SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

SURNAME GIVEN NAME M.I. SCHOOL YEAR:

SEMESTER:

TIME DAYS ROOM COURSE:

YEAR/SECTION:

MCE19 – POWER PLANT DESIGN WITH RENEWABLE ENERGY

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

(For SLSU M.E Use Only)

Prepared by:
GILBERT R. ESQUILLO, PME
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

MODULE 1
Variable Load Problem

INTRODUCTION

Most of the perplexities and complexities of modern power plant

operation arise from the inherent variability of the load by the users
as they each and severally require their small or large blocks of energy
in accordance with the demands of their activities. The power station is
constructed, commissioned and operated to supply required power to
consumers with generators running at rated capacity for maximum
efficiency. We saw that the fundamental problem in generation,
transmission and distribution of electrical energy is the fact that
electrical energy cannot be stored. It must be generated, transmitted
and distributed as and when needed.

This lesson looks at problems associated with variable loads on power

stations, and discusses the complexities met in deciding the make, size
and capacity of Generators (Generating units) that must be installed in
a power plant to successfully meet these varying energy demands on a
day-t-day basis.

OBJECTIVE
After completing this module, you should be able to understand the
variable loads need to consider in the design, construction, and
operation of Power Generating Plant.

DISCUSSION

The variable load problem has introduced the following terms and factors
in power plant engineering:

Connected load. It is the sum of continuous ratings of all the

equipment’s connected to supply system.

A power station supplies load to thousands of consumers. Each consumer

has certain equipment installed in his premises. The sum of the continuous
ratings of all the equipment’s in the consumer’s premises is the
“connected load” of the consumer. For instance, if a consumer has
connections of five 100-watt lamps and a power point of 500 watts, then
connected load of the consumer is 5 x 100 + 500 = 1000 watts. The sum of
the connected loads of all the consumers is the connected load to the
power station.

Maximum demand. It is the greatest demand of load on the power station

during a given period.
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Maximum Demand Meter

The Variable Load Problem on the power station varies from time to time.
The maximum of all the demands that have occurred during a given period
(say a day) is the maximum demand. Thus referring back to the load curve
of Fig. above, the maximum demand on the power station during the day is
6 MW and it occurs at 6 P.M. Maximum demand is generally less than the
connected load because all the consumers do not switch on their connected
load to the system at a time. The knowledge of maximum demand is very
important as it helps in determining the installed capacity of the station.
The station must be capable of meeting the maximum demand.

Demand factor. It is the ratio of maximum demand on the power station

to its connected load i.e.,

The value of demand factor is usually less than 1. It is expected

because maximum demand on the power station is generally less than the
connected load. If the maximum demand on the power station is 80 MW and
the connected load is 100 MW, then demand factor = 80/100 = 0.8. The
knowledge of demand factor is vital in determining the capacity of the
plant equipment.
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Average Load. The average of loads occurring on the power station in a

given period (day or month or year) is known as average load or average
demand.

Load factor. The ratio of average load to the maximum demand during a
given period is known as load factor.

If the plant is in operation for T hours,

The load factor may be daily load factor, monthly load factor or annual
load factor if the time period considered is a day or month or year.
Load factor is always less than 1 because average load is smaller than
the maximum demand. The load factor plays key role in determining the
overall cost per unit generated. Higher the load factor of the power
station, lesser will be the cost per unit generated.

Diversity factor. The ratio of the sum of individual maximum demands to

the maximum demand on power station is known as diversity factor.

A power station supplies Variable Load Problem to various types of

consumers whose maximum demands generally do not occur at the same time.
Therefore, the maximum demand on the power station is always less than
the sum of individual maximum demands of the consumers. Obviously,
diversity’ factor will always be greater than 1. The greater the
diversity factor, the lesser is the cost of generation of power.

Plant capacity factor. It is the ratio of actual energy produced to the

Maximum possible energy that could have been produced during a given
period.
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Thus,if the considered period is one year,

The plant capacity factor is an indication of the reserve capacity of the plant. A
power station is so designed that it has some reserve capacity for meeting the
increased Variable Load Problem demand in future. Therefore, the installed
capacity of the plant is always somewhat greater than the maximum demand on
the plant.

It is interesting to note that difference between load factor and plant

capacity factor is an indication of reserve capacity. If the maximum
demand on the plant is equal to the plant capacity, then load factor and
plant capacity factor will have the same value. In such a case, the
plant will have no reserve capacity.

Plant use factor. It is ratio of kWh generated to the product of plant

capacity and the number of hours for which the plant was in operation

Suppose a plant having installed capacity of 20 MW produces annual

output of 7.35 x 10^6 kWh and remains in operation for 2190 hours in a
year. Then,

Units Generated per Annum

It is often required to find the kWh generated per annum from maximum
demand and load factor. The procedure is as follows
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Load Duration Curve

When the load elements of a load curve are arranged in the order of
descending magnitudes, the curve thus obtained is called a load duration
curve.

The load duration curve is obtained from the same data as the load curve
but the ordinates are arranged in the order of descending magnitudes. In
other words, the maximum load is represented to the left and decreasing
loads are represented to the right in the descending order. Hence the
area under the load duration curve and the area under the load curve are
equal. Fig. above (i) shows the daily load curve. The daily load
duration curve can be readily obtained from it. It is clear from daily
load curve See Fig. above (i), that load elements in order of descending
magnitude are : 20 MW for 8 hours; 15 MW for 4 hours and 5 MW for 12
hours. Plotting these Variable Load Problem in order of descending
magnitude, we get the daily load duration curve as shown in Fig. above
(ii).

The following points may be noted about load duration curve:

(i) The load duration curve gives the data in a more presentable form.
In other words, it readily shows the number of hours during which
the given load has prevailed.
(ii) The area under the load duration curve is equal to that of the
corresponding load curve. Obviously, area under daily load duration
curve (in kWh) will give the units generated on that day.
(iii) The load duration curve can be extended to include any period of
time. By laying out the abscissa from 0 hour to 8760 hours, the
variation and distribution of demand for an entire year can be
summarized in one curve. The curve thus obtained is called the
annual load duration curve.
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Types of Load

A device which taps electrical energy from the electric power system is
called a load on the system.
The load may be resistive (e.g., electric lamp), inductive (e.g.,
induction motor), capacitive or some combination of them. The various
types of loads on the power system are:

(i) Domestic load. Domestic load consists of lights, fans,

refrigerators, heaters, television, small motors for pumping water
etc. Most of the residential load occurs only for some hours during
the day (i.e., 24 hours) e.g., lighting load occurs during night
time and domestic appliance load occurs for only a few hours. For
this reason, the load factor is low (10% to 12%).

(ii) Commercial load. Commercial load consists of lighting for shops,

fans and electric appliances used in restaurants etc. This class
of load occurs for more hours during the day as compared to the
domestic load. The commercial load has seasonal variations due to
the extensive use of airconditioners and space heaters.

(iii) Industrial load. Industrial load consists of load demand by

industries. The magnitude of industrial load depends upon the type
of industry. Thus small scale industry requires load upto 25 kW,
medium scale industry between 25kW and 100 kW and large-scale
industry requires load above 500 kW. Industrial loads are
generally not weather dependent.

(iv) Municipal load. Municipal load consists of street lighting, power

required for water supply and drainage purposes. Street lighting
load is practically constant throughout the hours of the night.
For water supply, water is pumped to overhead tanks by pumps
driven by electric motors. Pumping is carried out during the off-
peak period, usually occurring during the night. This helps to
improve the load factor of the power system.

(v) Irrigation load. This type of load is the electric power needed for
pumps driven by motors to supply water to fields. Generally this
type of load is supplied for 12 hours during night.

(vi) Traction load. This type of load includes tram cars, trolley
buses, railways etc. This class of load has wide variation. During
the morning hour, it reaches peak value because people have to go
to their work place. After morning hours, the load starts
decreasing and again rises during evening since the people start
coming to their homes.
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Typical Demand and Diversity factor

The demand factor and diversity factor depend on the type of load and
its magnitude.

Illustration. Load and demand factors are always less than 1 while
diversity factors are more than unity. High load and diversity factors
are the desirable qualities of the power system. Indeed, these factors
are used to predict the load. Fig. 3.4 shows a small part of electric
power system where a distribution transformer is supplying power to the
consumers. For simplicity, only three consumers a, b, and c are shown in
the figure. The maximum demand of consumer a is the product of its
connected load and the appropriate demand factor. Same is the case for
consumers b and c. The maximum demand on the transformer is the sum of
a, b and c’s maximum demands divided by the diversity factors between
the consumers. Similarly, the maximum demand on the feeder is the sum of
maximum demands on the distribution transformers connected to it divided
by the diversity factor between transformers. Likewise, diversification
between feeders is recognized when obtaining substation maximum demands
and substation diversification when predicting maximum load on the power
station. Note that diversity factor is the sum of the individual maximum
demands of the subdivisions of a system taken as they may occur during
the daily cycle divided by the maximum simultaneous demand of the
system. The “system” may be a group of consumers served by a certain
transformer, a group of transformers served by a feeder etc. Since
individual variations have diminishing effect as one goes farther from
the ultimate consumer in making measurements, one should expect
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

decreasing numerical values of diversity factor as the power plant end

of the system is approached. This is clear from the above table showing
diversity factors between different elements of the power system

EXAMPLE 1
A daily load curve which exhibits a 15-min peak of 6520 kW is drawn to
scales of 1cm = 2 hrs and 1 cm = 500 kW. The area under the curve is
measured by planimeter and found to be 48.72 cm². The load factor based
on the 15-min peak will be found.

Solution:

Each square cm represents 500 x 2 = 1000 kW Hr

Average load = 48.72 x 1000/24 = 2030 kW
Load Factor = 2030/6520 = 0.312

EXAMPLE 2
At the end of a power distribution system a certain feeder supplies four
distribution transformers, each one supplying a group of customers whose
connected loads are as follows:

Transformer 1,kW Transformer 2,kW Transformer 3,kW Transformer 4,kW

(General Power ( Residence (Store lighting (Residence
Service and Lighting) and Power) Lighting)
Commercial
Lighting)
1 7.5,5 5 10,3.7 15
2 5.5,4 4 8,18.5 5
3 11 8 4 2
4 3.7,2 15 5
5 20
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

Solution:

a) Solving for individual maximum demands of the group of customers

connected in each Transformer,

Transformer 1
1: (7.5/0.72)x 0.65 + 5 x 0.60 = 9.77 kW
2: (5.5/0.72)x 0.75 + 4 x 0.60 = 8.27 kW
3: (11/0.72)x 0.65 = 9.93 kW
4: (3.7/0.72)x0.75 + 2 x 0.60 = 5.05 kW
Total = 33.02 kW
Transformer 2
1: 5 x 0.50 = 2.50 kW
2: 4 x 0.50 = 2 kW
3: 8 x 0.50 = 4 kW
4: 15 x 0.50 = 7.50 kW
5: 20 x 0.50 = 10 kW
Total = 26 kW
Transformer 3
1: (10 x 0.70)+ (3.7/0.72) x 0.75 =10.85 kW
2: (8 x 0.70) + (18.5/0.72) x 0.55 =19.73 kW
3: 4 x 0.70 = 2.80 kW
Total = 33.38 kW
Transformer 4
1: 15 x 0.50 = 7.50 kW
2: 5 x 0.50 = 2.50 kW
3: 2 x 0.50 = 1 kW
4: 5 x 0.50 = 2.50 kW
Total = 13.50 kW

b) Solving for Peak load,

Peak load = Total Load/Diversity Factor

Transformer 1 = 33.38/1.3 = 22.02 kW

Transformer 2 = 26/3.5 = 7.43 kW
Transformer 3 = 33.38/1.5 = 22.25 kW
Transformer 4 = 13.50/3.50 = 3.86 kW

c) Solving for Maximum Feeder Load,

Max. Feeder Load = Sum of Peak Load/Diversity Factor

= (22.02+7.43+22.25+3.86)/1.3
= 42.74 kW (Answer)
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

EXAMPLE 3
The annual load duration curve of a certain power station can be considered
as a straight line from 20 MW to 4 MW. To meet this load, three turbine-
generator units, two rated at 10 MW each and one rated at 5 MW are
installed. Determine (a) installed capacity (b) plant factor (c) units
generated per annum (d) load factor and (e) utilization factor.

Illustration:

Solution:
(a) Solving for installed capacity,

= 10 MW + 10 MW + 5 MW
= 25 MW
(b) Solving for Plant Factor,

Average Demand = (1/2) (20+4) = 12 MW

Plant Factor = Average Demand/Plant Capacity
= 12/25 MW
= 0.48 or 48%

(c) Solving for units generated per Annum,

= Area (in kWh) under load duration curve
= ½ (4000 + 20000)(8760) kWh
= 105.12x10⁶ kWh

(d) Solving for Load Factor

= Ave. Demand/Max. Demand
= (12000/20000) x 100
= 0.60 or 60%

(e) Solving for utilization factor,

= Max. Demand/Plant Capacity
= 20000/25000
= 0.80 or 80%
 SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
LUCBAN, QUEZON

NAME:_________________________________________ DATE: ___________

Surname, Firstname, M.I
SUBJECT: _____________________________________ SECTION: _________

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISES 1
Variable Load Problems

1. Discuss the difference between Ideal and Realized Load Curves.

2. Draw the Elements of an electric power system.
3. Discuss the effect of variable load on power plant design.
4. Discuss the effect of variable load on power plant operation.
5. Discuss the methods of meeting the load.
6. Solve the following problems:
a. A plant has a connected load of 40 MW and a maximum demand of 20
MW. 73.8 × 10⁶ kWh energy is generated in a year. Calculate: (i)
demand factor, (ii) average load, (iii) load factor.
(Ans. 0.5,8425 kW, 42.1%)
b. Suppose 100 MW plant produces 50 × 106 kWh energy after being in
operation for 2500 hrs in a year. Calculate the Plant use factor.
(Ans. 20%)
c. A generating station has a connected load of 43MW and a maximum
demand of 20 MW; the units generated being 61·5 × 106 per
annum. Calculate (i) the demand factor and (ii) load factor.
(Ans. 0.465, 35.1%)
d. A 100 MW power station delivers 100 MW for 2 hours, 50 MW for 6
hours and is shut down for the rest of each day. It is also shut
down for maintenance for 45 days each year. Calculate its annual
load factor. (Ans. 20.80%)
e. A generating station has a maximum demand of 25MW, a load factor
of 60%, plant capacity factor of 50% and a plant use factor of
72%. Find (i) the reserve capacity of the plant (ii) the daily
energy produced and (iii) maximum energy that could be produced
daily if the plant while running as per schedule, were fully
loaded. (Ans. 5 MW, 360 MWh, 500 MWh/day)

Note: Use separate paper for your answer and solutions.