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ME
428
Power Plant Engineering
The application of the principles of thermodynamics and transport phenomena to the analysis of power plants systems and its component: Special emphasis on the conventional steam power plants, gas turbines power plants, and co-generation power desalting plants used in Kuwait.
Prerequisites:
0630322,0630421
0630428
(3-0-3)

Textbook:

  • P.K. Nag, Power Plant Engineering, 4th Ed, McGraw Hill, 2014.
  • Kam W. Li, and A. Paul Priddy, Power Plant System Design, John Wiley, 1985.
  • M.M. El Wakil, Power Plant Technology, 1st Ed, McGraw Hill, 1985.

References:

  • Black and Veach, Power Plant Engineering, Chapman, and Hall, 2005.
  • Kam W. Li, Applied Thermodynamics, John Wiley, 2018
  • Steam: Its Generation and Use, Babcock and Wilcoks Co., 2010.

Coordinator:

Thermal Science TAG

Prerequisites by Topics:

  1. Fundamental of thermodynamics including exergy analysis, and combustion applied to power plants components.
  2. Fundamentals of heat transfer, fluid flow and convection and applications to heat exchangers such as boilers, condensers. shell and tube heat exchangers.

Objectives[^1]:

  1. To teach the students how to apply the fundamentals of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat transfer to analyze, design and/or select power plants cycles and its main components (1)
  2. To teach the student how to analyze the behavior of power plant system and its components quantitatively in response to the variation of operating and design parameters. (3,5)
  3. To teach the student how to identify and quantify the specifications and trade off of the selection of components which are commonly used in power plants (1,2,4,7)
  4. To create the interest of students and help them in pursuing career in power plant engineering. (4,7)

Topics:

  1. Introduction to power plant and its engineering economy (3 hours)
  2. Combustion processes (5 hours)
  3. Power plants cycles analysis (6 hours)
  4. Steam generators Design (3 hours)
  5. Steam turbines (4 hours)
  6. Feed water heaters and feed water system (2 hours)
  7. Impact of the operating and design parameters on the steam cycle performance (4 hours)
  8. Gas Turbines (4 hours)
  9. Combined gas-steam turbines cycles (3 hours)
  10. Cogeneration power Desalting plant (4 hours)
  11. Exams (3 hours)

Evaluations:

  1. Quizzes
  2. Homework
  3. Exams
  4. Term papers, and reports
  5. Computer assignment
  6. Project

Learning Outcomes:

Objective 1

1.1 Students will review the basic power cycles, their main characteristics and the limitations of their use and how to rate them.

1.2 Students will know how to apply the availability analysis to locate the major deficiencies in power cycles and how overcome these de-efficiencies and the technological limitation of doing that.

1.3 Students will review the basics of heat transfer, to analyze components of power plants such as furnace, superheaters, economizers, pre-heaters, condensers, and evaporators.

1.4 Students will study selection of pumps, and fans used in power plants.

Objective 2

2.1 Students will study how the ambient conditions, and design parameters are affecting the performance (efficiency, heat rate,....etc.) of power system.

2.2 Students should be able to write computer programs, or use commercially available programs to study how these parameters are affecting the performance of the cycles.

Objective 3

3.1. Students will study the history, reliability, and maintenance requirements for some of the equipment used in power plants.

3.2 Students will learn how to match the equipment.

Objective 4

4.1 The students will make visits to Kuwaiti power plants.

4.2 Student will follow the history of power generation in Kuwait.

Course Classification

Student Outcomes Level Relevant Activities
1. An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics. H Cycles, Availability analysis, equipment design
2. An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors. H Equipment design & selection
3. An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
4. An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts. M Energy saving, Cycles choice, Energy efficient merging systems
5. An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives. M Project
6. An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
7. An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

[^1]: Numbers in parentheses refer to the student outcomes