Profile Facts: Power Generation

Showing posts with label Power Generation. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 16

Texplainer: Why Does Texas Have Its Own Power Grid?

Texas' secessionist inclinations have at least one modern outlet: the electric grid. There are three grids in the Lower 48 states: the Eastern Interconnection, the Western Interconnection — and Texas.nThe Texas grid is called ERCOT

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Monday, February 15

Deadly Texas winter storm leaves millions without power amid frigid temperatures

An unusually harsh winter storm in Texas has killed at least one person and left millions customers without power in the state amid dangerously low temperatures.A spokesman for the Harry County Sheriff's Department

Temps are plunging in NE Texas. We easily go below zero by morning. Current temp at my home NW of Sulphur Springs @TxStormChasers @NWSFortWorth @NWSFortWorth #txwx pic.twitter.com/8sAEoEMSAf
— Nathan Bailey (@N5REL) February 16, 2021

Texas electric grid operator says frozen wind turbines are hampering state's power output: report

About half of Texas' wind power generation capacity has been put on ice amid the state's historic winter storm, according to a report.The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) told the Austin American Statesman

So Texas is without power and freezing, Louisiana may be next and Mexico is without power due to natural gas from the US being cut off. Sounds a little coordinated to me. Planned perhaps. Dark Winter. Readying up Cruel Summer. Thanks Biden 😒
— Q-uestionEverything (@Questio89154857) February 16, 2021

Wednesday, January 19

List of largest power stations in the wor

The following page lists five of the largest power stations in the world of each type, in terms of current installed electrical capacity. Non-renewable power stations are those that run on coal, fuel oils and natural gas, while renewable power stations run on fuel sources such as biomass, geothermal heat, hydro, solar energy, solar heat, tides, waves and the wind. Only the most significant fuel source are listed for power stations that run on multiple sources.

At present, the largest power generating facility ever built is the Three Gorges Dam in China. The facility generates power by utilizing 26 turbines, with 8 more units (6 × 700 MW, 2 × 50 MW) under construction. Each of the current operational units has a capacity of 700 MW,totalling the installed capacity to 18,200 MW, more than twice the installed capacity of the largest nuclear power station, the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa at 8,212 MW. Upon full completion of the Three Gorges Dam in 2011, the total installed capacity would top 22,500 MW, just 5,500 MW less than being twice the capacity of the second largest power generating facility, the Itaipu Dam, at 14,000 MW.

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Although currently only a proposal, the Grand Inga Dam in Congo would surpass all existing power stations, including the Three Gorges Dam, if construction commences as planned in 2014. The design targets to top 39,000 MW in installed capacity, nearly twice that of the Three Gorges. At the time of the dam's initial proposal, this was sufficient to meet the entire power demand of the African continent.

Top 10 largest power producing facilities

Three Gorges, currently the largest hydroelectric power station, and the

largest power producing body ever built, at 18,200 MW.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Fuel type Ref

1 Three Gorges Dam China 30°49′15″N 111°00′08″E 18,200 Hydroelectricity

2 Itaipu Dam Brazil

Paraguay 25°24′31″S 54°35′21″W 14,000 Hydroelectricity

3 Guri Dam Venezuela 07°45′59″N 62°59′57″W 10,200 Hydroelectricity

4 Tucurui Dam Brazil 03°49′53″S 49°38′36″W 8,370 Hydroelectricity

5 Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant Japan 37°25′45″N 138°35′43″E 8,212 Nuclear

6 Bruce Nuclear Generating Station Canada 44°19′31″N 81°35′58″W 7,276 Nuclear

7 Grand Coulee Dam United States 47°57′23″N 118°58′56″W 6,809 Hydroelectricity

8 Longtan Dam China 25°01′38″N 107°02′51″E 6,426 Hydroelectricity

9A Krasnoyarsk Dam Russia 55°56′05″N 92°17′37″E 6,000 Hydroelectricity

9A Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant Ukraine 47°30′44″N 34°35′09″E 6,000 Nuclear

Non-renewable power stations

Coal

Bełchatów, the fifth largest coal-fired power station at 4,440 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Taichung Power Plant Taiwan 24°12′46″N 120°28′52″E 5,780

2 Tuoketuo Power Station China 40°11′49″N 111°21′52″E 5,400

3B Guodian Beilun Power Station China 29°56′37″N 121°48′57″E 5,000

3B Waigaoqiao Power Station China 31°21′21″N 121°35′54″E 5,000

5 Bełchatów Power Station Poland 51°15′59″N 19°19′50″E 4,440

Fuel oil

Surgut-2, the largest oil-fired power station at 4,800 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Surgut-2 Power Station Russia 61°16′46″N 73°30′45″E 4,800

2 Kashima Power Station Japan 35°52′47″N 140°41′22″E 4,400

3 Surgut-1 Power Station Russia 61°16′46″N 73°29′20″E 3,280

4 Hirono Power Station Japan 37°14′18″N 141°01′04″E 3,200

5 Ryazan Power Station Russia 54°02′00″N 39°47′30″E 2,800

Natural gas

Futtsu, the fifth largest natural gas power station at 3,520 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Kawagoe Power Station Japan 35°00′25″N 136°41′20″E 4,802

2 Chita Power Station Japan 34°59′12″N 136°50′37″E 3,966

3C Kostromskaya Power Station Russia 57°27′34″N 41°10′30″E 3,600

3C Sodegaura Power Station Japan 35°27′45″N 139°58′37″E 3,600

5 Futtsu Power Station Japan 35°20′35″N 139°50′02″E 3,520

Nuclear

Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, the largest nuclear power station at 8,212 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant Japan 37°25′45″N 138°35′43″E 8,212

2 Bruce Nuclear Generating Station Canada 44°19′31″N 81°35′58″W 7,276

3 Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant Ukraine 47°30′44″N 34°35′09″E 6,000

4 Uljin Nuclear Power Plant South Korea 37°05′34″N 129°23′01″E 5,881

5 Yeonggwang Nuclear Power Station South Korea 35°24′54″N 126°25′26″E 5,875

Oil shale

Eesti Power Station, the largest oil shale-fired power station at 1,615 MW.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Eesti Power Station Estonia 59°16′10″N 27°54′08″E 1,615

2 Balti Power Station Estonia 59°21′12″N 28°07′22″E 765

3 Huadian Oil Shale Plant China 100

4 Mishor Rotem Power Station Israel 31°03′19″N 35°11′04″E 13

5 Dotternhausen Rohrbach Zement Factory Germany 9.9

Peat

Shatura, largest peat-fired power station at 1,020 MW.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Shatura Power Station Russia 55°35′00″N 39°33′40″E 1,020

2 Kirov Power Station Russia 58°37′16″N 49°35′47″E 300

3 Keljonlahti Power Station Finland 62°11′33″N 25°44′14″E 209

4 Toppila Power Station Finland 65°02′13″N 25°29′17″E 190

5 Haapavesi Power Station Finland 64°07′19″N 25°24′47″E 154

Renewable power stations

Biofuel

Alholmens Kraft, the largest biofuel power station at 265 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Alholmens Kraft Power Station Finland 63°42′07″N 22°42′35″E 265

2 Kaukaan Voima Power Station Finland 61°04′00″N 28°14′40″E 125

3 Rumford Cogen Power Station United States 44°33′07″N 70°32′34″W 102

4 Igelsta Power Station Sweden 85

5 Multitrade Power Station United States 80

Geothermal

Wairakei, the fourh largest geothermal power station at 181 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Cerro Prieto Geothermal Power Station Mexico 32°23′57″N 115°14′19″W 720

2 Hellisheidi Power Station Iceland 64°02′14″N 21°24′03″W 300

3 Wayang Windu Geothermal Power Station Indonesia 07°12′00″S 107°37′30″E 227

4 Wairakei Power Station New Zealand 38°37′37″S 176°06′19″E 181

5 Reykjanes Power Station Iceland 63°49′35″N 22°40′55″W 150

Hydroelectric

Conventional

Three Gorges, currently the largest hydroelectric power station, and the

largest power producing body ever built, at 18,200 MW.

Read More: Hydroelectricity and List of conventional hydroelectric power stations

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Three Gorges Dam China 30°49′15″N 111°00′08″E 18,200

2 Itaipu Dam Brazil

Paraguay 25°24′31″S 54°35′21″W 14,000

3 Guri Dam Venezuela 07°45′59″N 62°59′57″W 10,200

4 Tucurui Dam Brazil 03°49′53″S 49°38′36″W 8,370

5 Grand Coulee Dam United States 47°57′23″N 118°58′56″W 6,809

Pumped-storage

Grande Dixence, the third largest pumped-storage hydroelectric power station at 2,069 MW.

Read More: Pumped-storage hydroelectricity and List of pumped-storage hydroelectric power stations

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Bath County Pumped Storage Station United States 38°12′32″N 79°48′00″W 2,772

2 Guangdong Pumped Storage Power Station China 23°45′52″N 113°57′12″E 2,400

3 Grande Dixence Dam (Cleuson-Dixence Complex) Switzerland 46°04′50″N 07°24′14″E 2,069

4 Okutataragi Hydroelectric Power Station Japan 35°14′13″N 134°49′55″E 1,932

5 Ludington Pumped Storage Power Plant United States 43°53′37″N 86°26′43″W 1,872

Run-of-the-river

Chief Joseph, the largest run-of-the-river hydroelectric power station at2,620 MW.

Read More: Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity and List of run-of-the-river hydroelectric power stations

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Chief Joseph Dam United States 47°59′43″N 119°38′00″W 2,620

2 John Day Dam United States 45°52′49″N 120°41′40″W 2,160

3 Beauharnois Hydroelectric Power Station Canada 45°18′50″N 73°54′32″W 1,903

4 The Dalles Dam United States 45°36′44″N 121°08′04″W 1,779

5 Ghazi Barotha Dam Pakistan 03°46′48″N 72°15′35″E 1,450

Tide

Rance, the largest tidal power station at 240 MW.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Rance Tidal Power Station France 48°37′05″N 02°01′24″W 240

2 Annapolis Royal Generating Station Canada 44°45′07″N 65°30′40″W 20

3 Jiangxia Tidal Power Station China 28°20′34″N 121°14′25″E 3.9

4 Kislaya Guba Tidal Power Station Russia 69°22′37″N 33°04′34″E 1.7

5 Uldolmok Tidal Power Station South Korea 34°32′07″N 126°14′06″E 1.0

Solar power

Flat-panel photovoltaic

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Finsterwalde Solar Park Germany 51°34′7″N 13°44′15″E 80.7

2 Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant Canada 42°56′16″N 82°20′30″W 80

3 Rovigo Photovoltaic Power Plant Italy 70

4 Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park Spain 39°37′43″N 02°04′37″W 60

5 Strasskirchen Solar Park Germany 48°48′58″N 12°43′53″E 54

Concentrated photovoltaic

Sevilla, the second largest CPV power station at 1.2 MW.

This section requires expansion.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MWe) Ref

1 Casaquemada Photovoltaic Power Plant Spain 1.9

2 Sevilla Photovoltaic Power Plant Spain 37°25′18″N 06°15′25″W 1.2

3D Victor Valley College CPV Plant United States 34°28′31″N 117°15′46″W 1

3D Questa Photovoltaic Power Plant United States 36°42′31″N 105°37′09″W 1

Concentrated solar thermal

Solnova, the largest CSP power station at 150 MWe.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Solnova Solar Power Station Spain 37°25′00″N 06°17′20″W 150

2 Andasol Solar Power Station Spain 37°13′43″N 03°04′07″W 100

3E SEGS VIII United States 35°01′53″N 117°21′23″W 80

3E SEGS IX United States 35°01′56″N 117°20′16″W 80

5 Nevada Solar One United States 35°48′00″N 114°58′06″W 64

Wave

Aguçadoura, the largest wave farm at 2.25 MW.

This section requires expansion.

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Ref

1 Aguçadoura Wave Farm Portugal 41°25′57″N 08°50′33″W 2.25

2 Islay Limpet Scotland 55°41′24″N 06°31′15″W 0.5

3 SDE Sea Waves Power Plant Israel 32°05′59″N 34°46′24″E 0.04

Wind

Tehachapi Pass, the third largest wind farm at 705 MW.

Read More: Wind power, List of onshore wind farms, and List of offshore wind farms

Rank Station Country Location Capacity (MW) Type Ref

1 Roscoe Wind Farm United States 32°26′41″N 100°34′23″W 782 Onshore

2 Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center United States 32°19′00″N 99°59′59″W 736 Onshore

3 Tehachapi Pass Wind Farm United States 35°06′08″N 118°16′58″W 705 Onshore

4 Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm United States 31°54′08″N 100°53′56″W 663 Onshore

5 San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm United States 33°55′12″N 118°35′24″W 615 Onshore

(source:wikipedia)

Watt

The watt (pronounced /ˈwɒt/ wot; symbol: W) is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units (SI), named after the Scottish engineer James Watt (1736–1819). The unit measures the rate of energy conversion. It is defined as one joule per second.

Definition

In terms of classical mechanics, one watt is the rate at which work is done when an object's velocity is held constant at one meter per second against constant opposing force of one newton.

$\mathrm{W = \frac{J}{s} = \frac{N\cdot m}{s} = \frac{kg\cdot m^2}{s^3}}$

In terms of electromagnetism, one watt is the rate at which work is done when one ampere (A) of current flows through an electrical potential difference of one volt (V).

$\mathrm{W = V \cdot A}$

Two additional unit conversions for watt can be found using the above equation and Ohm's Law.

$\mathrm{W = \frac{V^2}{\Omega} = A^2\cdot\Omega}$

Where ohm (Ω) is the SI derived unit of electrical resistance.

Examples

A person having a mass of 100 kilograms who climbs a 3 meter high ladder in 5 seconds is doing work at a rate of about 600 watts. Mass times acceleration due to gravity times height divided by the time it takes to lift the object to the given height gives the rate of doing work or power. A laborer over the course of an 8-hour day can sustain an average output of about 75 watts; higher power levels can be achieved for short intervals and by athletes.

A medium-sized passenger automobile engine is rated at 50–100 kW (kilowatts) – while cruising it will typically yield half that amount. Larger or high performance vehicles have more powerful engines.

A typical household incandescent light bulb has a power rating of 25 to 100 watts; fluorescent lamps typically consume 5 to 30 watts to produce a similar amount of light.

A typical coal powered power station produces around 600-700 MW (megawatts).

[edit]Origin and adoption as an SI unit

The watt is named after James Watt for his contributions to the development of the steam engine. The unit was recognized by the Second Congress of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in 1882. The 11th General Conference on Weights and Measures in 1960 adopted it for the measurement of power into the International System of Units (SI).

Multiples

For additional examples of magnitude for multiples and submultiples of the Watt, see Orders of magnitude (power)

SI multiples for watt (W)
Value	Symbol	Name	Value	Symbol	Name
Submultiples			Multiples
10⁻¹ W	dW	deciwatt	10¹ W	daW	decawatt
10⁻² W	cW	centiwatt	10² W	hW	hectowatt
10⁻³ W	mW	milliwatt	10³ W	kW	kilowatt
10⁻⁶ W	µW	microwatt	10⁶ W	MW	megawatt
10⁻⁹ W	nW	nanowatt	10⁹ W	GW	gigawatt
10⁻¹² W	pW	picowatt	10¹² W	TW	terawatt
10⁻¹⁵ W	fW	femtowatt	10¹⁵ W	PW	petawatt
10⁻¹⁸ W	aW	attowatt	10¹⁸ W	EW	exawatt
10⁻²¹ W	zW	zeptowatt	10²¹ W	ZW	zettawatt
10⁻²⁴ W	yW	yoctowatt	10²⁴ W	YW	yottawatt
Common multiples are in bold face

Femtowatt

The femtowatt is equal to one quadrillionth (10−15) of a watt. Technologically important powers that are measured in femtowatts are typically found in reference(s) to radio and radar receivers. For example, FM tuner performance figures for sensitivity/quieting and signal-to-noise require that the RF energy applied to the antenna input be specified in order to be meaningful. These input levels are often stated in dBf (decibels referenced to 1 femtowatt which is equal to .2739 microvolt across a 75 ohm load or .5477 microvolt across a 300 ohm load) so that the specification takes into account the RF input impedance of the tuner.

Picowatt

The picowatt is equal to one trillionth (10−12) of a watt. Technologically important powers that are measured in picowatts are typically used in reference to radio and radar receivers, and also in the science of radio astronomy.

Nanowatt

The nanowatt is equal to one billionth (10−9) of a watt. A surface area of one square meter on Earth receives one nanowatt of power from a single star of apparent magnitude +3.5. Important powers that are measured in nanowatts are also typically used in reference to radio and radar receivers.

Microwatt

The microwatt is equal to one millionth (10−6) of a watt. Important powers that are measured in microwatts are typically stated in medical instrumentation systems such as the EEG and the EKG, in a wide variety of scientific and engineering instruments and also in reference to radio and radar receivers. Compact solar cells for devices such as calculators and watches are typically measured in microwatts.

Milliwatt

The milliwatt is equal to one thousandth (10−3) of a watt. A typical laser pointer outputs about five milliwatts of light power, whereas a typical hearing aid for people consumes less than one milliwatt.

Kilowatt

The kilowatt is equal to one thousand (103) watts. This unit is typically used to express the output power of engines and the power consumption of electric motors, tools, machines, and heaters. It is also a common unit used to express the electromagnetic power output of broadcast radio and television transmitters.

One kilowatt of power is approximately equal to 1.34 horsepower. A small electric heater with one heating element can use 1.0 kilowatt. The average annual electrical energy consumption of a household in the United States is about 8,900 kilowatt-hours (cf the average UK household's approx 4,700 kilowatt-hours for example), equivalent to a steady power consumption of about 1 kW for an entire year. Also, kilowatts of light power can be measured in the output pulses of some lasers.

Megawatt

The megawatt is equal to one million (106) watts. Many events or machines produce or sustain the conversion of energy on this scale. For example: lightning strikes, large electric motors, large warships, such as aircraft carriers, cruisers, and submarines, engineering hardware, large Server farms or data centers and some scientific research equipment, such as supercolliders, and in the output pulses of very large lasers. A large residential or commercial building may consume several megawatts in electric power and heat.

The productive capacity of electrical generators operated by a utility company is often measured in MW. On railways, modern high-powered electric locomotives typically have a peak power output of 5 or 6 MW although some produce much more—the Eurostar, for example, consumes more than 12 MW—while heavy diesel-electric locomotives typically consume 3 to 5 MW. U.S. nuclear power plants have net summer capacities between about 500 and 1300 MW.

The earliest citing of the megawatt in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a reference in the 1900 Webster's International Dictionary of English Language. The OED also states that megawatt appeared in a 28 November 1947 article in the journal Science (506:2).

Gigawatt

The gigawatt is equal to one billion (109) watts or 1 gigawatt = 1000 megawatts. This unit is sometimes used for large power plants or power grids. For example, by the end of 2010 power shortages in China's Shanxi province will increase to 5–6 GW. and the installed capacity of wind power in Germany was 25.8 GW. The largest unit (out of four) of the Belgian Nuclear Plant Doel has a peak output of 1.04 GW.

Though obscure, the "j" sound is still an accepted pronunciation.

Terawatt

The terawatt is equal to one trillion (1012) watts. The total power used by humans worldwide (about 16 TW in 2006) is commonly measured in this unit. The most powerful lasers from the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s produced power in terawatts, but only for nanosecond time frames. The average stroke of lightning peaks at 1 terawatt, but these strokes only last for 30 microseconds.

Petawatt

The petawatt is equal to one quadrillion (1015) watts and can be produced by the current generation of lasers for time-scales of the order of femtoseconds (10−15 s). Based on the average of 1.366 kW/m2 of total solar irradiance the total energy flow of sunlight striking Earth's atmosphere is estimated at 174 PW (cf. Solar Constant).

Electrical and thermal watts

In the electric power industry, megawatt electrical (abbreviation: MWe or MWe) is a term that refers to electric power, while megawatt thermal or thermal megawatt (abbreviations: MWt, MWth, MWt, or MWth) refers to thermal power produced. Other SI prefixes are sometimes used, for example gigawatt electrical (GWe).

For example, the Embalse nuclear power plant in Argentina uses a fission reactor to generate 2109 MWt of heat, which creates steam to drive a turbine, which generates 648 MWe of electricity. The difference is due to the inefficiency of steam-turbine generators and the limitations of the theoretical Carnot Cycle.

[edit]Confusion of watts, watt-hours, and watts per hour

The terms power and energy are frequently confused. Power is the rate at which energy is generated and consumed.

For example, when a light bulb with a power rating of 100W is turned on for one hour, the energy used is 100 watt-hours (W•h), 0.1 kilowatt-hour, or 360 kJ. This same amount of energy would light a 40-watt bulb for 2.5 hours, or a 50-watt bulb for 2 hours. A power station would be rated in multiples of watts, but its annual energy sales would be in multiples of watt-hours. A kilowatt-hour is the amount of energy equivalent to a steady power of 1 kilowatt running for 1 hour, or 3.6 MJ.

Terms such as watts per hour are often misused. Watts per hour properly refers to the change of power per hour. Watts per hour (W/h) might be useful to characterize the ramp-up behavior of power plants. For example, a power plant that reaches a power output of 1 MW from 0 MW in 15 minutes has a ramp-up rate of 4 MW/h. Hydroelectric power plants have a very high ramp-up rate, which makes them particularly useful in peak load and emergency situations.

Major energy production or consumption is often expressed as terawatt-hours for a given period that is often a calendar year or financial year. One terawatt-hour is equal to a sustained power of approximately 114 megawatts for a period of one year.

(source:wikipedia)