TEXT FOR ADDITIONAL READING AND UNDERSTANDING
CLASSIFICATION
Thermal power plants are classified by the type of fuel and the type of prime mover installed:
Vocabulary
nuclear power plant |
атомная электростанция |
nuclear reactor |
ядерный реактор |
steam turbine |
паровая турбина |
steam turbine generator |
паротурбогенератор |
fuel |
заправлять топливом |
natural gas fired |
работающий на природном газе |
combustion turbine |
газовая турбина |
burn |
жечь; сжигать |
side-effect |
побочный эффект; побочное действие |
geothermal power plant |
геотермальная электростанция |
extract |
извлекать; удалять |
underground rock |
подземные горные породы |
renewable energy |
возобновляемый источник энергии |
biomass |
биомасса |
sugar cane |
сахарный тростник |
municipal waste |
городские отходы |
landfill |
захоронение отходов |
methane |
метан |
integrated mill |
предприятие, работающее на своем сырье |
steel mill |
сталелитейный завод |
blast furnace |
доменная печь; домна |
exhaust |
исчерпывать |
steam boiler |
паровой котёл |
By fuel
- Nuclear power plants use a nuclear reactor’s heat to operate a steam turbine generator. About 20% of electric generation in the USA is produced by nuclear power plants.
- Fossil fuelled power plants may also use a steam turbine generator or in the case of natural gas fired plants may use a combustion turbine. A coal-fired power station produces electricity by burning coal to generate steam, and has the side-effect of producing a large amount of carbon dioxide, which is released from burning coal and contributes to global warming. About 50% of electric generation in the USA is produced by coal fired power plants
- Geothermal power plants use steam extracted from hot underground rocks.
- Renewable energy plants or Biomass Fuelled Power Plants may be fuelled by waste from sugar cane, municipal solid waste, landfill methane, or other forms of biomass.
- In integrated steel mills, blast furnace exhaust gas is a low-cost, although low-energy-density, fuel.
- Waste heat from industrial processes is occasionally concentrated enough to use for power generation, usually in a steam boiler and turbine.
- Solar thermal electric plants use sunlight to boil water, which turns the generator.
Vocabulary
prime mover |
первичный двигатель |
steam turbine plant |
паротурбинная станция |
dynamic pressure |
давление от ударной нагрузки |
expanding steam |
расширение пара |
blade |
лопасть |
gas turbine plant |
газотурбинный двигатель |
directly |
непосредственно, точно |
“peak” energy |
максимальная энергия, пиковая энергия |
demand |
спрос |
base loaded |
базисный режим станции |
unit |
блок, агрегат |
completely |
абсолютно, полностью |
unmanned |
упаравляемый автоматически |
remotely |
дистанционно, отдаленно |
commission |
вводить в экплуатацию |
сombined cycle plant |
cтанция с комбинированным циклом |
overall efficiency |
общий КПД |
reciprocating engine |
поршневой двигатель |
community |
сообщество |
cogeneration plant |
теплоэлектростанция |
critical facility |
важное учреждение |
backup power |
резервное питание |
power outage |
отключение электроэнергии |
diesel oil |
дизельное топливо |
heavy oil |
необработанная нефть |
microturbine |
микротурбина |
Stirling engine |
двигатель Стирлинга |
digester gas |
реактор для ферментативного разложения газа |
treatment |
очистка |
water treatment plant |
станция водоочистки |
By prime mover
- Steam turbine plants use the dynamic pressure generated by expanding steam to turn the blades of a turbine. Almost all large non-hydro plants use this system. About 80% of all electric power produced in the world is by use of steam turbines.
- Gas turbine plants use the dynamic pressure from flowing gases (air and combustion products) to directly operate the turbine. Natural-gas fuelled (and oil fueled) combustion turbine plants can start rapidly and so are used to supply "peak" energy during periods of high demand, though at higher cost than base-loaded plants. These may be comparatively small units, and sometimes completely unmanned, being remotely operated. This type was pioneered by the UK, Princetown being the world's first plant, commissioned in 1959.
- Combined cycle plants have both a gas turbine fired by natural gas, and a steam boiler and steam turbine which use the hot exhaust gas from the gas turbine to produce electricity. This greatly increases the overall efficiency of the plant, and many new baseload power plants are combined cycle plants fired by natural gas.
- Internal combustion reciprocating engines are used to provide power for isolated communities and are frequently used for small cogeneration plants. Hospitals, office buildings, industrial plants, and other critical facilities also use them to provide backup power in case of a power outage. These are usually fuelled by diesel oil, heavy oil, natural gas and landfill gas.
- Microturbines, Stirling engine and internal combustion reciprocating engines are low-cost solutions for using opportunity fuels, such as landfill gas, digester gas from water treatment plants and waste gas from oil production.