Chapter 1

Power Generation

Malaysias energy generation and usage

Installed capacity and maximum demand of electricity in Peninsular Malaysia by TNB

Installed capacity and maximum demand of electricity in Sabah by the Sabah Energy Board (SEB)

Installed capacity and maximum demand of electricity in Sarawak by the Sarawak Energy Supply Board (SESB

64% of electricity usage in the Malaysian household is for refrigeration & airconditioner
In Malaysia, not less than 90% of the energy mix for power generation comes
from fossil fuels
TNB Total Power installed capacity of 9041 MW ( 7130MW Thermal Plant and
1911 Hidro Plant ) with revenue growth of 11.2% ( 10.8% peninsular and SESB
18.7% )
In the field of Power Generation, TNB are implementing very important coal
energy technologies in a new plant being developed in Manjung, Perak, which
will increase the efficiency to 40%, compared with the average 37% power
efficiency at conventional coal-fired plants

Power and Energy are buzz words in todays world.

Electricity is emerged as basic necessity with Food,

Shelter and Clothing for human being.

Life without electricity has become highly unimaginable.

Electric locomotives, Heating, Cooling, Fans, Blowers,

Motors, Illumination are some applications that converts
electrical energy into useful work.

Reasons of Popularity of electricity: Clean environment for user

Higher efficiency
Better controllability
Quick transfer of power from source to load
Energy conservation is simple

A.Conventional Sources
Thermal (Coal)
Nuclear
Gas
Water
B.Non conventional
Wind
Solar-

PV
Biomass

Sources

Disadvantages Of Conventional Sources

Fossil

fuels shall be depleted, forcing us to

conserve them and find alternative resources.
Toxic, Hazardous gases, Residues pollute
environment.
Overall conversion efficiency is very poor.
Sources are located at remote places with
reference to load, increasing transmission cost.
Maintenance cost is high.

Chemical

energy stored in coal is transformed to

electrical energy.
Coal

powder is fired in boiler that converts water into

steam at high temp. and pressure.
This steam is injected over the blades of steam turbine
(prime mover) in controlled way and hence, rotor of 3 PH
a.c. generator rotates.

Mechanical energy is converted into electrical energy at

rated voltage(10-30KV).

Used steam is cooled down to water using cooling towers

and condensers.

This preheated water is again injected in boiler tubes to

convert back to steam.

Flue gases are passed into atmosphere and fine particles

of ash are collected through electrostatic precipitator (ESP).

Ash(40% of coal weight) is collected and transported to

AHP.

Merits of Coal Thermal Plant

Coal is cheap and available in abundance at present.

It is a time tested process, so no experimentation is

required.

Less space required as compared to Hydro based

station and less hazardous than Nuclear power plant.

Less initial cost as compared to other conventional

process of power generation.

Demerits of Coal Thermal plant

Calorific value (Kcal/Kg) of coal is very low and large ash

content.

Huge volume of ash is produced daily and its disposal is

burning issue today.

Atmospheric pollution is very high.

Transportation of coal to plant and transmission of

generated power to load centre involves large expenses.

Using diesel engine as prime mover is one of the

popular methods of generating power.
When prime mover of the alternators is diesel
engine, the power station is calleddiesel power
station.
For generating electrical power, it is essential to
rotate the rotor of analternatorby means of a
prime mover. The prime mover can be driven by
different methods.

1. Diesel engine :
Diesel engine is a compression
ignition(CI) engine.
The two stroke cycle engine is more
favoured for diesel power plants.
The air required for the diesel engine is
drawn through the air filter from the
atmosphere and compressed inside the
cylinder.
The fuel(diesel) from the diesel engine
is drawn through a filter from the all
day tank and injected into the cylinder
through fuel injectors.
Because of the high temperature and
pressure of the compressed air, the fuel
ignites.

Diesel engine
The fuel burns and the burnt gases
expand to do work on the moving
part inside the cylinder called piston.

This movement of the piston rotates a

flywheel and the engine is directly
coupled to electric generator.

The gases after expansion inside the

cylinder is exhausted into the
atmosphere and passes through a
silencer in order to reduce the noise.
2. Starting system:

Diesel engine used in diesel power

plants is not self starting. The engine
is started from cold condition with
the help of an air compressor.
1.

3. Fuel supply system:

Fuel from the storage tank is pumped

through a filter into a smaller tank
called all day tank. This tank supplies
the daily requirements of the diesel
engine.

The all day tank is placed high so

that the fuel flows to the engine
under gravity with sufficient
pressure.
4. Air intake system :

The air required for the combustion

of fuel inside the diesel engine
cylinder is drawn through the air
filter. The purpose of the filter is to
remove dust from the incoming air.

The

dry filter may be made of

felt, wood or cloth.

In wet filter, oil bath is used.
In this the air passes over a
bath of oil where the dust
particles get coated on the oil.

5. Exhaust system:
The exhaust gases coming out of the
engine is very noisy. In order to
reduce the noise a silencer(muffler) is
used.
6. Cooling system:
The temperature of the burning fuel
inside the engine cylinder is in the
order of 15000C to 20000C. In order
to lower this temperature water is
circulated around the engine.
The water envelopes(water jacket)
the engine. The heat from the
cylinder, piston, combustion chamber
etc., is carried by the circulating
water.

The hot water leaving the jacket is

passed through the heat exchanger
The heat from the heat exchanger
is carried away by the raw water
circulated through the heat
exchanger and is cooled in the
cooling tower.

7.

Lubricating system:
This circuit includes lubricating oil
tank, oil pump and oil cooler.
The purpose of the lubrication system
is to reduce the wear of the engine
moving parts. Part of the cylinder
such as piston, shafts, valves must be
lubricated.
Lubrication also helps to cool the
engine.
In the lubrication system the oil is
pumped from the lubricating oil tank
through the oil cooler where the oil is
cooled by the cold water entering the
engine.
The hot oil after cooling the moving
parts return to the lubricating oil
tank.

Application:
1. small scale production of electric power- produce power in
the range of 2 to 50 MW
2. no other easily available alternatives of producing
electric power-suitable for mobile power generation and widely
used in railways and ships.
3. standby supply of different industries, commercial
complexes, hospitals, etc. During power cut, these
diesel power generators are run to fulfil required
demand-continuity of supply such as hospitals, telephone
exchanges, radio stations, cinema theatres and industries.

Advantages:

This is simple in design point of view.

Required very small space.
It can also be designed for portable use.
It has quick starting facility, the small diesel generator
set can be started within few seconds.
It can also be stopped as when required stopping small
sizediesel power station, even easier than its
starting
As these machines can easily be started and stopped as
when required, there may not be any standby loss in the
system.
Cooling is easy and required smaller quantity of water in
this type power station.

Disadvantages:
1. Very high cost compared to coal. This is the
main reason for which a diesel power plant is
not getting popularity over other means of
generating power. In other words the running
cost of this plant is higher compared to steam
and hydro power plants.
2. The plant generally used to produce small power
requirement.
3. Cost of lubricants is high.
4. Maintenance is quite complex and costs high

Hydro-electric power is generated by the flow of water through

turbine, turning the blades of the turbine.

A generator shaft connected to this turbine also rotates and

hence generates electricity.

The main components of a hydel power plant are:

1. Dam/Reservoir/Large buffer tank

2. Penstock
3. Power House
a. Turbines
b. Generators
c. Step-up Transformers

Block Schematic for Hydroelectric Power Plant

Flowing water is
directed at a turbine
(remember turbines are
just advanced
waterwheels). The
flowing water causes
the turbine to rotate,
converting the waters
kinetic energy into
mechanical energy.

Hydroelectric Power System Operation

Amount of Electricity generated by a hydroelectric power

plant

The amount of electricity that can be generated by a hydropower plant depends on two
factors:
a) flow rate - the quantity of water flowing in a given time; and
b) head - the height from which the water falls.
The greater the flow and head, the more electricity produced.

a) Flow Rate = the quantity of water flowing

When more water flows through a turbine, more electricity can be produced.
The flow rate depends on the size of the river and the amount of water flowing in it.
Power production is considered to be directly proportional to river flow. That is, twice
as much water flowing will produce twice as much electricity.

b) Head = the height from which water falls

The farther the water falls, the more power it has. The higher the dam, the farther the
water falls, producing more hydroelectric power.
Power production is also directly proportional to head. That is, water falling twice as
far will produce twice as much electricity.

It is important to note that when

determining head, hydrologists
take into account the pressure
behind the water. Water behind
the dam puts pressure on the
falling water.

A standard equation for calculating energy production:

Power = (Head) x (Flow) x (Efficiency)
11.8

Power = the electric power in kilowatts or kW

Head

= the distance the water falls (measured in feet)

Flow

= the amount of water flowing (measured in cubic feet per second or cfs)

Efficiency = How well the turbine and generator convert the power of
falling water into electric power. This can range from 60%
(0.60) for older, poorly maintained hydroplants to 90%
(0.90) for newer, well maintained plants.
11.8 = Index that converts units of feet and seconds into kilowatts

As an example, lets see how much power can be generated by the power plant at
Roosevelt Dam, the uppermost dam on the Salt River in Arizona.
Although the dam itself is 357 feet high, the head (distance the water falls) is 235 feet.
The typical flow rate is 2200 cfs. Lets say the turbine and generator are 80% efficient.

Power = (Head) x (Flow) x (Efficiency)

11.8

Power = 235ft. x 2200 cfs x .80

11.8

Power = 517,000 x .80

11.8
Power = 413,600
11.8
Power = 35,051 kilowatts (kW)
Roosevelts generator is actually rated at a capacity of
36,000 kW.

Depending on the capacity, hydro power plants

are divided into the following categories :

Hydro plants are normally not in a continuous operation mode and

used for peak periods during the day like the wee hours and in the
evening.

Also, they are used when the continuously operating thermal plants go
into overhauling.

This is possible due to the less start up time required by hydro power
stations which is normally in few minutes as compared to thermal
power plant which is more than 8 hours.

The command for starting or shutting is issued by from the related

Load Dispatch Center (LDC) of that particular region

Advantages of Hydro Power Generation

Once a dam is constructed, electricity can be produced
at a constant rate
If electricity is not needed, the sluice gates can be shut,
stopping electricity generation
The build up of water in the lake means that energy can
be stored until needed, when the water is released to
produce electricity.
The lake's water can be used for irrigation purposes.
Hydropower is fueled by water, so it's a clean fuel
source. Hydropower doesn't pollute the air like power
plants that burn fossil fuels, such as coal, oil or natural
gas.

Disadvantages of Hydro Power Plant

Dams are extremely expensive to build and must be built to a very high
standard.

People living in villages and towns that are in the valley to be flooded,
must move out.

Hydro power plants can be impacted by drought. When water is not

available, the hydro power plants can't produce electricity.

Solar power plantor Solar photovoltaic systemis one

ofrenewable energy system
used PV modules to convert sunlight into electricity.
The electricity generated can be either stored or used
directly, fed back into grid line or combined with one or
more other electricity generators or more renewable
energy source.
very reliable and clean source of electricity that can suit a
wide range of applications such as residence, industry,
agriculture, livestock, etc.

 PV

module converts sunlight into DC

electricity.
Solar charge controller regulates the
voltage and current coming from the PV panels
going tobattery and prevents battery
overcharging and prolongs the battery life.
Inverter converts DC output of PV panels or
wind turbine into a clean AC current for AC
appliances or fed back into grid line.

 Battery

stores energy for supplying to

electrical appliances when there is a
demand.
Load is electrical appliances that
connected to solar PV system such as lights,
radio, TV, computer,refrigerator, etc.
Auxiliary energy sources- is diesel
generator or other renewable energy
sources.