Power Plant Technology

Provides an introduction to basic electrical theory: how voltage is produced; the use of Ohm’s Law to relate current, voltage, and resistance; series and parallel circuits; electromagnetism; and DC and AC systems. Introduces basic electric power components: batteries, generators, motors, transformers, solenoids, relays, fuses, and circuit breakers.

Familiarizes students with the principles of motor control and controllers and industrial wiring, including the principles of electrical safety with the use of the National Electrical Code. Provides an introduction to residential and commercial wiring along with practice in the safe construction of simple wiring circuits.

Offers an introduction to electrical power generators, including the overall power generation system, exciters, voltage regulators, and generator auxiliary systems. Also introduces how to startup, run, and shut down AC generators. Covers basic AC circuits with resistive, inductive, and capacitive loads. Provides instruction in the calculation and measurement of real power, apparent power, and reactive power. Introduces single phase transformations and motors.

Introduces three phase power and how it is generated. Studies Wye and Delta transformer connections with current, voltage, and power calculations for resistive, capacitive, and inductive loads. Also introduces high voltage power transmission, station service systems, and switchyard and substation components. Offers lab study of motors and generators.

Utilizing appropriate training equipment – the Rockwell Automation Educational Kit Software and Allen-Bradley CompactLogix Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) – introduces students to Distributed Control Systems (DCS) and their various parts and processes. Students develop and troubleshoot process control operating screens that interact with PLCs.

Examines various types of motor control circuits including full and reduced voltage starters, man-ual and automatic controls, and sensing and control devices. Lab exercises make extensive use of fault insertion and troubleshooting techniques and include a design project. Examines solid state devices in depth.

Introduces students to PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers) using state-of-the-art training equipment. Through lab intensive instruction, students learn to program the Allen-Bradley SLC-500 PLC. Students write, program, and troubleshoot control circuits containing timers, counters, comparison circuits, bit shift operations, and sequencer functions.

Introduces basic principles of stationary engineering and gives an overview of the school’s Power Plant operations, with special emphasis on high pressure boilers, job safety, and operational efficiency.

Provides experience in the practical skills required of power plant workers, with emphasis on serving as a shift operator/helper in the college’s Power Plant, plus assisting with the maintenance of school utilities, practicing good housekeeping in the workplace, and observing safety rules in all work assignments. Thoroughly covers the Power Plant Student Manual.

Introduces basic utility boilers, including natural circulation, controlled circulation, and once-through designs. Discusses startup, shutdown, and normal operation, and covers air and flue gas flow paths and steam and water flow paths.

Provides for continued development of fundamental equipment maintenance skills with a concentration on carrying out electrical and mechanical maintenance procedures, replacing faulty pipes and pipe fittings, serving as shift operator/helper in the college’s Power Plant, and demonstrating knowledge of safety and accident prevention rules. Comprehensively covers the school’s power plant equipment operating procedures.

Introduces the basic principles of water chemistry as applied to boilers and cooling towers. Students learn about the properties of water and about the changes that certain substances in the plant go through when exposed to water. Specific attention is directed to the structure of elements and compounds, chemical reactions, the basics of raw water treatment, and the application of water chemistry to plant systems.

Exposes students to power plant systems and processes, including fluid flow in the feedwater system, heat transfer in the heat exchangers, feedwater heaters and deaerators, compressors and fans, condensers, circulating water, and pumps.

Studies the physical characteristics of water and steam. Reviews the plant steam cycle and how the properties of water and steam change as fluid flows through the various plant cycle components. Uses steam tables with the thermodynamics of enthalpy change in the boiler and turbine, along with Mollier diagram to study the properties of steam.

Assists in further improving basic skills, including boiler water testing, and prepares students for more advanced responsibilities in maintaining the college’s utilities and in supervising power plant shifts and student helpers.

Studies typical utility boilers, fuels, and combustion, including heat value, moisture content, sulfur content, fuel handling, and ash removal systems. Using the college’s power plant, students will: investigate natural gas and fuel oil combustion; calculate boiler efficiency and electric generation efficiency; perform flue gas analysis while burning fuel oil and natural gas; measure stack velocities; and calculate heat rate through the steam turbine plant cycle.

Emphasizes improvement of basic skills learned in previous courses and develops advanced skills in boiler repairs, industrial electrical system maintenance, and operation and maintenance of boiler auxiliaries, pumps, and steam traps. Includes supervising other student workers in performing assigned duties relating to plant operations.

Introduces the basic principles of process measurement parameters such as flow, pressure, level, and temperature. Lab exercises augment classroom theory.

Using a simulator that represents a 600MW power plant, students function as operators, performing cold start-ups, shut downs, regulating plant operations, and responding to equipment failures.

Introduces the principles, basic fundamentals, and operation of a combined cycle power plant. Discusses all major systems and functions of a combined cycle plant, including the basic operation of a gas turbine, heat recovery steam generator (HRSG), steam turbine and balance of plant systems.

Explores the many types of utility boilers, including pulverized coal, fluidized bed boilers, cyclone and stoker boilers, and nuclear-powered units. Emphasizes environmental protection and plant protection.

Advances operational skills learned in previous courses and assists in the development of supervision and leadership skills in a power plant setting by assigning each senior a term of responsibility for serving as student chief engineer of operations, acting as supervisor of other student workers in the maintenance of campus utilities; setting priorities and scheduling work assignments as part of plant maintenance foreman duties; and working weekends and holiday shifts as senior operator in the college’s Power Plant.

Examines on-line boiler control concepts, including combustion, feedwater, header pressure, oxygen percent, power demand, and other processes, with special attention to high pressure (above 15 psi.) steam boilers as applied to industrial power generation and process heat supply. Emphasizes on-line boiler control procedures and typical applications that illustrate outcomes associated with such procedures. Includes lab experiments in drum level and steam process control.

Introduces basic fluid flow energy units, parameters, and calculations, including: types of fluid energy (kinetic, potential, and pressure), Extended Bernoulli equation, Reynolds number, types of flow (laminar, turbulent, and critical), conservation of mass, relative roughness, friction factor, major and minor pipe losses, along with flow measurement devices. Introduces basic principles of industrial hydraulics and pneumatics, including types of fluids and their use to transmit power throughout various circuits. Examines pumps, compressors, circuit components and their application and control, and covers such elements as flow, pressure, force, temperature, torque, speed, horsepower, efficiency, fluid and system conditioning, as well as component and circuit performance.

Thoroughly discusses steam turbine design, construction, and operation. Introduces turbine control and instrumentation, along with gas turbines, diesel generators, and combined cycles.

Emphasizes continued student development and refinement of practical skills in power plant operations, in the performance of maintenance tasks to improve and upgrade college facilities, and in the exercise of supervisory responsibilities involving underclassmen assigned to maintenance and operation projects.

Offers a basic study of the theories of thermodynamics, including application to unit systems, heat transfer, and tables of properties. Emphasizes operational problem-solving as well as understanding the steam cycles throughout the power plant in relation to the principles of thermodynamics.

Studies force systems and the conditions of equilibrium for particles and rigid-bodies. Introduces the basic principles of drawing free body diagrams, analysis of forces, distributed loads and moments, as well as calculating centers of gravity and moments of inertia when applied to engineering system components and structures.

Studies the basic concepts in strength of materials under normal conditions compared to shear, bending, and bearing stresses. Introduces the study of stress-strain relationships, the design properties of materials, and the practical application of structure formulas for sizing bolts, rivets, shafts, beams, columns, and pressure vessels with an emphasis on understanding load, sheer, and bending moment diagrams.