compression stroke, it reaches a high enough temperature and
ignites itself without needing a conventional ignition system. Consequently
diesel engine has much higher air fuel ratio and they run on very lean
air fuel mixtures. They are more fuel efficient; due to lean mixture the
emission of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon is low. Due to high
combustion temperature the formation of NOx is relatively high. These
engines emit significantly high particulate matter such as soot. 1The sulrur
impregnated diesel results in SOx emissions. The variations of emission
constituents is illustrated in Fig. 13.1, which shows that the emiSS1or
characteristics of diesel engine are a sensitive function of the temperature c
combustion reaction.
 Air Pollution Control Methods
127

NO,
SO
Particulate

(CO, HC, Soot)

1800 k

Fig. 13.1: Combustion Temperature (peak)

emissions
Over the years several devices andt chniques for the control of
from highway vehicles have been proposed and tested.
These devices are
In what follows
applicable to the engine as well as to the exhaust system.
a brief discussion of these techniques and
deviccs:
we present
back
Positive Crankcase Ventilation: The combustion exhaust is recycled
combustion of the
into the engine air intake system to enable complete
remnant fuel in the blow by. The crankcase ventilator valve is the main
this approach. The valve
component that enables the implementation of
desired air
adjusts the rate of removal of blow by gases to ensure that the
fuel ratio is maintained in the changing air intake requirement of the engine.

It is approach to control evaporative losses

Vapour Recovery System: an

from both fuel tank and the carburetor.

Thermal Reactor: It is for the treatment of exhaust gases that have just left
the combustion chamber. It is basically an after-bumer that encourages
oxidation and combustion of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. In this
approach carburetor is designed to run the engine on fuel-rich intake. Coupling
of exhaust gas recalculation with themal reactor can reduce the emissions
of all the constituents such as carbon monoxide, hydrocarbon and NO,. In
this approach, the generation of power and fuel economy suffers a set-back.
Catalytic Converter: It is able to affect oxidation of hydrocarbon and carbon
monoxide while reducing NO, to nitrogen. It allows the engine to operate
in conditions favorable for performance and efficiency amelioration.
 14
Energy Efficiency

APPROACH
14.1 CONCEPT AND
is key component
a
has been noted that energy
In the preceding clhaptcrs it input for
economic
and society. It is key
nature in
of interactions between that is absolutely benign
is no s o u r c e of energy
development and there led to global energy
related
environment. These factors have
Tespect of the short-term actions
that are
and call for effcctive
An obvious and
environmcnt c o n c e r n s most
prejudice the future).
sustainable (which do not
of coal, oil,
is to reduce the consumption
overlooked approach in this regard the exhaustible gift of
fucls and conserve (save) them as
gas and wood Conservation in resource

referred to as Energy
nature. The approach is consumption is cut
rate of growth of energy
conservation terminology. If the
almost doubled. The energy
fossil fuel r e s e r v e s is
to 2% the life span of consumption or
either reducing the energy
conservation may be affected by sources for
with less polluting energy
substituting the fossil fuel supply two options are possible
other applications. Following
power production and
for reducing the energy consumption:
in certain activities such as production
1. Use of less energy by curtailment
conditioned building and automation
in industries, comfort level in an air
in transport vehicles.
result by a rational and scientific
2. Use of less energy to produce the same
use of energy. It does not involve
sacrifice of any sort.

The first option makes sense for Organization of Economic Cooperation

almost 50 percent of
and Development (OECD) countries who account for
total world energy consumption. Curent use of oil per person per year
sub-Saharan Africa
averaged over the world over, USA, Western Europe and that
is estimated as 12 and 1 barrels respectively. Thus it is clear
4.5, 24,
the developed countries could play a role in the curtailment of their energy
to achieve in
consumption. However, it is an extraordinarily difficult goal
more and more
developing countries which have exhibited a tendency to use
of living. For
energy to0 raise production and ameliorate their standards
 Encrgy Efficiency 129

example, during the last 50 years (1950-2000),

India has achieved impressivec
growth in cnergy as well as production sectors. The installed capacity of
power has increascd from 1700 MW to 97,837 MW and the number ot
villages clectrified has gone up from 300 to more than 4,50,000. During this
period overall national production has increased nine-fold. More sensible
approach to reduce energy consumption should, therefore, involve the second
option which is chosen in the scopc of this chapter and is referred to as
energy cfficiency. Furthermore some developed countries like USA and
Japan have been able to reduce their energy consumption (without affecting
the growth of production) by improving the efficiency of energy use in
industrial sectors [57]. It has becn shown that more than half of overal
improvement is through pragmatic policies and programs. This is a strong
management function. It involves administrative, fiscal and legal measures
for improvement in house keeping and operational practices as well as
product mix. The technological improvements and price adjustment were
reported to contribute to the other half [58]. The schematic representation
of various terms related to energy conservation is illustrated in Fig. 14.1. In
practice a significant amount of energy can be saved with the energy
management measures such as good house keeping and operational practices
as well as the product mix can be taken up even without any technological
improvement. Thus energy conservation is possible in an otherwise inefficient
system. However, the term energy efficiency is explicitly used when as a
follow up to energy management strategies the technological improvements
such as design changes, new process technologies and modernization schemes
are incorporated in the system and the energy conservation is most effective.

Energy conservation

Energy demand reduction Substitution of fossil resources

Energy use Rational use| Nuclear

Gurtailment of energy Renewable

Management| Technological improvements

|strategies (Energy efficiency)

Energy management

Fig. 14.1: Schematic

Representation of Energy Conservation
Implementation Approach
130 Energy, Ecology and Environment

14.2 LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS AND ENERGY

EFFICIENCY
The potential of energy saving in an industry depends on the cfficiency with
which it 1S used. The common practice to define the efficiency of energy Us
IS by the lirst law of thermodynamics which states: Energy is conservecd.
tne
account
deals with the in various forms; it takes into
anmount of energy
transferred between
changes in energy stored in the system and the energy
the system and its surroundings. It treats work and heat interactions as
deals With
themodynamics
cquivalent forms of energy. The second law of that
the work potential of an energy source which
is the amount of energy
(exergy).
we can extract as useful work; it
is referred to as available energy
will eventualy be
h e energy that is not available
for converting to work
to define quantities
discarded as waste energy. The
second law allows us
(1deal
second law efficiency
ike 'available 'lost work' and the
work',
maximum efficiency) as follows: Plant
fuel-based boiler.
a fossil
Consider the of steam production in
first law of thermody-
case

an efficiency of
85% based on
engineers usually
cite of steam
efficiency for the process
examine the second law
namics. Let us

production at 550 K. combustion is Tc and the

of fossil fuel
If the characteristic temperature (Exi) in the
boiler
the exergy of heat input
amount of heat produced is 2,

is given by:
(14.1)
Exi
85% for the exergy
first law efficiency of steam production is
Since the is given by:
the production of steam, Ex, of temperature (73)
used in

Eo 0.85sol (14.2

Second law efficiency is, therefore, given

by:

0.85 1 (14.3)

Tc
For typical parameters:
TA300 K (Ambient temperature)
s 550 K

Tc 10 =
K