Abstracts - VGB PowerTech Journal 10/2015
Integrating renewables and conventionals – How to design future energy systems?
Rolf Hellinger
The worldwide increasing energy demand, especially in the economically emerging countries, and the climate change are a major challenge for the energy supply. One of the most severe challenges is the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions which can also be seen in the planned investment for energy systems. At the same time, energy systems worldwide are in transition, driven by market and technology trends. As a consequence of these trends, the complexity of future energy systems will extremely increase. The paper outlines a new approach for sustainable, reliable and affordable energy systems of the future, based on technologies, available and under development, which combine different forms of energy.
Challenges for a European utility considering the EU directive on industrial emissions by the end of 2015
Quinto Di Ferdinando, Hans Ulrich Thierbach, Emil Shopov and Ralf Kriegeskotte
The lignite-fired power plant Maritsa East 3, built in 1978, located in Bulgaria has a capacity of 227 MWel for each of its four units. The plant owner ContourGlobal awarded Steinmüller Engineering a contract for implementing a low-NOx firing system. With this latest refurbishment of the power station, Maritsa East 3 is the first lignite-fired power station in the Balkans, which is in full compliance with the European environmental standards.
Impact of the flexible operation of lignite-fired power plants on the occurrence of damages and malfunctions
Thomas Brunne and Frank Nowak
The operation of lignite-fired power plant facilities at the Vattenfall Generation AG has been changing over the past years. Due to market and grid-related frame conditions, the units are much more stressed because of operation modes and start-up and shutdown processes occurring more frequently. It is outlined that frequent start-up and shutdown processes stress facilities much more than permanent operation. Therefore, the number of malfunctions and damages is increasing. The utilisation of lignite-fired power plant facilities will have to adapt to market conditions even further, therefore, Vattenfall Generation has started a new flexibilisation programme.
Forecasting the reliability of components in thermal power plants using the VGB database KISSY
Henk C. Wels
There is a need for high-quality reliability data for power plants that can be used during all phases of the life cycle of plants. Such data are scarce, as reliability handbooks do not often contain data for conventional power plants whereas they do contain data for nuclear plants. In the VGB Research Project 361 a method has been developed to calculate reliability data from the VGB power plant information system KISSY. The results and use of data are described in detail in the final research report.
Risk and insurance management for waste-to-energy plants
Michael Härig
Especially companies in the power business and utilities bear many risks, which cannot be covered adequately with traditional insurance solutions. However, a comprehensive and conclusive risk management programme is important to convince investors, lenders, plant manufacturers, suppliers and customers. The paper describes the risk and insurance management specifically for waste incineration plants. Concepts are shown how risks can be transferred to the insurance market. The main features of insurance for these plants are pointed out and the items are shown which have to be observed regarding insurance coverage.
Increasing availability and minimising fouling in waste-to-energy plants – Innovative boiler design options
Jürgen Peterseim and Udo Hellwig
Improving power plant performance, availability and operational costs are crucial to remain competitive in today’s energy market. The boiler is a key component to achieve these objectives, particularly when using heterogeneous fuels, such as municipal solid waste. This paper describes an innovative boiler design that has been implemented for the first time in the Bamberg waste incineration plant. The new boiler design disregards the traditional heating surface arrangement and instead uses tube bundles arranged in parallel to the gas flow, which provides advantages, such as reduced fouling. The paper also investigates further options to reduce fouling through the use of dimpled tubes, especially the ip tube technology.
Increasing efficiency – Using a temperature-range probe to optimise the choice of material in waste incineration plants
Marie Kaiser, Dominik Schneider, Joos Brell, Dominik Molitor and Tobias Kuttner
The complex material characteristics of waste create special challenges in terms of highly-efficient energy conversion and high plant availability. The characteristics of the respective fuel and the characteristics of the method of firing turn each waste-fired power plant into an individual and inhomogeneous thermo-chemical process. The best protective material has to be selected for each individual power plant. This paper introduces the temperature-range probe to increase efficiency.
Extinguishing systems for the waste industry – Overview and insurance acceptance
Elke Hager
In the past few years, numerous fires had occurred in the recycling industry making facility operators as well as insurance companies looking for alternative, more effective methods to detect and extinguish fires in order to reduce the risk of fire and to maintain insurance coverage. Early fire detection by infrared systems and fully-automated, targeted cooling and fire-extinguishing operations using turrets can avoid fire hazard at a very early stage. These systems are not based on the detection of flames or smoke, but they are intelligent systems analysing temperature patterns that trigger an alarm when critical temperatures are reached. This does not only decrease the risk of fire, but also minimises consequential damage through water and the costs for proper restoration.
Icing of wind turbines – Influences of the wind conditions under icing on the risk assessment
Felix Storck and Frederik Lautenschlager
With the expansion of wind turbines in Germany, locations near residential areas and existing infrastructures (e.g. traffic infrastructure, industrial areas or power lines) are becoming more interesting. New wind turbines are increasingly being built in risky areas associated with wind turbines. Especially in winter the risk of falling ice fragments is increased. For the site-specific risk assessment of falling ice, wind statistics under icing conditions were compared to wind statistics based on long-term data. The basics of ice accretion on wind turbines are also explained.
CFD modelling of CFBC as a valuable tool for the solid fuels
Frans van Dijen and Adlan Omer
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling is an important tool for the manufacturers of Circulating Fluidised Bed Combustion (CFBC) systems. The application of CFD and critical analysis of the results require much knowledge. This is illustrated by modelling the Polaniec unit, assuming different fuels, loads and injections of secondary air. In the first parts of the paper attention is paid to the importance of CFBC for the future and to fuel flexibility, which is also of growing importance. The results of the CFD modelling highlight the importance of homogeneous and symmetrical design of the CFBC. Also fuel flexibility should be considered with the design of the CFBC.
Local heat and power generation by fuel cell boilers in single- and two-family homes
Wolfgang Rogatty
After extensive research and development, the first series-produced fuel cell boiler
Vitovalor 300-P was launched on the market in spring 2014. This micro CHP system, which simultaneously generates electricity with an output of 750 watts and heat with an overall thermal output of 20 kilowatts, is specifically designed for installation in single- and two-family homes. With an electrical efficiency of 37 % and an overall efficiency of 90 %, it is highly efficient. When bottlenecks are caused by volatile power generation, it will be possible to combine these systems to create virtual power plants, thus helping to meet power requirements.
Assessment of corrosion in the flue gas cleaning system using on-line monitoring
Melanie Montgomery, Lars Vendelbo, Nielsen und Michael Bergreen Petersen
Amager unit 1 is a 350 MW multifuel suspension-fired plant commissioned in 2009 to fire biomass (straw and wood pellets). Increasing corrosion problems in the flue gas cleaning system were observed in the gas-gas preheater (GAFO), the booster fan and flue gas ducts. Chlorine containing corrosion products/deposits were detected. An on-line corrosion measurement system was established to determine corrosion mechanisms. It was revealed that many shutdowns/start-ups of the plant influence corrosion and result in decreased lifetime of components and increased maintenance. The change of fuel from woodchip + straw pellets to only woodchip pellets reduced corrosion significantly.
Investigations about a new heavy metal free, low P-content corrosion inhibitor for evaporative cooling systems based on phosphorous modified organic acid (PMOA)
Jürgen Matheis, Anika Stratmann, Wolfgang Hater, Florian Wolf, Rolf Lunkenheimer and Christophe Foret
State-of-the-art-corrosion inhibitor programmes for evaporative cooling systems are based on phosphate, phosphonates, zinc and combinations thereof. Corrosion inhibitors with an improved environmental profile and/or improved performance are needed. A newly developed corrosion inhibitor, phosphorous modified organic acid (PMOA), is presented. It is free of heavy metals and characterised by an excellent environmental profile. Corrosion tests have been carried out in dependence of important application parameters, applying electrochemical methods, beaker tests and long-term tests in cooling circuit simulating devices. Thereby, the efficiency of the new inhibitor as well as combinations with other organic inhibitors have been studied. The improved performance can be transferred directly into savings.