Gas Turbines Saving Cost, Emissions
A new, more efficient natural gas turbine technology has added one more reason for energy companies to move away from coal-fired power plants.
As reported by Machine Design, the emergence of Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) create a more efficient energy use with lower emissions. Over the past decade, more than 100 coal-fired plants have been replaced or converted to natural gas, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Key factors pushing coal plant owners to make the changes include stricter emission standards and lower natural gas prices. Converting from coal to gas should cut CO2 emissions in half.
CCGT plants are more efficient than coal plants because they use the heat generated from fuel combustion to make up to 50% more electricity. First, fuel burned in the combustion chamber create combustion gases that power turbine generators to produce electricity. Then waste heat from the gas turbine, which is usually lost, gets routed to boil water, creating steam to spin a steam turbine generator and generate additional electricity.
One aspect of the retrofitting of such plants is relocating sensors and emission controls on legacy turbines.
“We measure the equipment using laser scanning, then create precise 3D models of the turbine assemblies for engineers to analyze for the best installation points,” said Steve Kersen, president of NVision, which provides engineering services for the retrofit of the existing turbines. “This can result in huge cost and time savings for projects that would have taken much longer using less-sophisticated measurement methods. In one recent project, a southeast power plant converting to a CCGT system used our services and the output wattage increased by 35%, and they saved over $250,000 by using our services.”
Modernizing Your CAD System
The use of 3D CAD software continues to evolve the design and evaluation of products and systems. Finding the right vendor for such an upgrade is an important consideration.
“Modernizing Your CAD: 7 Criteria to Consider” is a new white paper presented by Machine Design and Onshape. It offers a pragmatic and comprehensive checklist to jumpstart your evaluation process. Think of it as a cheat sheet for what to ask professional 3D CAD vendors when they’re demonstrating their products. The guide explores the most important criteria to consider when comparing CAD systems.