ENERGY CONSERVATION IN STEAM POWER PLANT

ENERGY CONSERVATION IN STEAM POWER PLANT

INTRODUCTION:

Energy conservation is one of the critical issues facing society today. Our civilization runs on energy. However, energy resources are finite. Increasing demand is being made for diminishing supplies. The cost of energy is enormous, and the cost is rising.
The imperative to conserve energy is as old as the use of energy. For most of human history, use of energy was limited to the amount of work that could be done by human beings, usually alone, but sometimes in large groups. Later, humans learned to use animals and teams of animals to do the tasks requiring heavy lifting and hauling. Neither humans nor animals like hard work. Aversion to work strongly motivated energy conservation from the beginning. Energy conservation first consisted of doing less. Then, as intelligence evolved, it included finding easier ways to get work done. For example, the invention of the wheel was an early advance in energy conservation.
Wind power is the oldest major source of mechanical energy, other than muscle. Its earliest major application was ship propulsion, which began perhaps five to ten thousand years ago.
Land-based rotary wind machines have been used in a limited number of cultures for over two millennia. Efficiency evolved by trial and error.
The energy of falling or flowing water has been used to a significant extent for over two millennia, becoming a major energy source in the Middle Ages. Unlike wind, which is a nuisance in itself, water is desirable for many important purposes. As a result, many cultures settled near water supplies, which they learned to exploit for power. Well designed "overshot" water wheels built 500 years ago have efficiencies that approach the theoretical maximum. Water power is limited by the amount of stream flow and by the height of the fall that is readily available. The technology of building dams tall enough to augment power production was not highly developed until the 19th century.
Steam machinery is another application of fire. It was first put into practical application during the 18th century. Its development was revolutionary for several reasons. It enables fire to produce mechanical work. It was the first invention capable of producing mechanical power in any locale, on land or sea. Virtually any amount of work can be done by building larger machines. Steam engines can operate whenever work is needed, independent of climate. To a large extent, steam power created modern civilization. However, steam machinery requires fuel, unlike wind and water power. The ability of mechanics to build large steam engines, and the growth in applications for such engines, led to rapidly increasing demand for fuel, which could no longer be satisfied by whatever excess wood happened to be in the vicinity. Fuel cost soon emerged as a dominant limitation to the application of steam machinery.


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