Creating Value from Steam Pressure

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UPDATE ON U.S. STEAM TURBINE TECHNOLOGY Presented
to Canadian District Energy Association 8th
Annual Conference June 20th, 2003 Sean
Casten President Turbosteam Corporation 161
Industrial Blvd. Turners Falls, MA 01376 USA
Creating Value from Steam Pressure
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Current Status of U.S. Steam Turbine Generator
Technology (50 kW 10 MW class)
Steam Turbine-Generator, ca 2003
State of The Art
Technology
Characteristic
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In other words

• More attractive overall economic / environmental
  performance than any other generation technology
• Core technology unchanged in 50 years.
• Technical challenges are at a system, rather than
  component level poor system design squanders
  opportunities
• Not appropriate everywhere but perfectly suited
  to district energy

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How you achieve these economics overview of
typical steam system design
High pressure steam process load
Medium pressure steam process load
Boiler
Header
H.P. steam
Feed water
PRV
Fuel
Low pressure steam process load
PRV
PRV Pressure Reducing Valve
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A steam turbine generator can deliver the same
pressure drop as a PRV -- but produces useful
electricity in the process.
500 kW-Class Unit
Low Pressure steam out
High Pressure steam in
Electricity out
Very similar approaches can be taken to steam
vents and/or waste-heat rejection processes in
which wasted energy can be recycled to generate
high-value electric power.
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The economic/environmental value of this
configuration comes from the fact that it is
retrofit onto existing heat flows.

• No capital cost requirements for fuel combustion,
  steam distribution, condensate recovery, etc.
• Little/no marginal fuel consumption/combustion
  associated with power recovery
• Significant net reductions in pollution once
  displaced electricity is taken into account
• No permitting required
• System perspective steam turbines are an
  ultra-high ROI pollution control device

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So why isnt this more widely deployed? Business
overview of steam turbine industry
Turbine Power Output (kW)

• Mechanical Drive
• Many players (Elliott, Dresser-Rand, Tuthill)
• gt90 of business is for mechanical applications
• Very low-cost, robust products
• Integration done by others
• Insufficient in-house skills for most electric
  projects

• Opportunities
• Need electricity, not mechanical drive
• ROI drivers want low capex, high annual savings
• Requires electrical skills of larger players,
  cost structure of smaller players
• Unique integration / project development
  challenges

• Utility Applications
• Many players (GE, Westinghouse, ABB, etc.)
• Sophisticated engineering
• Utility grade
• On-site (EPC) integration of subcomponents
• Design approaches not cost effective at smaller
  scales

15,000 (200,000 lbs/hr)
500 (15,000 lbs/hr)
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Turbosteam has provided this bridge between two
different business models since 1986, with 158
projects in 18 countries
Non-U.S.

• 17 countries
• 60 installations
• 36,000 kW

gt10,000 kW
5001 10000 kW
1001 5000 kW
501 1000 kW
1 500 kW
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District Energy Projects in Canada Steam utility
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District Energy Projects in Canada Steam utility

• P.E.I. Energy Systems
• Charlottetown, PEI
• 1240 kW
• Reduces 40,000 lbs/hr 400 psig steam down to 5
  psig
• LP steam used to generate hot water for DE system
• Installed in 1996

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District Energy Projects in Canada College campus

• Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
• Calgary, Alberta
• 480 kW
• Reduces 26,000 lbs/hr of 420 psig steam down to
  100 psig
• LP steam used for campus thermal loads
• Installed in 1999

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District Energy Projects in Canada Hospital

• Queen Elizabeth Hospital
• Charlottetown, PEI
• 250 kW
• Reduces 17,000 lbs/hr of 275 psig steam down to
  10 psig
• LP steam used for hospital thermal loads
• Installed in 1997

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Other Projects in Canada Lumber mill

• Marcel Lauzon Lumber Mill
• East Hereford, QC
• 335 kW BPC architecture
• Reduces 17,000 lbs/hr of 225 psig steam down to
  15 psig
• LP steam used for lumber drying, or sent to
  condenser depending on fuel supply
• Installed in 1992

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Other Projects in Canada Salt manufacturer

• Canadian Salt
• Windsor, ON
• 1,000 kW
• Reduces 39,000 lbs/hr of 235 psig steam down to
  10 psig
• LP steam used in salt manufacturing process
• Installed in 1998

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In spite of technical maturity, significant
system-level technical challenges must be
addressed Simple Example
What is optimal design condition?
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Effective optimization seeks the
techno-economic optimum.
. . .
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Very different architectures may then be
preferred depending upon desired objective
Design Flow Rate
30,000 lbs/hr
40,000 lbs/hr
55,000 lbs/hr
55,000 lbs/hr
Turbine type
Single stage
Single stage
Single stage
Multistage