Essen production AG (Complex projects of creation of the engineering systems)

The Essen Production AG enterprise, implementing the project of shopping and entertainment center to Naberezhnye Chelny, considered different options of power supply and made the decision on construction of own mini-thermal power plant. For this purpose the CROC company created the power complex which is completely providing the consumer with the qualitative electric power, heat and cold.

The Essen Production AG company – group of companies on production of fat-and-oil and other products – is included into the first five of producers, occupying 70% of this market in Tatarstan. The holding also includes network of hypermarkets in the large cities of the Republic.

Project implementation on creation of own thermal power plant began fall of 2007, and in a year the power complex issued the necessary power, and Essen shopping and entertainment center (the total area of 21520 sq.m, trade – 12560 sq.m) accepted visitors. Now works on installation of dispatching system of mini-TPP are conducted.

Specialists of CROC company performed design, delivery, supervision of erection, a commissioning and commissioning of all systems electro-, warm and cold supply and also remote monitoring of shopping and entertainment center.

Project Objective

The Essen production enterprise was going to create a power complex which would allow to save on the cost of energy and further to lower fixed costs both on production, and for commercial needs. The customer needed to receive high-quality and reliable power supply. Besides, construction of autonomous mini-thermal power plant provides independence of the centralized networks that gives the chance systematically to reduce product cost, and it, in turn, increases business competitiveness.

The customer set the task in the shortest possible time and to qualitatively implement the project on construction of a power complex. Within the project specialists of CROC company were going to create automatic system of operational remote control of all engineering systems of mini-TPP.

Project Description

The capital and ancillary equipment of a power complex has modular execution in the form of functionally interconnected power blocks that significantly reduced terms of field assembly of operation.

As the capital equipment two gas-piston G3516LE units of Caterpillar company with a total electric power of 2.06 MW are used. The maximum thermal power of installations – 2.74 MW.

For the guaranteed power supply of life support systems of the 1st category (fire extinguishing, ventilation) the automated C550D5 diesel generator of Cummins company is used.

The covering of heat peak loads at the maximum heatconsumption is provided by the boiler house based on two boilers of Buderus company. It is also used for heat supply of shopping center in the mode of the minimum electric load of units. The maximum thermal power of the boiler house – 2.14 MW. The thermal scheme allows to share boilers and the system of utilization of heat of electrical units that significantly increased operational reliability of the equipment.

The 1.2 MW also refrigeration unit created based on the chiller of production of Carrier company is a part of a power complex.

Dispatching system and managements will be implemented on the basis of the programmable controllers installed on each control object (GPU, the boiler house, the refrigeration unit, NKU, abnormal DES) and connected among themselves by the industrial interface of communication.

Equipment of the power center

Gas-piston generator units

The installations created based on engines of Caterpillar of G3516 model are delivered in a complete set for parallel operation of several power units on a total load. Fuel – natural gas pressure of 10 … 20 kPa after the regulator.

As the generator drive the G3516 internal combustion engine is used.

The G3516 engine is four-stroke, with the electronic EIS ignition system. For its start the double electric starter with tension 24 V. Regulyator of turnovers – ProAct II of Woodward company is used. The drive has the system of protection on a detonation. A cooling circuit of a shirt of the engine and an oil system – the general, a cooling circuit of fuel mix – separate. The airintake with the one-stage air cleaner has the pollution indicator.

In the engine the SR4B brushless generator with excitation from permanent magnets is used. The digital voltage controller – CDVR. The class of isolation is H, a class of heating of windings – F (at an ambient air temperature of 40 °C). The power unit is installed on 8 vibroinsulators of spring type.

System of utilization of heat

For increase in the general efficiency in the station gas-piston installations are equipped with the system of utilization of heat (SUH). Besides, for reset of excess amount of heat (in the absence of need of utilization of heat, etc.) and heat extraction from a cooling circuit of a turbo-supercharging of the engine of GPU are completed with portable radiators with fans.

The system of utilization of heat represents the module in which heat which is taken away from the engine by the cooling system and warmly fulfilled gases (500 … 600 °C) will be transformed

in thermal energy for heating of the circulating water. Temperature of the direct/return water for the system of utilization is 100/70 °C.

Utilization of heat is performed from high-temperature cooling circuits of engines for what near each of them the heat exchanger – the utilizer of heat of antifreeze (UHA) is installed. For utilization of the fulfilled gases UTG – utilizers of heat of exhaust gases are used. Heat exchangers of each installation are switched on consistently on the heated water: the first step of heating is performed in UTA, the second step – in UTG.

Heating capacity is regulated by a baypasirovaniye of exhaust gases in UTG. The systems of utilization of heat are connected in parallel and give heated water to a common collector. In the normal mode of operation antifreeze of the cooling system of the engine comes to heat utilizer where it is cooled, heating heating water.

At cutoff of water (abnormal or in the absence of requirement of external network for heating water) antifreeze temperature on an input in the engine increases. At the same time the switching crane – regulating, three-way opens, and antifreeze comes to a drive radiator (with the fan of air cooling) in which it is cooled up to the required temperature.

All-weather noise-protective container

For placement of gas-piston installation the special container is used. Thanks to rigid construction it can be set on the block base. Container dimensions (12.2х3х3 m) allow to make maintenance and repairs of the generator unit. At production of a container component parts, electric equipment and materials of world leading manufacturers were used.

The container ensures functioning of the cogeneration unit in the temperature range of-35 … +30 °C. It is equipped with the system of detection of a gas leak; a supply and exhaust ventilation with servo-motor blinds; the automatic fire-extinguishing system for electric distributors; security fire warning; equipment for connection to the gas trunk. The container provides the minimum heatlosses and the low level of noise, high degree of fire resistance.

Electric equipment is placed in a separate compartment of a container – the managing distributor for a power supply of electric devices of installation, the power distributor on 0.4 kV, including the time cut-out of the generator on 2000 A.

The abnormal C550D5 diesel generator which electric rated power in standby mode is 440 kW is placed in container DGU.

The system of the low-voltage complete device (LVCD) includes RU-0.4 of kV, distribution panels of 0.4 kV for issue of the electric power to consumers and a panel of own needs of a power complex. In container NKU, except the general systems, there are 120 kVA UPSes.

Modular water-heating boiler house

For providing consumers with heat the peak boiler house based on boilers of Buderus of the Logano SK725 series with a total power of 2.14 MW is provided in the winter period. The maximum thermal power of TPP – 4.82 MW, including heat from SUT of power units and actually boiler. Performance of the WAN is 30% of the rated power of the boiler house (642 kW). Calculated temperature of hot water supply – 55 °C.

The boilers SK725 have efficiency not less than 92.5%. Bifuel torches of Weishaupt can use natural gas and diesel fuel. Working pressure of water is up to 0.6 MPas, temperature range 95 … 105/70 °C.

The boiler house equipped with the automation system with the portable block of the alarm signaling and the integral unit of modem communication works without permanent presence of personnel. The heat-insulated chimney of the boiler house is executed of stainless steel, its height is 8 meters.

Refrigeration unit

Requirements of shopping center "Essen" for cold are provided by the refrigeration unit based on thermal single-circuit absorbing chiller 16JLR024 of Carrier company. In installation energy of hot water with the parameters of 95/70 °C, refrigerating power – 1.2 MW is used. As absorbent bromic lithium (LiBr) is applied.

Operation mode of the refrigeration unit – seasonal, from April to October. Ancillary equipment for the chiller includes pumps of the cooling and cooled water, shut-off and control valves, a broad tank, metering devices and KIP, a power cabinet, managing automatic equipment.

The absorbing chiller and ancillary equipment is placed in the separate module. The block is equipped with all necessary engineering systems: internal electric distributing, working light, supply and exhaust ventilation, electric heating.

Thanks to use of water and bromide of lithium as the refrigerating agent (without ozone-depleting substances) installation does not make harmful effects on the environment. Existence of insignificant quantity of moving parts ensures functioning of the equipment without noise and vibration.

Due to application of a system of flow control of the refrigerating agent (without use of the by-pass water-cooling tower) chillers 16JLR can work at incomplete loading and low temperature of a cooling water (15 °C).

Efficiency of the project

As a result of project implementation the customer received the power center meeting safety requirements, energy efficiency and resource-saving.

Operational reliability and environmental safety are ensured by the electronic management systems allowing to control equipment operation parameters, to optimize power generation and also to prevent and eliminate effects of emergency situations in a continuous duty.

Application of a modern hi-tech utilities equipment almost completely excludes accidents and environmental pollution. Rational use of natural gas on all modes as a result of complex production of electrical and thermal energy significantly reduces operating costs and guarantees with a general efficiency at the level of 80-85%. Besides, during the summer period recyclable heat is used for cooling of the energy carrier of a ventilation system of shopping center.

Required level of operational reliability is provided due to reservation of the capital utilities equipment with the diesel generator and boilers.

The mini-TPP is located within the city with an adjacent residential zone – all relevant health requirements during creation of the station were considered by specialists of CROC company. Organizational and technical actions in the project progress allowed to bring ecological characteristics of the working equipment to necessary level.

Creation of own power complex allowed to reduce the cost of the used energy resources. The cost value of the developed electrical and thermal energy including operating costs and costs for depreciation is twice lower, than the prices of energy resources of local power network. Besides, application of a trigeneration considerably increases efficiency of TPP during the summer period. Turbines and Diesels