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www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 1Power Engineering International February 2014

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Contents

POWER ENGINEERING INTERNATIONAL

On the cover The changing face of southern Africa’s power sector - p.8

Features

16 The balancing act of electricity storage

Why understanding the way the cost of energy storage works

will lift the fog that obscures the economics behind the

concept.

20 Valves and actuators keep pace with demands

The global power market is demanding greater fexibility and

effciency and these changing operating conditions are

having an impact on valve and actuator technology.

Power Report

8 Focus on Southern African opportunities While South Africa remains the dominant electricity market

in southern Africa, there is a wealth of opportunity in other

nations in the region too.

2 Industry Highlights

4 News Analysis

44 Diary

45 Project & Technology Update

48 Ad Index

FEBRUARY 2014/// VOLUME 22/// ISSUE 2

Stairway to sustainable heaven? A peek at new

developments at low-carbon city Masdar - p.36

Source: Siemens

28 Green funding for blue sky thinking

The European Commission is throwing its weight and its wallet

behind a multi-billion low-carbon energy research initiative.

32 Bearing up to turbine testing

How the largest test rig in the world is helping to ensure the

reliability of testing large-size bearings for wind turbines.

36 The shape of things to come

The talking points in the conferences and on the streets of

Masdar City at the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.

40 Advanced air preheater sealing

Why there needs to be a change in attitude towards air

preheater leakage in cases of loss of boiler effciency.

1402pei_1 1 2/12/14 3:30 PM

2 Power Engineering International February 2014 www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

Industry Highlights

We are just into the second month of

2014 and controversy has already

raised its head.

Towards the end of January, the European

Commission (EC) released its much-awaited

Energy & Climate Package, its policy framework

that establishes targets up to 2030. Two of the

goals of particular interest in my opinion are the

40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas

(GHG) emissions (compared to the 1990

level) and an EU-wide binding target of 27 per

cent for renewable energy.

Neither on the surface appears to be

anything new compared to the Commission’s

previous Energy & Climate Package, except

the targets are a bit higher. However, as the old

adage says, “the devil is in the detail’.

Contrary to its predecessor, the 2030

Energy & Climate Package makes a signifcant

distinction by not setting binding renewable

energy targets for individual Member States,

keeping the target purely at the EU level.

A press release from the EC, released after

the announcement, said: “An EU-level target

for renewable energy is necessary to drive

continued investment in the sector. However, it

would not be translated into national targets

through EU legislation, thus leaving fexibility

for Member States to transform the energy

system in a way that is adapted to national

preferences and circumstances.” – read

current economic climate.

Clearly this would give EU countries that

still have electricity generation systems heavily

reliant on fossil fuels, and coal in particular,

some breathing space in terms of transitioning

their systems to lower-carbon alternatives, so

I’m sure that countries like Poland breathed

a sigh of relief when they saw the framework.

Another potentially interesting aspect

of this policy framework arises because it

essentially uncouples the GHG emissions

reduction target and the renewable energy

target at the national level, i.e. unlike the

renewables target individual Member States

will have to set mandatory targets for GHG

emissions reduction.

Thus, could this new EU framework actually

provide the long-awaited policy impetus to

kick-start the commercialization of carbon

capture and storage (CCS)?

The Carbon Capture & Storage Association

in the UK certainly is optimistic. In a statement

it said: “It is absolutely critical that Europe sets

an ambitious target for emissions reductions

for 2030. This must remain the cornerstone of

the EU’s response to climate change and will

be vital in driving future investment in all low-

carbon technologies, including CCS.”

It also recommends that the renewables

target is either dropped or expanded into a

sustainable energy target which includes CCS,

providing Member States with the fexibility to

meet targets at the lowest cost to consumers.

However, this is unlikely to happen

because subsequently MEPs in the European

Parliament voted in favour of not only having a

mandatory renewable energy target for each

Member State, but increasing the target to

30 per cent at the EU-level.

Although the parliamentary vote is not

binding it clearly sends a strong signal to EU

governments ahead of next month’s heads

of government summit, where the EU’s climate

and energy targets for 2030 will be debated –

I anticipate the debate being a heated one.

Read our analysis of the situation on p.4–5.

Another recent example of what some

see as EU meddling in Member State affairs is

this month’s request by the EU’s antitrust chief

Joaquin Almunia for the UK government to

clarify why state aid is needed to build its new

Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant.

Almunia’s comments follow a challenge

by the EC at the end of last year against the

British government’s assertion that power price

guarantees and state-backed loans for the

£16 million ($26.5 million) Hinkley Point C

project are legitimate aid. In response, the UK

government tried to reassure by saying the

Commission’s announcement “is standard

for large investment projects and was always

part of the process for Hinkley.” However, this

latest intervention may raise serious doubts

over whether the deal will be able to progress

under its present terms.

Looking at the wider picture, the new

nuclear-build programme is a centre-piece

of the UK’s energy strategy, so what would it

mean if the Hinkley Point deal fell through?

Could it potentially derail the whole electricity

market reform process and energy strategy?

Although the parliamentary vote is not binding it clearly sends a strong signal to EU governments ahead of next month’s heads of government summit, where the EU’s climate and energy targets for 2030 will be debatedDr. Heather Johnstone Associate Publisher www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

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4 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

News Analysis

To target or not to target – that has been

the question debated and voted on by the

European Union (EU) in recent weeks over the

increasingly thorny issue of climate change

and renewable energy targets.

In January, the European Commission (EC)

decided to drop mandatory national targets

for renewable power from its plans. But on

5 February the European Parliament voted

against the Commission’s proposal to drop

the binding 2030 renewable targets for EU

member states.

Let’s look at the events as they happened

and the reaction they provoked.

On 22 January, the European Commission

outlined its plans for climate and energy policy

until 2030 at a press conference in Brussels

fronted by President José Manuel Barroso,

Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger

and Commissioner for Climate Action Connie

Hedegaard (pictured).

The commissioners wanted a binding

target to reduce carbon emissions by

40 per cent from 1990 levels. Under their plans,

renewables would need to provide 27 per

cent of EU energy by 2030, but while the target

would be binding at EU level, there would

be no mandatory targets for Member States.

But how the bloc’s nations would agree on

burden-sharing was unclear, though some

form of internal bargaining seemed likely.

Pragmatic or climbdown?

At a press briefng at Europe House in London,

EC spokespeople felded questions from the

media who were more than animated at the

U-turn on binding renewable targets.

While EC President Barroso was saying

“what we are presenting today is both

ambitious and affordable”, offcials in London

explained that the EU “could not ignore the

reality of what is going on around us” as

a means of explaining what some see as

a climbdown and others will say is a more

pragmatic approach.

Rather than thinking of achieving a non-

binding renewable target in terms of individual

member states, a spokesperson said they

were encouraging a “more regionalised

geographic approach” and wanted

neighbouring countries to confer with each

other, for the purposes of working out energy

trading, before each member state negotiates

with Brussels on what it is prepared to aspire to

in terms of a renewables target.

“We have always said put the wind turbines

where the wind blows. Put your investment in

the most cost-effcient places in Europe. It has

to be a regionalised geographic approach

to renewables. It can’t be done on a national

basis. For example, some countries have an

excess capacity of 11 per cent, which they

could easily exchange with neighbouring

countries.”

Europe’s green wing responded with

dismay, saying the EU was pandering to those

industries which argued that tough targets

were undermining European competitiveness

while the US was profting from a shale boom.

The compromise that was reached would

satisfy the UK and Poland perhaps more

than most, and Germany the least. The UK

Debate over national renewable targets divides EC and MEPs

Talking power at the podium: Gunthar Oettinger, Jose Manuel Barroso and Connie HedegaardCredit: EC

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6 www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

News Analysis

Power Engineering International February 2014

and Poland have argued strongly that the

mandatory target approach was too restrictive

and was preventing their governments from

cutting emissions in the most fnancially

effcient way.

Britain, which is expanding its nuclear

power stations and looking to develop shale

reserves, had fought hard for domestic leeway

on renewables and had sought non-binding

goals. Germany, by contrast, which is shutting

down its nuclear reactors, had lobbied for

binding targets.

“The Commission’s plan for 2030 is a sellout

that would knock the wind out of a booming

renewables industry,” said Mahi Sideridou,

Greenpeace’s EU managing director.

RenewableUK regretted the lack of

ambition showed in not proposing national

binding targets on renewable energy past

2020. Its chief executive Maria McCaffery

said the Commission was lacking ambition:

“While it is pleasing to see the EU Commission

recognise that renewable energy is a key part

of future energy solutions across Europe, the

lack of ambition in not ensuring there are

national binding targets for renewable energy

is a disappointment.

“This is a missed opportunity for member

states to take collective and serious action

on the drive for clean, sustainable, renewable

energy, which is the best option for reducing

our carbon emissions.”

But on 5 February, the Commission’s

controversial proposals ran into opposition

from MEPs. At a plenary meeting, the

Parliament called “on the Commission and

the Member States to set a binding EU 2030

target of producing at least 30 per cent of total

fnal energy consumption from renewable

energy sources”. It stressed that “such a

target should be implemented by means of

individual national targets taking into account

the individual situation and potential of each

Member State”.

While the European Parliament vote is

not binding, it sends a strong signal to EU

governments ahead of ministerial meetings

on 3–4 March and a heads of government

summit on 20-–21 March, where EU 2030

climate and energy targets will be hotly

debated.

The debate on targets also prompted

some high-profle interventions.

Eurelectric, the trade association of the

electricity sector in Europe, demanded

binding emissions reduction targets and an

expansion of the EU’s carbon trading scheme.

The association delivered a manifesto to

Energy Commissioner Oettinger calling for

EU and national policymakers to adopt an

economy-wide, binding 2030 greenhouse

gas reduction target of at least 40 per cent

compared to 1990 levels.

They urged Oettinger and his colleagues

to take measures that would “re-orient

energy policy towards cost-effciency and

competitiveness”.

The group advocates extending the

EU’s emissions trading scheme to other

sectors after 2020, increasing investment in

modernising Europe’s electricity networks,

and removing regulated electricity prices that

“distort” the market.

Hans ten Berge, Eurelectric secretary

general, said: “Policymakers must take greater

care to avoid policy-induced ineffciencies

and market distortions that are unnecessarily

pushing up the costs of providing electricity

and raising the bills for Europe’s customers.”

“National regulatory initiatives without

consideration for their impact on other

member states cannot remain the rule. Only a

true European approach can ensure renewed

investment in the future – to the beneft of

European businesses and households alike.”

And the heads of 24 non-government

organisations (NGOs) entered the debate

by writing a joint letter to German Chancellor

Angela Merkel in which they urged her to take

a lead in Europe over climate change and

renewables targets.

The NGOs are all European – but not

German – and include Oxfam, Carbon Market

Watch, Climate Action Network France and

the European Environmental Bureau.

In their letter they say that the Energiewende

“shows the world – and in particular Germany’s

European neighbours – that the energy

transition is not only technically possible but

also an economic and social opportunity”

However, they say they are “concerned by the

lack of climate leadership in Europe” and ask

Merkel to “step up and create a new dynamic

at European and international levels”.

In particular they want the German leader

to push for at least a 55 per cent reduction in

EU emissions. The letter states that the 40 per

cent target “is not suffcient to get us out of the

climate crisis, may put an artifcial cap on the

deployment of renewable energy and energy

effciency improvements, and is not enough to

revive the EU’s fagging carbon market”.

The NGOs also urge Merkel to “strongly

support” setting binding national renewables

targets. They wrote that “as Germany has

already adopted domestic climate and

energy targets”, it should “fll that leadership

vacuum and drive the negotiating process.”

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more informationi

The EC is under fre for failing to propose

binding national renewables targets

Credit: RWE

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8 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

The countries of southern Africa

have much in common. Their

people share many ancestors

with individual national identities

forged through migration, invasion

and settlement in the region

across the past two millennia. They also share

a history of colonization and exploitation by

European settlers from the ffteenth century

onwards, creating linguistic, economic and

governmental legacies that have often

persisted after independence. They also share

a legacy of under-development and most

have high levels of poverty.

Since 1995 the majority have shared a

regional electricity system, too – the Southern

African Power Pool (SAPP) – that allows them

to exchange power and maintain greater

system stability than would be possible as

individual, isolated nations. This goes some

way to making up for the limited access to

electricity in even the most highly developed

of the countries such as South Africa.

According to the South African Development

Bank, the average national level of access

to electricity in 2009 was only 30 per cent,

leaving more than two thirds of the collective

population to rely on traditional energy

sources such as fuel wood for heating

and cooking.

In spite of their shared heritage, there are

some stark differences. South Africa is the most

highly developed country in sub-Saharan

Africa, with a large economy, nuclear power

and the biggest power generation capacity

on the continent. Swaziland, which is virtually

enclosed by South Africa, is tiny, has a small

economy and electricity sector and imports

most of its power from its giant neighbour.

As a region, southern Africa has access to

all the important types of energy resources.

However these are spread unevenly across

the region. Angola has large oil and natural

gas reserves and has become a major

oil producer, providing an income which

is allowing the country’s infrastructure,

devastated by 25 years of war, to be rebuilt

using government resources. There is natural

gas in Mozambique and some yet-to-be

exploited reserves in Namibia. Mozambique

supplies pipeline gas to South Africa, the

main economic centre of the region, while

in Angola the construction of a liquefaction

plant should allow liquefed natural gas

South Africa remains the dominant electricity market in Southern Africa, but, as Power Engineering International fnds out, there are signifcant development opportunities in many other countries in the region.

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10 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Southern Africa

(LNG) to be exported, raising government

revenues further.

Nuclear power is limited to one plant,

Koeberg in South Africa. Meanwhile Namibia

has valuable deposits of uranium with

identifed reserves amounting to 5 per cent

of the global total. Its two mines are capable

of supplying 10 per cent of world output,

according to the World Nuclear Organization.

There are extensive reserves of coal in South

Africa and these provide the country with most

of its power, as well as supplying a feedstock

for both liquid fuel and gasifcation plants.

Zimbabwe has coal reserves too and a mining

industry which supplies its own power stations.

Elsewhere coal reserves are limited, but Zambia

has some poor quality coal and there are

deposits of better grade coal in Swaziland.

However, even with these various fossil fuel

reserves, the region is a net importer of oil and

refned petroleum products.

With access to electricity limited across

the region, biomass is a major source of

energy. In South Africa, it still provides 10 per

cent of primary energy supply and in most

other countries this rises to over 50 per cent,

sometimes as high as 80 per cent. Only in

Mauritius has the domestic use of biomass

been virtually eradicated.

With agriculture an important economic

activity across much of the region, there

are large quantities of agricultural waste

generated including commercial volumes

of sugarcane bagasse which can be, and

sometimes is, converted into power. Forests,

which provide fuel wood in rural communities,

could potentially provide a signifcant power

generation resource too.

Potential for hydro

One of the most important and so far under-

developed resources in Africa is hydropower.

The exploitation of water resources for

drinking, irrigation and power generation

has formed the basis for modern economic

development in many of the developed

countries of the world and has the potential

to do the same in Africa if developed

sensitively. Most of the countries of southern

Africa have some hydro potential and

some have it in abundance. However its

development is costly and few have the

economic resources to fund the construction

of hydro plants alone.

There are arguments for hydro to be

considered a regional rather than a national

resource and shared development would

make funding easier. Rivers such as the

Zambezi and the Limpopo have basins which

straddle several countries and these rivers

could provide power to be distributed across

the region through the SAPP grid.

Further north, the Congo River has the

potential to become a powerhouse for the

whole of Africa. South Africa, through its utility

Eskom, is already helping promote hydro in

the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a

development that could provide additional

power to South Africa.

While the major rivers of the region provide

potential sites for large hydropower plants

there are also many sites for small hydro

developments that can provide local, often

off-grid power today.

Other renewable resources are also

ailable. Wind potential is variable but there are

good wind regimes in coastal regions and in

some of the higher regions of southern Africa.

Solar energy is available in abundance across

the region too but cost is usually the barrier

which prevents its wide deployment. Most

solar generation is via small solar photovoltaic

installations funded by donor agencies and

providing power to remote facilities such as

hospitals, schools and clinics. Solar thermal

development would be possible, particularly

in the more arid regions, such as the Namib

Desert in Namibia or the Kalahari Desert that

covers large areas of Botswana, South Africa

and Namibia.

The African Rift Valley which crosses part

of southern Africa is geologically active and

could provide some geothermal capacity but

little surveying has been carried out, so the

extent of the potential is not known. There is

also scope for marine power generation with

good wave regimes on the western coast

of southern Africa generated by the winds

blowing across vast open stretches of the

southern Atlantic. Marine-current and ocean-

thermal energy is also available but all these

technologies are too expensive today for

deployment in the region.

Evolving market structure

Electricity came early to southern Africa,

brought by European settlers who wanted to

light their homes and workplaces, and needed

energy to drive mechanical machinery with

electric motors. The colonial governments

later established utilities to manage national

electricity supply in the same way as it was

being managed in Europe and the US, and

this legacy can still be traced in the names

of many of the utilities that operate in the

different countries of the region.

Historically, all these utilities were

government agencies and though most have

now been converted into limited companies,

in practice they are still controlled by their

respective governments. The level of oversight

varies, with some virtually autonomous

while others are closely managed by the

corresponding government agency.

Restructuring of the utilities has been

attempted in some of the countries, too, to create

independent generation, transmissioand

distribution companies. However, the level

Country Utility Abbreviation

Angola Empresa Nacional de Electricidade ENE

Botswana Botswana Power Corporation BPC

DRC Societe National d’Electricite SNEL

Lesotho Lesotho Electricity Corporation LEC

Madagascar Jiro sy Rano Malagasy JIRAMA

Malawi Electricity Supply Corporation ESCOM

Mauritius Central Electricity Board CEB

Mozambique Electricidade de Mozambique EDM

Namibia NamPower NamPower

South Africa Electricity Supply Commission of South Africa Eskom

Swaziland Swaziland Electricity Company SEC

Tanzania Tanzania Electric Supply Company TANESCO

Zambia Zambia Electricity Supply Company Ltd ZESCO

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority ZESA

Table 1: National utilities in Southern Africa Source: Power Generation Research

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12 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Southern Africa

of success has varied. In South Africa, Eskom

was converted into a public company in 2002,

and in 2003 distribution was unbundled with

the intention of creating a series of regional

distribution companies. This policy failed and

in 2011 distribution was handed back to the

government’s Department of Energy.

In Zimbabwe, the national utility was

unbundled to create a generating company

and a transmission and distribution entity.

However, this has led to a cyclical problem of

debt because the transmission and distribution

frm cannot collect money effciently from its

customers and so cannot pay the generating

company for the power it supplies, so both

have serious debt burdens. From an open

market perspective, restructuring has yet to

have a signifcant impact in the region.

Hand in hand with unbundling, most of the

countries have also created energy regulators

that license operators across the market,

establish and police standards and set tariffs.

In a fully market-driven electricity model, such

regulators would be autonomous but in many

cases they are still overseen by a ministry and

their independence is questionable.

While there are one or two independent

system operators there are as yet no open

electricity markets similar to those found in

many developed countries. The national utility

or national transmission system operator is

essnetially the market, buying and selling power

nationally, as well as importing and exporting.

The economic strength of the southern

African nations varies but all are trying to lure

independent power producers to their markets,

with limited success. Even in South Africa,

95 per cent of power is generated by the

national utility. In many cases the regulatory

structures are not robust enough to create

the certainty needed by foreign investors.

Tariff structures can also cause problems,

particularly where, as is still the case in some

countries, the tariff does not cover the cost

of production and delivery. Tariffs have been

rising across the region and this is helping to

improve the economics of generation and

delivery but reforms are not complete.

Capacity needs to double

The generation of electricity in southern

Africa is based on three main sources, coal,

hydropower and liquid fuels such as diesel

or other distillates. There is very little natural

gas used for power generation. In most

cases hydro and coal plants supply power to

national grids and, where connected, to SAPP.

Diesel generation is more usually used for off-

grid generation although it also fnds use for

peak power generation in some countries.

However the cost of liquid fuel usually

makes this an expensive option. Natural gas

generation based on gas turbines is rare

with the only signifcant capacity of this type

in Angola where natural gas is available.

Capacity is planned in Mozambique too.

In terms of installed capacity, South Africa

is dominant with 44,170 MW of generating

capacity or close to 84 per cent of the total

capacity of 52,582 MW in the region. The

next largest capacity is found in Zimbabwe,

2045 MW. However much of this is aging

and availability is much lower. Zambia with

1812 MW and Angola with 1515 MW are the

only other countries with more than 1000 MW

of generating capacity available. At the other

end of the scale, Lesotho and Swaziland have

only 72 MW of generating capacity each.

Most of the countries of southern Africa

are members of SAPP through their national

utilities. The two island nations, Madagascar

and Mauritius, are not members because

of their geographic locations. Meanwhile,

Malawi, which is a member, is not, nevertheless,

connected into the regional grid operated by

SAPP. This means it cannot trade large volumes

of power with neighbouring countries as the

other nine can. However, small-scale trading

takes place at borders where isolated rural

communities in one country are supplied with

electricity from a neighbouring community

in another country that is connected to the

national grid of that country. This takes place

across the Malawi border, as well as elsewhere.

Across the region, coal provides the largest

tranche of generating capacity, 40,359 MW.

This is virtually all a result of the coal in South

Africa, where most of the region’s coal plants

are located. There is some coal capacity in

Zimbabwe but elsewhere there is little, while

hydropower provides a further 6701 MW.

The other major source of generating

capacity is diesel generators burning liquid

fuels of one type or another. They can be

found all across the region, often supplying

power to isolated grids. Many of these plants

are old and ineffcient. Diesel fuel is expensive

and it would often be economical to replace

or supplement these diesel plants with

solar or wind generation. Financing such

development is expensive and that has

hindered wide spread introduction of these

renewable technologies.

Other renewable sources are present,

but capacities are small. There are small

hydro plants, some solar PV installations

and plants burning biomass to be found in

0

250

500

1000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

Utility

ENE, Angola

BPC, Botswana

LEC,Lesotho

JIRAMA,Madagascar

ESCOM,Malawi

CEB,Mauritius

EDM,Mozambique

NamPower,Namibia

Eskom,South Africa

SEC,Swaziland

ZESCO,Zambia

ZESA,Zimbabwe

2000

Figure 1: National generating capacities in Southern Africa Source: Power Generation Research

1402pei_12 12 2/12/14 3:20 PM

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1402pei_13 13 2/12/14 3:20 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Southern Africa

14

many countries but they are generally not

connected to the grid so their capacities often

go unrecorded. One of the largest of these

sources is plants burning sugarcane bagasse

and wood waste, usually installed at industrial

sites and providing energy for the industry.

There may be as much as 200–300 MW of

such capacity in southern Africa.

Across the region, the peak demand is

around 45,000 MW. An installed capacity of

around 53,000 MW would suggest a regional

margin of 15 per cent but availability in several

countries is low and the real margin is much

smaller. In addition, in many countries peak

demand is suppressed by the infrastructure so

that in practice margins are probably negative.

The SAPP estimated the actual suppressed

peak demand across its region to be close to

54,000 MW in 2012; this does not refect

the numbers that are unable to buy power

because they have no grid access.

Annual generation in the region was

around 50,000 GWh in 2012. Of this, more than

70 per cent was produced by coal plants and

between 15 per cent and 20 per cent by hydro

plants. Across the SAPP region, less than 10 per

cent of power was provided by other sources.

Consumption patterns in the countries of

southern Africa vary from nation to nation. In the

majority of the countries it is only major urban

locations and manufacturing centres that are

connected to a national supply system. Rural

consumption is therefore extremely low. South

Africa has the highest rural rate of connection,

at 55 per cent. Elsewhere it is often below

10 per cent and can be less than 5 per cent.

Many of the rural communities without power

are extremely poor and rural electrifcation is a

vital development issue.

Consumption by different sectors varies

from nation to nation. Major industrial centres

generally have privileged supplies since they

are important for the economic well-being

of the nations. Some, such as the Mozal

aluminium smelter in Mozambique has a

dedicated power supply from South Africa.

However, with tariffs often subsidised, domestic

consumption can account for a high

proportion of total usage. In some countries,

commercial agriculture is vital to the economy

and this will account for high percentage of

consumption too.

Tariffs in the countries of southern Africa

are often low – too low in many cases to meet

the cost of production and delivery. The lowest

average national tariffs in the region are

$0.057/kWh in Zambia and $0.059/kWh in

Lesotho, with Angola at $0.060/kWh. Both

Zambia and Lesotho have established hydro

plants that account for a high proportion of

electricity production and this is relatively cheap.

In Angola, hydro is also an important source of

electricity and the income from its oil also helps

the government support tariffs, keeping them low.

In other countries, particularly those that

rely on fossil fuels for their energy, tariffs tend

to be higher. However, the highest tariffs in the

region are found in the two island nations,

Madagascar ($0.140/kWh) and Mauritius

($0.186/kWh). Both rely heavily on fossil fuel for

their power and the fuel in both cases must

be imported, pushing costs high. Swaziland

also has a high average tariff of $0.115/kWh.

The country has very little capacity of its own

and must import most of its power from South

Africa and Mozambique.

All the countries of southern Africa need

additional generating capacity and to

extend and strengthen their transmission

and distribution systems. However, most are

hampered by small economies that do not

provide funds to invest in new infrastructure.

Where there is reasonable political stability,

countries can attract both donor agency

investment and foreign private investment to

help build stronger infrastructure. But several

countries in the region suffer from poor

governance and weak democratic structures

that make securing outside fnance diffcult.

Peak demand on the SAPP grid in 2012 was

around 51,000 MW. SAPP forecasts demand

rising to 55,000 MW by 2015, 61,000 MW by

2020 and just under 67,000 MW by 2025.

While this only amounts to 30 per cent

growth in 15 years, the fact that capacity can

barely meet existing demand implies installed

capacity across the region will probably need

to at least double over the period if even this

level of growth is to be met. If economies

improve and electrifcation spreads, demand

could potentially rise much higher.

Opportunities: Much to play forThe nations in southern Africa are all ambitious

to improve their electricity infrastructures

as a means of creating better conditions

for their people and for their economies to

expand. All have strategies in place – some

over-ambitious – and there are a range of

potential projects seeking investment. They

include major hydro schemes, natural gas-

fred combined-cycle plants, coal plants, wind,

solar and biomass developments, and even

new nuclear capacity.

Major transmission lines and national

interconnections are needed to boost the

capacity to trade power across the region

and in every country there is a need for a

major rural electrifcation programme to

enable isolated communities to gain access

to power. Not all of these will be able to attract

funding today but there are many that do

offer a sound basis for investment.

Africa remains the most under-developed

continent of the world but it is becoming

a focus for attention and major trading

nations such as the US and China are

already competing for markets and infuence.

Meanwhile, major donor agencies such as the

United Nations are seeking ways to enhance

and improve the lives of people across Africa.

Electricity supply will form a key part element

of these programmes. For all companies and

organizations with interests in the electricity

sector there is much to play for.

Power Generation Research in partnership

with PennWell are publishing in depth surveys

of all the countries of southern Africa. These

will be available as individual country profles

and as a single regional report, Electricity in

Southern Africa. For more information, visit

http://ogjresearch.stores.yahoo.net/power-

generation-research-company.html.

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more informationi

CountryAverage tariff

($/kWh)

Angola 0.060

Botswana 0.070

Lesotho 0.059

Madagascar 0.140

Malawi 0.068

Mauritius 0.186

Mozambique 0.075

Namibia 0.086

South Africa 0.087

Swaziland 0.115

Tanzania 0.13

Zambia 0.057

Zimbabwe 0.098

Table 2: Average tariffs in the countries of Southern Africa (note: DRC tariff unavailable) Source: Power Generation Research

1402pei_14 14 2/12/14 3:20 PM

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16 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

The global energy market is shifting

at an unprecedented rate and

this change is being driven by

renewable generation in the form

of wind and solar photovoltaic.

Forecasts for the total installed

wind generation in 2020 vary from 586 GW to

1000 GW, while predictions for solar PV in 2020

vary widely from 330 GW to 1000 GW.

Calculating the cost price of a unit of

electrical energy was once straightforward.

The metric still generally used is the levelised

cost of electricity (LCOE) which sums the total

capital cost (CAPEX) and lifetime operating

costs (OPEX) including fuel inputs, taking into

account the fnancing costs of both. That

number is then divided by the lifetime energy

output, to give a cost per unit energy.

Unfortunately, the output of renewable

assets cannot be matched to suit demand.

As a result, renewable electricity, available at

zero marginal cost, must be rejected from the

system when there is a surplus.

Conversely, expensive gas peaking plant

must be used to provide electricity, while

weather conditions do not allow for demand

to be covered by intermittent renewables. That

makes the amount of electricity which each

source produces – or rather, the amount of

electricity that can be sold from each source

– rather unpredictable.

That is the value of storage: it brings the

amount of electricity available to the system

back under human control. The Californian

regulator is convinced and is mandating that

utilities deploy 1.3 GW of electricity storage

by 2020. However, for everyone to agree, the

value must be greater than the cost by a clear

margin. The cost itself is far more challenging

to calculate than is usually appreciated.

One method is simply to convert the LCOE

to what is known as LCOS – the levelised cost

of storage. That provides the cost of storing

electricity including the CAPEX, OPEX and also

the cost in electricity resulting from effciency

losses in the storage system. To get a number

comparable with the competitor of the

storage concept – gas peaking – also requires

that we add the cost of the input electricity

to the LCOS. So the really revealing metric is

levelised cost of electricity from storage, or

With ever-greater renewable energy integration on our grids, understanding the way the cost of energy storage works will help lift the fog that obscures the economics behind the concept, argues James Macnaghten.

The balancing act of electricity storage?

Energy storage: Its true costEnergy storage is a key enabling technology in stabilizing our grids,

but uncertainty over its viability persists

Credit: National Grid

1402pei_16 16 2/12/14 3:20 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 17Power Engineering International February 2014

LCOE-S - see boxed formula.

LCOE-S: A simple calculation?

A 6kWh battery bank, at a cost of $1000 per kWh, incurs a capital cost

of $6000. That covers the load shifting requirement of one household

equipped with rooftop PV panels. A commercial battery system will of

course provide storage ‘space’ for hundreds of such households.

With a weighted average cost of capital (WACC) of 12 per cent, a

levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) from the solar panels of 10¢ per kWh,

a system cycling once a day for 13 years, an effciency of 85 per cent

and negligible maintenance costs, the boxed formula gives us a LCOE-S

of 85¢ per kWh.

We have assumed here that the size of the storage technology can

be matched exactly to the technical requirements. But we actually

need to push our capital cost up to around $10,000. This is because

almost all batteries have inherent depth-of-discharge limitations: some

of their chemical potential energy must remain potential because if it

were used it would cause permanent damage to the electrodes. Even if

that depth-of-discharge limit is not breached, getting persistently close

to it will reduce the number of charge-discharge cycles over which the

system can operate, so it might easily not last 13 years.

It does not take an energy economist to realize that without any kind

of subsidy the system described above, though it may save the whole

electricity system money by peak shaving, does not make fnancial sense

when peak electricity prices are around 4-5¢ per kWh as in Germany. This

example, along with the boxed formula allow us to identify the three key

variables of the LCOE-S: CAPEX, cycle life and effciency. Some indicative

technology-specifc numbers are included in Table 1.

Customers looking for the optimal electricity storage system are faced

Energy storage: Its true cost

TechnologyCharge-

discharge cycle life

Calendar life

(years)

Effciency (%)

Pumped hydro – 80 75

Underground compressed air energy storage(CAES)

– 25 60–70

Flywheels Several million 15 80–95

Sodium-sulphur batteries 5000–10,000 15–20 75–80

Flow batteries >10,000 15–25 60–70

Lead-acid batteries 500–2000 5–15* 75–80

Lithium-ion batteries 1000–5000 5–20* 80–90

Pumped heat 100,000 20 75

Table 1: Length-of-life data for various storage technologies Source: Institute for Power Electronics and Electrical Systems (ISETA-RWTH), Aachen*Depends on temperature of operation and state of discharge

Application Cycles a yearPower

intensiveEnergy

intensive

Load shifting 365 No Yes

Reserve services 730 Yes Yes

Frequency regulation 2200–4000 Yes No

Table 2: Indicating which key variable will have the biggest impact on the

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18 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Energy storage: Its true cost

with a wide range of different technologies

entering the market. Many of the facts and

fgures are changing rapidly, simply not known,

taken out of context or else displayed in a

misleading manner. It is common for storage

manufacturers to describe their CAPEX costs in

per kW or per kWh terms, as with our example

of a residential battery system. However, many

storage technologies have separate power

and energy costs, so a $/kWh or $/kW number

is useless on its own. Consequently, we believe

that a graph showing $/kWh for different

numbers of hours is the best way to show the

CAPEX cost of storage, as in Figure 1. Such a

graph, combined with the cycle life, allows

for a much more accurate assessment of the

cost of a system for different applications.

An example of an accurate but misleading

statement might be that a certain battery

costs $250/kWh and can achieve 5000 cycles.

The CAPEX might assume 100 per cent depth

of discharge, but the cycle life is reduced to

1000 cycles. The same battery might deliver

5000 cycles if only 10 per cent of the depth

of discharge is used, but now the real CAPEX

is $2500/kWh (since it is only possible to use

10 per cent of the storage).

There is also a vast amount of conficting

information online. For fywheels you might

see a fgure of $3500/kW listed as the cost

for an installation. However, you would have

to dig deeper to establish that this is for only

15 minutes of storage and the cost per kWh is

actually much higher at $14,000/kWh. What

is the correct number with which to budget?

There is also variation for established

technologies, like pumped hydro, where the

costs will vary from site to site depending upon

local geography. There is no easy answer to

this problem and the best advice is to ask

detailed questions from the supplier to ensure

you understand the context of any fgures.

Application is king

There exists a variety of storage technologies

to suit various commercial applications, each

with different advantages and limitations. Table

2 shows examples of different applications,

and indicates which of the three key variables

will have the most signifcant impact on the

LCOE-S calculation.

A power-intensive application requires a

signifcant amount of power to be provided

at short notice, while an energy-intensive

application requires a given amount of power

Inputelectricity

Effciencylosses

CAPEX, including fnancing

OPEX Total

Pumped hydro 10 3.3 3.4 0.8 17.6

Li-ion batteries 10 1.8 73.4 0.1 85.2

Pumped heat 10 3.3 3.7 0.5 17.5

Flow batteries 10 6.7 15.1 1 32.8

Table 3: Cost components of LCOE-S of a commercial storage system based on various technologies and levels of effciency. All numbers in ¢ per kWh. Source: ISETA-RWTH; Krajacic et al., 2012;

Figure 1: CAPEX per kWh of various technologies at different discharge time requirements. Note that this does not include any replacement costs for degraded assets. Source: Krajacic et al., 2012 ; Arup , n.d. ; ISETA-RWTH

Indicative CAPEX of various technologies ($/kWh)

1000

9000

8000

7000

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Hours

Pumped Hydro(120MW)

Li-ion(30MW)

Flywheel(30MW)

Pumped heat(30MW)

0

10

20

30

90

60

70

80

40

50

Pumped hydro Li-ion battery Pumped heat Flow battery

OPEX

Input electricity

CAPEX including fnancing

Effciency losses

Diesel LCOE

Components of LCOE’s for different technologies (US¢)

Figure 2: Representation of the cost breakdown of the LCOE-S with an input electricity price of 10¢/kWh. Source: Institute for Power Electronics and Electrical Systems (ISETA-RWTH), Aachen; Krajacic et al., 2012;

1402pei_18 18 2/12/14 3:20 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 19

Energy storage: Its true cost

Power Engineering International February 2014

to be generated over a period of hours. Load

shifting requires high effciency because

the cost of the ‘fuel’ – off-peak electricity – is

a key driver of the cost of the electricity that

exits the store. The more energy is lost during

the cycle, the more it costs to cover the fnal

energy requirement from the store. Effciency

becomes progressively more important the

higher the fuel cost, just as is the case for

conventional generating technologies.

That is important. A key high-value

application for storage in the near term is in

reducing the amount of diesel generation

required in remote areas by adding a

combination of renewable generation and

electricity storage. The lower the effciency of

the technology and the higher the input price

of electricity, the more stringent the cost target

becomes (see Figure 2 and Table 3). The

normal cost of diesel generation is 25–35¢/

kWh, depending on the location.

Reserve services ensure that the grid can

adapt to any unexpected events or power

shortfalls that might occur when, for example,

a 600 MW generator trips off. Depending

upon the exact service being supplied there

may be a requirement for low power ($/

kW) costs for something like Fast Reserve;

alternatively, low energy costs ($/kWh) might

be needed where several hours of generation

are required, that is, where the requirement

is for Short Term Operating Reserve. For most

applications in this area, there is likely to be a

requirement for several hours of power.

In the state of New York, remuneration is now

available for providing power or absorbing

it during short-term power variations to help

maintain the system frequency. This is an

application that is dominated by the power

cost and the system’s cycle life. It might see

as many as 4000 cycles per annum, which

would mean 80,000 cycles in a 20–year life.

For comparison a pumped storage plant

might only see 5000 cycles in 20 years. Both

fywheels and lithium-ion batteries have been

installed for this application. A very high $-per-

kWh CAPEX is affordable in this application

because the LCOE-S is still kept low by the very

high number of cycles per annum.

Next steps

The LCOE-S needs to be lower than the LCOE

of fexible generation like gas peaking and

diesel gensets. But it is worth remembering that

gas and renewables are two sides of the same

coin. Storage itself can store electricity from gas

plant just as easily as it can store intermittent

renewable electricity. No matter where the input

comes from, storage reduces the amount of

generating capacity that any system requires.

It is time to start thinking seriously about

how individual storage technologies can

serve the applications described above

and how much it will cost for them to do so.

That means assigning technology-specifc

numbers to the three key variables of storage

(CAPEX, effciency and cycle life) and working

out how much the input electricity will have

to cost to make each technology competitive

with fexible conventional generation for a

given application.

Abolishing subsidies will not stop the

massive roll-out of renewables. In this rapidly

developing situation storage has a great deal

to offer. But only a proper understanding of the

way the cost of storage works will lift the fog that

obscures the economics behind the concept.

James Macnaghten is chief executive of

Isentropic Limited. For more imformation, visit

www.isentropic.co.uk.

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Capturing carbon dioxide from thermal plant emissions and, ideally, putting it to use

could offer an economical route to a low-carbon economy

Credit: Drax

20 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Valve and actuator technology

Current market demands for greater fexibility and effciency mean that operators of conventional power plants have to operate their feets in a more cyclic manner, as well as at higher temperatures and pressures. Paul Breeze explores how these changing operating conditions impact on critical components, such as valves and actuators.

Exploring the start of the art

The ability to control a power plant,

be it natural gas-fred, combined-

cycle, coal-fred boiler, solar

thermal array, or even a wind

turbine will depend on the reliable

functioning of valves and the

actuators used to operate those valves.

These components come in a range

of types and sizes and the operations they

perform are equally varied. Without them the

management of modern power plants would

be impossible. Today, the demands on these

vital components are becoming ever greater.

Over the past 20–30 years the level of

control required of all types of plants has

increased greatly. This is partly a result of

changes in the market structure such as the

widespread privatization of power generation

in Europe and elsewhere -- when plants

stopped making electricity and started

manufacturing pounds, shillings and pence,

as one industry expert wryly observed -- and

partly the changing nature of the power

supply system, with increasingly large volumes

of renewable energy being fed into grid

systems that are operated within much lower

tolerances than in the past to cater for the

increasingly large base of sensitive electronic

equipment that underpins modern life.

These changes have led to a need for

more frequent and precise control of plants,

an evolutionary process that has affected all

aspects of plant component design including

that of valves and actuators.

Ian Elliot, sales manager at Rotork Site

Services in the UK, recalls the frst of these

changes taking place in the early 1990s when

the UK industry was privatized. The private

sector companies that took over plants

demanded lower manning levels so valve

operations that might have been carried out

manually had to be automated. Meanwhile

400 MW coal-fred baseload plants that had

previously started and shut down once a year

suddenly started ‘two shifting’, that is coming

on line early in the day to meet morning

demand, shutting down and then coming on

again in the evening. As a consequence, Elliot

notes, “actuators had to move twice each day

instead of twice each year.”

Step-change in procedures

With this change in duty cycle, both valves

and their actuators suddenly had to be much

more reliable.

One of Rotork’s responses was to redesign

its actuators to reduce the number of moving

parts. Today the company relies increasingly

on components such as Hall-effect sensors

and piezoelectric sensors where in the past

it would have relied on electro-mechanical

components. Changes of this type have been

replicated across the industry.

Privatization, where it happened, led to a

step-change in operating procedures. Since

then there has been an even greater shift

in the power generation landscape but its

introduction has been more gradual. The

Facilities such as Germany’s high-effciency Ulrich Hartmann

are driving valve and actuator innovation

Credit: Siemens

1402pei_20 20 2/12/14 3:20 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 21Power Engineering International January 2013

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22 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Valve and actuator technology

result is that, 20 years on, ‘two-shifting’ is more

likely to be ‘20-shifting’, or even ‘continuous-

shifting’. This is because the power networks in

many regions have to manage larger volumes

of renewables, primarily from wind and solar

photovoltaic plants. Both of these sources are

by their nature intermittent and in order to keep

the grid in balance, it is necessary to have

alternative generating stations in readiness to

step in if the renewable output falls. The same

plants must be capable of backing down,

when renewable output increases.

This grid support role can be managed with

hydropower and energy storage plants but

often they are not available and then much of

the responsibility falls onto conventional fossil

fuel plants, particularly gas-fred combined-

cycle, but also some modern coal plants.

These plants are required to be able to start

and stop frequently and ramp their output

up and down often and rapidly. Achieving

this requires precise control of the plant

operating conditions and those conditions

are maintained using valves that modulate

the fows in all critical parts of a plant.

A model to meet all demands

For valve and actuator manufacturers, these

new operating conditions have changed the

demands placed on their products in two

important ways.

The frst is that the valves and actuators

are required to operate even more frequently

than before. The second, highlighted by Udo

Hess, power market sales manager at AUMA

Riester, is that faster startups and faster output

ramping mean that valves and actuators

must move more quickly than before. To meet

these conditions, manufacturers have been

forced to adapt their designs.

Some valves, such as ball and butterfy, are

designed to be either open or shut. These are

often used as fail-safe on/off valves. Others

are designed so they can be partly open,

their position controlled with varying degrees

of precision. This allows for modulation of the

fuid fow through the valve. Controlling both

types of valve may involve a linear motion

or a rotary motion, and this is provided by

an actuator.

Actuators are designed for specifc valve

types and for particular duties. Some provide

a linear force to open and shut a linear valve.

Others generate a rotary force. And as with

valves, there are different types of actuator.

Many modern actuators are electro-

mechanical, relying on electrical power to

operate. Others are hydraulic or pneumatic.

Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Valves and actuators for use in demanding

environments such as power plants are

divided into found standard classes -- A, B

C, and D -- depending on the type of duty

they perform.

Class A is an on/off actuator for a valve

that is either open or closed, normally quarter-

turn valves such as butterfy or ball. A class

A valve only operates infrequently. Class B is

a valve that can be shut, part-open or fully

open, and the actuator will have a position

sensor to provide feedback for a power plant

control system, but will again only operate

infrequently. A class C valve and actuator

can provide very frequent operation and

modulation, while class D valves are required

to be able to operate continuously.

In the past, traditional coal plants would

have required very few higher class valves

but modern coal and gas plants need

many more class C and D modulating valves

and actuators.

Moreover, specifcations for the latter

are rising so that, for example, AUMA has

increased the frequency of starts supported

by its class C actuators from 1200/h to 1500/h.

While valves and actuators must operate

more frequently, power plant operators do

not want to be forced to maintain them

any more frequently that previously. So both

components must be more rugged and

reliable. The actuators often have to generate

more force or torque than before and move

more quickly than before too. All of this puts

them under much greater stress.

And there is more: when valves and

actuators are operated they generate heat.

The more frequently they operate, the hotter

they get.

With a low-frequency duty cycle the

actuator has a chance to cool down

between operations. In modern power plants

with high-frequency duty cycle, the actuators,

in contrast, have little opportunity to cool,

especially at an ambient temperature of up

to 120°C. That places extreme demands on all

the components that make up the actuator.

Higher effciency, greater precision

Rising temperature is not only a matter of

frequency of operation. The temperatures and

pressures inside conventional fossil fuel plants

are becoming more elevated in the quest to

achieve higher effciency and this means the

components operating in these more extreme

environments must be able to withstand

higher temperatures and pressures.

Moreover, conventional plants are getting

bigger. In 800 MW to 1000 MW power plants

you can fnd 3-metre diameter butterfy valves.

“Previously this size was only found in water

systems,” Hess says. The torque required to

shut or open these valves can be as high as

675,000 Nm.

With large valves, actuators must be

bigger and travel further. Yet at the same

time actuators have to be more precise

and sensitive. For US company Automation

Technology Inc (ATI) this means that the

mechanical parts have to be machined

more precisely, as its chief executive Cooper

Etheridge explains.

Greater precision means that parts match

more perfectly and friction is reduced while

maintaining smaller tolerances so that more

precise control is possible. Low friction is

important because excessive friction can

lead to ‘jumpy movement’.

For ATI’s speciality, linear actuators, this

must be achieved while providing faster and

larger movements and greater force. Other

actuator manufacturers face similar problems.

Valve design modifcations

Valve manufacturers also have to cope with

Separate wall brackets ensure continued performance in demanding environments

Credit: AUMA

1402pei_22 22 2/12/14 3:20 PM

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1402pei_23 23 2/12/14 3:20 PM

24 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Valve and actuator technology

a demand for larger components that are at the same time more precise

and can operate under more stressful conditions. If anything, the conditions

faced by valves are more extreme since they can be controlling the steam or

air fows in coal and gas-fred plants where temperatures and pressures are at

their highest.

And while the most stressful conditions are in new plants, the problems can

be just as great in older plants where the valves were not originally designed

for the sort of duty cycle now expected of them. This means expensive reftting

of newer and more capable components.

Not only is more demanded of each component, but power plant

companies are also demanding that their valve suppliers prove their valves

will stand up to the rigors of this new duty. This means producing lifetime

calculations to show how the component will perform over 25 years when the

plant might start up and shut down 50,000 times. This has meant introducing

advanced modelling and testing techniques.

The issue with valves is often one of materials and design. In the past,

valves were designed for baseload operations and now when subjected to

this new type of operational duty will often start to develop cracks and key

stress points.

This problem is exacerbated not only by the increased number of cycles

that the valve goes through, but by the increased thermal gradients that it

is subjected too as the ramp rate increases. “It is not only the frequency of

cycling but also the speed of temperature change,” says Martin-Jan Strebe,

global product manager for control valves at Pentair.

The solution is to redesign valves, removing all the sharp corners where

stress fractures often start and limiting the changes in thickness of the metal

used to fabricate the valve as far as this is possible.

Careful redesign will reduce the potential for stresses to build up in the

component. In addition, manufacturers are having to use new materials to

replace traditional steels. To achieve better high-temperature performance

they are exploring the use of nickel-based alloys similar to those developed

and used in gas turbines, where similar -- if even more extreme -- operating

conditions exist.

Where steel continues to be used, the demand on steel alloys has become

greater. F91 is a standard stainless steel used in valve and pipe manufacturing.

However the durability of the material can be weakened by small quantities

of aluminium in the alloy. Therefore valve makers are demanding special

batches of F91 with reduced aluminium content.

Another change taking place is the way in which valves are fabricated.

Valves can be cast or forged, but today forged valves are preferred in high

pressure systems, another change brought about by the extreme conditions

under which they are required to operate. “The industry is grappling with

cast versus forged, and which is most suitable for today’s conditions,” says

Arvo Eilau, global marketing manager of Natural Gas and Renewable Power

at Pentair.

Meanwhile, German company PS Automation is exploring the use of

plastics. Injection-moulded plastic components can be very accurate,

according to Michal Kral-Serrato, feld sales manager.

However, any plastic component needs to be carefully load-tested to

ensure it can meet the demands imposed on it. The company introduced its

frst plastic components around two years ago.

Risk management, an integral part of plant operation

A further key issue for both actuator and valve manufacturers is to control the

risk associated with their products. Part of the driver behind this is to achieve

greater plant safety but beyond that, risk management is becoming an

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www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 25Power Engineering International February 2014

Valve and actuator technology

Customized special control valves

For the energy producing and consuming industry

WELLAND & TUXHORN AG

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• HP-, IP- and LP-

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integral part of modern plant operation and

management.

At its most basic the issue means that

investors, owners and operators want a

number that tells them the level of risk

associated with each power plant.

In order to gauge risk for each power

plant component, an assessor needs to

know its associated risk level -- how likely is it

to fail, and in what way will it fail? To meet this

requirement, manufacturers are increasingly

asked to provide components that are rated

against the standard Safety Integrity Level (SIL)

measure of performance. Typically, valve and

actuator manufacturers seek to achieve SIL

level 3 or above for components that are used

in power plants.

As ATI’s Etheridge explains, obtaining a SIL

rating means allowing an outside assessor to

examine a component and explore all the

ways it can fail. Simplicity in this case can be

absolutely key.

For example, many of ATI’s actuators

contain a spring, a simple fail-safe component

that will ensure a valve moves into its fail-safe

position if the actuator fails in any way. “A

spring is a very simple device,” Etheridge says.

“For safety, the simpler the component, the

safer and more reliable it is.”

Another way of increasing security

is to constantly monitor and record the

operation of valves and actuators. Rotork uses

monitoring to record the operation of its valves

and actuators over their operational lifetime,

and then compare the daily performance

with the baseline performance established

when the unit was new. By comparing original

and current performance it is possible to

detect when problems such as wear or valve

sticking begin to arise, allowing predictive

maintenance to be carried out before the unit

fails. The same monitoring and logging system

will also record the number of operations

and compare these to the expected lifetime

number, another way of gauging the status of

the component.

At the same time, the digital revolution is

bringing changes that affect all aspects of

valves and actuators. Manufacturers need to

provide standardized digital interfaces to all

their components so they can be integrated

into modern control systems. PS Automation is

using software in its controllers to customize its

actuators for different applications.

New opportunities with renewables

While the biggest power sector market for

valves and actuators remains conventional

plants, for some companies the nuclear

market is important, while a new but growing

sector is renewables – and this is likely

to become a more important market in

the future.

As an example of this, Young & Franklin has

recently designed a single-cylinder operated

parabolic trough actuator for concentrated

solar plants. As company marketing specialist

Jason Dyer points out, this is opening new

design and manufacturing opportunities for

both new and established companies.

Rotork has also been supplying valves to

solar thermal plants where they are used to

control the temperature of the fuid in the heat

transfer circuit to ensure it is maintained within

operational limits. Flow rate is increased when

the solar input is high and reduced as the

heat input falls.

There are around two actuators for each

megawatt of solar thermal generating

capacity. In a conventional fossil fuel plant, the

number is generally around one quarter the

number, so this is potentially a large market.

1402pei_25 25 2/12/14 3:20 PM

26 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Valve and actuator technology

Another section of the solar thermal market where

specialist valves are needed is to manage fows in plants

that use molten salt, either as the heat collection fuid or for

energy storage, or for both.

The mixture of molten nitrates that is often used in

these plants is generally maintained at between 300ºC

and 400ºC. This is a hostile and corrosive environment and

requires valves that are particularly corrosion resistant.

Solar thermal plants are akin to conventional thermal

plants in concept, even if the energy source is different, so

it is not surprising to fnd that they make extensive use of

valves and actuators.

However, even wind turbines need these components

too. One particular application is within the hydraulic

control system that operates the blade pitching for speed

control.

Most modern turbines have moveable blades or blade

sections that are used to control rotational speed as the

wind speed changes. These may also have to perform a

critical fail-safe function, shutting down the turbine if wind

speeds become too high. As turbine technology advances,

so the need for valves and actuators here is likely to

increase too.

Across the power sector, the changes that are taking

place are challenging manufacturers of valves and

actuators to fnd new solutions to old problems.

Valves and actuators are needed to perform more

complex operations, but at the same time they need to be

simpler to satisfy risk requirements.

Meanwhile, new markets are arising that require

different solutions, so the challenges are accompanied

by a range of opportunities. Companies across the board

are responding.

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more information i

The industry is grappling with cast versus forged valve design,and which is most suitable for today’s conditions

Credit: Pentair

COMPANY COUNTRY WEB

Arca Germany www.arca.de/

ARI International Germany www.arivalves.com/

AUMA Riester GmbH & Company KG Germany www.auma.com

Automation Technology Incorporated (ATI) USA www.automationtechnologiesinc.com/

BBK Fluid Control Company Limited China www.bbkval.com

BFS Valve China www.bfsvalve.com

Bomafa Germany www.bomafa.com

Bray International USA www.bray.com

China Valve Corporation China www.cvalve.com/

Crane Fluid Handling Germany www.cranefowsolutions.com/.

Crotti Fortunato Snc Italy www.crottivalvole.it

De Tomi Srl Italy www.detomi.com

EMICO, Eayuan Metal Industrial Company Limited Taiwan, ROC www.emico.com.tw/

Eclipse Valves & Fittings Limited  New Zealand www.eclipsevalves.com/

EFCO Maschinenbau GmbH Germany www.efco-dueren.com/

Emerson UK www.emersonprocess.com/

Emme Technology Srl Italy www.emmetech.com/

emmetech Uk www.kromschroeder.de

ERIKS UK www.eriks.co.uk

Europiping SpA Italy www.europiping.com/

Famat Switzerland www.famat.com/

Flowrox Finland www.fowrox.com/

Flowserve USA www.fowserve.com

Fluonics Company Limited South Korea www.fuonics.com

Fujian Feida Valve Company Limited China www.feidavalve.com/en/

Glaunach GmbH Austria www.glaunach.com

Goodwin International Limited UK www.goodwin.co.uk/

Haitima Corporation Taiwan, ROC www.haitima.com.tw/

Ham-Let Isreal www.ham-let.com/

Hanwel Netherlands www.ham-let.com/

HORA, Holter Regelarmaturen GmbH Germany www.hora.de/

James Walker UK www.jameswalker.biz

J-Peco Engineering Supervision & Consulting

Company Limited China www.j-peco.com/

KSB AG Germany www.ksb.com

Kühme Armaturen GmbH Germany www.kuehme.de/

Leser GmbH Germany www.leser.com/

Metso Automation Finland www.metso.com

Nantong Powerstation Valve Company China www.ntdzfm.com/

Nippon Pillar Packing Company Limited Japan www.pillar.co.jp/

NOREVA GmbH Germany www.noreva.de/

NSSL Limited India www.nsslindia.com/

OHL Gutermuth Industrial Valves GmbH Germany www.ohl-gutermuth.de/

Orbinox Spain www.orbinox.com

Oviko Valve Compnay Limited China www.ovikovalve.com/

Peach Valve (BAVCOS) South Korea www.peachvalve.com/

Pekos Valves SA Spain www.pekos.es/

Pentair Valves & Control Switzerland http://valves.pentair.com/valves/

PS Automation GmbH Germany www.ps-automation.com/

Ramén Trading AB Sweden http://ramen.se/

Regeltechnik Kornwestheim GmbH Germany www.rtk.de/en

Rf Valves Finland www.rfvalve.com

Rotork Controls Limited UK www.rotork.com/en/

SAMSON AG Germany www.samson.de

Sanbora Valve Compnay Limited China www.chsbr.com/

Schroeder Valves GmbH Germany www.schroeder-valves.com/

Sealand Engineering UK www.sealandengineering.co.uk/

Shree Hans Alloys Limited India www.hansalloys.com

SIAD Macchine Impianti SpA Italy www.siadmi.com

SIPOS Aktorik GmbH Germany www.sipos.de/

SKVAL Company Limited China www.skval.com/

Spirax Sarco UK www.spiraxsarco.com/

Suzhou Viza Valve Company Limited China www.vizavalve.com/

Tiangong Valve Group Company Limited China www.tgvalve.com

Transmark DRW Germany www.drw-armaturen.de

VAG Armaturen GmbH Germany www.vag-armaturen.com/

Valsteam ADCA Engineering SA Portugal www.valsteam.com/

Value Valves Company Limited Taiwan, ROC www.valuevalves.com/

Valves of Norway Norway www.norskeventiler.no/

Valvitalia Italy www.valvitalia.com/

Virgo Europe SpA Italy www.virgoengineers.com/

Weidouli Valves Company Limited China www.weidouli.com

WEIR UK www.weir.co.uk

Young & Franklin USA www.yf.com/

Zwick Armaturen GmbH Germany www.zwick-gmbh.de/

A selection of valve and actuator manufacturers serving the global power

generation sector

1402pei_26 26 2/12/14 3:20 PM

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Capturing carbon dioxide from thermal plant emissions and, ideally, putting it to use could offer an economical route to a low-carbon economy

Credit: Drax

28 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Low-carbon research

This year the European Commission

(EC) has ring-fenced €359 million

($485 million) for research projects

that promote low-carbon energy

technologies – the largest sum

of money made available by the

EU’s research programmes, previously called

‘Framework Programmes’.

The competition money comes from the

new European Union (EU) research funding

programme, Horizon 2020, which has an

overall budget of €80 billion to distribute

between this year and 2020. And Brussels

has also widened the application process

to encourage a large and broad number of

participants.

Rather than building on what applicants

already know, Horizon 2020 wants to focus

on challenges which may require multi-

disciplinary responses. “We are defning

the problem and are asking participants

to give us the best solution,” EU Research

Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn said

in a press briefng in Brussels.

Through the challenges posed to the

power industry, research institutes, academia

and non-governmental organizations

(NGOs), Brussels wants to support Europe’s

transition to low-carbon energy systems.

It wants H2020 to fnd projects that span

the whole innovation process – from research

and development to commercialization. The

challenges also aim to respond to issues

related to standardization, as well as the

integration of renewable energy sources into

the grid.

This approach has been appreciated by

the power sector. Julia Eichhorst of European

electricity industry association Eurelectric

welcomed “the fact that the frst calls under

Horizon 2020 take a comprehensive look at

– and dedicate suffcient funding to – the

full innovation value chain, from inception to

demonstration and market uptake”.

According to the EC’s directorate general

for research, the main power priorities

in Horizon 2020 are the development

and demonstration of renewable energy

technologies for electricity generation;

their integration into the power system; the

electricity grid, including storage; carbon

dioxide (CO2) capture, transport, storage

and re-use; and fexible and effcient fossil

fuel power plants.

“Horizon 2020 is split into three major

priorities, with the third point, ‘societal

challenges’, receiving the lion’s share,”

explains Eichhorst, who adds that “secure,

clean and effcient energy”, which addresses

most of the funding opportunities related to

power, has an allocated budget of roughly

€16 billion for 2014–20.

“Other points relevant for our sector

cover green transport and climate action,

resource effciency and raw materials”, she

continues, noting that projects spanning

energy, transport and climate change have

in the past proved diffcult to co-ordinate.

“The Commission therefore needs to ensure

full co-ordination and coherence of its

proposed points in order to minimize the risk

of duplication,” she adds.

Solar sums

There are different sums of funding available

for projects, depending on the type of

technology involved, with the frst deadlines for

applications having been set for April.

Green funding for blue sky thinking

The European Commission is throwing its weight and more importantly its wallet behind a bid to step up low-carbon energy research, writes Carmen Paun.

1402pei_28 28 2/12/14 3:20 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 29

o use

y

ax

Power Engineering International February 2014

Low-carbon research

Projects that could deliver highly-effcient,

novel photovoltaics (PV) concepts based

on advanced materials and processes can

obtain between €3 million and €6 million,

the same sum that is available to projects

that try to develop very low-cost PV cells and

modules.

The development of inorganic thin-

flm technologies that achieve module

effciencies higher than 12–16 per cent

can receive between €5–20 million, while

projects that aim to increase the effciency

of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants

– while also reducing their construction,

operation and maintenance costs – can

obtain between €3 million and €6 million.

Between €5–20 million is available for those

applications that can demonstrate solutions

that would make CSP plants able to produce

predictable power and be fexible enough to

respond to demands from the grid.

Paolo Basso, policy offcer at the European

Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA), told

Power Engineering International: “Progress is

needed in the following areas: performance

enhancement and energy cost reduction;

quality assurance, long-term reliability

and sustainability; and electricity system

integration.”

Basso says it is too early to evaluate how

Horizon 2020 will work and deliver the results

it aims for, but he adds that so far the signs

are positive, not least because Horizon 2020

is better than the EU’s previous funding

programme because it has “an increased

budget available for energy, a bigger focus

on innovation and close-to-market activities,

simplifed procedures and a limited time-to-

grant”.

Wind energy challenges are also

addressed in the Horizon 2020 funding

opportunities.

Applications for projects that could

deliver control systems and strategies for

new and large onshore and offshore wind

farms, as well as “new innovative substructure

concepts, including foating platforms, to

reduce production, installation, operation

and maintenance costs for water depths of

more than 50 metres” are sought by 1 April,

and each project granted funding could

receive €3 million to €6 million.

According to the EC, there is a need to

demonstrate and test new nacelle and rotor

prototypes with a signifcant lower mass and

material intensity. Projects which aim to do

this could each receive between €5 million

and €20 million.

Putting money into turbine development is

a good idea, according to Jacopo Moccia,

head of Political Affairs at the European

Wind Energy Association (EWEA), as turbines

need to be adapted to more complicated

conditions like cold climates or complex

terrains.

“Larger parts of Europe’s seas will also

be exploitable economically by developing

deep offshore solutions, including foating

systems,” he says, adding that wind turbines

can also be increasingly better connected to

the electricity grid.

Even so, renewables do not seem to be as

important for the EU as they used to be in the

previous research programme, according

to Moccia. “The share of the EU money

dedicated to funding the research and

development [of renewables] has shrunk

from about 40 per cent to 25 per cent [of

available energy research funding] and will

reach about €1.35 billion,” he explains.

Brussels has also designed calls for

projects that could deliver improved turbines

for sustainable hydropower able to handle a

wider range of loads and thus increase power

output. This Horizon 2020 call will provide

€3 million to €6 million to projects that

can come up with these turbines in the

near future.

The development of ocean energy

components that could withstand harsh

conditions will also be funded, as well as

projects that can create better understanding

about the installation, operation and

decommissioning costs of ocean energy

equipment.

Funding options are also available for

initiatives involving renewable heating and

cooling, and sustainable geothermal power,

as well as for projects that would help fossil

fuel-power plants shift their role from providing

baseload power to fuctuating back-up

power for renewable energy sources. These

projects stand to receive funding ranging

from between €3 million-€6 million per project.

Energy storage is one of the main priorities

of Europe’s transition to low-carbon energy,

and funding is available for next-generation

technologies that respond to this challenge.

Brussels has made millions of euros worth of funding available to solar projects

Credit: QCells

EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger: Horizon 2020 has €80 billion to distribute

Credit: EC

1402pei_29 29 2/12/14 3:21 PM

30 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Low-carbon research

Storage technologies of all sizes relevant to

energy applications and all types of locations

are needed, with funding of between €6 and

€9 million per project up for grabs.

Meanwhile, €20–25 million per project

is available for large-scale energy storage

project proposals, although this category of

funding is mostly focused on storage systems

that have been already technologically

validated in a relevant environment.

An EC document notes: “Integrated

power-to-gas concepts allowing electricity

storage through the production of synthetic

gas to be stored in the gas grid in the form of

synthetic/green methane are eligible.”

Projects integrating and validating

solutions to grid challenges, concentrating

on feld demonstrations of system integration

and up-scaling at industrial scale, will also be

able to draw European money from Horizon

2020, with Brussels ready to award between

€12–15 million to each successful project.

Activities helping deploy meshed off-

shore grids with full interoperability in Europe

can obtain €30-€40 million in funding. To do

so, they would have to promote the use of

innovative components within interoperable

meshed off-shore high-voltage direct current

(HVDC) network technologies, services and

tools architectures. Since “remote locations

require new grid technologies to transport

electricity over longer distances, a key

technology will be HVDC for which full-scale

demonstrators need to be developed”,

notes Moccia.

To succeed in applications, power

companies will need to become part of

international partnerships alongside other

companies, research institutes, academia

and even NGOs.

Most of the calls require research

consortia with at least three legal entities,

each established in different countries. While

each call will set specifc requirements, there

is an overarching grant award criteria taking

into account the excellence of the proposal,

its impact and the likely quality and effciency

of implementation.

Except for projects focusing on activities

close to market, most other projects

awarded funding under Horizon 2020 will see

100 per cent of their costs covered. Applicants

should be informed within a maximum of

eight months from submitting applications if

they have been successful, according to an

EU offcial. There will also be fewer audits on

projects than in the past, the same source

says. “We will be focusing more on where the

real risks are,” he adds.

Carmen Paun is a Brussels-based freelance

journalist, specializing in European regulation.

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more information i

The EC approach to Horizon 2020 is to present problems and ask the industry for solutions

Credit: EC

EC Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard: Climate action forms part of Horizon 2020

Credit: EC

1402pei_30 30 2/12/14 3:21 PM

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32 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Schaeffer’s large-sized bearing test rig in action

Credit: Schaeffer Technologies

The push to boost the energy

output of wind turbines is leading

the industry towards taller

structures with longer blades.

Wind at 100 metres fows more

steadily and 4.5 per cent faster

than at 80 metres, with an energy gain of

about 14 per cent. Longer blades can rotate

more slowly yet produce more electrical

power. Last year, close to 5 per cent of new

turbines in the US were 100-metres high, and

this trend is expected to continue worldwide.

But bigger size brings with it signifcant

challenges in design and physics, increasing

the burden on a wind turbine’s key central

bearings in a number of ways. Turbine rotor

and hub weight alone generate static radial

load and pitching moments. Wind forces

add static and dynamic axial loads on

both bearings and rotor blades. Wind also

generates pitching and yawing moments

that cycle with the position of the blades as

they rotate. The effects of these forces can

multiply as a wind turbine gets larger.

Given the signifcant costs involved in

wind turbine construction, maintenance,

and repair, manufacturers understandably

want to ensure that the designs of newer,

larger turbines are thoroughly proven ahead

of time. Key to that proof is ensuring that

the bearings at the heart of every turbine

will stand up to both the structural and the

environmental stresses as long as possible, in

every imaginable situation.

The industry has been using a variety of

smaller bearing test rigs built to evaluate

standard-size turbine performance. But until

recently there was no way to run real-world

tests on the newer, large-size wind turbine

bearings.

Schaeffer Technologies of Germany is

a rolling-bearing specialist. The company’s

catalogue of rolling bearing assemblies is one

of the widest in the industry, covering nearly

all industrial and consumer applications with

more than 40,000 products under the brands

INA and FAG.

“Most people do not recognize that

nearly every industry uses rolling bearings

or rolling bearing parts,” says Martin Stief,

CAE integration department engineer for

Schaeffer.

One of the highlights over FAG’s

100-year history is the London Eye (offcially,

the Millennium Wheel). This Ferris wheel is

the world’s largest and heaviest, standing

135 metres high, measuring 424 metres in

circumference, and weighing 2100 tonnes.

As wind turbines become bigger, signifcant physical and design challenges are placed on their key central bearings. However, a new test rig, described as the biggest in the world, is helping to ensure the reliability of these large-size bearings, writes Lynn Manning.

Wind turbine testing technology

Bearing up to turbine testing

1402pei_32 32 2/12/14 3:21 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 33Power Engineering International February 2014

Wind turbine testing technology

Two FAG spherical roller bearings several

meters wide and weighing several tonnes

help rotate the wheel smoothly.

With years of experience in testing

bearings before putting them to work,

Schaeffer realized that the growing trend

towards larger wind turbines would quickly

dictate a need for much bigger test rigs than

were available.

“Before even thinking about performing

expensive real-world tests on large-size wind

turbine bearings, we needed to quantify

the critical operating conditions to minimize

testing time and costs,” says Stief.

“We also wanted this information to design

and construct the best test rig possible for

such large-size bearings.” Finite element

analysis (FEA) provided both insights.

Big bearings: big test rig

While Schaeffer had small test rigs for

simulating and applying real-world bearing

loads on small-size roller bearings, it did not

have a large rig for simulating the conditions

in a commercial, multi-megawatt wind turbine.

“When planning our large rig project,

conservative engineering was the

watchword for extrapolating bearing lifetime

tests from small to big bearings,” says Stief.

“FEA helped us determine the lifetime of

larger bearings more exactly. We can now

design precisely the size of bearing required

by a particular turbine geometry, which helps

keep costs down. We were also able to do

kinematic analysis with original parts, from

both bearings and assemblies provided by

customers. This saves on development time

in the re-engineering and design process.”

The fnished test rig is 16 meters long,

6 metres wide and 5.7 metres high. Its mass

is approximately 350 tonnes. As with wind

turbines in the feld, the rig is on a 5° tilt. It

has fve main subassemblies: drive train,

loading frame, auxiliary bearing, test bearing

and tensioning frame. Eight radial and

axial cylinders replicate real-world loads.

Approximately 500 bolts are needed to

mount the auxiliary and test bearings.

The fnished rig can test bearings with

a maximum diameter of approximately

3.5 metres, making it the most modern, largest

and highest performing large-size bearing

test rig in the world. At a cost of approximately

€7 million ($9.5 million), the rig represents a

signifcant investment in Schaeffer’s future

developments in renewable energy.

Despite the two years spent designing

and constructing the test rig, the time spent

on mechanical fnite element (FE) simulation

was short: just two months for strength

assessment and modal analysis. “Because

the wind industry is booming right now, we

wanted to make the rig as fast as possible,”

says Stief. “This meant having a quick and

accurate way to simulate, analyze and verify

rolling bearing assemblies, so we could

create a rig that could accurately measure

them in action.”

Schaeffer called the test rig Astraios, who

is one of the Titans in Greek mythology and

the father of the four Wind Gods. Initially, the

name Astraios was appropriate because

the rig was designed to test large-size

bearings specifcally for wind turbines. That

target, however, has evolved. The test rig as

designed can handle any type of industrial

bearing, measuring up to approximately

3.5 metres in diameter, as mentioned

previously, making it suitable for other

large-size bearing applications as well, such

as the heavy equipment used in construction,

mining and excavation.

Surmounting design challenges

Schaeffer started by creating a virtual

prototype to validate the physical test rig,

which itself would replicate the actual

conditions for roller bearings in a wind turbine.

To do this, Stief formed a simulation team of

fve full-time and two part-time members, all of

whom were experienced with using Abaqus

FEA from SIMULIA, the Dassault Systèmes

brand for realistic simulation.

“Abaqus has been Schaeffer’s primary

FEA tool for years,” says Stief.

The team divided the test rig analysis

into smaller, manageable, functional FE

submodels, which were then connected

together to represent the overall test rig.

To ensure the accuracy of this global

representation, the team used its engineering

judgment in defning loads, transition regions,

and boundary conditions (e.g. stiffness, mass

and damping) between FE submodels.

Parts of the submodels were replaced

by interface conditions that could be

determined by analytical or simulation-

based calculations. This approach helped

The bearing test rig measures 16 metres long, 6 metres wide, and 5.7 metres high, and weighs approximately 350 tonnes

Credit: Schaeffer Technologies

Large wind turbine nacelle (left) showing bearing in silver, and Schaeffer large-sized bearing test rig (right) with silver bearing in test position

Credit: Schaeffer Technologies

1402pei_33 33 2/12/14 3:21 PM

34 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Wind turbine testing technology

reduce the size of the submodels and sped

the creation of working models.

“We used Abaqus to test the strengths of

joints and to check specifc connections,”

says Stief. “When the overall design of the rig

became clearer, we began using Abaqus on

the submodels for strength verifcation. From

those results, we improved the rig design

using basic mechanical know-how, such as

strengthening ribs by making them larger.

Then we’d run the submodel through Abaqus

again for another strength assessment.” The

team also created an additional FE model

to quickly evaluate the entire test rig’s modal

behavior, as well as confrm their defnitions

for the boundary conditions between

submodels. The modal analysis was also used

to estimate the ‘eigenfrequencies’ (natural

frequencies) for the test rig. “Obviously, we

don’t want resonance,” says Stief. “We don’t

want the test rig shaking itself apart.”

Wind turbines typically rotate about

16 revolutions per minute (rpm), but the

engineers wanted their test rig to run up to

60 rpm – the same as a critical excitation

frequency of 1 Hz. The modal analysis

confrmed that the frst natural frequency

of the rig was 13 Hz, well beyond this 1 Hz

value and thus not an issue (subsequent

frequencies were even higher).

To validate their virtual prototype, Schaeffer

ran the full FE model of its test rig through a

large number of load cases within Abaqus.

Even with a very coarse mesh of the entire

test rig, the load-case calculations initially

hit the limits of the available computing

capacity. With 32 GB of RAM, calculating

17 load cases took 48 hours. However, this

time was subsequently slashed to 10 hours

using a newly built-up HPC Linux Calculation

Cluster with faster CPUs and more RAM.

Various functions within Abaqus helped

make model creation effcient and fast. For

example, Abaqus includes hundreds of types

of user elements – subroutines that allow the

user to defne their own FE behavior inside an

Abaqus model.

In the bearing package submodel,

the rolling elements of the bearings were

replaced by customized user elements that

represented the precise stiffness behavior

of the rolling elements, as well as several

degrees of freedom that would have had to

be calculated separately.

These special elements cut the degrees

of freedom by several orders of magnitude –

from a range of 105 down to approximately

102. This signifcantly shortened the time, effort,

and cost of 3D modeling and meshing each

of the rolling elements. Computing time for

analysis plummeted from about fve hours to

about fve seconds.

“The large-size bearing test rig has at least

500 of these rolling elements. It would have

been impossible to make any FE calculations

without user elements,” says Stief.

Other Abaqus functions helped facilitate

stress analysis and strength verifcations.

The screw bolt modeling function, says Stief,

proved “extremely useful because of the

high number of bolts we preloaded with

real-world values for stress and strain”. This

function let the team create bolts, mesh them

and copy them as many times as needed in

the 3D models. All subsequent copies were

automatically meshed as well for FE analysis.

Geometry-based modeling helped the

team quickly mesh variants of the whole

model and the numerous submodels.

Scripting and other process automation

techniques made modeling and evaluating

the results easier and faster, greatly simplifying

strength verifcation.

Assembly/part/instance functionality

promoted team collaboration, such as when

exchanging parts between team members.

Stief says that with Abaqus’s options for

abstraction, “we could reduce the size of the

models by replacing large 3D structures with

shell or beam structures, or by linking whole-

model parts with the appropriate interface

conditions”.

Analysis leads to optimization

After stress analysis, the team focused on

strength verifcation according to Germany’s

FKM Guideline for analytical strength

assessment and the VDI 2230 standard for

screw connections. The results pointed to

additional design modifcations in the test

rig, such as optimizing screw connections,

adding components for increased reliability,

optimizing radii to reduce stresses, and adding

reinforcing ribs.

“The simulation models we created proved

our test rig was reliable and applicable for all

types of large-size bearings,” says Stief. Going

forward, simulation – validated with test rig

runs – will also provide Schaeffer with bearing-

specifc values, such as load distribution,

pressure distribution and contact angles, as

well as vital data about the elastic behavior

of bearing components under high preload.

“This will lead to even more realistic results in

bearing lifetime calculation,” says Stief.

Their current work now helps Schaeffer

detect critical operating conditions early

in the development of large-size bearings,

and minimize bearing test time on the rig

(with associated operating costs). From this,

Schaeffer can optimize its bearing products

earlier and easily in all the design stages and

put added focus on reducing friction in its

roller bearings.

In total, says Stief, simulation with Abaqus

FEA has been invaluable in maximizing the

performance of Schaeffer’s own products, as

well as those of their customers. “In the wind

industry, we can now develop more detailed

instructions for operating and maintaining

fnished turbines. This in turn helps us

provide our customers with more precise

recommendations about the construction

of their wind turbines. And our new test rig

enables us to support customers in other

industries as well.”

Lynn Manning is a science and technology

writer, based in the US.

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more information i

The wind generates both static and dynamic

axial loads on a wind turbine

Credit: Schaeffer Technologies

1402pei_34 34 2/12/14 3:21 PM

SHOWCASE YOUR PRODUCTS AND TECHNOLOGIES TO

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3 – 5 JUNE 2014 I KOELNMESSE I COLOGNE I GERMANY

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36 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Sun, a bit of sea and an awful

lot of sand – no, not my annual

holiday, but a working trip to Abu

Dhabi for the World Future Energy

Summit (WFES).

Now in its seventh year, WFES

is the energy pow-wow held anually as the

centrepiece of Abu Dhabi Sustainability

Week (ADSW). The great and the good from

the energy world turn up, deals are done,

technology showcased and the temperature

of the renewable energy world is taken.

There was a lot of optimism in and

around the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition

Centre which housed WFES… but then there

would be: with Masdar City – Abu Dhabi’s

sustainable poster city for clean technology

– just a hop and a skip down the road, you

will not fnd many people telling you that the

renewables bubble has burst.

A particular focus of ADSW was Africa,

highlighted by two key announcements

made by the Abu Dhabi-headquartered

International Renewable Energy Agency

(IRENA). Firstly, IRENA revealed that 19

countries had signed up to an action plan

it had drawn up to create an Africa Clean

Energy Corridor. The corridor is designed to

boost the deployment of renewable energy

and help meet Africa’s rising energy demand

with clean power from renewable sources

such as hydro, geothermal, biomass, wind

and solar.

IRENA’s director-general Adnan Z.

Amin said the corridor would “provide the

continent with the opportunity to leapfrog

into a sustainable energy future”.

A day later, IRENA held a press conference

to announce that, in conjunction with the

Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), it

was giving loans of $41 million to renewable

energy projects in six developing countries,

with half of them in Africa.

It is the frst wave of concessional loans

handed out by the IRENA/ADFD partnership

and the winning projects are in Ecuador, Mali,

the Maldives, Mauritania, Samoa and Sierra

After spending a week in Abu Dhabi for the World Future Energy Summit, Kelvin Ross reports on the talking points in the conference halls and on the brand new streets of Masdar City, the UAE’s ‘greenprint’ for sustainability.

World Future Energy Summit round-upExterior of Siemens new Middle East HQ at Masdar City.

Fin-like shapes keep out the sunlightCredit: Masdar

The shape of things to come

“The establishment of Masdar in Abu Dhabi had been the trigger for renewables awareness in the region”Adnan Z. Amin, director-general, IRENA

1402pei_36 36 2/12/14 3:21 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 37Power Engineering International February 2014

World Future Energy Summit round-up

Leone, and involve hydro, wind, solar and

biomass technology. Amin said the projects

were all “shovel-ready to go” and would

“bring power to isolated off-grid populations,

in some cases for the frst time”

He added: “Financing is one of the key

issues renewable energy is facing, particularly

in the developing world,” and confrmed that

IRENA and the ADFD had teamed up to “de-risk

investments in promising renewable projects”.

Amin went on to say that the success of the

frst round of loans debunked “one of the

“We are optimistic on wind and it’s not blind optimism, but founded optimism: wind has shown its resilience in terms of being able to compete with other forms of energy”Bader Al Lamki, Clean Energy director, Masdar

myths about renewable energy projects – that

there are not enough of them out there”.

“There is a large pipeline of renewable

energy projects that are viable today,” he

said, explaining that the six projects that

won funding were chosen from a list of 80

worth more than $800 million. “And we are

expecting the volume for the next cycle

of fnancing to be substantially higher” he

added.

Amin said that there was “tremendous

growth in renewable energy investment in the

GCC”, adding that the “leader in the process

is the UAE.” Indeed, he said the establishment

of Masdar in Abu Dhabi had been “the trigger

for [renewables] awareness in the region”.

“Almost every country in the region is

now setting renewable energy targets… and

we are seeing more and more ambitious

projects for the future.”

All of which is true, but if the number of

potential projects is growing, what is falling

is the global level of renewable investment.

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Attendees admire Masdar’s model exhibit at WFES

Credit: K. Ross

1402pei_37 37 2/12/14 3:21 PM

38 www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

World Future Energy Summit round-up

Power Engineering International February 2014

Finance published data revealing that global

investment in clean energy declined last

year, continuing a fall started in 2012. Figures

showed that last year the total investment

was $254 billion, down from $288.9 billion in

2012 and signifcantly less than the record

sum of $317.9 billion seen in 2011.

“That is disappointing,” said Amin, but

he added that it was “understandable”

given the recession in so many areas which

had previously been leaders in investment,

such as Europe. However he added that

the consolidation that has swept across

many parts of the sector would result in

“the emergence of a much leaner, cost-

competitive industry”.

African opportunities

The focus on Africa continued at the WFES

opening ceremony, when Masdar chief

executive Dr. Sultan Al Jabar was joined on the

stage by the presidents of Senegal and Sierra

Leone and the prime minister of Ethiopia.

Dr. Al Jabar said that “with six of the ten

fastest-growing economies of the past

decade located in sub-Saharan Africa, the

development opportunities in this region are

tremendous”.

Ethiopia’s prime minister Hailemariam

Desalegn told the audience that “Africa

is rising. Even though Africa contributes

negligible emissions compared to the rest

of the world, we have opted for a green,

climate-friendly vision for our future”. And

Sierra Leone president Ernest Bai Koroma said

“Africa is going to be the place where clean

energy technologies are going to scale and

encourage sustainable development”.

Africa again featured heavily once the

conference programme kicked off. At a

debate on wind energy, a panel of wind

sector players – including Siemens, Alstom,

Masdar, and Acciona – picked out South

Africa as the go-to destination for wind

business in 2014.

“South Africa is the most promising market,”

said Carmen Becerril, chief international

offcer at Spanish wind power company

Acciona. She said Acciona was looking to

Africa for fresh business as Europe “will be in

a very fat position for 2014”.

Markus Tacke, chief executive of Siemens’

wind division, agreed 2014 “will be a

challenging year”, saying that the prospects

in offshore wind were much better than those

onshore. He said onshore was a “fat market”,

with the Middle East and North Africa

remaining the region “we have hope in”.

The most upbeat of the panellists was

Masdar’s clean energy director Bader Al

Lamki, who said 2013 had been “exceptional”

for Masdar. He said the highlight was the

opening of London Array, the biggest offshore

wind farm in the world, which came on line

last summer off the east coast on England.

Masdar, alongside E.ON and Dong Energy,

is the developer of the 175-turbine, 630 MW

site. Al Lamki said that on the back of large

projects such as London Array to smaller

schemes like one in the Seychelles, he said

Masdar was looking to 2014 with optimism.

“Not blind optimism but founded optimism:

wind has shown its resilience in terms of being

able to compete with other forms of energy.”

He said there was much for the sector

to be positive about going into the new

year, highlighting Jordan’s frst wind park,

regulatory stability in the UK, a growing sector

in France and the “huge market” in Morocco,

Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

On the domestic front, Masdar is also

making slow but steady progress with the

development of the $16 million sustainable

fagship Masdar City.

With work starting in 2008, the city is

designed to be a blueprint – or greenprint

– for sustainable living and working. Much is

already built and a whole lot more is under

construction, with some major global names

moving in to the new business space.

During ADSW, Siemens opened its new

Middle East headquarters, dubbing it an

“important milestone in the company’s

history”. Designed by architects Sheppard

Robson International, the building is said to

be one of the most energy-effcient buildings

in the region, reducing energy consumption

by almost 50 per cent compared to

conventional buildings of the same size.

Masdar’s Dr. Al Jaber said Siemens’

presence “marks a signifcant step forward

in Masdar City’s growth as a leading global

model of sustainable design and modern

urban planning”.

Other Masdar City business residents

include GE, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and

IRENA, and they will be joined soon by French

engineering company Schneider Electric.

Wandering around the shaded streets of

Masdar City, you notice a number of rooftop

solar installations, while just outside the current

crop of buildings lies a 10 MW solar plant.

The prospects for the solar power industry

were debated back in the WFES conference

hall, where Michael Geyer, business

development boss at Spain’s Abengoa Solar,

said the global market was “entering a new

“Solar policy needs to be forward thinking. With policy comes investment”Sam Sakir, chief executive, Areva Solar

Rooftop solar at Masdar City Exterior of Masdar City apartments

One of Masdar City’s Personal

Rapid Transport cars, driverless and running

on solar-powered lithium batteriesConcourse space at Masdar City

Credit all: K. Ross

1402pei_38 38 2/12/14 3:21 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 39

World Future Energy Summit round-up

Power Engineering International February 2014

technology generation and a new market

generation”.

Geyer said that both solar PV and CSP

could look forward to a bright future – not

least because more investors had faith

in the sector. “The money is out there. We

have gained the confdence of investors

and lenders – they are confdent in the

technology.”

Andreas Heidelberg, head of technology

at Masdar PV, said the reaching of grid

parity in a number of regions in 2013 was

a defning moment for solar, but he added

that the market was still being hindered by

uncertainty from policy makers. “There is

no stability in policies and this is leading to

oversupply and a strong decline in prices. For

2014, I see that overcapacity will still persist

but we are getting to a price level where it

won’t decline – the market will stabilize”.

Matt Campbell, senior director at

SunPower Corp in the US, agreed that the

reaching of grid parity “was a milestone in

2013” and he predicted that 2014 would see

“a lot of new countries responding to the

changes in solar PV”.

Sam Sakir, chief executive of Areva Solar

in France, echoed Heidelberg that what was

needed to keep momentum in the market

was a shift in policy making. “Policy in various

regions needs to be forward thinking. With

policy comes investment and from there

you have the cut and paste effect: what is

successful for one project is transferred to

another.”

At another WFES debate on solar, the focus

of geographical attention was on the Middle

East, where, according to Tarek El Sayed, vice-

president of Lebanon’s Booz & Company,

“solar is not theory anymore – projects are

there and momentum is building”. Delegates

heard that the UAE dominates the MENA

region for solar, with 140 MW currently

operational from 58 projects, including the

region’s 100 MW solar poster child, Shams 1,

which went operational last year.

Growing organically

With the arrival in Masdar City of Siemens, GE,

Mitsubishi and Schneider Electric, Masdar

is upbeat on the future. “As the city grows

organically we think other people will want

to be a part of it,” says Steve Severance,

Masdar’s head of Program Management

and Investments.

He adds that the city is testimony to

Abu Dhabi’s bid to be more than just one

of the world’s biggest reserves of oil and

gas. “To become a leader in sustainability

and renewables is a much more diffcult

proposition.

“You look at all the countries around the

world that have oil or that make money by

taking things out of the ground, the frst thing

they do is put the money in a bank account,

count it and say thank you. In Abu Dhabi they

have really reinvested in its economy and its

population.”

Severance says that Masdar City “is a

demonstration that in this environment you

can live in a way that uses signifcantly less

resources”.

He says Abu Dhabi realises that its

“resources are not infnite, global warming

is a problem… and they understand that

after oil was discovered, the Gulf states used

signifcantly more energy per person than

anywhere else”.

“Masdar is a demonstration that even in

a diffcult environment, you can fgure out

ways to live that use less energy and also that

sustainability makes your life better.”

ABB wins Zayed Prize

Swiss company ABB won the Zayad Future

Energy Prize for large corporations in Abu

Dhabi.

ABB became the sixth winner of the

prize, beating fellow fnalists GE and US

retail giant Walmart.

The prize was accepted by ABB chief

executive Ulrich Spiesshofer, who has

been in the role only since September

last year.

At a press conference after the

ceremony, Spiesshofer said that “there is a

correlation in a company between doing

well and doing good”.

He added that he believed that “solar

in 2030 will have the same relevance in

the global energy mix as nuclear.”

After turbulent times of rising and

falling prices and consolidation, he

added that “solar will fnd its way back into

a prospering business”.

The $4 million Zayed Future Energy

Prize, established by the UAE government,

is split into fve categories and is awarded

to companies, organizations, schools and

individuals that have made signifcant

contributions to the future of renewable

energy and sustainability.

The other winners were India’s Abellon

CleanEnergy in the SME category,

Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy

Systems as NGO, Wang Chuanfu won the

lifetime achievement award and fve high

schools from around the world took prizes

in the Global High Schools category.

Wang Chuanfu is founder and

president of Chinese battery maker BYD.

Dr. Al Jaber, director general of the prize,

said: “The collective efforts of our winners

and fnalists are positively impacting

communities around the world. Today,

alumni of the prize are championing the

deployment of renewable energy.”

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

for more information i

Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, chief executive of Masdar, gave the keynote address

at the opening ceremony of the WFES in Abu Dhabi

Credit: Masdar

1402pei_39 39 2/12/14 3:21 PM

40 www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

The design of radial, axial and

circumferential seals installed on

rotary, regenerative air preheaters

(APHs) have not evolved

signifcantly from the original

metal strip arrangements that

date back to the inception of the Ljungström

preheaters nearly a century ago. However,

these metallic strip seals tend to start to

degrade immediately following installation,

allowing excessive air-to-gas leakage, which

translates to increased fuel consumption and

fan power draw over the life of the seals.

The well-known heat transfer, temperature

and effciency-related benefts for rotary APHs

make them a key component of any power

plant. As a critical contributor to overall plant

effciency, APHs deliver upwards of 12 per cent

of the heat transfer in the boiler process at

only 2 per cent of the investment. For every

20°C decrease in the gas outlet temperature

of the air heater, boiler effciency rises about

1 per cent, with inherent fuel consumption

reductions. APHs operating at optimal

conditions also help reduce fan power

consumption and control fue gas volume,

temperature and velocity.

That said, air-to-gas and gas-to-air leakage

paths through the APH seals, as shown in

Figure 1, have several consequences. Leak

rates with properly designed and installed

seals should be well below 10 per cent, but

rates of 15–20 per cent are typical and rates of

>30 per cent are not uncommon.

Furthermore, leak rate increases can be

gradual and often go unnoticed. Leakage

negatively impacts heat rates, parasitic power

losses with increased fan power consumption,

and downstream air pollution control (APC)

equipment because of higher gas fow rates

and pressure drops.

Flue gas velocity through a typical selective

catalytic reduction is approximately 5–6 m/s,

but higher velocities because of air-to-gas

leakage will decrease residence time and

therefore affect ammonia injection rates and

slip. In fue gas desulphurization systems, lower

residence time can affect lime or limestone

injection rates and thus SO2 removal effciency.

Finally for particulate matter control systems,

higher air-to-cloth face velocities in fabric flters

can lead to decreased bag life. Pulverizer

capacity can also be negatively impacted

with lower air volumes and temperatures due

to air-to-gas leakage.

The optimisation of APH performance, often

not considered a priority, is truly a low-cost,

easily implemented solution to decrease the

It is well known that air preheater leakage is a major factor in the loss of boiler effciency, but it is routinely viewed as a low-priority issue. Pavan Kumar Ravulaparthy argues that there needs to be a change in attitude and explains the benefts of employing adaptive brush seals.

Power Engineering International February 2014

The installation of brush seals at Hardin power station

have reduced operating costs via fuel savings

Credit: SealezeAdvanced air preheater sealing

Air preheater leaks: Mind the gap

1402pei_40 40 2/12/14 3:21 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 41Power Engineering International February 2014

Advanced air preheater sealing

consequences of leakage. A key component

of APH optimisation is the upgrade of its radial,

axial and circumferential seals.

Conventional rigid metal strip seals,

in common use since the introduction of

the Ljungström rotary APHs in the 1920s,

are vulnerable in the surrounding harsh

environment. Repeated thermal expansions

and contractions in the large rotors (up to

18 metres in diameter) in constant motion

lead to continual changes in gap sizes. At

operating temperatures, the outer edges

of large APHs can droop or turn down by

7.5 cm or more compared to under cold

conditions. However, because they are unable

to yield to the warpage of sector plates, the

conventional metal strip seals are prone to

stress and breakage.

An interesting alternative are brush seal

products, which are witnessing increased

adoption as radial, axial, circumferential/

bypass and rotor seals on Ljungström rotary

regenerative APHs on fossil fuel-fred boilers.

Brush seals are in fact ideally suited for

replacing strip steels on rotary, regenerative

APHs. As radial, axial, and circumferential

seals, they provide a high degree of abrasion

resistance, adaptability to operating

conditions and bend recovery not possible

with rigid strip seals. Rigid strip seals rapidly

wear down to the smallest gap size allowing

leakage to occur at wider gaps. The strip

seals are also vulnerable to damage at high

differential pressures and expansion because

of temperature increases where induced drag

can shut down the rotor.

A brush seal, in contrast, produces an

extremely dense barrier as thousands of

flaments nestle tightly together to create a

high-integrity seal. Each bristle is independent

and fexible allowing defection to conform

to any irregularities and gap variations,

and recovery to its original position. Several

distinct features are incorporated into the

brush seal design.

A malleable alloy foil membrane is nestled

within the brush flaments to enhance sealing

by up to 80 per cent. This resilient barrier to–

leakage feature provides 2–5 times greater

functional sealing life (Figure 2).

Soot blowing can splay the sealing

surfaces due to steam blasts of 205°C. To

prevent this direct impingement, an angled

holder with an extended protective fange has

been incorporated as a soot blower shield. The

resilience to soot blower impacts is achieved

by minimising dwell time in the soot blower

steam path. This design further improves bend

recovery and seal contact.

A further design enhancement, shown

in Figure 3, is a two-component Quick-Lock

system allowing for the removal of just the brush

component during an outage. The holder

component is re-used as on the initial install it

remains locked down to the appropriate gap.

During outages, the timeconsuming process

of seal realignment is eliminated as the brush

itself can be removed and replaced quickly.

Avoiding gap setting and bolting of holders

at each replacement contributes to low life-

cycle cost as seal replacement time can be

reduced by 50–60 per cent.

Quantifable benefts

Since APH leakage has historically been a

low priority maintenance outage issue with

many fossil fuel power plant engineers, plants

often experience leakage rates in excess of

15–20 per cent, with extreme leakage rates

up to 40 per cent measured. These levels

are often tolerated because they are often

underestimated or completely overlooked.

As a result, plants can experience capacity

losses, increased heat rates, higher parasitic

losses associated with fan horsepower, and

higher pressure losses for downstream APC

systems. A plant that has experienced ‘running

out of fan’ can conclude with a high degree

of certainty that they have excess preheater

leakage and are suffering from costly side effects.

To give an example, a 500 MW coal-fred

plant operating at an 85 per cent annual

capacity factor would consume 5000 tonnes

of coal per day, assuming an average heat

rate of 10,550 kJ/kWh and an average coal

heating value of 5500 kcal/kg. If increases in

boiler effciency due to improved APH sealing

reduce fuel consumption by 1 per cent, the

annual savings in fuel cost amounts to nearly

$1.5 million, assuming a delivered coal cost of

$80/tonne.

APH leakage can also account for

signifcant increases in parasitic power draw

Figure 2: The patented adaptive brush seal showing malleable alloy foil membrane located within the brush flaments to provide an extra 70-80 per cent reduction in leakage

without sacrifcing overall seal fexibilityCredit: Sealeze

Figure 1: APH leak paths through circumferential, axial, radial and rotor post sealsCredit: Sealeze

1402pei_41 41 2/12/14 3:21 PM

42 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Advanced air preheater sealing

from the boiler fans and this translates into

revenue losses from unsalable power. If a

500 MW coal-fred plant has 8595 kW of

installed fan power with two primary, two

secondary and two ID fans (excluding an

AQCS system), and two APHs originally

designed with 10 per cent air heater leakage

(AHL), an additional 10 per cent increase in

AHL would cost a 13 per cent increase in fan

power consumption.

In other words, for every 1 per cent increase

in AHL the plant essentially sacrifces116 kW,

which is unavailable for sale, or 1.16 MW for

every 10 per cent increase in AHL. If the sale

value of a MWh is $30 off-peak and $150

peak, the plant operating on an 85 per cent

capacity factor running six hours a day peak

and 18 hours a day off-peak would stand to

lose a sizeable $520,000 per year.

Views from the feld

In June 2007, Sealeze, a subsidiary of Jason

Incorparated, was authorised to manufacture

and supply a simple yet innovative axial and

radial brush seal design for both the hot and

cold ends of the Unit 1 Ljungström APH at

Bicent Power’s 119 MW Hardin power plant in

Montana, in the US.

The radial and axial stainless steel brush

seals were inspected the following year and

were found to be in very good condition.

Some splaying of the brush was evident on

the cold end due to soot blower blasts of

205°C steam. To prevent direct soot blower

impingement, the brush seals mounted in the

path of soot blower blasts were redesigned

to incorporate an angled orientation and an

integral protective shield.

Now, with over fve years in service, the

high-performance brush seals continue to

outperform the original strip steel seals. Further.

the brush seals are expected to continue

performing through a predicted design life of

at least four outage cycles.

According to Kevin Calloway, a plant

engineer at Colorado Energy, which operates

Hardin on behalf of Bicent Power: “The brush

seals have reduced air leakage considerably,

and as a result we have reduced operational

costs through fuel savings.” Further, the plant

has been able to postpone two scheduled

APH outages.

In another example, radial and

circumferential brush seals were installed

on two 8-metre diameter horizontal APH

(APH-A/B) at a 300 MW power station in the

US in 2010. The plant reports leakage rates well

below 10 per cent, with tests showing leakage

rates of 5 per cent and 7 per cent on APH-A

and APH-B, respectively.

Also in 2010, radial and axial brush seals

were installed on a 10-metre diameter vertical

Ljungström APH at a 750 MW plant in US. Both

the radial and axial brush seals remained

intact over 2.3 million impacts to the sector

plates following 490 days in service. The

brush profles are essentially the same as the

installed condition.

Seal integrity remains intact as the seal

conforms to gap size variations and surface

irregularities. Shown here are radial seals after

135 days in service and 642,000 contacts.

The effect of boiler side parameters of any

coal-fred power plant is linked to a host of

factors including excess air, unburned carbon

and coal moisture. However, two parameters

that have a major impact on plant

performance is fue gas temperature and

boiler effciency. In a 500 MW coalfred power

plant, the effect of heat rate per °C deviation

can be 1.2 kcal/kWh and 25 kcal/kWh per

1 per cent deviation of boiler effciency.

Nevertheless, these two parameters are

closely related to air heater performance.

The major air heater performance indicators

are air-in leakage, fue gas temperature drop, air-

side temperature rise and air/gas side pressure

drop. The leakage of the high-pressure air to the

low-pressure fue gas because of the differential

pressure, termed as AHL, is the major contributor

for reduction in boiler effciency. Increased AHL

reduces air heater effciency, increases fan

power and produces higher gas velocities

and a loss of fan margins. AHL is associated

with poor air heater seal performance, such

as increased seal clearances in hot condition,

seal erosion, inappropriate seal material and

improper seal settings.

An adaptive brush type air heater seal

is a demonstrated technology that provides

an extended functional service life with

measurable improvement in performance

and an increased control for plant operators

with low total cost. The calculated payback

on effciency improvements alone has been

demonstrated to provide ROI valued at many

times the cost of the adaptive brush seal and

installation. Added to this, savings related

to pollution control systems performance

is a nice multiplier. AHL reduction, therefore,

is a low-risk, low-cost, high-return-value

modifcation to rotary air heater systems,

so effective sealing through innovative

approaches such as brush seals is highly

recommended to improve O&M practices.

Pavan Kumar Ravulaparthy is product

manager and head of the Power Generation

Division of Sealeze Incorporated, US. For more

information, visit www.sealezepower.com.

Figure 3: The Quick-Lock brush seal design Credit: Sealeze

Fuel savings $1.5 million

Auxiliary power savings $520,000

Total annual plant savings

$2 million

Installed cost of brush air heater seals

$100,000

Payback ~ 18 days

Table 1: Payback analysis on a 500 MW unit*

*Payback analysis does not include gains on AQCS equipment performance and reduced outage downtime.

Visit www.PowerEngineeringInt.com for more informationi

1402pei_42 42 2/12/14 3:21 PM

REGIONAL OPPORTUNITIES � STRATEGIC THINKING � TECHNICAL SOLUTIONS

WHERE POWERFUL MINDS CONVERGE

Register now at www.power-gen-middleeast.com

SPEAKER AND DELEGATE ENQUIRIES:

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BOOTH AND SPONSORSHIP ENQUIRIES:

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20 1420 14

12-14 October 2014

Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre

Abu Dhabi, UAE

www.power-gen-middleeast.com

INVITATION TO PARTICIPATEJoin us in Abu Dhabi, UAE for the 12th annual POWER-GEN Middle East conference and exhibition at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre from 12-14 October 2014.

This high quality event provides the gateway to establishing a strong market presence in the region, and the opportunity to hear about exciting new developments in what has become one of the most dynamic power sectors in the world.

Attracting delegates, exhibitors and visitors from over 60 countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and around the world, this event is the industry’s leading platform to meet and network with senior executive and industry leaders with a dedicated and diverse exhibition foor and multi-track conference.

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1402pei_43 43 2/12/14 3:22 PM

44 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Diary

April

European Offshore & Energy8–10 April

Birmingham, UK

www.europeanoffshoreenergy-expo.com

Power & Electricity World Asia22–25 April

Singapore

www.terrapinn.com

Smart Electricity World Asia22–25 April

Singapore

www.terrapinn.com

May

DistribuTECH India5–7 May

New Delhi, India

www.distributechindia.com

POWER-GEN India & Central Asia5–7 May

New Delhi, India

www.power-genindia.com

Renewable Energy World India5–7 May

New Delhi, India

www.renewableenergyworldindia.com

45th Annual Meetong on Nuclear Technology6–8 May

Frankfurt, Germany

www.kerntechnik.info

Nuclear Energy in the UK20 May

London, UK

www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk

All Energy21-22 May

Aberdeen, UK

www.all-energy.co.uk

June

Eurelectric Annual Convention2–3 June

London, UK

www.eurelectric.org

POWER-GEN Europe 3–5 June

Cologne, Germany

www.powergeneurope.com

Renewable Energy World Europe 3–5 June

Cologne, Germany

www.renewableenergyworld-europe.com

Intersolar Europe3–6 June

Munich, Germany

www.intersolar.de/en/intersolar.html

July

Intersolar North America7–10 July

San Francisco, CA, US

www.intersolar.us/en/intersolar.html

International Conference on Smart Grid Systems17-18 July

Bangkok, Thailand

www.icsgs.org

HydroVision International22–25 July

Nashville, TN, US

www.hydroevent.com

August

COAL-GEN20–22 August

Nashville, TN, US

www.coal-gen.com

2014

March

HydroVision Russia4–6 March

Moscow, Russian Federation

www.hydrovision-russia.com

Russia Power4–6 March

Moscow, Russian Federation

www.russia-power.org

EWEA 201410–13 March

Barcelona, Spain

www.ewea.org

APAC Smart Grid Conference11-12 March

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

www.energy.feminggulf.com

DistribuTECH Africa17–19 March

Cape Town, South Africa

www.distributechafrica.com

POWER-GEN Africa17–19 March

Cape Town, South Africa

www.powergenafrica.com

The Shale Gas Forum19 March

London, UK

www.marketforce.eu.com

Intersolar China25–28 March

Beijing, PR China

www.intersolarchina.com

The Future of Utilities25–27 March

London, UK

www.marketforce.eu.com

1402pei_44 44 2/12/14 3:22 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 45Power Engineering International February 2014

Project Update

Mott MacDonald selected for 840 MW combined-cycle gas plant in Turkey

Engineering consultants Mott MacDonald has

been appointed owner’s engineer for a new

840 MW combined-cycle gas turbine power

plant in Turkey.

The plant will be located in the Kirikkale,

Central Anatolia region and is expected to

cost around $900m to build.

The plant, which will use a highly-effcient

GE combined-cycle system, comprising gas

and steam turbines, generators, heat recovery

steam generators and controls, will have

the capacity to provide 50 per cent of the

electricity in Ankara.

The project represents one of the largest

investments in Turkey in recent years and is

expected to be completed by the end of 2016.

Mott MacDonald will review and verify

the power plant’s design, carry out factory

inspections and monitor construction on site.

OMM to install Chile’s frst submarine cable

Andritz wins $102m Kazahkstani power plant contract

Andritz has won a $102m contract from

Shardarinskaya to upgrade electro-

mechanical equipment at the Shardarinskaya

hydropower plant in Kazakhstan.

Andritz will upgrade four Kaplan turbines

with a runner diameter of 5.3 metres at the

104 MW plant located on the Syr-Darya River in

the southern part of the country.

It will also supply generators and new

control equipment, as well as modernisation

of the auxiliary systems of the plant, which was

originally commissioned in 1967.

The modernisation work, which is set for

completion in the second half of 2017, will

increase the capacity of each turbine from

the current 26 MW to 31.5 MW, representing

an increase of around 20 per cent.

Offshore Marine Management has won a

multi-million dollar contract to install Chile’s frst

submarine cable.

The cable will join the Chilean island of

Huar to the country’s central grid.

UK-headquartered OMM clinched the

engineering-procure-install and commission

deal from Chilean electrical company Grupo

Saesa following an international tender.

OMM will provide cable route design,

marine surveys, and the installation of marine

resources.

Eckhard Bruckschen, OMM’s chief

operating offcer, said: “We’re delighted to be

involved in laying the frst submarine power

cable installed in the country.”

He added: “It is a ground-breaking project

and a huge step forward towards the goal of

supplying electrical power to remote areas of

Chile.”

Feat of logistics sees Humber Gateway wind farm substations arrive in UKTwo substations have arrived by ship at the

Port of Sunderland in the UK from Belgium as

part of the Humber Gateway offshore wind

farm project.

The 219 MW Humber Gateway has been

given planning consent and will be built

by German energy utility E.ON around 8 km

off England’s East Yorkshire coast and will

comprise 73 turbines.

A key part of the project will be the

connection of the wind farm to the national

grid onshore.

The two 600 tonne substations (pictured)

arrived at Sunderland via barge and were

transported on self-propelled trailers to a

temporary base at the port where they will

stay for six to 12 months before being shipped

to the offshore wind farm site.

45

1402pei_45 45 2/12/14 3:22 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com

Project Update

46 Power Engineering International February 2014

Finance of $220m agreed for Jordan’s frst wind farm

Deals for $220m of fnance for Jordan’s frst

large-scale renewable energy project have

been signed.

The JWPC Tafla wind farm is an

independent power project and has secured

European and international support that

covers almost 77 per cent of the total cost of

the project.

Agreements have been signed with

a consortium of lenders comprising the

International Finance Cooperation, the

European Investment Bank (EIB), the Eksport

Kredit Fonden, the OPEC Fund for International

Development, FMO and Europe Arab Bank.

The 117 MW wind farm will be located in

the Tafla governorate and will be equipped

with 38 turbines.

It is intended to help cut Jordan’s current

heavy dependency on energy imports and

once fully developed is expected to account

for almost 10 per cent of the country’s 2020

renewable energy target, which is 1200 MW.

EIB vice-president Philippe de Fontaine Vive

said the project “provides a strong and green

signal for the future in terms of technology,

economic and energy development, and job

opportunities”.

Eksport Kredit Fonden chief executive

Anette Eberhard added that the wind farm

was project “breaking new ground for wind

farms in the Arab Mediterranean region, and

this bodes well for the future”.

ZhongshanYong’an Electricity has selected

Wood Group to perform a conversion project

on a gas-fred power plant which will see the

Chinese frm achieve a signifcant reduction in

emissions.

Wood Group was awarded a DLN (Dry Low

NOx) combustion system conversion contract,

and the project will focus on the upgrade of

the site’s combustion system from standard

diffusion to DLN, on a Frame 9E combined-

cycle gas turbine. The work is scheduled to

begin in the coming weeks.

Incorporating Wood Group GTS-

manufactured DLN combustion hardware,

software and auxiliary systems will help

ZhongshanYong’an Electricity meet its

emission and operational requirements.

ZhongshanYong’an will be provided with

a turnkey solution that includes modifcation

of the existing control system, and DLN

monitoring and tuning services as a long-term

service.

The conversion will enable the Chinese frm

to achieve reduced emissions performance

and comply with upcoming NOx and CO

emission regulations to ensure that the gas

turbine operates in a stable and effcient

manner into the future.

Wood Group wins combustion system conversion contract in China

Viva-Trilogy Dominicana, a Dominican

Republic mobile network, has announced

the completion of a backup power pilot

programme using a GE Durathon battery and

a remote monitoring and diagnostic (RMD)

system from OmniMetrix, an Acorn Energy

company.

GE reports that the pilot resulted in an

88 per cent reduction in backup power costs

and diesel fuel expenses, as well as a 60 per

cent decrease in site energy costs.

“The Dominican Republic is known for an

unreliable grid in certain areas,” said Edgar

Geidans, chief technology offcer of Trilogy

International Partners, Viva-Trilogy’s parent

company.

“Power is often lost for four to eight hours

at a time, during which our diesel generators

provide power to our telecommunication

towers. The results of this trial have shown

signifcant diesel savings using a leading-

edge battery and controlling solution. We look

forward to continuing our work and analysis

with GE and OmniMetrix.”

The four-month pilot programme

demonstrated the value of pairing a remote

monitoring and diagnostic system with GE’s

Durathon Battery.

The GE Durathon Battery and OmniMetrix

RMD system were installed at a base

transceiver station in a part of the Dominican

Republic known for its frequent power outages.

During such outages, the battery was able

to supplement electricity typically produced

by a diesel generator to power the site. The

OmniMetrix RMD system provided real-time

data on both the battery and the grid’s overall

performance.

Prescott Logan, general manager of

GE Energy Storage, said the pilot scheme

“demonstrates how sites that typically rely

on diesel generators for backup power

at telecommunications sites can achieve

signifcantly lower operating cost, while

providing reliable power.

“OmniMetrix’s RMD system enhances the

inherent merits of GE’s battery by providing

visibility to critical operating metrics.”

GE’s Durathon battery is based on a

sodium-nickel energy storage technology that

currently is being used in various applications

in the telecommunications, utility and data

storage industries.

GE hails the battery as a breakthrough

due to its energy density, low toxicity and

temperature independence.

Dominican Republic backup pilot scheme cut costs by almost 90 per cent

1402pei_46 46 2/12/14 3:22 PM

www.PowerEngineeringInt.com 47Power Engineering International February 2014

Technology Update

Cummins Power Generation has launched a

new lean-burn gas generator set product line.

Cummins says the new 50 Hz products,

which extend the capabilities of the existing

QSV91G generator range, “offer exceptional

transient performance and improved fuel

capability, allowing them to run on low

methane number fuels and produce lower

emissions”.

The new line marks the debut of a 2 MWe

variant (pictured), alongside the improved

1540 kWe and 1750 kWe models.

Primary applications for the new models

include prime, peaking and combined heat

and power, as well as continuous operation in

island mode and standby power.

Cummins says the new models are “ideal

for remote locations where grid power is

unavailable, such as mining, oil or gas felds,

or in regions of the world where grid power is

either unreliable or inaccessible”.

The company adds that a major feature

of the new line-up is their blackstart capability

– the ability to bring the generator set quickly

into operation without relying on an external

electricity source such as the grid. “Black

start capability frees the generator set from

grid dependency and allows its deployment

anywhere there is a need,” says Cummins. “The

new product line is also capable of running in

high altitude and high ambient temperature

environments with minimal derate.”

Cummins launches gas genset range with blackstart capability

Siemens has produced the world’s frst large-

scale transformer that uses vegetable oil.

The transformer (pictured) will link the

380-kV ultra-high voltage level with the

110-kV grid in the Bruchsal-Kändelweg

substation plant near Karlsruhe, Germany.

Until now, Siemens has used vegetable oil

insulation in power transformers with voltages

of up to 123 kV – the new transformer is

designed for 420 kV.

Transformers are usually cooled and

insulated with mineral or silicone oil, but

vegetable oils are environmentally friendlier

and less fammable.

Siemens’ new transformer weighs just

under 340 tonnes and contains 100 tonnes

of insulating oil, which comes from renewable

vegetable resources.

The company says the device is the world’s

frst power transformer on the 420-kV ultra-

high-voltage level that does not require proof

of its water hazard classifcation.

TransnetBW, a grid operator in the German

state of Baden-Württemberg, will put the

transformer into operation in July.

World’s frst large-scale transformer that uses vegetable oil

Control systems company Heinzmann UK has

revealed that its variable guide vane actuator

(pictured) has been chosen by Siemens to be

used in its gas turbine SGT-400 core engine.

The actuator is all electric, operating

without hydraulics or pneumatics, and it

was chosen by Siemens following extensive

development.

Currently there is serial production of 50

of the actuators per annum and Heinzmann

will now develop a similar smaller unit for the

Siemens engine.

Oklahoma deal marks US frst for MHI’s J-Series gas turbine

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has won its frst US

order for its J-Series gas turbine.

The turbine is for Chouteau power station,

a 495 MW gas combined-cycle plant being

built by Oklahoma’s state-owned electric utility,

Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA).

As well as the M501J gas turbine, MHI

will provide an SRT-50 steam turbine and

a generator. The gas turbine will be made

at MHI’s manufacturing base in the US in

Savannah, Georgia.

The generator will be supplied by Mitsubishi

Electric Corporation.

Chouteau power plant will be built near

Tulsa and is intended to help GRDA meet

new emissions regulations by reducing its

dependence on coal-fred power generation.

Heinzmann actuator picked for Siemens gas turbine

47

1402pei_47 47 2/12/14 3:22 PM

48 www.PowerEngineeringInt.comPower Engineering International February 2014

Technology Update

ABB has launched its 420 kV high-voltage

hybrid switchgear (pictured in its open state).

The product is part of ABB’s Plug and Switch

System (PASS) family of hybrid high-voltage

switchgear.

The latest 420 kV PASS hybrid modules

integrate the functions of a circuit breaker,

disconnector and earthing switch, as well

as current and voltage transformers in one

product.

According to ABB, the compactness of

the switchgear module can help reduce the

footprint of the switchgear bay where it is

installed by up to 50 per cent when compared

with air-insulated switchgear that have

comparable ratings.

The PASS product family now covers

voltages from 72.5 kV to 420 kV, with breaking

current capability ranging from 31.5 to 63 kA.

Giandomenico Rivetti, head of ABB’s high

voltage business, said: “The innovative design

features of this new product enable ease of

transportation and make it quick and easy

to install.”

New high-voltage hybrid switchgear unveiled

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