INTRODUCTION

 Electricity plays very important role in our daily life.

 Most of our activities are directly or indirectly related to
electricity.
 We know the demand of electricity keeps on
increasing as the dependence of man kind
increasing day by day.
 The electrical energy is generated at far away places and
consumed by different consumers in cities,
towns and villages.
 When the energy is transmitted and distributed to various
consumers there is loss of energy called transmission
losses.
 Basis of Conventional Energy Sources Non-Conventional Energy Sources
Difference
The sources of energy that have Those energy sources whose evolution has
been used all around the world for been done the recent years are known as
Definition a long time are called non-conventional energy sources.
conventional energy sources. These are modern sources of
Traditional sources of energy energy
Conventional energy sources exist The non-conventional energy sources are
Existence
for many years. relatively new sources of energy.
Renewability non-renewable sources. renewable sources of energy.
Conventional sources of energy Since non-conventional sources are
Availability available in limited quantity in renewable, hence they available in
nature. abundance in nature.
Conventional energy sources Non-conventional energy sources can be
Formation require many year (or long period formed in short period of time.
of time) for formation.
Conventional energy sources shall Non-conventional energy sources shall not
Exhaustible
exhaust one day. exhaust because they are renewable.
The common examples of The examples of non-conventional energy
conventional sources of energy sources are sun, wind, tides, water, biofuels,
Examples
are coal, petroleum, natural gas, etc.
firewood, etc.
 There are many safety concerns With non-conventional energy sources, no
surrounding the conventional such safety concerns associated.
Safety concerns sources such as fire in coal mines,
explosion on oil platforms, burst
of gas cylinders, etc.
Conventional sources of energy The energy density of non-conventional
Energy density
have high energy density. energy sources is less.
Conventional sources are Non-conventional energy sources are present
Obtained from generally obtained from the earth in the environment such sun, wind, water,
crest. biomass, etc.
Most of the conventional energy Non-conventional energy sources are
Environmental
sources pollute the environment environment friendly and do not cause
impact
and cause global warming. pollution.
Conventional energy sources are Non-conventional are relatively less
Cost
expensive. expensive.
Conventional energy sources are Non-conventional sources are used at small
mainly used at large scale in scale in domestic and specific commercial
Applications commercial and industrial and industrial applications such as solar
applications such in thermal power power for houses, offices, etc.
plants, fuel in vehicles, etc.
General Structure of Power System
Single Line Diagram
Hydro Power Generation
POTENTIAL ENERGY KINETIC ENERGY MECH ENERGY ELECTRICAL ENERGY
 Head pond:
• There is one reservoir which is having a large area in which a huge amount of water is
being stored here. So the energy here is in the form of Potential energy.
 Control Gate:
• The work of control gate is to regulate the flow of water. When the control gate is fully
opened the speed of water flowing is maximum.
 Penstock:
• The penstock is also called pipe. water stored at the dam or head pond is being released by
the control gate, the water starts moving to the turbine. The Head pond is having high
heights and the Turbine is situated below. So the speed of water gets increased because of
gravitational force. The material of the penstock is hard steel being used.
 Valve and Nozzle:
• The valve work is similar to the control gate and Nozzle work is striking water in a
specific direction.
 Surge tank:
• Surge tank is an additional and essential component which is used to accumulate the water
which is in pipe when we want to close the turbine working. Or you can say it is used for
avoiding the pipe burst.
 Turbine:
• Turbine is a device which is used for generation of electricity. Turbine work is, the fluid
having kinetic energy is being converted into rotational energy. The high kinetic energy
water comes through the penstock to the nozzle and strikes the turbine blades. The
turbine blades start rotating. So the rotational energy can also be called mechanical
energy.
 Generator:
• When the turbine buckets starts rotating, the turbine shafts also rotating. The motors are
attached to the turbine shaft which is also rotating and generator is attached to them
which generate electricity.
 Transmission Line:
• The transmission line carries power from the power unit or transformer and transfers or
supplies from one source to another. It is made up of conductor.
 Power House:
• The name power house means there is a house in which the power is being stored and
released to the transformer and so on.
 Transformer:
• The transformer is attached to the generator. The electricity generated is now controlled
by the transformer. The work of transformer is to set up or set down the voltage.
Nuclear Power Plant
NUCLEAR ENERGY HEAT ENERGY ELECTRICAL ENERGY
In a nuclear power plant, heat energy is generated by a nuclear reaction called as
nuclear fission. Nuclear fission of heavy elements such as Uranium or Thorium is
carried out in a special apparatus called as a nuclear reactor. A large amount of heat
energy is generated due to nuclear fission. All other parts of a nuclear power plant are
very similar to conventional thermal power plants. It is found that fission of only 1 Kg
of Uranium produces as much heat energy as that can be produced by 4,500 tons of
high grade coal. This considerably reduces the transportation cost of fuel, which is a
major advantage of nuclear power plants. Also, there are large deposits of nuclear fuels
available all over the world and, hence, nuclear power plants can ensure continued
supply of electrical energy for thousands of years. About 10% of the total electricity of
the world is generated in nuclear power plants.
How Does A Nuclear Power Plant Work?
Heavy elements such as Uranium (U235) or Thorium (Th232) are subjected to nuclear
fission reaction in a nuclear reactor. Due to fission, a large amount of heat energy is
produced which is transferred to the reactor coolant. The coolant may be water, gas or a
liquid metal. The heated coolant is made to flow through a heat exchanger where water
is converted into high-temperature steam. The generated steam is then allowed to drive
a steam turbine. The steam, after doing its work, is converted back into the water and
recycled to the heat exchanger. The steam turbine is coupled to an alternator which
generates electricity.
Basic Components of a Nuclear Power Plant
 Nuclear Reactor
A nuclear reactor is a special apparatus used to perform nuclear fission.
Since the nuclear fission is radioactive, the reactor is covered by a
protective shield. Splitting up of nuclei of heavy atoms is called as nuclear
fission, during which huge amount of energy is released. Nuclear fission is
done by bombarding slow moving neutrons on the nuclei of heavy
element. As the nuclei break up, it releases energy as well as more neutrons
which further cause fission of neighboring atoms. Hence, it is a chain
reaction and it must be controlled, otherwise it may result in explosion.
A nuclear reactor consists of
fuel rods, control rods and moderator.
A fuel rod contains small round fuel pallets (uranium pallets). Control
rods are of cadmium which absorb neutrons. They are inserted into
reactor and can be moved in or out to control the reaction.
The moderator can be graphite rods or the coolant itself. Moderator slows
down the neutrons before they bombard on the fuel rods.
• Two types of nuclear reactors that are widely used -

Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) -

• This type of reactor uses regular water as coolant. The coolant (water) is kept at very high
pressure so that it does not boil. The heated water is transferred through heat exchanger
where water from secondary coolant loop is converted into steam. Thus the secondary loop
is completely free from radioactive stuff. In a PWR, the coolant water itself acts as a
moderator. Due to these advantages, pressurized water reactors are most commonly used.

Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) -

• In this type of reactor only one coolant loop is present. The water is allowed to boil in the
reactor. The steam is generated as it heads out of the reactor and then flows through the
steam turbine. One major disadvantage of a BWR is that, the coolant water comes in direct
contact with fuel rods as well as the turbine. So, there is a possibility that radioactive
material could be placed on the turbine.

Heat Exchanger

• In the heat exchanger, the primary coolant transfers heat to the secondary coolant (water).
Thus water from the secondary loop is converted into steam. The primary system and
secondary system are closed loop, and they are never allowed to mix up with each other.
Thus, heat exchanger helps in keeping secondary system free from radioactive stuff. Heat
exchanger is absent in boiling water reactors.
Steam Turbine
• Generated steam is passed through a steam turbine, which runs due
to pressure of the steam. As the steam is passed through the turbine
blades, the pressure of steam gradually decreases and it expands in
volume. The steam turbine is coupled to an alternator through a
rotating shaft.

Alternator
• The steam turbine rotates the shaft of an alternator thus generating
electrical energy. Electrical output of the alternator is the delivered
to a step up transformer to transfer it over distances.

Condenser
• The steam coming out of the turbine, after it has done its work, is
then converted back into water in a condenser. The steam is cooled
by passing it through a third cold water loop.
Block Diagram
Wind Power Generation
Block Diagram
• Wind turns the blades of a turbine around a rotor, which spins a
generator, which creates electricity.
 Tower
• The tower in most modern turbines is round tubular steel of a
diameter of 3–4 m (10–13 ft), with a height of 75–110 m (250–
370 ft), depending on the size of the turbine and its location.
 Rotor
• The rotor is the rotating part of a turbine; it consists of (mostly)
three blades and the central part that the blades are attached
to, the hub. A turbine does not necessarily have to have three
blades; it can have two, four, or another number of blades. But
the three-blade rotor has the best efficiency and other
advantages.
• Blades are not solid; they are hollow and are made of composite
material to be light and strong. The trend is to make them larger
(for more power), lighter, and stronger.
 Hub
• The function of the hub is to hold the blades and make it
possible for them to rotate with respect to the rest of the
turbine body.
 Nacelle
• The nacelle is housing on top of the tower that accommodates
all the components that need to be on a turbine top. There are
quite a number of components for the proper and healthy
operation of a complicated electromechanical system that a
turbine is. A major turbine part among these components is
the generator and the turbine shaft that transfers the
harvested power from wind to the generator through a
gearbox.
 Generator
• The generator is the component that converts the mechanical
energy of the rotor, harnessed from wind to electrical energy.
Solar Power Generation
Block Diagram
The solar power plant is also known as the
Photovoltaic (PV) power plant. The solar power
plant uses solar energy to produce electrical power.
Photo Voltaic (PV) Principle
• Silicon is the most commonly used material in
solar cells. Silicon is a semiconductor material.
Several materials show photoelectric properties
like; cadmium, gallium arsenide, etc.
• When the semiconductor is exposed to light, it
absorbs the light’s energy and transfers it to
negatively charged particles in the material called
electrons. This extra energy allows the electrons to
flow through the material as an electrical current
 Components of Solar Power Plant
 Photovoltaic (PV) panel
• PV panels or Photovoltaic panel is a most important component of a solar
power plant. It is made up of small solar cells. This is a device that is used to
convert solar photon energy into electrical energy.
 Inverter
• The output of the solar panel is in the form of DC. The most of load
connected to the power system network is in the form of AC. Therefore, we
need to convert DC output power into AC power. For that, an inverter is used
in solar power plants.
 Battery
• used to store electrical energy generated by the solar power plants. The
storage components are the most important component in a power plant to
meet the demand and variation of the load.
 Charge controller
• used to control the charging and discharging of the battery. The charge
controller is used to avoid the overcharging of the battery.