Module-I

Introduction to the course

Global and Indian energy resources.
Energy demand and supply.
Components, layout and working principles of
1.Steam Power Plants
2.Hydel Power Plants
3. Nuclear Power Plants
4.Gas turbine Power Plants
5.Diesel Power Plants
 Energy Demand and Supply:

Energy Demand:Energy demand refers to the amount

of energy needed by a specific region, sector, or
individual to fulfill various activities and functions.
Energy Supply:Energy supply consists the various
sources and technologies used to generate the energy
required to meet demand
Law of conservation of energy states that the total amount
of energy in a closed system (like earth) remains a
constant. It may change from one form to another, but the
total remains a constant.
Renewable &Non-renewable Energy
Renewable energy is energy obtained from naturally
repetitive and persistent flows of energy occurring in the
local environment.
Non-renewable energy is energy obtained from static stores
of energy that remain underground unless released by human
interaction.
These energy sources are called nonrenewable because their
supplies are limited and take a very long time to form.
 Global Energy Resources:

1.Fossil Fuels:-Formed by the decomposition of dead and buried organisms

Coal: Abundant but emits high levels of greenhouse gases.

Oil: Main source of transportation fuels.
Natural Gas: Cleaner-burning compared to coal and oil, used for electricity generation and heating.
2.Nuclear Power:
Utilizes nuclear reactions to produce electricity, offering a low-carbon alternative..

3.Renewable Energy:

Solar: Captures sunlight for electricity and heat production.

Wind: Converts wind energy into electricity.
Hydropower: Uses flowing water to generate electricity.
Geothermal: Utilizes heat from the Earth's interior for power generation.
Biomass: Derives energy from organic materials, including wood and crop residues.
 Indian Energy Resources:
1.Coal:
 Dominant energy source for electricity generation.
 Contributes to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
2.Oil and Natural Gas:

 Essential for transportation and industrial sectors.

 Dependency on imports for meeting domestic demand.

3.Renewable Energy:
Solar: Growing capacity in solar power generation, with government
emphasis on solar parks.
Wind: Expanding wind energy installations, especially in coastal regions.
Hydropower: Utilized for electricity generation, with both small and large
hydropower projects.
4.Biomass:
Traditional use in rural areas for cooking and heating.
Modern biomass projects for electricity generation.

5.Nuclear Power:

Limited contribution to the energy mix but considered for future expansion.
Addresses the need for low-carbon electricity.

6.Natural Gas:
Increasing emphasis on natural gas as a cleaner alternative for power
generation
 Sources of power
Sources of power

Renewable power sources Non-renewable power sources

Wind Solar Tidal Oil Nuclear

Hydro power Geothermal Coal

Two main sources of power

 Prime mover is a machine that transforms energy from thermal or

pressure form to mechanical form; typically an engine or turbine.

 A power station (also referred to as a generating station, power

plant, powerhouse, or generating plant) is an industrial facility
for the generation of electric power.
 Power plants
1. Steam power plant

2.Hydel power plant

3.Nuclear power plant

4.Gas turbine power plant

5.Diesel power plant

 Steam power plant
Turbine

Boiler Condenser

Pump

Rankine cycle
A steam power plant using steam as working substance works
basically on Rankine cycle. A steam power plant converts the
chemical energy of the fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) into
mechanical/electrical energy.
 Steam power plant
To atmosphere

Chimney

Flue
Air
Air-preheater Air
gases
Flue gases

Coal/oil
Steam Economiser
Turbine
Ash storage yard Boiler with Flue gases
Generator
super-heater
Condenser

Feed water Cooling

tower
Feed pump

Layout of a steam power plant Pump

 Components of steam power plant
1. Boiler – Boiler is an equipment to produce steam.

2. Steam turbine – High pressure super heated steam is fed to the steam turbine which
causes turbine blades to rotate. Energy in the steam is converted into mechanical
energy in the steam turbine which acts as the prime mover.

3. Generator – It is coupled with the turbine rotor and converts the mechanical energy of
the turbine to the electrical energy.

4. Condenser – Condenser is a heat exchanger in which cooling water is circulated

through the tubes. The exhaust steam from turbine enters the condenser where it is
cooled and converted to condensate (water).

5. Economizers – Economizers are devices fitted to a boiler which saves energy by using
the heat energy of exhaust gases from the boiler to preheat the feed water thereby
improving the boiler's efficiency.
 Components of steam power plant
6.Super-heater – Super-heater is a device that heats the steam generated by the
boiler again increasing its thermal energy. It converts wet steam into
superheated steam (high temperature dry steam

7.Air pre-heater or air heater – Air pre-heater is used to recover the heat from
the boiler exhaust gases which increases the thermal efficiency of the boiler by
reducing the useful heat lost in the exhaust gases.
Various circuits in a steam power plant
1. Coal and ash circuit – The coal from the storage is fed to the boiler through coal
handling equipments such as belt conveyors. Heat produced by the burning of
coal is utilized in converting water contained in boiler drum into steam at
suitable pressure and temperature. Ash resulting from combustion of coal is
removed to the ash storage yard through ash handling equipment.

2. Air and gas circuit – Air taken in from atmosphere through the action of a
forced draught (air forced to flow in by the use of blower) or induced draught
(air flowing in due to decreased pressure) fan first passes through the air pre-
heater, where it is heated by flue gases. The hot air then passes through the
furnace. The flue gases after passing over boiler and super-heater tubes, flow
through the dust collector and then through economizer (economizer capture the
waste heat from flue gas and transfer it to the boiler feed-water), air pre-heater
and finally they are exhausted to the atmosphere through the chimney.

3. Feed water and steam circuit – The steam generated in the boiler is supplied to
the turbine to develop mechanical power. The steam coming out of turbine is
condensed in the condenser and fed back to the boiler using feed pump. Some of
the steam and water is lost by passing through the different components..

4. Cooling water circuit – Abundant quantity of water is required for condensation

of steam. This is mostly taken from river. If adequate quantity of water is not
available at the plant site a cooling tower is used.
Advantages of steam power plant
1. Less initial cost as compared to other generating plants.
2. The capital cost is low compared to hydel plant.
3. Construction time is low.
4. Power generation does not depend on nature’s climatic condition.
5. Power plant can be located near industrial areas.

Disadvantages of steam power plant

1. Source of fuel i.e., coal reserve all over the world is considered to be fixed and
therefore coal mines are being exhausted. Hence, there is a limit in source of
power.
2. Power generation cost is considerably high compared to hydal plant.
3. Operating cost is more compared to diesel and nuclear power plant.
4. Maintenance cost is high as compared with that of hydro and diesel power plants.
5. Fuel transportation and handling are difficult.
 Hydro power plant

Reservior

e
lin
Dam

ion
Transmitting

iss
nsm
Water carrying Tower

Tra
pipe

Trash rack

Anchor
Transformer room

Control room

Transformer

Generator
Tail race
Turbine

Layout of a hydro electric power plant Outlet

14
 Hydro power plant
Various components of hydel power plant

1. Catchment area – Whole area behind the dam, draining into a stream or
river across which the dam has been built.

2. Reservoir – purpose of the storing of water in the

Thereservoir is to get a uniform power output throughout
the
year. A reservoir can be either natural or artificial.

3. Dam – A dam is any barrier that holds water; the water stored behind the
dam is used to drive turbines that are connected to electrical generators. It
acts as an artificial reservoir.

Based on structure and design, dams are classified

as
gravity dams, arch dams and buttress dams.
 Components of hydel power plant

Dam
Reservoir Surge tank

Tunnel

Penstock

Power house

Surge tank

6. Trash rack – The function of trash rack is to prevent the flow

of debris, sand and fishes to the turbine.

7. Surge tank –It is a storage reservoir used to absorb the

sudden rises of water pressure, as well as to provide extra
water during a drop in water pressure.
17
Components of hydel power plant
8. Turbine – The function of turbine is to act as a prime mover to
convert the potential energy of water in to mechanical energy.
It is explained in a later section in detail.

9. Runner – The runner is a circular wheel on which a series of

curved vanes are mounted. Vanes are so designed that water
enters and leaves the runner without shock.

10. Power house – The powerhouse accommodates prime mover,

generator (generate electrical power using mechanical power
obtained from the turbine), accessories and control room
sometimes transformer also. Water after passing through the
turbine is discharged into a downstream called as tailrace,
which carries it into the river.

18
Classification hydro electric power plants
1. Classification with respect to quantity of water available
a) Run-off river plants – Run-of-the-river hydroelectric harvest the
energy from flowing water to generate electricity in the absence of a
large dam and reservoir.
b) Reservoir plants – A reservoir plant is that which has a reservoir of
such size as to allow carrying over storage from wet season to the
next dry season.

2. Classification according to availability of water head

a) High-head hydro-electric plants (head more than 250 m)
b) Medium-head hydro-electric plants (head ranges from
60 m –
250 m)
c) Low-head hydro-electric plants (Below 60 m)
3.Classification according to nature of load
d) Peak load plants – The peak load plants are used
to supply power at the peak demand phase.
e) Base load plants – A base load power plant is one that provides a
steady flow of power regardless of total power demand.
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 Selection of site for a hydro power plant
1. Water available – The most important aspect of hydro-electric plant is the availability of
water at the site since all other designs are based on it. Therefore the run-off data at the
proposed site must be availaable.

2. Water-storage – The output of a hydropower plant is not uniform due to wide variations of
rain fall. To have a uniform power output, water storage is needed so that excess flow at
certain times may be stored to make it available at the times of low flow. To select the site of
the dam ; careful study should be made of the geology and topography of the catchment area
to see if the natural foundations could be found and put to the best use.

3. Head of water – In order to generate a requisite quantity of power it is necessary that a large
quantity of water at a sufficient head should be available. The level of water in the reservoir
for a proposed plant should always be within limits throughout the year.

4. Distance from load center – Most of the time the electric power generated in a hydro-
electric power plant has to be used some considerable distance from the site of plant. For this
reason, to be economical on transmission of electric power, the routes and the distances
should be carefully considered since the cost of erection of transmission lines and their
maintenance will depend upon the route selected.

5. Access to site – It is always a desirable factor to have a good access to the site of the plant.
This factor is very important if the electric power generated is to be utilized at or near the
plant site. The transport facilities must also be given due consideration.
 Factors affecting run-off
1. Nature of rainfall – Short and hard showers may produce relatively little run-off.
Rains lasting longer time results in larger run-off.

Discharge Fan shaped catchment area Elongated catchment area

Hydrograph of fan
shaped catchment area
Hydrograph of
elongated catchment
area

Time
2. Topography of catchment area – Steep and impervious areas will produce large percentage of run-
off. The water will flow quickly and absorption losses will be small. The size of catchment has a
definite effect on the runoff. More the area, more will be the runoff.

24
 Factors affecting run-off

3. Geology of area – The run-off is very much affected by the types of surfaces soil and sub-oil,
types of rocks, etc. Rocky areas will give more run-off while pervious soil and sandy soil will give
less run-off.

4. Vegetation –Thick vegetation like forest consumes a portion of rain fall and also acts as a
obstruction for run-off.

5. Other climate factors – Other factors humidity, such as temperature

annual rainfall etc., affect the streams) area. wind velocity, water
losses from watershed (small

25
Advantages of hydro electric power plants

1. Water source is perennially available. No fuel is required to be burnt to generate

electricity.
2. The number of operations required is considerably small compared with thermal power
plants.
3. There is no problem with regards to the disposal of ash as in a thermal station.
4. The hydraulic turbine can be switched on and off in a very short time.
5. The hydraulic power plant is relatively simple in concept and self-contained in
operation.
6.Being simple in design and operation, the hydro-plants do not require
highly skilled workers.
7.Manpower requirement is also low.
8. The cost of land is not a major problem since the hydro-electric stations
are situated away from the developed areas.

26
Disadvantages of hydro electric power plants

1. Cost of transmission is high since most of the plants are in

remote areas.
2. Hydro-power projects are capital-intensive with a low rate of
return.
3. It takes considerable long time for the erection of such plants.
4. Power generation is dependent on the quantity of water
available, which may vary from season to season and year to
year. If the rainfall is in time and adequate, then only the
satisfactory operation of the plant can be expected
5. Such plants are often far away from the load centre and
require long transmission lines to deliver power. Thus the cost
of transmission lines and losses in them are more.
6. Large hydro-plants disturb the ecology of the area, by way of
deforestation, destroying vegetation and uprooting people.
The emphasis is now more on small, mini and micro hydel
stations.
27
Introduction to Nuclear Energy
 Nuclear power plant
 In nuclear power plant, heat energy available from nuclear fission
is used for the generation of steam.

 Nuclear fission can be defined as the process, in which a nucleus

is split into two divisions, more or less of equal mass releasing
energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation and kinetic energy.

 The heat produced by fission in the nuclear reactor is used to

generate steam. This heat transfer takes place in a heat
exchanger such as boiler.

 The pressurized steam is then fed to a steam turbine which is

connected to a generator.
 Components of Nuclear power plant
1. Nuclear reactor – It is an apparatus in which nuclear fuel is
subjected to nuclear fission.

2. Heat exchanger – The coolant gives up heat to the heat

exchanger, which utilized for generating steam. After giving
up heat, the coolant is fed back to the reactor.

3. Steam turbine – The steam produced in the heat exchanger

is fed to turbine for doing useful work.

4. Generator – The steam turbine drives the generator which

converts mechanical energy in to electric power.
 Components of Nuclear reactor

Control rod Control rod

Coolant OUT

Pressure vessel
Reflector

Moderator
Fuel

Neutron
Biological
detector
shield

Coolant in
Components of nuclear reactor
 Components of Nuclear reactor
1. Fuel – Nuclear fuels usually used in the reactors are isotopes (atoms of the same
element having the same numbers of protons, but different numbers of neutrons)
of Uranium and Plutonium. Isotopes like U-233, U-235 and Pu-239 can be
fissioned by neutrons of all energies, whereas isotopes U-238.
2. Moderator – Moderator is used to slow down the kinetic energy of fast moving
neutrons. This has to be done as only the slow neutrons maintain the fission
chain reaction. Substances like light water, heavy water, carbon, beryllium are
used as moderator.
3. Control rods – Control rods are used to control the nuclear chain reaction. It is an
essential part of a reactor and serves the following purposes .
a) For starting the reactor.
b) For maintaining at that level.
c) For shutting the reactor down under normal or emergency conditions.

Control rods are usually made up of cadmium and boron. Control

rods control the chain reaction by absorbing neutrons.
 Nuclear power plant
4. Coolant – Purpose of coolant is to extract heat generated by the
fission process. The various fluids used as coolant are water (light
water /heavy water), gas (Air, CO2, Hydrogen), and liquid metal
cooled reactors etc.
5. Reactor vessel – It is a strong walled container housing the
reactor core, shield and the reflector. It is strongly built so as to
withstand high pressures developed.
6. Shield – Shield prevents the transfer of radiation o the external
world.
 Nuclear power plant
Advantages of nuclear power plant
1. No problem of fuel transportation, storage, etc.
2. Less man power is required.
3. It is more economical compared to thermal plant.
4. Power capacity of plant is very high.
5. It does not depend up on the condition of the weather.

Disadvantages of nuclear power plant

6. Nuclear radiation causes severe environmental problems.

7. Disposal of radioactive nuclear waste is dangerous
8. Varying load conditions are not suitable.
9. Capital cost is very high for the reactor.
Nuclear power plant
Types of reactor

1) Pressurized water reactor (PWR)

2) Boiling water reactor (BWR).

Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR)
Pressurizer

Turbine
Pressurized heated Steam
water
Heat exchanger
(Boiler)

Reactor

Condenser

Feed

water

Coolant pump Feed water heater

Pressurized water reactor Feed water pump
Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR)

37
 Pressurized Water Reactor
 Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) make use of two loops viz., primary
and secondary loops to convert the heat generated by the fuel into
electric power.

 In the primary loop, the pressurizer maintains a high pressure in the

water in the range of 150 bar. The pressurized water (coolant) is
circulated in the reactor. Due to the high pressure of the water, the
water does not boil.

 The coolant gets heated in the reactor and the hot water enters the
boiler and transfers heat to the feed water in the boiler in the
secondary loop.

 Feed water evaporates and runs the turbine.

 Pressurized Water Reactor
Advantages of PWR

1. Higher Efficiency
2. Lower Risk of Radioactive Contamination
3. Better Neutron Economy
4. Safety Features

Disadvantages of PWR

5. Complexity
6. High Pressure
7. Coolant Activation
 Boiling Water Reactor (BWR)
Turbine

Concrete shell Thermal shielding

Generator

Uranium fuel

Condenser
Moderator

Feed pump
Coolant water

Boiling water reactor

Boiling Water Reactor (BWR)

41
 Boiling Water Reactor (BWR)
 In Boiling Water Reactor (BWR), the coolant (water) used in the
reactor absorbs heat produced during the fission reaction in the
reactor.

 The fuel used is enriched uranium oxide. Water evaporates and

steam is generated in the reactor itself. In this type of reactor,
there is no need of separate boiler.

 In BWR, the coolant is in direct contact with turbines, so if a

fuel rod had a leak, radioactive material could be placed on the
turbine.
 Boiling Water Reactor (BWR)
Advantages of BWR

 Simplicity
 Direct Steam Generation
 Flexible Operation
Disadvantages of BWR

 Radioactive Contamination Risk

 Lower Thermal Efficiency
 Shorter Fuel Cycles
 Gas turbine power plant

This principle is used in gas turbine power plants where the gases
are directly expanded through the several ring of fixed and
moving blades.
 Gas turbine power plant
Nozzle Combustor
Hot gas
Fuel

Coupling
Compressor Turbine

Generator

Air inlet Exhaust

Arrangement of simple gas turbine plant
 In principle, a gas turbine plant consists of a compressor in which the working
medium is raised to a high pressure. So, generally, a centrifugal or an axial
compressor is employed.
 The turbine drives the compressor and so it is coupled to the turbine shaft.
From the compressor, the working medium is taken to a combustor where its
temperature is raised.
 This high pressure and high temperature working medium is then
expanded in a gas turbine.
 In the turbine blading, the expansion of the working gas takes place.
Components of a gas turbine power plant
1. Gas turbine – There are two basic types of gas turbines viz., radial
flow and axial flow turbines
2. Air-compressor – There are mainly two types of air-compressors used
in gas turbine power plants viz., centrifugal compressor and axial
flow compressor.
3. Combustion chamber
 Primary Zone:
This is where the initial combustion of fuel and air takes place. Fuel is
injected into the primary zone, and the ignition system (e.g., spark plugs)
initiates the combustion process
 Secondary Zone:
The secondary zone is where additional air is introduced to continue the
combustion process and achieve more complete burning of fuel.
This zone helps mix the combustion products from the primary zone with
fresh air, promoting thorough combustion and reducing the concentration
of unburned fuel.
 Tertiary Zone:
The tertiary zone is responsible for further mixing and dilution of the
combustion products with additional air. This helps control the
temperature of the gases before they enter the turbine section
 Closed and open cycle plants
Fuel (heat)

Heater
Combustion Shaft
Compressor chamber Turbine
Work Work
Turbine
Shaft Compressor
Cooling chamber

Air in Exhaust
Open cycle gas turbine

Closed cycle gas turbine

 In this turbine, the from  In this turbine, the working fluid is

atmosphere is the into compressed.
compressor. air the  The compressed gas is heated
drawn (by burning fuel or by nuclear
 After compression, it is passed into a
combustion chamber. reactor)
 It is then made to flow over
 The hot gas is then made to flow over the turbine blades and gets
the turbine blades. The gas, while expanded.
flowing over the blades, gets expanded
and finally exhausted into atmosphere.  From the turbine, the gas is passed
losses in the drive. to the cooling chamber.
 The air is then made to flow into the
 Gas turbine power plant
Advantages of gas turbine power plant
1. The mechanical efficiency of a gas turbine (95% ) is quite high The work developed by
a gas turbine per kg of air is more as compared to an I.C. engine.
2. Gas turbine power plants are compact in design and can generate high power.
3. They require less space than steam turbines or IC engines.
4. Compared with steam plants, they have lower initial cost per unit output.
5. The machine is simple to operate and is smooth running.
6. It requires little or no water for cooling.

Disadvantages of gas turbine power plant

7. The thermal efficiency of a simple turbine cycle is low (15 to 20% ) as compared with
I.C. engines (25 to 30% ).
8. Its overall efficiency is very low
9. Noise and Vibrations
 Diesel power plant
Service tank Fuel injection pump Exhaust
Silencer
To atmosphere
Fuel filter

Diesel engine

Generator
Fuel storage tank Pump
Compressed air Hot water Lubricating Cold water
Hot oil
oil cooler Cold oil
Surge tank
Pump
Air filter

Heat
Air compressor Pump
exchanger
Diesel power plant
 Components of diesel power plant
1. Engine – For electric power generation, four-stroke engines are
predominately used. Horizontal engines are used for comparatively smaller
outputs, while vertical engines with multi-cylinder construction are used for
larger outputs. It is generally directly coupled to the generator.

2. Air supply system – Air from atmosphere after filtering is admitted to the
engine. In large plants supercharger (uses an air compressor that increases
the pressure of air supplied to the engine so that more fuel is burned and do
more work)/turbocharger (uses an air compressor driven by the exhaust
gases to compress the air supplied to the engine increasing the amount of
fuel and air fed into the engine and hence more efficient) is used to increase
the output power.

3. Exhaust system – Exhaust system is used to discharge the engine exhaust

to the atmosphere outside the building. A silencer is incorporated to reduce
the noise level.

4. Fuel system – Fuel is stored in the storage tank is pumped to a smaller

service tank at daily or short intervals. Fuel stored in the service tank is fed
to fuel filter and is finally injected in to the engine.
 Components of diesel power plant
5. Cooling system – Hot water from the engine is carried to the surge tank.
From the surge tank, hot water is fed through the heat exchanger. In the
heat exchanger, cold water from the cooling towers is circulated which takes
away the heat of the water from the engine. Cold water is then pumped back
to the engine.

6. Lubricating system – It includes the oil pumps, oil tanks, filters, coolers
and pipe lines. Lubricating system provides lubricating oil to moving parts of
the system to reduce the friction and wear and tear of the engine parts.

7. Starting system – This is an arrangement to start the engine initially, until

firing starts and the unit runs with its own power. There are mainly three
types (1) petrol driven auxiliary engine (2) use of electric motors (3) use of
compressed air from an air compressor.

8. Governing system – The function is to maintain the speed of the engine

constant respective of load on the plant.
 Diesel power plant
Advantages of diesel thermal power plant

1. Design layout of diesel power plant is simple and cheap.

2. Maintenance of diesel power plant is easy.
3. Thermal efficiency of diesel is quite higher than of steam power plant.
4. It can also be designed for portable use.
5. Diesel plants can be located very near to the load centers.

Disadvantages of diesel thermal power plant

6. The cost of diesel is very high compared to coal. Hence, the running cost of
this plant is higher compared to steam and hydro power plants.
7. There is a limitation for size of a diesel engine.
8. Life is less.
9. Noise pollution is very high.
10. High maintenance and lubrication cost.
11. Capacity of diesel plants is limited.