What is wind energy?

 Wind Energy is the energy contained in the force of the winds blowing across the earths surface.  Wind is created when air that has been warmed over sun heated land rises, leaving a vacuum in the space it once occupied.  Cooler surrounding air then rushes in to fill the vacuum. This movement of rushing air is what we know as wind.

WIND TURBINE

TYPES OF WINDMILLS
i) Horizontal Axis Windmills (a) Multi blade type windmill (b) Sail type windmill (c) Propeller type windmill. ii) Vertical Axis Windmills (a) Savonius type windmill (b) Darrieus type windmill.

SITE SELECTION FOR WIND MILL

Following factors should be considered while locating Wind Energy Conversion Systems (WECS). i. Wind energy conversion machines should be installed at sites where winds are strong and persistent. The most suitable sites for wind turbines would be found where the annual average wind speeds are known to be moderately high. It is desirable to have average wind speed of about 3.5 -4.5 m/sec, which is the lower limit at which WECS generators start turning. An ideal site will be one where a smooth steady wind flows all the time. ii. It is desirable to install WECS at higher altitudes because the winds tend to have higher velocities at higher altitudes.

iii. The ground conditions at the site should be such that the foundations for WECS are secured. The land cost should be low. iv. Icing problem, salt spray or blowing dust should not be present at the site as they affect aero turbing blades. v. The site selected should be near to the users of generated electric energy. vi. The site should be near to the road or railway facilities. The best sites for wind energy systems are found off shore and the seacoast and at mountains.

PERFORMANCE OF WIND MACHINES

The wind electric plants should make use of wind energy in the best possible method. The overall efficiency of an aero-generator is calculated as follows: = A. g. e Gen = overall conversion efficiency of an aero-generator. g = Efficiency of gearing e = efficiency of coupling Gen = efficiency of generator A = efficiency of aerotubine
Useful shaft power output = Cp Wind power input

Where Cp = coefficient of performance

Single blade type windmill

Multi blade type windmill

Darrieus type windmill

Drag Type Vertical Windmill

MULTI BLADE TYPE WINDMILL

Advantages of Wind Power

 The wind blows day and night, which allows windmills to produce electricity throughout the day. (Faster during the day)  Energy output from a wind turbine will vary as the wind varies, although the most rapid variations will to some extent be compensated for by the inertia of the wind turbine rotor.  Wind energy is a domestic, renewable source of energy that generates no pollution and has little environmental impact. Up to 95 percent of land used for wind farms can also be used for other profitable activities including ranching, farming and forestry.  The decreasing cost of wind power and the growing interest in renewable energy sources should ensure that wind power will become a viable energy source in the United States and worldwide.

TIDAL POWER
Tide is periodic rise and fall of water level of the sea. In about 24 hours there are two high tides and two low tides. The difference between high and low water levels is called the range of the tide. Tides occur due to the attraction of seawater by the moon. These tides can be used to produce electrical power which is called tidal power. Worlds first tidal power plant was commissioned at Rance in France. This plant is 1240 MW capacity.

SELECTION OF LOCATION OF TIDAL POWER PLANT

 The tidal range at the desired location should be adequate throughout the year.  The site selected for tidal power plant should be free from the wave attack of sea.  There should be no appreciable change in tidal pattern at the proposed site.  The site at which tidal power plant is to be located should not have excessive sediment load.

CLASSIFICATION
Tidal power plants are classified on the basis of number of basin used for the power generation. They are further subdivided as one way or two way system as per the cycle of operation for power generation. Various types of power plants are as follows: i. Single basin system a) One way system b) Two way system c) Two way with pump storage. ii. Double basin system a) Simple double basin system b) Double basin with pumpling.

SINGLE BASIN TWO WAY

DOUBLE BASIN ONE WAY

Single basin system Two way system

Advantages
It is free from pollution. It is inexhaustible and does not depend on rain. Tidal power plants do not require large area of valuable land because they are located on seashore. Tidal power has a unique capacity to meet peak power demand effectively when it works in combination with hydropower plant or thermal power plant

Disadvantages
The output varies because of variation in tidal range. The power transmission cost is high because the tidal power plants are located away from load centers. Sedimentation of basins are the problems associated with tidal power plants. The turbines have to work on a wide range of variable head because of variable tidal range. Capital cost of the plant is high.

Geothermal energy

Geothermal energy
Geothermal energy is heat transported from the interior of the earth. It is recoverable in some form such as steam or hot water. The earth is said to have been created as a mass of liquids and gases, 5 to 10 percent of which was steam. As the fluids cooled, by losing heat at the surface, an outer sold crust formed and the steam condensed to form oceans and lakes in depressions of that curst. The crust now averages about 20 mi (32 km) in thickness. Below that crust, the molten mass, called magma, is still in the process of cooling.

GEOTHERMAL SOURCES
1. Hydrothermal convective systems: These are again sub-classified as: i) Vapour -dominated or dry steam fields. ii) Liquid-dominated system or wet steam fields, and iii) Hot-water fields. 2. Geo pressure resources. 3. Petro-thermal or Hot dry rocks (HDR). 4. Magma resources. 5. Volcanoes.

Geothermal sources
Geothermal sources are therefore of three basic kinds (1) hydrothermal, (2) geopressured, (3) petrothermal. Hyper-Thermal Fields 1. Wet fields. Where the water is pressurized and temperatures are above 1000C. when they are led to the surface a fraction will be splashed into steam and a major part remains as the boiling water. 2. Dry fields. They produce dry saturated steam or superheated steam at pressure above atmospheric. (b) Semi-Thermal Fields These are capable of producing hot water at temperature above 1000C.

Technologies for geothermal resource exploitation

Resources in high-pressure steam fields  Dry steam power plant  Single flash steam power plant  Double flash power plant  Binary cycle power plant

Dry steam power plant

 It is common practice to re inject the spent fluid, to prevent the falling fluid pressures and make the resource more sustainable  Dry steam plant is the simplest. Most common and most commercially attractive

TEMPERATURE Vs ENTROPY

Single flash steam power plant

 Geothermal fluid reaching the surface may be wet steam  A separator is installed simply to protect the turbine from a massive influx of water  Avoid flashing in the well that lead to a rapid build-up of scale deposits as minerals dissolved in the fluid come out of solution,

Geo pressure resources

BIOMASS
Biomass, a renewable energy source, is biological material derived from living, or recently living organisms, such as wood, waste, and alcohol fuels. Biomass energy is derived from three distinct energy sources: wood, waste, and alcohol fuels. Biomass can be converted to other usable forms of energy like methane gas or transportation fuels like ethanol and biodiesel.

Biomass conversion
 Thermal conversion
( Combustion, Pyrolysis, Gasification)

 Biochemical conversion
(aerobic digestion ,anaerobic digestion, fermentation)

 Chemical conversion

BIOMASS GASIFIER Biomass gasifiers are devices performing thermo chemical conversion of biomass through the process of oxidation and reduction under sub stochiometric conditions. These, as sources of combustible gas for energizing internal combustion engines, have been in existence for nearly half a century. Gasifiers are broadly classified into updraft, downdraft and cross draft types depending on the direction of airflow.

Raw Materials for Gasification

UPDRAFT GASIFIER

DOWNDRAFT GASIFIER

CROSSDRAFT GASIFIER

THROAT TYPE DOWNDRAFT GASIFIER

ADVANTAGES Suitable for biomass gasification Low Tar Yield High Carbon Conversion Low Ash Carry Over Simple Construction and Operation

DISADVANTAGES High Gas Exit Temperature Uniformly Sized Feed Stock Limited Moisture Content of Feed (H2O<30%)

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS OF THE DOWNDRAFT GASIFIER

BIOGAS
Biogas is produced by the decomposition of animal wastes, plant wastes and human wastes. It is produced by digestion, pyrolysis or hydro-gasification. Digestion is a biological process that takes place in the absence of oxygen and in the presence of aerobic organisms at ambient pressure an temperature of 35-700C. The container used for digestion process is called digester. There are two significant temperature zones in an aerobic digestion. It is observed that two types of micro-organisms mesophilic and thermophilic are responsible for digestion at the two temperature ranges. The optimum mesophilic temperature is around 350C while optimum thermophilic temperature is about 550C.

CLASSIFICATION OF BIO-GAS PLANTS

Various types of biogas plants are as follows i) Continuous and batch type ii) The dome and drum type

Continuous and batch type

The continuous process may be completed in a single stage or separated into two stages. In the digester the entire process of conversion of complex organic compounds into biogas is completed in a single chamber. This chamber is regularly fed with raw materials while the spend residue keeps moving out.

Bio Gas Composition

Particulars CO H2 CH4 N2 CO2 Gas C.V. (kcal/Nm3) Gas generated in Nm3/kg of biomass Rice Husk 15-20% 10-15% Upto 4% 45-55% 8-12% Above 1050 2 Wood Biomass 15-20% 15-20% Upto 3% 45-50% 8-12% Above 1100 2.5

KVIC Digester for Gobar Gas Generator

KVIC Digester for Gobar Gas Generator Construction of the gas plant can be understood broadly from fig.(7). It mainly consists of two main parts: 1. Digester or pet, 2. The gas holder or the gas collector. Digester Also called as the fermentation plant, it is sort of well of masonry work, dug and built below the ground level. The depth of this well varies from 3.5 meters to 6 meters, and diameter from 1.35 meters to 6 meters, depending upon the gas generating capacity and the quality of raw material fed each day. The digested well is divided vertically into two semi-cylindrical compartments by means of a partition wall in the centre. The partition wall is lower than the level of the digester rim and hence it is submerged in slurry when the digester full. Two slanting cement pipes reach the bottom of the well on either of the partition wall.

 One pipe serves as the inlet and the other a outlet. An inlet chamber near the digester at surface level serves for mixing dung and water which is done mechanically or manually. The mixture of dung and water in proportion of 4:5 by volume, called slurry flows down the inlet pipe to the bottom of the primary compartment of the digester. The digester is designed to hold 60 days raw materials. This ensures enough stay time of the input material for complete digestion. The outlet chamber is again at surface level, just a few cms below the level of the inlet chamber. If both compartments of the digester are full an if more slurry is added from the inlet, then an equivalent the digester are full and if more slurry is added from the inlet, then an equivalent amount of fermented slurry out of the outlet and discharged into composite pit.

Gas Holder
It is a drum constructed of mild steel, sheet, cylindrical in shape with a conical top and radial supports at the bottom. It fits into the digester like a stopper. It sinks into the slurry due to its own weight and rests upon the ring constructed for this purpose. The gas is generated the holder rises and floats freely on the surface of the slurry. As pipe is provided at the top of the holder for flow of gas for usage. To prevent the holder from tilting a central guide pipe is fitted to frame and is fixed at the bottom in the masonary work. The pressure under which the gas is generated in this arrangement varies between 7-9 cms of water column. The holder also acts as a seal for the gas. The cost of the holder constitutes almost 40 per cent of the digester.

CHINESE DIGESTER (JANTA BIOGAS PLANTS)

Chinese Digester (Janta Biogas Plants)

Chinese have mainly gone into biogas technology for the sake of fertilizer with biogas as by product. When about 5,00,000 biogas plants exists in India, China has gone very much ahead with more than about 20 million plant (1988 data). The Chinese design is quite different from that of KVIC. The Chinese design contains a fixed dome for the collection of the gas and hence the gas availability is at variable pressures. The cost of the design is very much low and the construction is easier. As an illustration, it can be said that 2 cu m plant of Chinese type can be constructed at a cost of about Rs.3,000, where the KVIC may cost around Rs.6,000 for the same capacity. The difference in cost may vary for different capacities but yet the Chinese type is cheaper. The fixed dome is made of masonry and this replaces the floating drum of KVIC digester. Generally, the pressure of the gas that exists in KVIC plants is about 15 cm of water while a pressure of even 70 cm, of water in Chinese type of design is not uncommon.

FIXED DOME

ANAEROBIC DIGESTER FIXED DOME

The fixed dome is made of masonry structure. The digestion takes places in the masonry well. The gas generated is taken out from the top. A removable man hole cover sealed with clay is provided. The generation of gas in biogas plants depends upon the following factors: i) pH or Hydrogen ion concentration. ii) Temperature. iii) Loading rate. iv) Seeding v) Solid content of the feed material. vi) Type of feed stocks. vii) Nutrients. viii) Pressure. ix) Stirring and mixing of the contents of the digester. x) Acid forming and methane forming bacteria.