Preliminary engineering design and cost of advanced compressed-air storage (ACAS) A-5 hybrid. Final report

Technical Report · Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1981

OSTI ID:5949771

The advanced compressed air energy (ACAS) plant investigated in this study operates on a partial adiabatic, partial fuel fired cycle. Only a limited advancement in state-of-the-art technology is projected for this hybrid arrangement. The A-5 hybrid system stores the heat of compression from the low pressure and intermediate pressure compressors in a thermal energy store (TES). The heat collected in the TES is available for preheating the air from the storage cavern prior to its entering the low pressure turbine combustor. This reduces the amount of fuel consumed during power generation. The fuel heat rate for the hybrid cycle is 2660 Btu/kWh as compared to approximately 4000 Btu/kWh for a conventional CAES plant. Brown Boveri Corporation participated in this study and recommended suitable near-term turbomachinery for the hybrid plant. The thermal energy store consists of 11,000 tons of one-half in. dia ceramic spheres housed in an internally insulated post tensioned concrete pressure vessel that has a maximum operating pressure of 240 psia. The ceramic spheres are a high density silica/alumina proprietary material called Denstone which is supplied by the Norton Company for catalyst bed supports in refinery service. During the normal compression/generation cycle, the Denstone spheres cycle between 400 F and 916 F. The post-tensioned concrete pressure vessel is 55 ft 7 in. in dia., approximately 160 ft high and has walls 4 ft 8 in. thick. The TES system adds about $20 x 10/sup 6/ ($93/kW) to the base cost of a conventional CAES plant whose base cost is estimated at $76.3 x 10/sup 6/ ($346/kW) in 1979 dollars. When using the economics and fuel costs projected from an earlier study, the levelized busbar cost shows a virtual stand-off between the hybrid plant and a conventional CAES plant at 235 mills/kWh in 1990 dollars. With a lower cost and increased fuel cost projections, the hybrid system operating cost is less than that for a conventional CAES plant.

• Research Organization: United Engineers and Constructors, Inc., Philadelphia, PA (USA); Brown Boveri Corp., North Brunswick, NJ (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5949771
• Report Number(s): EPRI-EM-1998; ON: DE82900339
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS
25 ENERGY STORAGE
COMPRESSED AIR STORAGE POWER PLANTS
DESIGN
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
OPERATION
POWER SYSTEMS
OFF-PEAK ENERGY STORAGE
CERAMICS
CONSTRUCTION
ELECTRIC POWER
HEAT STORAGE
INVESTMENT
OPERATING COST
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ECONOMICS
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PEAKING POWER PLANTS
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200107* - Fossil-Fueled Power Plants- Off-Peak Energy Storage- (1980-)
250200 - Energy Storage- Compressed & Liquified Gas