Plant efficiency
Encyclopedia
The efficiency of a plant is the percentage of the total energy
content of a power plant's fuel that is converted into electricity
. The remaining energy is usually lost to the environment as heat
unless it is used for district heating
.
This is complicated by the fact that there are two different ways to measure the fuel energy input - LCV = Lower Calorific Value, which is the same as NCV = Net Calorific Value, or, HCV = Higher Calorific Value which is the same as GCV, Gross Calorific Value.
Depending on which convention is used, a differences of 10 % in the apparent efficiency of a gas fired plant can arise, so it is very important to know which convention, HCV or LCV (NCV or GCV) is being used.
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
content of a power plant's fuel that is converted into electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
. The remaining energy is usually lost to the environment as heat
Heat
In physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
unless it is used for district heating
District heating
District heating is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating and water heating...
.
This is complicated by the fact that there are two different ways to measure the fuel energy input - LCV = Lower Calorific Value, which is the same as NCV = Net Calorific Value, or, HCV = Higher Calorific Value which is the same as GCV, Gross Calorific Value.
Depending on which convention is used, a differences of 10 % in the apparent efficiency of a gas fired plant can arise, so it is very important to know which convention, HCV or LCV (NCV or GCV) is being used.
See also
- Fuel efficiencyFuel efficiencyFuel efficiency is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the efficiency of a process that converts chemical potential energy contained in a carrier fuel into kinetic energy or work. Overall fuel efficiency may vary per device, which in turn may vary per application, and this spectrum of variance is...
- Energy conversion efficiencyEnergy conversion efficiencyEnergy conversion efficiency is the ratio between the useful output of an energy conversion machine and the input, in energy terms. The useful output may be electric power, mechanical work, or heat.-Overview:...
- Thermal efficiencyThermal efficiencyIn thermodynamics, the thermal efficiency is a dimensionless performance measure of a device that uses thermal energy, such as an internal combustion engine, a boiler, a furnace, or a refrigerator for example.-Overview:...
- Electrical efficiency
- Mechanical efficiencyMechanical efficiencyMechanical efficiency measures the effectiveness of a machine in transforming the energy and power that is input to the device into an output force and movement...
- Relative cost of electricity generated by different sources
- Power generating equipment efficiency and carbon footprint