History of energy. Thermal power plants

Electricity has contributed to the development of progress, it is a key factor in the functioning of any area of ​​the national economy. Today it is used everywhere, it has become a natural and familiar phenomenon for every person, however, this was not always the case. When did the first power plant appear in Russia?, that is, "a factory that produces electrical energy"?

The beginning of the development of the electric power industry

There is a false opinion about the appearance of electric energy in the country only after the arrival of the Bolsheviks, signed by Lenin's decree "On electrification". But the first power plants in Russia were built long before the rise of the USSR. Back in 1879, during the reign of Emperor Alexander II (grandfather of Nicholas II), there was in the Northern Capital. It was a small installation, its purpose was to illuminate the Liteiny Bridge, the project was implemented under the guidance of engineer P. Yablochkov. Some time later, a similar power plant was being built in Moscow, it provided lighting for the Lubyanka Passage. After 5 years, such stations were located in many major cities Russian Empire, they functioned on solid fuel and were able to produce electricity for lighting.

Hydroelectric power plants - progress development

At the same time, they began to design installations capable of generating electricity using natural elements for this. Where was the first power plant in Russia built?, processing the energy of the movement of water into electricity? The first station was also built in, it was located on the Okhta River and had a low power by modern standards, only 350 horsepower. A more powerful hydroelectric power plant was built in 1903 on the Podkumka River near Essentuki. Its power was enough to consecrate the nearby cities: Pyatigorsk, Zheleznovodsk, Kislovodsk.

Construction of a power plant in Russia - the main purpose

The beginning of the 20th century brought serious changes to the world, industrialization, mechanical engineering required a large amount of electricity consumed. Construction of power plants has become an important component of the development of technological progress, including in the following industries:

• mechanical engineering;
• Black and non-ferrous metallurgy;
• IT technologies;
• Transport infrastructure.

In general, without electricity and the stations that generate it, our world would not be the way we are used to seeing it.

NPP construction in the Russian Federation

The power of the first reactor was insignificant, only 5 MW, for comparison, the most powerful of the modern power plants, Kashiwazaki-Kariva, produces 8122 MW.

On the territory of Russia, a full-fledged cycle is carried out, from the extraction and processing of uranium, to the construction and subsequent operation of nuclear power plants and the disposal of production waste.

Further prospects for the development of the industry

The demand for electricity is growing every year, and accordingly, with an increase in consumption, the volume of electricity production should increase proportionally. For these purposes, new power plants are being built and existing power plants are being modernized.

In addition to existing stations, new environmentally friendly projects are beginning to appear that provide the population with the necessary energy.

Big potential at and stations, as well as the use of tidal energy. Every year, new inventions appear in the world, providing new sources of electricity, which accordingly contributes to the further development of progress.

The role of Russia in the global development and construction of power plants

The country stood at the origins of the development of this industry, often several years ahead of its closest competitors in this direction, namely the United States. So the first foreign nuclear power plant appeared only in 1958, that is, 4 years after the successful implementation of the project by Soviet scientists and engineers. Today, Russia is one of the main producers of electricity in the world, and is also successfully implementing projects for the construction of nuclear reactors in many countries of the world. The expediency of building such a station is relevant only if there is a large industrial potential, the implementation of the project requires significant costs, the payback is sometimes several decades, taking into account uninterrupted operation. Thermal stations require constant sources of fuel, and hydroelectric power stations require the presence of a large water artery.

Definition

cooling tower

Characteristics

Classification

Combined heat and power plant

Device mini-CHP

Purpose of mini-CHP

Use of heat from mini-CHP

Fuel for mini-CHP

Mini-CHP and ecology

Gas turbine engine

Combined-cycle plant

Operating principle

Advantages

Spreading

condensing power plant

History

Principle of operation

Main systems

Influence at environment

Current state

Verkhnetagilskaya GRES

Kashirskaya GRES

Pskovskaya GRES

Stavropolskaya GRES

Smolenskaya GRES

Thermal power plant is(or thermal power plant) - a power plant that generates electrical energy by converting the chemical energy of the fuel into mechanical energy rotation of the generator shaft.

The main nodes of the thermal power plant are:

Engines - power units thermal power plant

Electric generators

Heat exchangers TPP - thermal power plants

Cooling towers.

cooling tower

Cooling tower (German: gradieren - to thicken brine; originally, cooling towers were used to extract salt by evaporation) - a device for cooling large amounts of water with a directed flow of atmospheric air. Sometimes cooling towers are also called cooling towers.

Currently, cooling towers are mainly used in circulating water supply systems for cooling heat exchangers (as a rule, at thermal power plants, thermal power plants). In civil engineering, cooling towers are used in air conditioning, for example, for cooling the condensers of refrigeration units, cooling emergency power generators. In industry, cooling towers are used for cooling refrigeration machines, plastic molding machines, and for chemical purification of substances.

Cooling occurs due to the evaporation of part of the water when it flows down in a thin film or drops along a special sprinkler, along which an air flow is supplied in the opposite direction to the movement of water. When 1% of the water evaporates, the temperature of the remaining water drops by 5.48 °C.

As a rule, cooling towers are used where it is not possible to use large reservoirs for cooling (lakes, seas). Besides, this method cooling is more environmentally friendly.

A simple and cheap alternative to cooling towers are splash ponds, where water is cooled by simple splashing.

Characteristics

The main parameter of the cooling tower is the value of irrigation density — the specific value of water consumption per 1 m² of irrigation area.

The main design parameters of the cooling towers are determined by a technical and economic calculation depending on the volume and temperature of the cooled water and the atmospheric parameters (temperature, humidity, etc.) at the installation site.

Using cooling towers in winter, especially in harsh climates, can be dangerous due to the possibility of freezing of the cooling tower. This happens most often in the place where frosty air comes into contact with big amount warm water. To prevent freezing of the cooling tower and, accordingly, its failure, it is necessary to ensure uniform distribution of the cooled water over the surface of the sprinkler and monitor the same density of irrigation in separate sections of the cooling tower. Blowers are also often exposed to icing due to improper use of the cooling tower.

Classification

Depending on the type of sprinkler, cooling towers are:

film;

drip;

spray;

Air supply method:

fan (thrust is created by a fan);

tower (thrust is created using a high exhaust tower);

open (atmospheric), using the force of the wind and natural convection when air moves through the sprinkler.

Fan cooling towers are the most efficient from a technical point of view, as they provide deeper and better cooling of water, withstand large specific thermal loads (however, they require costs electrical energy to drive the fans).

Types

Boiler-turbine power plants

Condensing power plants (GRES)

Combined heat and power plants (cogeneration power plants, thermal power plants)

Gas turbine power plants

Power plants based on combined cycle plants

Power plants based on reciprocating engines

Compression ignition (diesel)

With spark ignition

combined cycle

Combined heat and power plant

A combined heat and power plant (CHP) is a type of thermal power plant that produces not only electricity, but is also a source of thermal energy in centralized heat supply systems (in the form of steam and hot water, including for providing hot water and heating residential and industrial facilities). As a rule, a CHP plant must operate according to a heating schedule, i.e., the generation of electrical energy depends on the generation of thermal energy.

When placing a CHP, the proximity of heat consumers in the form of hot water and steam is taken into account.

Mini CHP

Mini-CHP is a small combined heat and power plant.

Device mini-CHP

Mini-CHPs are thermal power plants that serve for the joint production of electrical and thermal energy in units with a unit capacity of up to 25 MW, regardless of the type of equipment. At present, the following installations are widely used in foreign and domestic thermal power engineering: counter-pressure steam turbines, condensing steam turbines with steam extraction, gas turbine plants with water or steam recovery of heat energy, gas piston, gas-diesel and diesel units with heat recovery various systems these units. The term cogeneration plants is used as a synonym for the terms mini-CHP and CHP, however, it is broader in meaning, as it involves the joint production (co - joint, generation - production) of various products, which can be both electric and thermal energy, and and other products, such as heat and carbon dioxide, electricity and cold, etc. In fact, the term trigeneration, which implies the production of electricity, heat and cold, is also a special case of cogeneration. A distinctive feature of the mini-CHP is the more economical use of fuel for the produced types of energy in comparison with the generally accepted separate methods of their production. This is due to the fact that electricity on a national scale, it is produced mainly in the condensing cycles of thermal power plants and nuclear power plants, which have an electrical efficiency of 30-35% in the absence of thermal acquirer. In fact, this state of affairs is determined by the prevailing ratio of electrical and thermal loads of settlements, their different nature of change during the year, as well as the inability to transfer thermal energy over long distances in contrast to electrical energy.

The mini-CHP module includes a gas reciprocating, gas turbine or diesel engine, a generator electricity, a heat exchanger for recovering heat from water while cooling the engine, oil and exhaust gases. A hot water boiler is usually added to a mini-CHP to compensate for the heat load at peak times.

Purpose of mini-CHP

The main purpose of a mini-CHP is to generate electrical and thermal energy from various kinds fuel.

The concept of building a mini-CHP in close proximity to acquirer has a number of advantages (in comparison with large CHP plants):

avoids expenses on the construction advantages of standing and dangerous high-voltage power lines (TL);

losses during power transmission are excluded;

eliminates the need for financial costs for the implementation specifications to connect to networks

centralized power supply;

uninterrupted supply of electricity to the purchaser;

power supply with high-quality electricity, compliance with the specified voltage and frequency values;

possibly making a profit.

IN modern world construction of mini-CHP is gaining momentum, the benefits are obvious.

Use of heat from mini-CHP

A significant part of the energy of fuel combustion in the production of electricity is thermal energy.

There are options for using heat:

direct use of thermal energy by end consumers (cogeneration);

hot water supply (DHW), heating, technological needs (steam);

partial conversion of thermal energy into cold energy (trigeneration);

cold is produced by an absorption refrigeration machine that consumes not electrical, but thermal energy, which makes it possible to use heat quite efficiently in summer for air conditioning or for technological needs;

Fuel for mini-CHP

Types of fuel used

gas: main, Natural gas liquefied and other combustible gases;

liquid fuel: diesel fuel, biodiesel and other combustible liquids;

solid fuel: coal, wood, peat and other types of biofuels.

The most efficient and inexpensive fuel in Russian Federation is the backbone Natural gas, as well as associated gas.

Mini-CHP and ecology

The use for practical purposes of the waste heat of power plant engines is distinctive feature mini-CHP and is called cogeneration (cogeneration).

The combined production of two types of energy at a mini-CHP contributes to a much more environmentally friendly use of fuel compared to the separate generation of electricity and thermal energy at boiler plants.

Replacing boiler houses that use fuel irrationally and pollute the atmosphere of cities and towns, mini-CHP contributes not only to significant fuel savings, but also to improving the purity of the air basin, and improving the overall environmental condition.

The source of energy for gas piston and gas turbine mini-CHPs, as a rule,. Natural or associated gas organic fuel that does not pollute the atmosphere with solid emissions

Gas turbine engine

A gas turbine engine (GTE, TRD) is a heat engine in which the gas is compressed and heated, and then the energy of the compressed and heated gas is converted into mechanical energy. work on the shaft gas turbine. Unlike a piston engine, in a gas turbine engine processes occur in a moving gas stream.

Compressed atmospheric air from the compressor enters the combustion chamber, fuel is also supplied there, which, when burned, forms a large amount of combustion products under high pressure. Then, in the gas turbine, the energy of the gaseous products of combustion is converted into mechanical energy. work due to the rotation of the blades by a jet of gas, part of which is spent on compressing the air in the compressor. The rest of the work is transferred to the driven unit. The work consumed by this unit is the useful work of the gas turbine engine. Gas turbine engines have the highest specific power among internal combustion engines, up to 6 kW/kg.

The simplest gas turbine engine has only one turbine, which drives the compressor and at the same time is a source of useful power. This imposes a restriction on the operating modes of the engine.

Sometimes the engine is multi-shaft. In this case, there are several turbines in series, each of which drives its own shaft. The high-pressure turbine (the first one after the combustion chamber) always drives the engine compressor, and the subsequent ones can drive both an external load (helicopter or ship propellers, powerful electric generators, etc.) and additional engine compressors located in front of the main one.

The advantage of a multi-shaft engine is that each turbine operates at optimum speed and load. Advantage A load driven from the shaft of a single-shaft engine would have very poor engine response, that is, the ability to quickly spin up, since the turbine needs to supply power both to provide the engine with a large amount of air (power is limited by the amount of air) and to accelerate the load. With a two-shaft scheme, a light high-pressure rotor quickly enters the regime, providing the engine with air, and the low-pressure turbine with a large amount of gases for acceleration. It is also possible to use a less powerful starter for acceleration when starting only the high pressure rotor.

Combined-cycle plant

Combined-cycle plant - an electric power generating station that serves to produce heat and electricity. It differs from steam-powered and gas-turbine plants by increased efficiency.

Operating principle

Combined-cycle plant consists of two separate units: steam power and gas turbine. In a gas turbine plant, the turbine is rotated by the gaseous products of fuel combustion. The fuel can be either natural gas or petroleum products. industry (fuel oil, solarium). On the same shaft with the turbine is the first generator, which, due to the rotation of the rotor, generates an electric current. Passing through the gas turbine, the combustion products give it only a part of their energy and still have a high temperature at the outlet of the gas turbine. From the outlet of the gas turbine, the combustion products enter the steam power plant, into the waste heat boiler, where they heat water and the resulting steam. The temperature of the combustion products is sufficient to bring the steam to the state required for use in a steam turbine (a flue gas temperature of about 500 degrees Celsius makes it possible to obtain superheated steam at a pressure of about 100 atmospheres). The steam turbine drives a second electric generator.

Advantages

Combined-cycle plants have an electrical efficiency of about 51-58%, while for separately operating steam-power or gas turbine plants it fluctuates around 35-38%. This not only reduces fuel consumption, but also reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

Since a combined cycle plant extracts heat from the combustion products more efficiently, it is possible to burn fuel at higher temperatures, resulting in lower nitrogen oxide emissions into the atmosphere than other types of plants.

Relatively low production cost.

Spreading

Despite the fact that the advantages of the steam-gas cycle were first proven back in the 1950s by the Soviet academician Khristianovich, this type of power generating installations did not receive Russian Federation wide application. Several experimental CCGTs were built in the USSR. An example is the power units with a capacity of 170 MW at the Nevinnomysskaya GRES and with a capacity of 250 MW at the Moldavskaya GRES. In recent years in Russian Federation a number of powerful steam-gas power units were put into operation. Among them:

2 power units with a capacity of 450 MW each at the Severo-Zapadnaya CHPP in St. Petersburg;

1 power unit with a capacity of 450 MW at the Kaliningrad CHPP-2;

1 CCGT unit with a capacity of 220 MW at Tyumen CHPP-1;

2 CCGTs with a capacity of 450 MW at CHPP-27 and 1 CCGT at CHPP-21 in Moscow;

1 CCGT unit with a capacity of 325 MW at Ivanovskaya GRES;

2 power units with a capacity of 39 MW each at Sochinskaya TPP

As of September 2008, several CCGTs are in various stages of design or construction in the Russian Federation.

In Europe and the USA, similar installations operate at most thermal power plants.

condensing power plant

A condensing power plant (CPP) is a thermal power plant that produces only electrical energy. Historically, it received the name "GRES" - the state regional power plant. Over time, the term "GRES" has lost its original meaning ("district") and in the modern sense means, as a rule, a high-capacity condensing power plant (CPP) (thousands of MW) operating in the integrated energy system along with other large power plants. However, it should be borne in mind that not all stations that have the abbreviation "GRES" in their names are condensing, some of them operate as combined heat and power plants.

History

The first state district power station "Electrotransfer", today's "GRES-3", was built near Moscow in the city of Elektrogorsk in 1912-1914. on the initiative of engineer R. E. Klasson. The main fuel is peat, the power is 15 MW. In the 1920s, the GOELRO plan provided for the construction of several thermal power plants, among which the Kashirskaya GRES is the most famous.

Principle of operation

Water heated in a steam boiler to a state of superheated steam (520-565 degrees Celsius) rotates a steam turbine that drives a turbogenerator.

Excess heat is released into the atmosphere (nearby bodies of water) through condensing units, unlike combined heat and power plants, which transfer excess heat to the needs of nearby facilities (for example, heating houses).

A condensing power plant typically operates on the Rankine cycle.

Main systems

IES is a complex energy complex consisting of buildings, structures, power and other equipment, pipelines, fittings, instrumentation and automation. The main IES systems are:

boiler plant;

steam turbine plant;

fuel economy;

ash and slag removal system, flue gas cleaning;

electrical part;

technical water supply (to remove excess heat);

chemical treatment and water treatment system.

During the design and construction of the IES, its systems are located in the buildings and structures of the complex, primarily in the main building. During the operation of the IES, the personnel managing the systems, as a rule, are combined into workshops (boiler-turbine, electrical, fuel supply, chemical water treatment, thermal automation, etc.).

The boiler plant is located in the boiler room of the main building. In the southern regions of the Russian Federation, the boiler plant may be open, that is, without walls and a roof. The installation consists of steam boilers (steam generators) and steam pipelines. The steam from the boilers is transferred to the turbines via live steam pipelines. The steam pipes of different boilers are usually not cross-linked. Such a scheme is called "block".

The steam turbine plant is located in the engine room and in the deaerator (bunker-deaerator) section of the main building. It includes:

steam turbines with an electric generator on one shaft;

a condenser in which the steam that has passed through the turbine is condensed to form water (condensate);

condensate and feed pumps that return condensate (feed water) to steam boilers;

low and high pressure recuperative heaters (LPH and HPH) - heat exchangers in which feed water is heated by steam extraction from the turbine;

deaerator (also serving as HDPE), in which water is purified from gaseous impurities;

pipelines and auxiliary systems.

The fuel economy has a different composition depending on the main fuel for which the IES is designed. For coal-fired IES, the fuel economy includes:

a defrosting device (the so-called "teplyak" or "shed") for thawing coal in open gondola cars;

unloading device (usually a wagon dumper);

a coal warehouse serviced by a grab crane or a special reloading machine;

crushing plant for preliminary grinding of coal;

conveyors for moving coal;

aspiration systems, blocking and other auxiliary systems;

pulverizing system, including ball, roller, or hammer coal mills.

The pulverizing system, as well as the coal bunker, are located in the bunker and deaerator compartment of the main building, the rest of the fuel supply devices are outside the main building. Occasionally, a central dust plant is arranged. The coal warehouse is calculated for 7-30 days of continuous operation of the IES. Part of the fuel supply devices is reserved.

The fuel economy of IES running on natural gas is the simplest: it includes a gas distribution point and gas pipelines. However, such power plants use as a backup or seasonal source fuel oil, therefore, a black oil economy is being arranged. Oil facilities are also being built at coal-fired power plants, where they are used to kindle boilers. The oil industry includes:

receiving and draining device;

fuel oil storage with steel or reinforced concrete tanks;

fuel oil pumping station with heaters and fuel oil filters;

pipelines with shut-off and control valves;

fire fighting and other auxiliary systems.

The ash and slag removal system is arranged only at coal-fired power plants. Both ash and slag are non-combustible remains of coal, but slag is formed directly in the boiler furnace and removed through a tap-hole (a hole in the slag mine), and the ash is carried away with flue gases and is captured already at the boiler outlet. Ash particles are much smaller (about 0.1 mm) than slag pieces (up to 60 mm). Ash removal systems can be hydraulic, pneumatic or mechanical. The most common system of recirculating hydraulic ash and slag removal consists of flushing devices, channels, bager pumps, slurry pipelines, ash and slag dumps, pumping and clarified water conduits.

Emission of flue gases into the atmosphere is the most dangerous impact of a thermal power plant on the environment. To trap ash from flue gases, various types of filters (cyclones, scrubbers, electrostatic precipitators, bag fabric filters) are installed after the blowers, retaining 90-99% of solid particles. However, they are unsuitable for cleaning smoke from harmful gases. Abroad and in Lately and at domestic power plants (including gas-oil), install systems for gas desulfurization with lime or limestone (so-called deSOx) and catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides with ammonia (deNOx). The cleaned flue gas is ejected by a smoke exhauster into a chimney, the height of which is determined from the conditions of dispersion of the remaining harmful impurities in the atmosphere.

The electrical part of the IES is intended for the production of electrical energy and its distribution to consumers. In IES generators, a three-phase electric current with a voltage of usually 6-24 kV is created. Since with an increase in voltage, energy losses in the networks are significantly reduced, immediately after the generators, transformers are installed that increase the voltage to 35, 110, 220, 500 or more kV. Transformers are installed outdoors. Part of the electrical energy is spent on the power plant's own needs. Connection and disconnection of power lines outgoing to substations and consumers is carried out on open or closed switchgears (OSG, ZRU) equipped with switches capable of connecting and breaking the high voltage electrical circuit without the formation of an electric arc.

The service water supply system provides a large amount of cold water to cool the turbine condensers. Systems are divided into direct-flow, reverse and mixed. In once-through systems, water is taken by pumps from a natural source (usually from a river) and, after passing through the condenser, is discharged back. At the same time, the water heats up by about 8–12 °C, which in some cases changes the biological state of the reservoirs. In circulation systems, water circulates under the influence of circulation pumps and is cooled by air. Cooling can be carried out on the surface of cooling reservoirs or in artificial structures: spray pools or cooling towers.

In low-water areas, instead of a technical water supply system, air-condensation systems (dry cooling towers) are used, which are an air radiator with natural or artificial draft. This decision is usually forced, as they are more expensive and less efficient in terms of cooling.

The chemical water treatment system provides chemical purification and deep desalination of water entering steam boilers and steam turbines to avoid deposits on the internal surfaces of the equipment. Typically, filters, tanks and reagent facilities for water treatment are located in the auxiliary building of the IES. In addition, multi-stage purification systems are being created at thermal power plants. Wastewater contaminated with oil products, oils, washing and washing waters of equipment, storm and melt runoff.

Environmental impact

Impact on the atmosphere. When fuel is burned, a large amount of oxygen is consumed, and a significant amount of combustion products is released, such as fly ash, gaseous sulfur oxides of nitrogen, some of which have a high chemical activity.

Impact on the hydrosphere. First of all, the discharge of water from turbine condensers, as well as industrial effluents.

Impact on the lithosphere. A lot of space is required to bury large masses of ash. These pollutions are reduced by using ash and slag as building materials.

Current state

At present, typical GRESs with a capacity of 1000-1200, 2400, 3600 MW and several unique ones are operating in the Russian Federation; units of 150, 200, 300, 500, 800 and 1200 MW are used. Among them are the following GRES (which are part of WGC):

Verkhnetagilskaya GRES - 1500 MW;

Iriklinskaya GRES - 2430 MW;

Kashirskaya GRES - 1910 MW;

Nizhnevartovskaya GRES - 1600 MW;

Permskaya GRES - 2400 MW;

Urengoyskaya GRES - 24 MW.

Pskovskaya GRES - 645 MW;

Serovskaya GRES - 600 MW;

Stavropolskaya GRES - 2400 MW;

Surgutskaya GRES-1 - 3280 MW;

Troitskaya GRES - 2060 MW.

Gusinoozyorskaya GRES - 1100 MW;

Kostromskaya GRES - 3600 MW;

Pechorskaya GRES - 1060 MW;

Kharanorskaya GRES - 430 MW;

Cherepetskaya GRES - 1285 MW;

Yuzhnouralskaya GRES - 882 MW.

Berezovskaya GRES - 1500 MW;

Smolenskaya GRES - 630 MW;

Surgutskaya GRES-2 - 4800 MW;

Shaturskaya GRES - 1100 MW;

Yaivinskaya GRES - 600 MW.

Konakovskaya GRES - 2400 MW;

Nevinnomysskaya GRES - 1270 MW;

Reftinskaya GRES - 3800 MW;

Sredneuralskaya GRES - 1180 MW.

Kirishskaya GRES - 2100 MW;

Krasnoyarsk GRES-2 - 1250 MW;

Novocherkasskaya GRES - 2400 MW;

Ryazanskaya GRES (units No. 1-6 - 2650 MW and block No. 7 (former GRES-24, which became part of Ryazanskaya GRES - 310 MW) - 2960 MW);

Cherepovetskaya GRES - 630 MW.

Verkhnetagilskaya GRES

Verkhnetagilskaya GRES is a thermal power plant in Verkhny Tagil (Sverdlovsk Region), operating as part of OGK-1. In operation since May 29, 1956.

The station includes 11 power units with an electrical capacity of 1497 MW and a thermal power unit of 500 Gcal/h. Station fuel: Natural gas (77%), coal(23%). The number of personnel is 1119 people.

Construction of the station with a design capacity of 1600 MW began in 1951. The purpose of the construction was to provide thermal and electrical energy to the Novouralsk Electrochemical Plant. In 1964, the power plant reached its design capacity.

In order to improve the heat supply of the cities of Verkhny Tagil and Novouralsk, the following stations were produced:

Four K-100-90(VK-100-5) LMZ condensing turbine units were replaced with T-88/100-90/2.5 cogeneration turbines.

TG-2,3,4 are equipped with network heaters of PSG-2300-8-11 type for heating network water in the heat supply scheme of Novouralsk.

TG-1.4 has network heaters for heat supply to Verkhny Tagil and the industrial site.

All work was carried out according to the project of KhF TsKB.

On the night of January 3-4, 2008, an accident occurred at Surgutskaya GRES-2: a partial collapse of the roof over the sixth power unit with a capacity of 800 MW led to the shutdown of two power units. The situation was complicated by the fact that another power unit (No. 5) was under repair: As a result, power units No. 4, 5, 6 were stopped. This accident was localized by January 8. All this time the GRES worked in a particularly intense mode.

By 2010 and 2013, respectively, it is planned to build two new power units (fuel - natural gas).

There is a problem of emissions into the environment at the GRES. OGK-1 signed a contract with the Energy Engineering Center of the Urals for 3.068 million rubles, which provides for the development of a project for the reconstruction of the boiler at Verkhnetagilskaya GRES, which will lead to a reduction in emissions to comply with MPE standards.

Kashirskaya GRES

Kashirskaya GRES named after G. M. Krzhizhanovsky in the city of Kashira, Moscow Region, on the banks of the Oka.

Historical station, built under the personal supervision of V. I. Lenin according to the GOELRO plan. At the time of commissioning, the 12 MW plant was the second largest power plant in Europe.

The station was built according to the GOELRO plan, the construction was carried out under the personal supervision of V. I. Lenin. It was built in 1919-1922, for the construction on the site of the village of Ternovo, the working settlement of Novokashirsk was erected. Launched on June 4, 1922, it became one of the first Soviet regional thermal power plants.

Pskovskaya GRES

Pskovskaya GRES is a state district power plant, located 4.5 kilometers from the urban-type settlement of Dedovichi, the district center of the Pskov region, on the left bank of the Shelon River. Since 2006, it has been a branch of OAO OGK-2.

High-voltage power lines connect the Pskovskaya GRES with Belarus, Latvia and Lithuania. The parent organization considers this an advantage: there is a channel for exporting energy resources, which is actively used.

The installed capacity of the GRES is 430 MW, it includes two highly maneuverable power units of 215 MW each. These power units were built and put into operation in 1993 and 1996. initial advantage The first stage included the construction of three power units.

The main type of fuel is natural gas, it enters the station through a branch of the main export gas pipeline. The power units were originally designed to operate on milled peat; they were reconstructed according to the VTI project for burning natural gas.

The cost of electricity for own needs is 6.1%.

Stavropolskaya GRES

Stavropolskaya GRES is a thermal power plant of the Russian Federation. Located in the city of Solnechnodolsk, Stavropol Territory.

Loading of the power plant allows for export deliveries of electricity abroad: to Georgia and Azerbaijan. At the same time, the maintenance of flows in the system-forming electrical network of the Unified Energy System of the South at acceptable levels is guaranteed.

Part of the wholesale generating organizations No. 2 (JSC "OGK-2").

The cost of electricity for the station's own needs is 3.47%.

The main fuel of the station is natural gas, but fuel oil can be used as a reserve and emergency fuel. Fuel balance as of 2008: gas - 97%, fuel oil - 3%.

Smolenskaya GRES

Smolenskaya GRES is a thermal power plant of the Russian Federation. Part of the wholesale generating firms No. 4 (JSC "OGK-4") since 2006.

On January 12, 1978, the first block of the state district power station was put into operation, the design of which began in 1965, and construction in 1970. The station is located in the village of Ozerny, Dukhovshchinsky District, Smolensk Region. Initially, it was supposed to use peat as a fuel, but due to the backlog in the construction of peat mining enterprises, other types of fuel were used (Moscow region coal, Inta coal, slate, Khakass coal). In total, 14 types of fuel were changed. Since 1985, it has been definitively established that energy will be obtained from Natural gas and coal.

The current installed capacity of the GRES is 630 MW.

Sources

Ryzhkin V. Ya. Thermal power stations. Ed. V. Ya. Girshfeld. Textbook for high schools. 3rd ed., revised. and additional — M.: Energoatomizdat, 1987. — 328 p.

http://ru.wikipedia.org/

Encyclopedia of the investor. 2013 .

thermal power plant- - EN heat and power station Power station which produces both electricity and hot water for the local population. A CHP (Combined Heat and Power Station) plant may operate on almost … Technical Translator's Handbook

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Thermal power plant (thermal electrical station) - a power plant that generates electrical energy by converting the chemical energy of fuel into mechanical energy of rotation of the shaft of an electric generator.

At thermal power plants, the thermal energy released during the combustion of fossil fuels (coal, peat, shale, oil, gases) is converted into mechanical and then into electrical energy. Here, the chemical energy contained in the fuel goes through a complex transformation from one form to another to produce electrical energy.

The conversion of energy contained in the fuel at a thermal power plant can be divided into the following main stages: the conversion of chemical energy into thermal energy, thermal energy into mechanical energy, and mechanical energy into electrical energy.

The first thermal power plants (TPPs) appeared at the end of the 19th century. In 1882, the TPP was built in New York, in 1883 - in St. Petersburg, in 1884 - in Berlin.

Most of the TPPs are thermal steam turbine power plants. On them, thermal energy is used in a boiler unit (steam generator).

The layout of the thermal power plant: 1 - electric generator; 2 - steam turbine; 3 - control panel; 4 - deaerator; 5 and 6 - bunkers; 7 - separator; 8 - cyclone; 9 - boiler; 10 – heating surface (heat exchanger); 11 - chimney; 12 - crushing room; 13 - storage of reserve fuel; 14 - wagon; 15 - unloading device; 16 - conveyor; 17 - smoke exhauster; 18 - channel; 19 - ash catcher; 20 - fan; 21 - firebox; 22 - mill; 23 - pumping station; 24 - water source; 25 - circulation pump; 26 – high pressure regenerative heater; 27 - feed pump; 28 - capacitor; 29 - installation of chemical water treatment; 30 - step-up transformer; 31 – low pressure regenerative heater; 32 - condensate pump

One of the most important elements of the boiler unit is the furnace. In it, the chemical energy of the fuel is converted into thermal energy during the chemical reaction of the combustible elements of the fuel with atmospheric oxygen. In this case, gaseous combustion products are formed, which perceive most of the heat released during the combustion of the fuel.

In the process of heating the fuel in the furnace, coke and gaseous, volatile substances are formed. At a temperature of 600–750 °C, volatile substances ignite and begin to burn, which leads to an increase in the temperature in the furnace. At the same time, the combustion of coke begins. As a result, flue gases are formed that exit the furnace at a temperature of 1000–1200 °C. These gases are used to heat water and produce steam.

At the beginning of the XIX century. to obtain steam, simple units were used, in which heating and evaporation of water were not distinguished. A typical representative of the simplest type of steam boilers was a cylindrical boiler.

For the developing electric power industry, boilers were required that produce steam at high temperature and high pressure, since it is in this state that it gives the greatest amount of energy. Such boilers were created and they were called water tube boilers.

In water tube boilers, flue gases flow around pipes through which water circulates, heat from flue gases is transferred through the walls of the pipes to water, which turns into steam.

The composition of the main equipment of a thermal power plant and the interconnection of its systems: fuel economy; fuel preparation; boiler; intermediate superheater; part of the high pressure of the steam turbine (CHVD or HPC); part of the low pressure of the steam turbine (LPG or LPC); electric generator; auxiliary transformer; communication transformer; main switchgear; capacitor; condensate pump; circulation pump; source of water supply (for example, a river); low pressure heater (LPH); water treatment plant (VPU); thermal energy consumer; reverse condensate pump; deaerator; feed pump; high pressure heater (HPV); slag and ash removal; ash dump; smoke exhauster (DS); chimney; blower fans (DV); ash catcher

Modern steam boiler works as follows.

The fuel burns in a firebox, near the walls of which there are vertical pipes. Under the action of the heat released during the combustion of fuel, the water in these pipes boils. The resulting steam rises into the boiler drum. The boiler is a thick-walled horizontal steel cylinder filled with water up to half. Steam is collected in the upper part of the drum and exits it into a group of coils - a superheater. In the superheater, the steam is additionally heated by flue gases leaving the furnace. It has a temperature higher than that at which water boils at a given pressure. Such steam is called superheated. After leaving the superheater, the steam goes to the consumer. In the boiler ducts located after the superheater, flue gases pass through another group of coils - a water economizer. In it, water before entering the boiler drum is heated by the heat of flue gases. Downstream of the economizer, along the flue gas path, air heater pipes are usually placed. In it, the air is heated before being fed into the furnace. After the air heater, flue gases at a temperature of 120–160 °C exit into the chimney.

All working processes of the boiler unit are fully mechanized and automated. It is served by numerous auxiliary mechanisms driven by electric motors, the power of which can reach several thousand kilowatts.

Boiler units of powerful power plants produce high pressure steam - 140–250 atmospheres and high temperature - 550–580 °C. The furnaces of these boilers mainly burn solid fuel, crushed to a pulverized state, fuel oil or natural gas.

The transformation of coal into a pulverized state is carried out in pulverized plants.

The principle of operation of such an installation with a ball drum mill is as follows.

The fuel enters the boiler room via belt conveyors and is discharged into the bunker, from which, after automatic scales, it is fed by a feeder to the coal mill. The grinding of the fuel takes place inside a horizontal drum rotating at a speed of about 20 rpm. It contains steel balls. Hot air heated to a temperature of 300–400 °C is supplied to the mill through a pipeline. Giving part of its heat to fuel drying, the air is cooled to a temperature of about 130 ° C and, leaving the drum, carries the coal dust formed in the mill into the dust separator (separator). The dust-air mixture freed from large particles leaves the separator from above and is directed to the dust separator (cyclone). In the cyclone, coal dust is separated from the air, and through the valve enters the coal dust hopper. In the separator, large dust particles fall out and return to the mill for further grinding. A mixture of coal dust and air is fed into the boiler burners.

Pulverized coal burners are devices for supplying pulverized fuel and the air necessary for its combustion into the combustion chamber. They must ensure complete combustion of the fuel by creating a homogeneous mixture of air and fuel.

The furnace of modern pulverized coal boilers is a high chamber, the walls of which are covered with pipes, the so-called steam-water screens. They protect the walls of the combustion chamber from sticking to them from slag formed during fuel combustion, and also protect the lining from rapid wear due to the chemical action of slag and the high temperature that develops when fuel is burned in the furnace.

The screens perceive 10 times more heat per square meter of surface than the other tubular heating surfaces of the boiler, which perceive the heat of flue gases mainly due to direct contact with them. In the combustion chamber, coal dust ignites and burns in the gas stream carrying it.

Boiler furnaces that burn gaseous or liquid fuels are also chambers covered with screens. A mixture of fuel and air is supplied to them through gas burners or oil burners.

The device of a modern high-capacity drum boiler unit operating on coal dust is as follows.

Fuel in the form of dust is blown into the furnace through the burners, together with part of the air necessary for combustion. The rest of the air is supplied to the furnace preheated to a temperature of 300–400 °C. In the furnace, coal particles burn on the fly, forming a torch, with a temperature of 1500–1600 °C. Non-combustible impurities of coal turn into ash, most of which (80–90%) is removed from the furnace by flue gases resulting from fuel combustion. The rest of the ash, consisting of stuck together particles of slag, accumulated on the pipes of the furnace screens and then detached from them, falls to the bottom of the furnace. After that, it is collected in a special shaft located under the firebox. The slag is cooled in it with a jet of cold water, and then it is carried out by water outside the boiler unit by special devices of the hydraulic ash removal system.

The walls of the furnace are covered with a screen - pipes in which water circulates. Under the influence of heat radiated by a burning torch, it partially turns into steam. These pipes are connected to the boiler drum, which is also supplied with water heated in the economizer.

As the flue gases move, part of their heat is radiated to the screen tubes and the temperature of the gases gradually decreases. At the exit from the furnace, it is 1000–1200 °C. With further movement, the flue gases at the outlet of the furnace come into contact with the tubes of the screens, cooling down to a temperature of 900–950 °C. In the gas duct of the boiler, tubes of coils are placed, through which steam passes, formed in the screen pipes and separated from the water in the boiler drum. In coils, the steam receives additional heat from the flue gases and superheats, i.e. its temperature becomes higher than the temperature of water boiling at the same pressure. This part of the boiler is called the superheater.

After passing between the pipes of the superheater, flue gases with a temperature of 500-600 ° C enter the part of the boiler in which the pipes of the water heater or water economizer are located. Feed water with a temperature of 210–240 °C is supplied to it by a pump. Such a high water temperature is achieved in special heaters that are part of the turbine plant. In the water economizer, water is heated to the boiling point and enters the boiler drum. The flue gases passing between the pipes of the water economizer continue to cool and then pass inside the pipes of the air heater, in which the air is heated due to the heat given off by the gases, the temperature of which is then reduced to 120–160 °C.

The air required for fuel combustion is supplied to the air heater by a blower fan and heated there to 300–400 °C, after which it enters the furnace for fuel combustion. The flue or outgoing gases leaving the air heater pass through a special device - an ash catcher - for ash removal. Purified exhaust gases are emitted into the atmosphere through a chimney up to 200 m high by a smoke exhauster.

The drum is essential in boilers of this type. Through numerous pipes, a steam-water mixture from the furnace screens enters it. In the drum, steam is separated from this mixture, and the remaining water is mixed with feed water entering this drum from the economizer. From the drum, water passes through pipes located outside the furnace into prefabricated collectors, and from them into screen pipes located in the furnace. In this way, the circular path (circulation) of water in drum boilers is closed. The movement of water and steam-water mixture according to the scheme drum - outer pipes - screen pipes - drum occurs due to the fact that the total weight of the steam-water mixture column filling the screen pipes is less than the weight of the water column in the outer pipes. This creates a pressure of natural circulation, providing a circular movement of water.

Steam boilers are automatically controlled by numerous regulators, which are supervised by the operator.

The devices regulate the supply of fuel, water and air to the boiler, maintain a constant water level in the boiler drum, the temperature of superheated steam, etc. The devices that control the operation of the boiler unit and all its auxiliary mechanisms are concentrated on a special control panel. It also contains devices that allow remotely performing automated operations from this shield: opening and closing all shut-off devices on pipelines, starting and stopping individual auxiliary mechanisms, as well as starting and stopping the entire boiler unit as a whole.

Water-tube boilers of the described type have a very significant drawback: the presence of a bulky, heavy and expensive drum. To get rid of it, steam boilers without drums were created. They consist of a system of curved tubes, at one end of which feed water is supplied, and superheated steam of the required pressure and temperature exits from the other, i.e., water passes through all heating surfaces once without circulation before it turns into steam. Such steam boilers are called once-through.

The scheme of operation of such a boiler is as follows.

Feed water passes through the economizer, then enters the lower part of the coils, located helically on the walls of the furnace. The steam-water mixture formed in these coils enters the coil located in the boiler flue, where the conversion of water into steam ends. This part of the once-through boiler is called the transition zone. The steam then enters the superheater. After exiting the superheater, the steam is directed to the consumer. The air required for combustion is heated in the air heater.

Once-through boilers allow you to get steam with a pressure of more than 200 atmospheres, which is impossible in drum boilers.

The resulting superheated steam, which has a high pressure (100–140 atmospheres) and a high temperature (500–580 °C), is able to expand and do work. This steam is transferred via main steam pipelines to the machine room, where steam turbines are installed.

In steam turbines, the potential energy of steam is converted into mechanical energy of rotation of the steam turbine rotor. In turn, the rotor is connected to the rotor of the electric generator.

The principle of operation and the device of a steam turbine are discussed in the article "Electric Turbine", so we will not dwell on them in detail.

The steam turbine will be the more economical, i.e., the less heat will be consumed for each kilowatt-hour generated by it, the lower the pressure of the steam leaving the turbine.

To this end, the steam leaving the turbine is not directed into the atmosphere, but into a special device called a condenser, in which a very low pressure is maintained, only 0.03-0.04 atmospheres. This is achieved by lowering the temperature of the steam by cooling it with water. The steam temperature at this pressure is 24–29 °C. In the condenser, the steam gives up its heat to the cooling water and, at the same time, it condenses, i.e., it turns into water - condensate. The temperature of the steam in the condenser depends on the temperature of the cooling water and the amount of this water consumed for each kilogram of condensed steam. The water used to condense the steam enters the condenser at a temperature of 10–15 °C and leaves it at a temperature of about 20–25 °C. Cooling water consumption reaches 50–100 kg per 1 kg of steam.

The condenser is a cylindrical drum with two end caps. Metal boards are installed at both ends of the drum, in which a large number of brass tubes are fixed. Cooling water passes through these pipes. Between the tubes, flowing around them from top to bottom, steam from the turbine passes. The condensate formed during the condensation of steam is removed from below.

During the condensation of steam, the transfer of heat from the steam to the wall of the tubes through which the cooling water passes is of great importance. If there is even a small amount of air in the steam, then the heat transfer from the steam to the tube wall deteriorates sharply; the amount of pressure that will need to be maintained in the condenser will also depend on this. Air that inevitably enters the condenser with steam and through leaks must be continuously removed. This is carried out by a special apparatus - a steam jet ejector.

For cooling in the condenser of the steam that has worked out in the turbine, water from a river, lake, pond or sea is used. The consumption of cooling water at powerful power plants is very high and, for example, for a power plant with a capacity of 1 million kW, is about 40 m3 / s. If water is taken from the river to cool the steam in the condensers, and then, heated in the condenser, is returned to the river, then such a water supply system is called once-through.

If there is not enough water in the river, then a dam is built and a pond is formed, from one end of which water is taken to cool the condenser, and heated water is discharged to the other end. Sometimes, to cool the water heated in the condenser, artificial coolers are used - cooling towers, which are towers about 50 m high.

The water heated in the turbine condensers is supplied to trays located in this tower at a height of 6–9 m. Flowing out in jets through the openings of the trays and splashing in the form of drops or a thin film, the water flows down, while partially evaporating and cooling. The cooled water is collected in a pool, from where it is pumped to the condensers. Such a water supply system is called closed.

We examined the main devices used to convert the chemical energy of fuel into electrical energy in a steam turbine thermal power plant.

The operation of a coal-burning power plant is as follows.

Coal is fed by broad gauge trains to the unloading device, where it is unloaded from the cars onto belt conveyors using special unloading mechanisms - car dumpers.

The stock of fuel in the boiler room is created in special storage tanks - bunkers. From the bunkers, coal enters the mill, where it is dried and ground to a pulverized state. A mixture of coal dust and air is fed into the boiler furnace. When coal dust is burned, flue gases are produced. After cooling, the gases pass through the ash catcher and, having been cleaned of fly ash in it, are thrown into the chimney.

Slags and fly ash from the ash collectors that have fallen out of the combustion chamber are transported by water through channels and then pumped to the ash dump. Combustion air is supplied by a fan to the boiler air heater. Superheated steam of high pressure and high temperature obtained in the boiler is fed through steam pipelines to the steam turbine, where it expands to a very low pressure and goes to the condenser. The condensate formed in the condenser is taken by the condensate pump and fed through the heater to the deaerator. The deaerator removes air and gases from the condensate. Raw water that has passed through the water treatment device also enters the deaerator to make up for the loss of steam and condensate. From the deaerator feed tank, feed water is pumped to the water economizer of the steam boiler. Water for cooling the exhaust steam is taken from the river and sent to the turbine condenser by a circulation pump. Electric Energy, generated by the generator connected to the turbine, is diverted through step-up electrical transformers through high voltage power lines to the consumer.

The power of modern thermal power plants can reach 6000 megawatts or more with an efficiency of up to 40%.

Thermal power plants can also use natural gas or liquid fuel gas turbines. Gas turbine power plants (GTPPs) are used to cover electrical load peaks.

There are also combined-cycle power plants in which the power plant consists of steam turbine and gas turbine units. Their efficiency reaches 43%.

The advantage of thermal power plants in comparison with hydroelectric power plants is that they can be built anywhere, bringing them closer to the consumer. They run on almost all types of fossil fuels, so they can be adapted to the type that is available in the area.

In the middle of the 70s of the XX century. the share of electricity generated at thermal power plants was approximately 75% of the total generation. In the USSR and the USA it was even higher - 80%.

The main disadvantage of thermal power plants is a high degree of environmental pollution with carbon dioxide, as well as a large area occupied by ash dumps.

Read and write useful

Thermal power plants generate electricity by converting thermal energy released by burning fuel. The main types of fuel for a thermal power plant are natural resources - gas, fuel oil, less often coal and peat.
A type of thermal power plant (TPP) is a combined heat and power plant (CHP) - a thermal power plant that produces not only electricity, but also heat, which in the form of hot water through heating networks comes to our batteries.On fig. the path of energy from the power plant to the apartment.

A boiler with water is installed in the machine room of the thermal power plant. When fuel is burned, the water in the boiler heats up to several hundred degrees and turns into steam. The steam under pressure rotates the blades of the turbine, the turbine in turn rotates the generator. The generator generates electricity. Electric current enters the electrical networks and through them reaches cities and villages, enters factories, schools, homes, hospitals. The transmission of electricity from power plants through power lines is carried out at voltages of 110-500 kilovolts, that is, significantly higher than the voltage of generators. An increase in voltage is necessary for the transmission of electricity over long distances. Then it is necessary to reverse the voltage drop to a level convenient for the consumer. Voltage conversion occurs in electrical substations using transformers. Through numerous cables laid underground and wires stretched high above the ground, the current runs to people's homes. And heat in the form of hot water comes from the CHP through heating mains, also located underground.

Designations in the figure:
cooling tower- a device for cooling water at a power plant with atmospheric air.
Steam boiler- a closed unit for generating steam at a power plant by heating water. Water heating is carried out by burning fuel (at Saratov thermal power plants - gas).
power lines- power line. Designed for the transmission of electricity. There are overhead power lines (wires stretched above the ground) and underground (power cables).

The first appeared at the end of the 19th century in New York (1882), and in 1883 the first thermal power plant was built in Russia (St. Petersburg). From the moment of its appearance, it is TPPs that have become most widespread, given the ever-increasing energy demand of the coming technogenic age. Until the mid-70s of the last century, it was the operation of thermal power plants that was the dominant method of generating electricity. For example, in the USA and the USSR, the share of thermal power plants among all the electricity received was 80%, and around the world - about 73-75%.

The above definition, although capacious, is not always clear. Let's try to explain in our own words general principle operation of thermal power plants of any type.

Electricity generation in thermal power plants take place with the participation of many successive stages, but the general principle of its operation is very simple. First, the fuel is burned in a special combustion chamber (steam boiler), while a large amount of heat is released, which turns the water circulating through special pipe systems located inside the boiler into steam. The constantly increasing steam pressure rotates the turbine rotor, which transfers the rotational energy to the generator shaft, and as a result, an electric current is generated.

The steam/water system is closed. The steam, after passing through the turbine, condenses and turns back into water, which additionally passes through the heater system and again enters the steam boiler.

There are several types of thermal power plants. At present, among thermal power plants, most of all thermal steam turbine power plants (TPES). In power plants of this type, the thermal energy of the fuel burned is used in a steam generator, where a very high pressure of water vapor is achieved, driving the turbine rotor and, accordingly, the generator. As a fuel, such thermal power plants use fuel oil or diesel, as well as natural gas, coal, peat, shale, in other words, all types of fuel. The efficiency of TPES is about 40%, and their power can reach 3-6 GW.

GRES (state district power plant)- a fairly well-known and familiar name. This is nothing more than a thermal steam turbine power plant equipped with special condensing turbines that do not utilize the energy of exhaust gases and do not turn it into heat, for example, to heat buildings. Such power plants are also called condensing power plants.

In the same case, if TPES are equipped with special heating turbines that convert the secondary energy of the exhaust steam into thermal energy used for the needs of public utilities or industrial services, then these are thermal power plants or thermal power plants. For example, in the USSR, about 65% of the electricity generated by steam turbine power plants accounted for the share of the state district power station, and, accordingly, 35% - for the share of thermal power plants.

There are also other types of thermal power plants. In gas turbine power plants, or GTPPs, a generator is rotated by a gas turbine. As a fuel for such thermal power plants, natural gas or liquid fuel (diesel, fuel oil) is used. However, the efficiency of such power plants is not very high, about 27-29%, so they are used mainly as backup sources of electricity to cover the peaks of the load on electrical network, or to supply electricity to small settlements.

Thermal power plants with combined-cycle gas turbine plant (PGES). These are combined power plants. They are equipped with steam turbine and gas turbine mechanisms, and their efficiency reaches 41-44%. These power plants also make it possible to recover heat and turn it into thermal energy that is used to heat buildings.

The main disadvantage of all thermal power plants is the type of fuel used. All types of fuel that are used at thermal power plants are irreplaceable natural resources that are slowly but steadily running out. That is why at present, along with the use of nuclear power plants, the development of a mechanism for generating electricity using renewable or other alternative energy sources is underway.

The very first central power station, the Pearl Street, was put into operation on September 4, 1882 in New York. The station was built with the support of the Edison Illuminating Company, which was headed by Thomas Edison. Several Edison generators with a total power of over 500 kW were installed on it. The station supplied electricity to the entire area of ​​New York with an area of ​​​​about 2.5 square kilometers. The station burned to the ground in 1890 and only one dynamo survives, now in the Greenfield Village Museum, Michigan.

On September 30, 1882, the first hydroelectric power plant, the Vulcan Street, in Wisconsin, started operating. The author of the project was G.D. Rogers, CEO of the Appleton Paper & Pulp. A generator with a capacity of approximately 12.5 kW was installed at the station. There was enough electricity for Rogers' house and two of his paper mills.

Gloucester Road power plant. Brighton was one of the first cities in the UK to have continuous electricity. In 1882, Robert Hammond founded the Hammond Electric Light Company, and on February 27, 1882, he opened the Gloucester Road Power Station. The station consisted of a brush dynamo that was used to power sixteen arc lamps. In 1885, Gloucester Power Station was purchased by the Brighton Electric Light Company. Later, a new station was built in this area, consisting of three brush dynamos with 40 lamps.

Power plant of the Winter Palace

In 1886, in one of the courtyards of the New Hermitage, which has since been called the Electroyard, a power plant was built according to the design of the palace administration technician, Vasily Leontyevich Pashkov. This power plant was the largest in all of Europe for 15 years.

Machine room of the power plant in the Winter Palace. 1901

Initially, candles were used to illuminate the Winter Palace, and from 1861 gas lamps began to be used. However, the obvious advantages of electric lamps prompted experts to look for ways to replace gas lighting in the buildings of the Winter Palace and adjacent Hermitage buildings.

Engineer Vasily Leontievich Pashkov proposed as an experiment to use electricity to illuminate the palace halls during Christmas and new year holidays 1885.

On November 9, 1885, the project for the construction of an "electricity factory" was approved by Emperor Alexander III. The project provided for the electrification of the Winter Palace, the buildings of the Hermitage, the courtyard and the surrounding area for three years until 1888.
The work was entrusted to Vasily Pashkov. To exclude the possibility of vibration of the building from the operation of steam engines, the power plant was placed in a separate pavilion made of glass and metal. He was in the second courtyard of the Hermitage, since then called "Electric".

The station building occupied an area of ​​630 m², consisted of an engine room with 6 boilers, 4 steam engines and 2 locomobiles and a room with 36 electric dynamos. The total power reached 445 hp. The first part of the ceremonial premises was lit up: the Anteroom, Petrovsky, Big Field Marshal's, Armorial, St. George's Halls, and outdoor illumination was arranged. Three lighting modes were proposed: full (holiday) lighting five times a year (4888 incandescent lamps and 10 Yablochkov candles); working - 230 incandescent lamps; duty (night) - 304 incandescent lamps. The station consumed about 30,000 poods (520 tons) of coal per year.

Main supplier electrical equipment was the company "Siemens and Halske" - the largest electrical company of that time.

The network of the power plant was constantly expanding and by 1893 it was already 30 thousand incandescent lamps and 40 arc lamps. Not only the buildings of the palace complex were illuminated, but also the Palace Square with the buildings located on it.

The creation of the Winter Palace power plant has become a clear example of the possibility of creating a powerful and economical source of electricity that can feed a large number of consumers.

The electrical lighting system of the Winter Palace and Hermitage buildings was switched over to the city power grid after 1918. And the building of the power plant of the Winter Palace existed until 1945, after which it was dismantled.

On July 16, 1886, the industrial and commercial Electric Lighting Society was registered in St. Petersburg. This date is considered to be the date of foundation of the first Russian energy system. Among the founders were Siemens and Halske, Deutsche Bank and Russian bankers. Since 1900, the company has been named the Electric Lighting Society of 1886. The purpose of the company was designated according to the interests of the main founder Karl Fedorovich Siemens: “To illuminate streets, factories, factories, shops and all kinds of other places and premises with electricity” [Ustav..., 1886, p. 3]. The society had several branches in different cities of the country and made a very large contribution to the development of the electrical sector of the Russian economy.

The majority of the population of Russia and other countries of the former USSR knows that the country's large-scale electrification is associated with the implementation of the State Electrification of Russia (GoElRo) plan adopted in 1920.

In fairness, it should be noted that the development of this plan dates back to the time before the First World War, which, in fact, prevented its adoption then.