Thermal Power Plants

(Steam Power Plants)

Thermal Energy
The kinetic energy of the molecules in a . 1
solid, liquid or gas
The more kinetic energy, the more thermal . 2
energy the object possesses
Physicists also call this the internal energy of . 3
an object

STEAM POWER PLANTS

Steam Power Plants

Electricity

generation in thermal power plants

if characterized by the main source of
generation being firing of coal, gas etc.
Steam is produced in a boiler, and it drives a
turbine connected to an alternator. Heat
energy is converted to electric energy within
the so-called steam cycle.

Energy Conversion Process in Steam

Power Plants

Fuel
Chemical
Energy

Chemical Energy is
Converted into Thermal
Energy by Combustion
In Boiler

Thermal
Energy

Thermal Energy is
Converted into
Mechanical Energy
In Turbine
Mechanical
Energy

Electrical
Energy

Mechanical Energy is
Converted into
Electrical Energy
In Generator

. . . Energy Conversion

Fuel, Air and water produce steam in the boiler by

combustion
Steam of high temperature and pressure is
expended from high pressure to low pressure in the
turbine
Thermal energy is converted into kinetic energy and
finally mechanical energy
This mechanical energy derives the generator to
produce electricity

Steam Power Plant can work in two

Manners
1.
2.

Production of electricity
Production of electricity with production of
steam for the use in industry e.g. paper
mills, textile mills, sugar mills, refineries

Processing of Power Plant

Boiler
Water

Steam

Grid

Turbine
Fuel

Generator

Exhaust Steam
Waste Gases

Merits of Steam Power Plant

Fuel is cheaper*
Less space is required
The initial cost is less
Plant can be located near the load centre
Turbine can work at 25% overload continuously
A portion of steam can be used in various industries

Demerits of Steam Power Plant

Maintenance

and operating costs are high

Pollution of atmosphere is one of the major
problems
Water is required in huge quantity
Handling of coal and disposal of ash are
difficult tasks
It requires long time for installation
Efficiency falls quickly below 75%

Site Selection
Availability

of Coal (Fuel)
Proper arrangement for ash disposal
Nature of the land
Location from load centre
Availability of water
Transport facilities
Availability of labor

Main Circuits of Thermal Power Plant

Coal and Ash Circuit

Air and Gas circuit
Feed Water and Steam circuit
Cooling Water circuit

Coal and Ash Circuit

Coal

from the storage is fed to the boiler

through coal handling equipment for the
generation of steam.
Ash produced due to combustion of coal is
removed to ash storage through ashhandling system

Air and Gas Circuit

Air is supplied to the combustion chamber of the

boiler either through forced draught or induced
draught fan or by using both.
The dust from the air is removed before supplying to
the combustion chamber.
The exhaust gases carrying sufficient quantity of
heat and ash are passed through the air-heater.
Here the exhaust heat of the gases is given to the air
then it is passed through the dust collectors where
most of the dust is removed before exhausting the
gases to the atmosphere

Feed Water and Steam Circuit

The steam generated in the boiler is fed to the steam prime

mover to develop the power
The steam coming out of the prime mover is condensed in the
condenser and then fed to the boiler with the help of pump
The condensate is heated in the feed-heaters using the steam
tapped from different points of the turbine
The feed water supplied from external source is passed
through the purifying plant to reduce to reduce dissolve salts to
an acceptable level
This purification is necessary to avoid the scaling of the boiler
tubes

Cooling Water Circuit

The

quantity of cooling water required to

condense the steam is considerably high and
it is taken from a lake, river or sea
. The water is pumped in by means of pumps
and the hot water after condensing the steam
is cooled before sending back into the pond
by means of cooling towers

Major Parts of Steam Power Plant

1. Boilers
2. Superheater
3. Turbine
4. Condenser
5. Economizer
6. Air preheater
7. Induced Draft Fan
8. Forced Draft Fan
9. Chimney
10. Coal Handling Plant
11. Ash Handling Plant
12. Cooling Tower
13. Alternator
14. Evaporator
15. Pumps

Boiler. 1
Purpose: To produce steam under pressure
Types:
1.
Fire Tube Boiler: Hot gases of combustion are
inside the tubes and the tubes are surrounded by
water
2.
Water Tube Boiler: Water is inside the tube and
hot gases are outside the tube
One of these are used according to the requirements
(See advantages and disadvantages of both in text)

Fire Tube Boiler

Water Tube Boiler

Boiler Furnace
It is like a chamber in which fuel is burnt to produce
heat energy
Furnace walls are made of refractory materials
such as fire clay, silica etc.
Types:
1.
Plain refractory Walls: Used where furnace
temperature is not very high
2.
Hollow Refractory Walls: Through which air is
circulated and used for quite high temperatures
3.
Partially Water Cooled Walls: Similar to plain but a
potion of surface is covered by water tubes. It is
used for high temperature applications

Superheater
Device used to remove the traces of moisture from saturated
steam leaving boiler tubes.

It also increase the temperature above saturation temperature

Classes:
1.
Radiant Superheater: Located in the furnace between the
furnace water walls and absorbs heat from the burning fuel
through radiation
2.
Convection Superheater: Located well back in boiler tube
bank. It receives its heat from flue gases through convection.

(Advantages and disadvantages on text)

Economizer
It

absorbs heat from outgoing flue gases and

used for raising the temperature of feed
water coming from condenser
Economizer raises efficiency of boiler by 10
-12 % thus 5 15 % of fuel consumption is
saved

Air Preheater
Air

preheater is used to recover heat from

flue gases since entire heat cant be
extracted by economizer
Boiler Efficiency is increased by 1% if the
avg. air temp. is increased by 20C

Steam Turbines

1.

2.

There are two types of steam turbines

Impulse type: Steam expands completely in
the stationary nozzles, the pressure over
the moving blades remains constant.
Reaction Type: Steam is expanded both in
fixed blades (nozzles) and moving blades.
(More detail on text)

Coal Handling
1.

2.

Coal shouldnt be exposed to air

It pollutes the air and releases poisonous gases like
carbon monoxide
The coal from the heaps is moved into the plant by
means of long conveyors that are electrically
operated
There are many different types of conveyors and
coal-handling devices like screwing conveyors,
bucket elevators, grabbing bucket conveyors etc.

Coal Crusher
Before

the coal is sent to the plant it has to

be ensured that the coal is of uniform size so
it is passed through the crushers
Rotary crushers are very commonly used for
this purpose as they can provide a
continuous flow of coal to the pulverizer

. . .Coal Crusher

Pulverizer
Are

used to smash materials into tiny

granular.
Most commonly used pulverizer is the Boul
Mill
The arrangement consists of 2 stationary
rollers and a power driven baul in which
pulverization takes place as the coal passes
through the sides of the rollers and the baul

STEAM POWER PLANT

LAYOUT