DESIGNING A COGENERATION SYSTEM FOR AN EXISTING APPLICATION

Cogeneration which is the simultaneous production of both heat and power from a single fuel source has been recognised as a more energy efficient process of power production compared to the conventional power generation methods. The added advantage of such systems is their reduced greenhouse gas emissions. In order to describe the process of designing a cogeneration system for an existing application, this study was undertaken in 2003 for a hypothetical plant to be constructed in 2004 with the operation energy commencing in 2005. The life of the project was assumed to be 20 years thereafter. For this purpose, (1) the projected heat and power demand profiles for 2005-2024 were established using existing consumption data, (2) from amongst a number of options, the feasibility of a gas turbine system and a set of 3 reciprocating engines was investigated using appropriate statistical and analytical financial parameters such as NPV (net present value), IRR (internal rate of return) and PP (payback period), and greenhouse gas abatement subsidies, and (3) based on these financial parameters and the environmental benefits of the two systems, the reciprocating engines set was selected for this application. Key words: Cogeneration; heat and power; energy efficiency; greenhouse gas abatement. 1