Small-scale Power Plants Research Articles

Aspects of commercialization of small nuclear power plants in Russia and Mongolia

Subject. The article considers prospects for the development of nuclear energy, global problems of energy supply. Objectives. The aim is to identify the socio-economic efficiency of creation and operation of low-power nuclear power plants. Methods. The study employs methods of systems, comparative, structural, and logical analysis. Results. We analyzed prospects for the operation of low-power nuclear power plants, revealed their advantages and disadvantages, proposed recommendations to increase the level of usefulness and reduce the cost of low-power nuclear power plants. Conclusions. Small-scale nuclear power plants have the potential to provide a more sustainable and secure energy future for the world.

Techno-Economic Feasibility Study of a Combined Cycle Power Plant Utilizing Natural Gas and Biogas from Cattle Manure Co-firing in South Central Timor

The low electrification ratio in East Nusa Tenggara, particularly in South Central Timor Regency, poses a significant issue. Despite reaching an electrification rate of 92.33%, efforts to achieve 100% are ongoing. South Central Timor as one of the largest cattle farming areas in Indonesia, with its large grasslands and dry climate ideal for cattle farming, has substantial biogas potential from beef cattle manure through anaerobic digestion. Biogas from beef cattle manure has a net calorific value of 18.36 MJ/kg. Based on projections for 2027 using best fit regression, the average daily manure production capacity from 260,217 cattle in South Central Timor is 7.55 kilotons, which is equivalent to approximately 301,852 m3 of biogas. A small-scale combined cycle power plant (CCPP) is proposed to capitalize on this, with a capacity of 20.73 MW and a net thermal efficiency of 55.33%. The plant’s fuel mix will consist of 30% biogas and 70% natural gas by mass, with a fuel mass flow rate of 1 kg/s. The levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), internal rate of return (IRR), and net present value (NPV) obtained from the economic calculations are Rp1,126.76/kWh, 9.62%, and 222 billion IDR with assumptions of a 20-year plant lifetime, an electricity selling price of Rp1,352/kWh, and a discount rate of 6%. The plant is expected to reduce carbon emissions by 61 kilotons annually, while creating new job opportunities in the energy, livestock, and logistics sectors.

Assessment of Wind Energy Potential in Kolaka Using Era5-land Reanalysis Data

This research aims to evaluate the potential for wind energy in Kolaka Regency using ERA5-Land reanalysis data from the output of the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) model, which has a spatial resolution of 9 km with hourly temporal resolution for the period of 2001 to 2020. This research also compared the quality of ERA5-Land reanalysis wind speed data on data from nearby meteorological stations using statistical assessment methods. The analysis results reveal that the highest average wind speed is discovered at a height of 80 to 150 meters with a range of 4.99 to 5.93 m/s. The spatial distribution map of wind power density indicates that the energy potential at a height of 80 to 150 meters can reach 60 to 170 W/m2. The largest wind energy potential in Kolaka Regency can be generated in the DJF period (December-January-February) with the highest average monthly wind power density in January and the JJA period (June-July-August) with the highest average in July. In general, Kolaka Regency can be classified as an area with first-class wind energy potential, so it tends to be more suitable for the development of small-scale power plants. The suitable locations for developing small-scale wind power plants in Kolaka Regency are the southern Pomalaa coast and the Tanggetada coast because both locations have better wind energy sources than other areas.

An Optimized Artificial Neural Network Model of a Limaçon-to-Circular Gas Expander with an Inlet Valve

In this work, an artificial neural network (ANN)-based model is proposed to describe the input–output relationships in a Limaçon-To-Circular (L2C) gas expander with an inlet valve. The L2C gas expander is a type of energy converter that has great potential to be used in organic Rankine cycle (ORC)-based small-scale power plants. The proposed model predicts the different performance indices of a limaçon gas expander for different input pressures, rotor velocities, and valve cutoff angles. A network model is constructed and optimized for different model parameters to achieve the best prediction performance compared to the classic mathematical model of the system. An overall normalized mean square error of 0.0014, coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.98, and mean average error of 0.0114 are reported. This implies that the surrogate model can effectively mimic the actual model with high precision. The model performance is also compared to a linear interpolation (LI) method. It is found that the proposed ANN model predictions are about 96.53% accurate for a given error threshold, compared to about 91.46% accuracy of the LI method. Thus the proposed model can effectively predict different output parameters of a limaçon gas expander such as energy, filling factor, isentropic efficiency, and mass flow for different operating conditions. Of note, the model is only trained by a set of input and target values; thus, the performance of the model is not affected by the internal complex mathematical models of the overall valved-expander system. This neural network-based approach is highly suitable for optimization, as the alternative iterative analysis of the complex analytical model is time-consuming and requires higher computational resources. A similar modeling approach with some modifications could also be utilized to design controllers for these types of systems that are difficult to model mathematically.

An Optimum Design for a Fast-Response Solenoid Valve: Application to a Limaçon Gas Expander

Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC)–based small-scale power plants are becoming a promising instrument in the recent drive to utilize renewable sources and reduce carbon emissions. But the effectiveness of such systems is limited by the low efficiency of gas expanders, which are the main part of an ORC system. Limaçon-based expansion machines with a fast inlet control valve have great prospects as they could potentially offer efficiencies over 50%. However, the lack of a highly reliable and significantly fast control valve is hindering its possible application. In this paper, a push–pull solenoid valve is optimized using a stochastic optimization technique to provide a fast response. The optimization yields about 56–58% improvement in overall valve response. A performance comparison of the initial and optimized valves applied to a limaçon expander thermodynamic model is also presented. Additionally, the sensitivity of the valve towards a changing inlet pressure and expander rotor velocity is analyzed to better understand the effectiveness of the valve and provide clues to overall performance improvement.

An integrated agroforestry-bioenergy system for enhanced energy and food security in rural sub-Saharan Africa

Most people in rural sub-Saharan Africa lack access to electricity and rely on traditional, inefficient, and polluting cooking solutions that have adverse impacts on both human health and the environment. Here, we propose a novel integrated agroforestry-bioenergy system that combines sustainable biomass production in sequential agroforestry systems with biomass-based cleaner cooking solutions and rural electricity production in small-scale combined heat and power plants and estimate the biophysical system outcomes. Despite conservative assumptions, we demonstrate that on-farm biomass production can cover the household’s fuelwood demand for cooking and still generate a surplus of woody biomass for electricity production via gasification. Agroforestry and biochar soil amendments should increase agricultural productivity and food security. In addition to enhanced energy security, the proposed system should also contribute to improving cooking conditions and health, enhancing soil fertility and food security, climate change mitigation, gender equality, and rural poverty reduction.

Optimasi LFC (Load Frequency Control) Pada Mikrohidro Menggunakan Metode ACO-ANFIS dan BA-ANFIS

Micro-hydro Power Plant is a small-scale power plant. Micro-hydro plants are built with enough water potential to generate electrical energy. A common problem with micro-hydro generating systems is that the output of the generator is not constant. This is caused by changes in connected loads. Thus causing frequent fluctuations in the frequency and voltage of the system that can cause damage to electrical equipment. Because it is used Load Frequency Control (LFC) to control the frequency can be more stable. To obtain optimal control parameters on micro hydropower systems used by Artificial Intelligence (AI) is Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS). ANFIS data is retrieved from training data of PID controllers tuned using Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) and Bat Algorithm (BA). This study compared uncontrolled methods, PID-ZN control methods, PID-ACO method, PID-BA, PID-ACO-ANFIS, and PID-BA-ANFIS obtained the best control method. The result of this research is the control method of PID-ACO-ANFIS is the best control method with overshoot 0.00 and the fastest settling time is 0.00. The results showed that the smallest overshoot (0) in the PID-ACO-ANFIS model, the smallest undershoots (1,12x10-5) in PID-ACO-ANFIS and the fastest settling time (3.77 seconds) in the starting also at PID-ACO-ANFIS. The results of this study will be tried bengan other methods, which results may be better

Harvesting Electricity from Water Pipeline in Hydro Power Generator

The purpose of this endeavour is to build a small-scale hydroelectric power plant that can produce energy for household use using water from a storage tank. One trustworthy and efficient kind of clean, green power is picohydroelectricity. It generates electricity with low maintenance and no fuel use. Water moving through residential pipes provides the kinetic energy to generate electricity for storage of energy. The design and construction of a pico-hydro generating system that extracts water from the water tanks of residential buildings are covered in this study. Three unique mechanical arrangements are added for improved operation and energy production: U-tube piping, a big nozzle pipe end, and an air bladder for sustaining water pressure. As a result, we might design a mechanical system which could produce electricity using the potential energy contained in a water storage tank from a water head. Key words: Renewable energy, Hydroelectricity, turbine , diaphragm pump, portable etc.

Small-Scale Power Plants Based on Organic Rankine cycle (ORC) using Low-Boiling Fluorocarbon Working Fluids when Operating at High Initial Cycle Conditions

The purpose of the work is to develop and analyze the operation of a thermal circuit based on the organic Rankine cycle (ORC) using low-boiling working substances of the fluorocarbon class when operating at high initial cycle parameters. This goal is achieved by energy analysis of single- and multi-stage thermal circuits of power plants with a turbine circuit operating on low-boiling fluorocarbon work-ing substances, such as octafluoropropane C3F8 and decafluorobutane C4F10. It is proposed to integrate the ORC thermal circuit as an extension to a small-capacity gas turbine power plant (GTU), operating on synthesis gas after a biomass gasifier. The most important results of the work are the possibility of implementing a cycle with a low condensation temperature of the medium, which allows, when using low-boiling working fluids, to significantly reduce the temperature of the heat removal process and, consequently, increase the efficiency of the cycle. The possibility of using the listed working substances in power plants with a turbine circuit, which until now have been used mainly as refrigerants for refrig-eration and heat pump systems, has been shown. The significance of the results of the work lies in the fact that, based on the analysis of the energy complex, a circuit solution has been proposed and justified that can increase the energy efficiency of the power supply complex, increasing the volume of generated electrical power and providing a number of technological and environmental advantages.

The Potential of Renewable Energy to Replace Diesel Power Plants in Supporting Energy Transition in Indonesia

The Indonesian government is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Agreement. One form of this commitment is the program to replace diesel power plants with renewable energy plants in the electricity sector. Fossil-based diesel power plant operations have disadvantages, such as relatively expensive generation costs and greenhouse gas emissions. There are three renewable energy technology options as potential substitutes for diesel power plants: a solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant integrated with a battery energy storage system (BESS), a small-scale geothermal power plant, and a micro-hydropower plant. This paper will analyze the prospects of each technology option based on its economic and environmental impact. Various technical parameters, including renewable energy potential and intermittent factors, as well as economic parameters such as investment and generation costs, are important factors for selecting prospective renewable energy generators. The analysis was carried out by calculating the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), CO2 emissions, and oil fuel consumption for four different scenarios. The results of the analysis show that replacing the diesel power plants with micro-hydropower plants can reduce LCOE by 0.24 USD/kWh to 0.12 USD/kWh. The use of a solar PV power plant integrated with a BESS has the most potential to reduce CO2 emissions, which account for 54% of emissions from diesel power plants. Meanwhile, the potential for oil fuel reduction from this program can reach an annual average of 0.85 million kl.

Analisis Manajemen Pembangkit Listrik Mikrohidro (PLTMH) Kabupaten Puncak Papua Tengah

Micro hydro power plants (PLTMH) are small-scale power plants that are generally built in places that are not touched by the electricity network but the area has sufficient water potential to generate electrical energy. The Puncak Regency of Central Papua is surrounded by mountains and valleys. The only way of transportation is the air route. The condition of Puncak district is also known as a conflict-prone area, so road access is not yet connected between regencies, so currently in and out using the air way. The existing PLTMH can be managed properly so that the community and district government can carry out their activities as usual. For the sake of the progress of the beloved Puncak Regency, it is one of the responsibilities for the community, the government, community leaders and security to take care of it together so that the area we love can progress.

Simulation of a small-scale electricity generation system from biomass gasification

The following work has been developed in the scope of the cooperation project called Pôle Goundi. This project, coordinated by the NGO Misión y Desarrollo para Goundi, with the collaboration of the technology transfer centre CITCEA-UPC and the support of the CCD-UPC, aims to electrify Goundi, a village located in the South of Chad. In this sense, the construction of a small-scale biomass gasification power plant is planned. Since the installation of the power plant will be done by stages, the first step is to demonstrate its viability by installing and operating the first 20kW of electrical power. For this, a complete commercial solution, mainly consisting of a multi-stage gasifier, an internal combustion engine and a synchronous generator, has been selected. Then, it has been modelled with Cycle-Tempo® and Matlab® simulation tools in order to analyze its operating parameters and performance. After a brief introduction about the aims and the scope of the project, this paper will proceed with a more detailed description of the system and the model and it will present some of the obtained results.

Additional Income Distribution between Small Hydropower Plant and Public Trader Using Shapley Value

The small rivers energy usage and regime optimization is considered in the paper. Possibility of additional income reception in case of cooperative behavior of the power plant owners is demonstrated. Cooperative game theory approach is used for the additional income distribution and the small-scale hydro power plants (SHPP) regime planning and management. The obtained results demonstrate the possibility of the current supporting schemes revision, in case if SHPP regime optimization is made taking into account the market conditions.

Performance of rotational speed controlled small-scale head-dependent hydroelectric power plant

Small scale or micro scale hydroelectric power production is characterized by high investment costs compared to operation costs. In addition, the repayment time is often long, more than ten years (if not subsidized heavily) which requires that a small-scale hydropower plants can be profitable only if both the investment costs and the running costs are low. The performance and efficiency of a plant is very important because having long repayment time means that the efficiency improvement of one percentage unit often means the ten percentage unit improvement in profit. The most economical way to control the flow is sometimes a two point control where generators are switched on and off depending on high water level used as control variable. The water level cannot be kept constant using this method, but the traditionally used mechanical blade angle adjustment system is too expensive in very small (approximately <100 kW) units. The new method of controlling the upper water level (head) is the use of rotational speed control of turbine, implemented by a four quadrant frequency converter. The efficiency of a 4-quadrant frequency converter is approximately 97 %, which reduces the income compared to the situation where the generators are directly connected to electricity network. However, when the head is kept constant using a frequency converter, it is not required to switch off the generator circuit breakers which have a finite life time and the head height can be kept optimal in terms of performance. In this paper, a system structure, a pilot plant installation and example calculations on the feasibility of a frequency converter driven fixed blade hydro power turbine is given.

Study on yield limit of steel containment under external pressure considering initial defects

The main objective of floating nuclear power plants (FNPP) is an emerging technology product formed by applying land small-scale nuclear power plant technology to the marine field. The containment structure studied in this article plays a great role in protecting the safety of FNPP’s nuclear power system. When exploring the safety performance of the containment structure under accident conditions, it is necessary to analyze and study the external pressure yield limit of the containment. This study provides a reference basis for the static buckling limit calculation of spherical shell structures similar to steel safety shells. The article adopts a geometric initial defect analysis method based on buckling mode to consider the initial defects of the model and explores the external pressure yield limit of the safety shell through the arc length method. The research results analyzed that the external pressure yield limit of the containment vessel decreased by about 30% under the influence of initial defects and pointed out the weak structural parts of the containment vessel in the buckling analysis.

Perencanaan Lampu Penerangan Jalan Menggunakan Turbin Angin Sumbu Vertikal Savonius

Electricity is a basic need for almost all human beings, electricity is the main requirement in all economic activities and human activities. The diminishing availability of fossil fuels requires alternative energy sources that can meet energy needs. In this research, a micro-scale power plant for street lighting was developed, using a vertical wind turbine. To obtain mechanical energy from wind power, a vertical wind turbine of the Savonius type was developed. A single phase rectifier is used to convert the generator's mains voltage into direct current which is supplied to the battery for energy storage purposes. An LDR (Light Dependent Resistor) based automatic switch is used which functions to turn on the lights when it is dark. With the alternative of using a wind turbine for street lighting, it has the advantage of being able to keep generating electricity 24 hours a day, as long as there is wind from the vehicles passing through it. After doing research, this wind turbine can produce a voltage of 12.2 volts at a wind speed of 3.85 m/s, suitable for use in small-scale power plants. This type of power plant can be further developed on a larger scale so that it can be utilized to supply electrical energy needs in areas that are still not covered by electricity

Review of Micro Hydro Power Plant (MHPP) as a Solution to Reach Remote Areas of Electricity

A micro hydro power plant (MHPP) is a small-scale power plant that converts the potential energy of the air into mechanical work, turning turbines and generators to generate electrical power. Small scale, which is around 0-100 kW. The construction of a Micro-hydro Power Plant (MHPP) is an alternative supply of electrical energy, especially in rural areas that are not covered by the electricity grid State Power Plant. MHPP has a high potential as an alternative to renewable energy sources. Thus, the reliability of the system built is a must forget quality electricity. In a power plant, what is considered is the stability of the output voltage generated by the generator; this is necessary to keep the consumer's equipment from being damaged. Unstable voltage can also Age-reduce equipment (lifetime) owned by consumers.
 Keywords: Micro Hydro Power Plant 2; Alternative, 3; Electric Power

ANALISIS EKSPERIMENTAL TURBIN PELTON SEBAGAI PEMBANGKIT LISTRIK MIKRO HIDRO DENGAN VARIASI NOZZLE

Microhydro Power Plant is a small-scale power plant that utilizes river water flow to drive turbines. Some hydropower systems can be classified as microhydro if the generated energy capacity is below 100 kW [4]. The goal to be achieved from this pelton turbine research with nozzle variations is to determine the effect of nozzle size on flow discharge, torque and turbine rotation speed on pelton turbines. Pelton turbine research for this laboratory scale was carried out at the Heat and Heat Transfer Laboratory. In the first test, the water discharge was 50 l/min which produced a shaft rotation of 102 rpm. The minimum power generated at a discharge of 50 l/min (0.00083m3/s) occurred at a shaft speed of 102 rpm of 11.7 watts. Turbine power is highly dependent on the amount of torque and angular velocity. While the angular velocity is influenced by the rotation of the turbine and the rotation of the turbine is very dependent on the mass of the flow that hits the turbine blades. In the first test, the turbine power was 11.7 watts which resulted in an efficiency of 8%.

Application of Pelton Turbine in Pico Hydro Renewable Energy System at Sinar Negeri, Negeri Sakti Village

Some residents of Sinar Negeri Hamlet use the nearby spring as a place to raise freshwater fish. Residents have solely utilized this spring for everyday needs up until now, and it serves as the primary water source for fish ponds. Since technology would increase residents' productivity, they are excited about the chance to employ it in Sinar Negeri hamlet. Farmers also complain that there is no lighting surrounding the cultivation ponds, which makes it challenging for fish farmers to move around and perform their duties at night. Alternative small-scale power plants known as pico hydropower plants can be used in rural locations with rivers that continuously discharge water and a relatively modest waterfall to power a turbine that generates electricity. The spring has a head of 0.75 meters and a flow rate of 0,002 m3/s. Natural resource potential can be used to generate an environmentally friendly small-scale power plant using alternative energy. Through the use of turbine technology, potential energy from the water head and flow rate is converted into electrical energy produced by a generator with an approximate output of 8,79 watts.

OPTIMIZATION OF DISTRIBUTED GENERATION INSTALLATION IN CILEDUG TASIKMALAYA FEEDER TO REDUCE POWER LOSS WITH GENETIC ALGORITHM (GA) METHOD

Distributed generation (DG) is a small-scale power plant that is generally located close to the load. The installation of DG can be an alternative to reduce power losses in the distribution system. In this study, the placement and capacity optimization of DG to Ciledug feeder is carried out. Optimization is carried out using the genetic algorithm (GA) method which aims to reduce power losses in the system. The simulation is divided into 2 stages. In the first simulation before the installation of DG, the power loss obtained was 755,807 kW, and the voltage profile experienced under voltage from bus 31 to bus 104. The second simulation will be carried out by adding DG to the network, the DG used amounted to 2, 3, and 4 DG units. The location and capacity of DG are searched using the genetic algorithm optimization technique. The optimization results using 2 DGs, showed that the DGs were connected at bus 95 and bus 97 with a capacity of 0.969 MW and 0.480 MW, respectively. The addition of 2 DGs to the network reduces the power loss to 398,899 kW. Next, the optimization results using 3 DGs, showed that DGs were connected at bus 96, bus 78, and bus 67 with a capacity of 0.977 MW, 0.977 MW, and 0.013 MW, respectively. The addition of 3 DGs to the network reduces the power loss to 236,920 kW. Finally, the optimization results using 4 DGs show that DGs are connected at bus 67, bus 80, bus 46, and bus 26 with a capacity of 0.951 MW, 0.799 MW, 0.616 MW, and 0.257 MW, respectively. The addition of 4 DGs to the network reduces the power loss to 141,465 kW.