Category: Power Plant Engineering And Sources Of Energy

Over 85% of the energy used in the world is from non-renewable sources. Most of the developed nations are dependent on non-renewable energy sources such as fossil fuels (coal and oil) and nuclear power. These sources are called non-renewable because they cannot be renewed or regenerated quickly enough to keep pace with their use. Coal: Coal…

Renewable energy comes from the sources that can theoretically be renewed as quickly as they are consumed. If used at a sustainable rate, these sources will be available for consumption for thousands of years or longer. Unfortunately, some potentially renewable energy sources, such as biomass and geothermal, are being depleted in some areas because the usage…

The sources of energy can be classified as renewable and non-renewable. Renewable form of energy can be regenerated and source of energy is infinite, e.g., solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, and geothermal energy are renewable forms of energy. In contrast to renewable energy, non-renewable energy cannot be regenerated and its source is limited, e.g.,…

The nuclear reactors can be classified on the basis of neutron energy, fuel used, moderator used, and coolant used. On the basis of neutron energy, we can classify the nuclear reactor as fast reactor and thermal reactor; on the basis of fuel used, we can classify them as natural fuel reactor and enriched uranium reactor;…

Fuel: 92U235, 94Pu239, 92U233 are nuclear fuels used in nuclear reactor to release the heat energy. In uranium ore, 92U235 is available only up to 0.7% and the remaining is 92U238. The other two fuels 94Pu239 and 92U233 are formed in the reactor during the fission process of 92U235. 90Th232 is formed due to absorption of neutron by 92U235 without fission. In homogeneous reactors, the fuel (uranium) and moderator (carbon) are…

In nuclear power plant, nuclear energy released from radioactive materials due to fission reaction is utilized to heat the water and convert it into superheated steam. Rest of the electricity generation process is similar to steam power plant as discussed in Section 1.3. The main problem is careful handling of radioactive fuel used in nuclear reactor.…

The principle of electricity generation in the case of hydroelectric power plant is the same as in thermal power plant; only difference is that the shaft power to the turbine is provided by pressure and kinetic energy of water in the case of hydroelectric power plant and in thermal power plant the shaft power to…

Thermal power plant may be coal based or gas based. In coal-based power plant, coal is used as burning fuel and the heat energy is transferred to water to convert it into superheated steam. The heat energy of the steam is converted into shaft power through expansion of steam in steam turbine. The shaft of…

Power plant engineering is a branch of engineering which deals with conversion of various forms of energy into electrical energy. In this text we will discuss about thermal power, hydroelectric power, nuclear power, and non-conventional sources of energy. In thermal power plant, coal, diesel, petrol, natural gas, and kerosene oil are used as fuel and…