The tradeoff between reliability and operation and maintenance expenditures in fossil steam plants

Conference · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1992 · Proceedings of the American Power Conference; (United States)

OSTI ID:7309484

Corio, M R; South, D W; Stokes, H H ^[1]

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1. Applied Economic Research Co., New York, NY (US)

In the past decade, some utilities have undertaken substantial rehabilitation and life maintenance programs at existing fossil steam plants. Other utilities have continued to spend the same amount annually to keep their fossil plants operating. The first method of operating plants appears to be much more expensive than the second. However, the costs cannot be examined independently from the benefits. If the increase in costs translates into higher reliability and longer lived plants, then the investment may be cost effective. Applied Economic Research (AER) recently completed a study which examined the tradeoff between plant reliability and operation and maintenance (O and M) expenditures at fossil steam plants in North America. The study team quantified the relationship between O and M expenditures (including capital additions) and subsequent plant reliability. Several statistical models were developed which can be used to forecast the level of annual O and M expenditures (including capital additions) required to: insure a specified level of plant reliability; produce a specified level of MWh; and increase plant life and improve plant reliability. The models include the effects of different engineering designs, such as firing type, steam pressure (including generation of supercritical boiler), as well as age, vintage and the number of identically designed units at the plant. The paper to be presented at the conference will highlight more interesting results of the study and the usefulness of the results in utility long-range planning.

• OSTI ID: 7309484
• Report Number(s): CONF-920432--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Proceedings of the American Power Conference; (United States) Journal Volume: 54:2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS
200100 -- Fossil-Fueled Power Plants-- Power Plants & Power Generation
200104* -- Fossil-Fueled Power Plants-- Components
200600 -- Fossil-Fueled Power Plants-- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects-- (1990-)
COST ESTIMATION
DESIGN
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
ECONOMICS
FOSSIL-FUEL POWER PLANTS
MACHINE PARTS
MAINTENANCE
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
OPERATION
PLANNING
POWER PLANTS
QUALITY ASSURANCE
RELIABILITY
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
STATISTICAL MODELS
THERMAL POWER PLANTS