Libyan International Medical University

Faculty of Engineering
Mechatronic Program

Energy Conversion Systems

‫أنظمة تحويل الطاقة‬
(MTE301)

Lecture No-5: Diesel Engine Power Plant

1 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Outline

 Diesel Engine Power Plant

• Advantages and disadvantages of diesel power plants
• Applications of diesel power plant
• Classification of I.C. engines
• Essential components of a diesel power plant
• Performance of I.C. Engines

2 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Diesel Engine Power Plant

 Diesel engine power plants are installed due to:

 Supply of coal and water is not available in sufficient quantity
 Power to be generated in small quantity
 Standby sets are required for continuity of supply such as in hospitals,
telephone exchanges, radio stations and cinemas.

3 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Advantages
 Design and installation are very simple
 Can respond to varying loads without any difficulty
 Occupy less space
 Can be started and put on load quickly
 Require less quantity of water for cooling purposes
 Overall capital cost is lesser than that for steam plants
 Require less operating and supervising staff as compared to that for steam plants
 The cost of building and civil engineering works is low.
 These plants can be located very near to the load centers, many times in the heart of
the town.
 The diesel power plants are more efficient than steam power plants in the range of
150 MW capacity

4 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Disadvantages
 High operating cost
 High maintenance and lubrication cost
 Diesel units capacity is limited. These cannot be constructed
in large size
 In a diesel power plant noise is a serious problem
 The diesel power plants are not economical where fuel has to
be imported
 The life of a diesel power plant is quite small (2 to 5 years or
less) as compared to that of a steam power plant (25 to 30
years)

5 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 APPLICATIONS OF DIESEL POWER PLANT
 The diesel power plants find wide application in the following fields
 Peak load plan
 Mobile plants
 Stand-by units
 Emergency plant
 Starting stations
 Central stations—where capacity required is small (5 to 10 MW)

6 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 SITE SELECTION
 The following factors should be considered while selecting the site for a diesel
power plant
 Foundation sub-soil condition: the foundation at a reasonable depth should be
capable of providing a strong support to the engine
 Access to the site: The site should be so selected that it is accessible through
rail and road
 Distance from the load centre: The location of the plant should be near the
load centre
 Availability of water: Sufficient quantity of water should be available at the
site selected
 Fuel transportation. The site selected should be near to the source of fuel
supply

7 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 CLASSIFICATION OF I.C. ENGINES
 Internal combustion engines may be classified as given below
1. According to cycle of operation
 Two stroke cycle engines / Four stroke cycle engines
2. According to cycle of combustion
 Otto cycle engine (combustion at constant volume)
 Diesel cycle engine (combustion at constant pressure)
 Dual-combustion or Semi-Diesel cycle engine
3. According to arrangement of cylinder
 Horizontal engine
 Vertical engine
 V-type engine
 Radial engine etc.

8 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 CLASSIFICATION OF I.C. ENGINES
4. According to their uses 6. According to the speed of the engine
 Stationary engine  Low speed engine
 Portable engine  Medium speed engine
 Marine engine  High speed engine.
 Automobile engine 7. According to method of ignition
 Aero engine etc.  Spark ignition S.I. engine
5. According to the fuel employed  Compression ignition C.I. engine.
and the method of fuel supply to 8. According to method of cooling the cylinder
the engine cylinder  Air-cooled engine or Water-cooled
 Oil engine engine.
 Petrol engine 9. According to number of cylinders
 Gas engine  Single cylinder engine, or Multi-
 Kerosene engine etc cylinder engine.
9 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25
 ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS OF A DIESEL POWER PLANT

 1. Engine 2. Air intake system 3. Exhaust system 4. Fuel system 5. Cooling system
6. Lubrication system 7. Engine starting system 8. Governing system.
10 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25
 Air Intake System
 The air intake system conveys fresh air through pipes or ducts to : (i) Air intake manifold of
four stroke engines, (ii) The scavenging pump inlet of a two stroke engine, and (iii) The
supercharger inlet of a supercharged engine

 Following precautions should be taken while constructing a suitable air intake system :
1. Air intakes may not be located inside the engine room.
2. Air should not be taken from a confined space otherwise air pulsations can cause
serious vibration problems
3. The air-intake line used should neither have too small a diameter nor should be too
long, otherwise there may crop up engine starvation problem

11 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Exhaust System
 The purpose of the exhaust system is to discharge the engine exhaust to the
atmosphere outside the building.

 The exhaust pipe leading out of the building should be short in length with
minimum number of bends and should have one or two flexible tubing sections
which take up the effects of expansion, and isolate the system from the engine
vibration.
12 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25
 Fuel System
 The fuel oil may be delivered at the plant site by trucks, railroad tank cars or barge
and tankers.
 From tank car or truck the delivery is through the unloading facility to main
storage tanks and then by transfer pumps to small service storage tanks known as
engine day tanks.

13 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Lubrication Systems
 The purpose of lubrication may be one or more of the following :
1. To reduce friction and wear between the parts having relative motion.
2. To cool the surfaces by carrying away heat generated due to friction.
3. To seal a space adjoining the surfaces such as piston rings and cylinder liner.
4. To clean the surface by carrying away the carbon and metal particles caused
by wear.
5. To absorb shock between bearings and other parts and consequently reduce
noise

14 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 LAYOUT OF A DIESEL ENGINE POWER PLANT

15 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 PERFORMANCE OF I.C. ENGINES
 The basic performance parameters are counted and discussed below:
 Power and mechanical efficiency
 Mean effective pressure and torque
 Specific output
 Volumetric efficiency
 Fuel-air ratio
 Specific fuel consumption
 Thermal efficiency and heat balance
 Exhaust smoke and other emissions
 Specific weight.

16 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Power and mechanical efficiency
 Indicated power. The total power developed by combustion of fuel in the
combustion chamber is called indicated power

17 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Power and mechanical efficiency
 Brake power (B.P.). The power developed by an engine at the output shaft is called the
brake power.

18 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Mean effective pressure and torque
 Mean effective pressure is defined as hypothetical pressure which is thought to be
acting on the piston throughout the power stroke..
 If it is based on I.P. it is called indicated mean effective pressure (Im.e.p. or
pmi) and
 If based on B.P. it is called brake mean effective pressure (Bm.e.p. or pmi).
 Similarly, frictional mean effective pressure (Fm.e.p. or pmf) can be defined
as

19 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Specific output & Volumetric efficiency
 Specific output : It is defined as the brake output per unit of piston displacement
and is given by :

 Volumetric efficiency: It is defined as the ratio of actual volume (reduced to N.T.P.)

of the charge drawn in during the suction stroke to the swept volume of the piston

20 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Specific fuel consumption (s.f.c.)
 It is the mass of fuel consumed per kW developed per hour, and is a criterion of
economical power production.

21 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Thermal efficiency
 Thermal efficiency : It is the ratio of indicated work done to energy supplied by
the fuel.

22 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Basic Measurements
 To evaluate the performance of an engine following basic measurements are
usually undertaken:
1. Speed, Fuel /air consumption
2. Smoke density
3. Exhaust gas analysis
4. Brake power, Indicated power and friction power
5. Heat going to cooling water
6. Heat going to exhaust

23 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Numerical Problem (1)
 Example 4.3. The following readings were taken during the test of a single
cylinder four stroke oil engine :
Cylinder diameter = 250 mm
Stroke length = 400 mm
Gross m.e.p. = 7 bar
Pumping m.e.p. = 0.5 bar
Engine speed = 250 r.p.m.
Net load on the brake = 1080 N
Effective diameter of the brake = 1.5 metres
Fuel used per hour = 10 kg
Calorific value of fuel = 44300 kJ/kg
Calculate : (i) Indicated power ; (ii) Brake power ; (iii) Mechanical efficiency ;
(iv) Indicated thermal efficiency.
24 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25
 Numerical Problem (1)

25 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Numerical Problem (2)
 Example 4.6. A single cylinder 4-stroke diesel engine gave the following results
while running on full load :
Area of indicator card = 300 mm2
Length of diagram = 40 mm
Spring constant = 1 bar/mm Calculate :
Speed of the engine = 400 r.p.m. (i) Indicated mean effective
Load on the brake = 370 N pressure.
Spring balance reading = 50 N (ii) Brake power and brake mean
Diameter of brake drum = 1.2 m effective pressure.
Fuel consumption = 2.8 kg/h (iii) Brake specific fuel
Calorific value of fuel = 41800 kJ/kg consumption, brake thermal and
Diameter of the cylinder = 160 mm indicated thermal efficiencies
Stroke of the piston = 200 mm
26 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25
 Numerical Problem (2)

27 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Numerical Problem (2)

28 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Numerical Problem (H.W)
 Assessment: The following observations were recorded
during the test on a 6-cylinder, 4-stroke Diesel engine :
• Bore = 125 mm
• Stroke = 125 mm
• Engine speed = 2400 r.p.m.
• Load on dynamometer = 490 N
• Dynamometer constant = 16100
• Air orifice diameter = 55 mm
• Co-efficient of discharge = 0.66
• Head causing flow through orifice = 310 mm of water
• Barometer reading = 760 mm Hg

29 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25

 Numerical Problem (H.W)
• Ambient temperature = 25°C
• Fuel consumption = 22.1 kg/h
• Calorific value of fuel = 45100 kJ/kg
• Per cent carbon in the fuel = 85%
• Per cent hydrogen in the fuel = 15%
• Pressure of air at the end of suction stroke = 1.013 bar
• Temperature at the end of suction stroke = 25°C
• Calculate : (i) Brake mean effective pressure,
• (ii) Specific fuel consumption,
• (iii) Brake thermal efficiency,
• (iv) Volumetric efficiency, and
• (v) Percentage of excess air supplied.

30 Power Plant Engineering By Dr. Elhaj A. I. Ahmed May 25