We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Environmental issues and challenges of water consumption for thermal power plant: Impact of new water consumption norms.
- Authors
PRASAD, P. B.; SINGH, M. K.; KUSHWAHA, J. S.
- Abstract
The interdependency between water and energy, sometimes called the water-energy nexus, is growing in importance as demand for both water and energy increases with time. In the world, thermal power plants make up 70% of the existing fleet. These plants require large quantities of water, primarily for cooling, and account for 40% of the total fresh water withdrawals every year. This has an impact both on the aquatic organisms and on the water resources of the region where the power plant is located. A report from the US Department of Energy identified more than 60% coal-fired power plants as vulnerable to water demand and/or water supply concerns. Therefore, it is important to understand the water footprint of the different electricity generation technologies. Unfortunately, the primary source of data is from direct surveys of power plant operators, which are often unreliable and incomplete. In order to better understand the water footprint of thermal power plants, this paper presents a simple, generic model to predict their water usage. Almost all energy generation processes require significant amounts of water, and the treatment and transport of water requires energy (mainly in the form of electricity). This trade off between energy and water resources is the energy-water nexus. Integrated planning is vital to ensure future social, political, and economic stability and to avoid unwanted and unsustainable scenarios. Water scarcity is increasing. About 2.8 billion people live in areas of high water stress and 1.2 billion live in areas of physical scarcity. It is estimated that by 2030, nearly half of the world‘s population will be living in areas of high water stress affecting energy and food security (WWAP, 2012). Worldwide, decreasing water quality also impacts growth as it degrades ecosystems; causes health-related diseases; constrains economic activities such as agriculture, energy generation, industrial production, and tourism; affects the value of property and assets, and increases wastewater treatment costs. Water is most abundant thing on Earth after air. As water is precious, priceless, pretty gift to human kind from almighty and now-a-days very valuable and its usability is increasing day by day. The electric power industry usually thermal power plant is a large water user and is dependent upon reliable water supplies. Adopting new water-conserving technologies for power production can help alleviate the impact of future water shortages. Several water use reduction technologies are available, each with different benefits and costs. By far the largest use of water in power generation is for condenser cooling. Thermal power plants require a large amount of cooling water to condense the steam turbine exhaust steam. The lower the condensing temperature is, the lower will be the backpressure on the steam turbine, which increases plant thermal efficiency. The most effective method of rejecting this heat is through the use of cooling water. Traditionally, power plants have used three methods for condenser cooling: once-through, evaporative, and dry cooling. Each has unique advantages and disadvantages. With once-through cooling, water is withdrawn (typically from a lake, river, or ocean), pumped through a condenser, and returned to the source at the same rate but at an increased temperature. Once-through cooling provides the best power plant efficiency of all the alternatives (such as cooling towers, natural draft or forced draft) because the source water tends to be the lowest temperature heat sink available for most of the year. In this paper we analyze the use of water in thermal power plant also the various water conservation management techniques in terms of water reuse/recycling, we can also elaborate the other techniques for water conservation by production of energy by renewable energy sources in place of thermal power plant.
- Subjects
WATER withdrawals; UNITED States. Dept. of Energy; WATER consumption; ELECTRIC utilities; GEOTHERMAL resources; POWER plants; POWER resources
- Publication
Indian Journal of Power & River Valley Development, 2022, Vol 72, Issue 1/2, p32
- ISSN
0019-5537
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.18311/ijprvd/2022/30049