ME LAB # 3 Diesel Powerplant

PERFORMANCE, HEAT
BALANCE & EFFICIENCY OF A

DIESEL ELECTRIC
POWERPLANT
Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Telephone Numbers: +63 43 723 1446 | 980 0041
Website: www.ub.edu.ph
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. OBJECTIVES
II. OUTLINE
a) FUEL & COOLING SYSTEM
b) ENERGY & POWER CALCULATION
c) PERFORMANCE EFFICIENCY CALCULATION
d) ENERGY BALANCE OF DIESEL ENGINE
e) OPERATION
f) MAINTENANCE
III. CONTENT
IV. CONCLUSION

I. INTRODUCTION
In a diesel power station, diesel engine is used as the
prime mover. The diesel burns inside the engine and the
products of this combustion act as the working fluid to
produce mechanical energy. The diesel engine drives
alternator which converts mechanical energy into electrical
energy.
As the generation cost is considerable due to high
price of diesel, therefore, such power stations are only
used to produce small power. Although steam power
stations and hydro-electric plants are invariably used to
generate bulk power at cheaper costs, yet diesel power
stations are finding favour at places where demand of
power is less, sufficient quantity of coal and water is not
available and the transportation facilities are inadequate.
This plants are also standby sets for continuity of supply to
important points such as hospitals, radio stations, cinema
houses and telephone exchanges.

Diesel engines or compression ignition engines as
they are called are generally classified as two stroke engine
and four stroke engines. In diesel engine, air admitted into
the cylinder is compressed, the compression ratio being 12
to 20. At the end of compression stroke, fuel is injected. It
burns and the burning gases expand and do work on the
position. The engine is directly coupled to the generator.
The gases are then exhausted from the cylinder to
atmosphere.

DIESEL ENGINE
It is the main components used in diesel electric

power plant for developing mechanical power. This
mechanical power we use to run the generator & produce
electrical energy. For producing the electrical energy the
diesel engine is mechanically coupled to generator. When
the diesel fuel burning inside the engine, its start to
produce a mechanical power. The combustion of diesel

fuel produces increased temperature & pressure inside the
engine.
Due to this pressure gases are formed, this gas pushes
the piston inside the diesel engine, and then mechanical
power is produced. With the use of this mechanical power
the shaft of diesel engine starts rotating.
II. OUTLINE
A) FUEL SYSTEM
It consists of storage tank, strainers, fuel transfer
pump and all day fuel tank. The fuel oil is supplied at the
plant site by rail or road. The oil is stored in the storage
tank. From the storage tank, oil is pumped to smaller all
day tank at daily or short intervals. From this tank, fuel oil
is passed through strainers to remove suspended
impurities. The clean oil is injected into the engine by fuel
injection pump.

OPERATING PRINCIPLE
The fuel oil system is normally operated in a fully
automatic mode. HFO (Heavy fuel oil) buffer tanks are
automatically filled by the fuel oil transfer pump system.
The HFO is treated in the separator system before being
transferred into the HFO fuel oil day tanks. From the day
tanks the HFO is fed to the booster unit and from this to
each fuel oil unit which supplies the engine with the fuel at
the correct pressure. The LFO is stored only in main
storage tank, also acting as a day tank. LFO may be
supplied via the booster unit, but can also be fed 2directly
from the feeder unit to the fuel oil unit supplying the
engine.
The HFO & LFO day tanks must be filled with fuel oil of the
correct quality.

COOLING SYSTEM
The Diesel Engine Cooling System Consist of coolant

pumps, water cooling towers or spray pond, water
treatment or filtration plant & Connecting Pipe Works. The
heat produced due to internal combustion, drives the
engine. But some parts of this heat raise the temperature
of different parts of the engine. High temperature may
cause permanent damage to the machine. Hence, it is

essential to maintain the overall temperature of the
engine to a tolerable level. Cooling system of diesel power
station does exactly so. The cooling system is required to
carry heat from diesel engine to keep its temperature
within safe limits. The water pump circulates water to
cylinder of diesel engine to carry away the heat. The
cooling tower is used for the same water reused. The
cooling system requires a water source, water pump and
cooling towers. The pump circulates water through
cylinder and head jacket. The water takes away heat from
the engine and it becomes hot. The hot water is cooled by
cooling towers and is re-circulated for cooling.
The heat released by the burning of fuel in the engine
cylinder is partially converted into work. The remainder
part of the heat passes through the cylinder wall, piston,
rings etc. and may cause damage to system. In order to
keep the temperature of the engine parts within the safe
operating limits, cooling is provided. The cooling system
consists of a water source, pump and cooling towers. The
pump circulates water through cylinder and head jacket.
The water takes away heat from the engine and it becomes
hot. The hot water is cooled by cooling towers and re
circulated for cooling.
The cooling system can be classified into two types:

1. OPEN COOLING SYSTEM
2. CLOSED COOLING SYSTEM
 OPEN COOLING SYSTEM

A Plant near the river may utilize the river water for
cooling & discharging again the hot water into river. This
type of cooling system is known as open cooling system.
 CLOSED COOLING SYSTEM

The Cooling Water is circulated again & again and only
water lost due to leakage, evaporation etc. is made up by
taking make up water from supply source.

C. PERFORMANCE & EFFICIENCY CALCULATIONS
Engine Performance
The rapid cyclic action in an actual engine modifies
the ideal cycle of Figure. The diagram corners are no
longer sharp, fuel must be injected ahead of dead-center,
etc. The forms of “indicator cards,” which are instrument-
drawn p-v’s from running engines, are shown in Figure for
both 2- and 4- cycle types.
A Diesel engine is used as a source of power which

can utilize a relatively cheap fuel. Therefore its power
capacity and thermal efficiency are paramount
consideration.

The developed cylinder power is the indicated
horsepower, abbreviated, ihp. After engine friction and
accessory power needs have been satisfied, the net power
available at the engine shaft is the brake horsepower, bhp,
so called because it can be (but nowadays seldom is)
measured by a brake dynamometer. Indicated power is
difficult to measure directly on small Diesels with great
accuracy, because the volume of indicator lead through the
cylinder head appreciably lowers the normal compression
ratio. Also, the cylinder heads of small-bore high-speed
engines have special chambers, valves, and other
equipment, leaving little or no space available for indicator
lead. Since none of these difficulties exists with the large
stationary Diesel, indicator openings are provided as
standard equipment.
A hypothetical pressure, known as brake mean
effective pressure, bmep, can be employed to show the

magnitude of mean effective pressure. The true pressure,
pmep, is higher on account of engine friction losses.
pmep LAN p
ihp  hp
33,000
2WrN
bhp  hp
33,000
bhp  33,000
bmep  lb f 2
LAN p
in which;
pmep = Indicated mep, lb per sqft
L = Piston stroke, ft
A = Piston face area, sqft
Np = Number of power strokes per min (N for two
cycle and N/2 for four-cycle)
N = Rotative speed, rpm
W = Net dynamometer force, lb
r = Dynamometer arm length, ft
As is true of all prime movers, there are a number of

efficiency expressions applying to Diesels.
Mechanical efficiency is the ratio, bhp/ihp.
Indicated thermal efficiency,
2545
ei 
wiQ (13)
Brake thermal efficiency,
2545
eb 
w bQ (14)
wi, wb = fuel consumption, lb per hr per ihp or bhp
Q = Fuel heating value, Btu/lb, either Qh or QL,
according to policy.
SOLVING PROBLEMS:
A 6-cylinder Diesel engine on dynamometer test was
found to use 85 lb of fuel, having Qh = 19,505 Btu/lb, in a
one-hour test at steady load. The brake thermal efficiency
and the brake mep will be determined from the following
test data and measurements. Cylinder is 0.75 ft x 0.87 ft 4-
cycle type. Speed, 550 rpm. Dynamometer torque, 2005
lb-ft.

Given:
Wr = dynamometer torque = 2005 lb-ft.
Qh = 19,505 Btu/lb
N = 550 rpm
D = 0.75 ft
L = 0.87 ft
Fuel weight = 84 lb
4-cycle type.
Required:
Brake thermal efficiency and the brake mep.
Solution:
2WrN
bhp  hp
33,000
2  2005 550 
bhp   209.96 hp  210hp
33,000
Brake thermal efficiency:

2545
Brake thermal efficiency , tb 
w bQ
84
wb   0.4 lb per bhp hr
210

2545
Brake thermal efficiency, tb   0.3262 or 32.62%
 0.419,505
Brake mep:
bhp  33,000
bmep  lb f 2
LAN p
 D2
A  no. of cylinders
4
N
Np  for 4  cycles
2
210  33,000
bmep   10,927.42 lb ft 2
 0.87     0.75 2  6  550 
4  2 
10,927.42
bmep   75.88 psi
144

D. HEAT BALANCE
The energy supplied to I.C. engines in the form

of Qh of the fuel input is generally broken down into
the following items for heat-balance purposes.
A. Useful work, the actual net shaft output.

B. Cooling. Heat absorbed by water jackets.
Sometimes this is not separable from some of the
friction and exhaust loss due to merging streams of
water that cool cylinders, exhaust manifolds, and
lube oil heat exchangers. A wct type of loss.
C. Exhaust gas loss. Heat carried off as sensible and
latent heat in the products of combustion. Sensible
heat is wct loss; latent heat is of the form 2442.7 x
9H2 (in kJ/kg units).
D. Mechanical friction. Crankshaft and connecting
rod bearings, piston, etc. Usually taken to include
energy supplied to engine-mounted auxiliaries such
as pump, governor.
E. Radiation and unaccounted-for. Heat radiated
from engine and incomplete combustion loss due to
presence of fuel in exhaust gas.

TYPICAL FULL-LOAD HEAT BALANCES (%) (Based on Qh)
Diesel Cycle,
Otto Cycle, Spark
Compression
Ignition
Ignition
Useful work 25 34
Cooling 30 30
Exhaust 37 26
Friction,
radiation, and 8 10
unaccounted
Input; heating
100 100
value of fuel
Item d and e are not often separable nor

measurable. They are usually combined, then the
balance is made by subtracting Items a, b, and c from
the heat of the fuel and considering the difference to
be Item d and e.

E. OPERATION
Diesel engine is the prime mover, which drives an

alternator to produce electrical energy. In the diesel
engine, air is drawn into the cylinder and is compressed,
during this compression. A metered quantity of diesel fuel
is then injected into the cylinder, which ignites
spontaneously because of the high temperature.
Operating principal:
The generator set is normally operated in a fully
automatic mode and will start and take up load fully
automatically. The start signal normally given from the
Wartsila operator interface system (WOIS) monitor in the
central control room.

Operating conditions:
1) The fuel oil system is activated
2) Correct pre heating.
3) Correct pressure.
4) Sufficient pre circulation to heat the fuel injection
pumps.
5) The lube oil system is activated
6) The lube oil system is in operation.
7) The pre lube pump has been in operation for at
least 15 min’s.
8) The engine air system is activated..
9) The cooling water air system is activated
10) The pre-heating unit is in operation
11) The temperature in the cooling system is correct.
12) The charge air system and exhaust gas system are
activated.

1) Start sequence
Normally the engine will be started from the operators

WOIS (Wartsila operator interface system) monitor. Start is
possible only if all start conditions are valid and no start
blocking is activated. The conditions are as follows.
a) Emergency stops are inactive.
b) Engine control alarm is inactive.
c) Generator breaker trip alarm is inactive.
d) Main breaker trip is in service position.
e) Protection relay fault is inactive.
f) Stop order and starting failure alarm is inactive.
g) Auto stop is inactive and electrical pneumatic stop
valve is closed.
When the engine start has been selected and confirmed

on the WOLS screen, the PLC system will start the engine
and then as engine starts running for approximately ten

sec’s, in auto mode the PLC system will give a
synchronization order to the synchronization device.
2) Stop sequence
Normally the engine will be stopped from the
operators Wartsila operator interface system monitor
(WOIS). When engine stop has been selected confirmed on
the WOIS screen, the PLC system will stop the engine
according to the preset stop sequence. The generator is
first unloaded close to no load valve and then breaker
open command is given and the engine is automatically
shut down after a 30 sec run without load.

Maintenance of Diesel Electric Power Plant
At the time of diesel engine or diesel electric power
plant, following points are considered during maintenance
period.
a) To maintain the operating condition of diesel
engine at every half hour.
b) To maintain the correct record of the instrument
reading in log sheet.
c) To maintain the record of instrument temperature,
pressure, electrical load, flow etc.
d) To check the level of fuel oil periodically.
e) Filterized the fuel and remove unwanted impurities.
f) Clean the fuel tank at regular interval.


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PERFORMANCE, HEAT

BALANCE & EFFICIENCY OF A

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

It is the main components used in diesel electric

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

The Diesel Engine Cooling System Consist of coolant

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

The cooling system can be classified into two types:

 OPEN COOLING SYSTEM

 CLOSED COOLING SYSTEM

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

A Diesel engine is used as a source of power which

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

As is true of all prime movers, there are a number of

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Brake thermal efficiency:

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

The energy supplied to I.C. engines in the form

A. Useful work, the actual net shaft output.

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Item d and e are not often separable nor

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Diesel engine is the prime mover, which drives an

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Normally the engine will be started from the operators

When the engine start has been selected and confirmed

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

Campuses: Hilltop | MH del Pilar | Pallocan West | Lipa

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