VOCATIONAL TRAINING

REPORT
MEJIA THERMAL POWER STATION
(M.T.P.S)
DAMODAR VALLY CORPORATION
DURLAVPUR, BANKURA, WEST BENGAL, PIN-722183

SUBMITTED BY: ANTU ACHARYA

TRAINING PERIOD: 19th JUNE, 2019 to 9th JULY, 2019
DATE OF SUBMISSION: 8th JULY
DEPARTMENT: CIVIL ENGINEERING
COLLEGE: JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY
YEAR: 2017-2021
 01. INTRODUCTION

02. GENERAL PLANT OVERVIEW

02.1. COAL HANDLING PLANT

02.1.1. COAL

02.1.2. UNLOADING OF COAL

02.1.3. PROCESSING OF COAL

02.1.4. PROPER COMBUSTION OF COAL AIDED WITH FUEL

02.2. ESP AND SILO

02.3. ASH HANDLING PLANT

02.4. BOILERS

02.5. TURBINES

02.6. GENERATORS

03. SEVERAL CIVIL ENGINEERING STRUCTURES IN POWER

PLANT

03.1. WATER TREATMENT PLANT

03.2. INTERNAL AND CONNECTING ROADWAYS

03.3. MGR RAILWAY TRACKS

03.4. COOLING TOWER

03.5. COLONY BUILDINGS

04. WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

04.1. EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT

04.2. ASH UTILISATION AND ASH POND

04.3. SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT

05. CONCLUSION
A thermal power station is a power station in which heat energy is converted to electric power.
In most of the places in the world the turbine is steam-driven. Water is heated, turns into steam
and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it passes through the
turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was heated; this is
known as a Rankine cycle. The greatest variation in the design of thermal power stations is due
to the different heat sources; fossil fuel dominates here, although nuclear heat energy; solar
heat energy, biofuels and waste incineration are also used. Some prefer to use the term energy
center because such facilities convert forms of heat energy into electrical energy.Certain
thermal power stations are also designed to produce heat energy for industrial purposes,
or district heating, or desalination of water, in addition to generating electrical power.

ABOUT D.V.C

July 1948 as
the first multipurpose river valley project of Independent India.

ABOUT MTPS:
Mejia Thermal Power Station is located at Durlabhpur, Bankura, 35 km from Durgapur city
in West Bengal. The power plant is one of the coal based power plants of DVC. Commissioned
on 1996, MTPS is the largest thermal power plant, in terms of generating capacity in the state
of West Bengal as well as among other DVC power plants.
Mejia Thermal Power Station has an installed capacity of 2340 MW. The plant has total of 8
units operational.
The individual units has the generating capacity as follows:

Unit No. Generating Capacity Commissioned on

U#1 210 MW Mar. 1996

U#2 210 MW Mar. 1998

U#3 210 MW Sep. 1999

U#4 210 MW Feb. 2005

U#5 250 MW Feb. 2008

U#6 250 MW Sep. 2008

U#7 500 MW Aug. 2011

U#8 500 MW Aug. 2012

The power house is present in two parts namely first part Vidyut Bhavan consisting of power
units 1 to 4 each of 210 MW and 5-6 each of 250 MW. And second part Shakti Bhavan
consisting of power units 7 and 8 each of which is 500 MW capacity. The power house of
MTPS consists of turbines, boilers and generators which are fully designed and manufactured
by BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd). As these machines are designed by BHEL hence they
standardise the required design of the power house buildings and other auxiliary structures as
well. The structure of the main power houses consist of composite heavy steel structures
encased by cement concrete. Mainly the structure of power house consists of heavy composite
structural members (i.e. beams and columns because due to severely heavy loading, vibration
and other environmental factors (seismic loading/effects).Other categories of steel structural
members would have been insufficient , hence heavy structural members with significant
amount of bolting, riveting, wielding, is considered. The columns and beams are heavily
encased by m40 grade concrete in order to increase the buckling resistance of columns and
compressive strength of steel beams. Also the concrete casing is provided to all the structural
steel members to protect them from rain and other weathering actions and also from the
excessive heat generating from water tubes due to steam production.

GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE POWER PLANT

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal
seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements; chiefly hydrogen, sulfur
, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed if dead plant matter decays into peat and over millions of years
the heat and pressure of deep burial converts the peat into coal. Vast deposits of coal originates in
former wetlands—called coal forests—that covered much of the Earth's tropical land areas during the
late Carboniferous(Pennsylvanian) and Permian times.

Coal burnt as a solid fuel in coal power stations to generate electricity is called thermal coal.
Coal is also used to produce very high temperatures through combustion. Efforts around the
world to reduce the use of coal have led some regions to switch to natural gas and electricity
from lower carbon sources.

The railway network in thermal power station is primarily used for carrying coal from the coal mines
to the coal handling plant in power station. It also helps in carrying heavy equipment during installation
in plant.

WAGON UNLOADING SYSTEM:

The material will be received at the process plant by two different types of wagons as indicated above
viz. BOXN wagons and BOBRN wagons. Different types of wagon unloading systems would be
adopted for unloading the material from these wagons. Generally the material will be discharged from
the top from the BOXN wagons while in the case of BOBRN wagons, it will be discharged from the
bottom. The hopper will be provided below the ground for receiving the unloaded material from these
wagons. Hence, the BOXN wagons need to be tilted for unloading the material into the hopper while
the BOBRN wagons are provided with pneumatically operated gates at the bottom for unloading the
material.

WAGON TIPPLER:
The wagon tippler consists of a table for positioning the wagon, wagon holding mechanism, gears and
pinions for rotation, drive unit, hydraulic power pack etc. The unloading cycle starts when the wagon
is positioned over the wagon tippler table and the wagon along with the table rotates and discharges the
material into the underground hopper. The time taken for the unloading operation is about 90 seconds.
There are two types of wagon tipplers viz. rotaside which rotates about 135º and another rotary type
which rotates by 180º. The rotaside wagon tipplers are provided in most of the plants in India. The drive
for the rotation will be hydraulic type for smoother operation. It would be possible to achieve average
unloading rate of about 20 tips per hour with the rotaside wagon tippler.

UNLOADING SYSTEM TRACK HOPPER:

The BOBRN wagons will be discharging the material through the discharge gates provided at the
bottom of the wagons. This type of unloading system consists of track hopper below the rail track,
mechanism for opening the pneumatic gates of the wagons and feeders below the track hopper. The
loaded rake will be brought to the track hopper by the main line locomotive and the same locomotive
will stay connected to the rake while the unloading operation is in process and the rake will be hauled
out of the plant. It is not necessary to disconnect the loco from the rake unlike in the case of wagon
tippler system.

TRACK HOPPER:
The track hopper will be provided below the rail track and will be suitable for holding the material
unloaded from the BOBRN wagons. The length of the track hopper adopted in most of the Indian plants
is about 200 m and the capacity of this hopper will be suitable for storing one rake material. With this,
it would be possible to operate the wagon unloading system independent of the rest of the plant and the
rake need not wait in case any of the downstream equipment is not available. There are few plants with
shorter length of track hopper. It would be possible to adopt track hopper of reduced length as the
reliability and availability of the conveying equipment is much higher. The track hopper will be of RCC
construction and suitable liner will be provided depending on the abrasiveness of the material handled.
Steel grid of about 250 mm square will be provided over the track hopper.

FEEDER BELOW THE TRACK HOPPER:

The paddle feeders will be provided below the track hopper for evacuating the material from the hopper.
The paddle feeder will be mounted on the table provided below the hopper from where the material will
be evacuated and fed on the belt conveyor below. The paddle feeder will be driven by hydraulic motor
for smoother operation.

DUST CONTROL SYSTEM:

Plain water spray type dust suppression system will be provided for suppressing the dust generated
during the unloading operation. Spray nozzles will be provided around the hopper for spraying the water
so that the dust settles down.

In case the sized coal is received, then the coal is sent directly to stockyard and the crusher is
by-passed. In CHP crusher work on principle of combination of impact and attrition crushing.
In this type of crushing first coal is break due to impact and further scrub between two hard
surfaces to get desired coal size. Some crushers are work only on principle of impact crushing.
Generally these crushers are used before final crushers. The output size of coal affects the
performance of CHP. Naturally these two hard surfaces of crusher are critical parts. One of
these surfaces are known as grinding plates and other may known as rings, hammers, etc. The
linkage between crusher rotor and drive assembly are also critical parts. As failure of these
linkages will stop crushing. So its Operation and Maintenance at time to time is very important.

Different Type of Coal Grade Details:

Mostly E and F Grade Coal used in India.
CRUSHER:
A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large Coal into smaller Coals, gravel, or rock dust.
crushers are machines which use a metal surface to break or compress materials. Mining
operations use crushers, commonly classified by the degree to which they fragment the starting
material, with primary and secondary crushers handling course materials, and tertiary and
quaternary crushers reducing ore particles to finer gradations. Each crusher is designed to work
with a certain maximum size of raw material, and often delivers its output to a screening machine
which sorts and directs the product for further processing. Typically, crushing stages are followed by
milling stages if the materials need to be further reduced. Additionally rock breakers are typically
located next to a crusher to reduce oversize material too large for a crusher. Crushers are used to reduce
particle size enough so that the material can be processed into finer particles in a grinder. A typical
processing line at a mine might consist of a crusher followed by a SAG mill followed by a ball mill.

Coal Crushing Operation:

In the thermal power plant coal handling system, Conveyors leading to crusher house have facility for
manual stone picking, at a suitable location after penthouse. In line magnetic separators are also
provided at discharge end of conveyors for removal of remaining metallic ferrous tramp from the coal
before it reaches the crushers. Coal sampling unit is provided to sample the uncrushed coal. The size of
the coal received is normally (-) 300 mm which may, however, depend on coal tie up. The received coal
is sized in crushers (ring granulators) from (-) 300 mm to (-) 20 mm. Screens (vibrating grizzly type or
roller screens) provided upstream of the crushers screen out (-) 20 mm coal from the feed and ( ) 20
mm coal is fed to the crushers. A set of rod gates and rack and pinion gates is provided before screens
to permit maintenance of equipment downstream without affecting the operation of other stream. The
crushed coal is either fed to coal bunkers of the boilers or discharged on to conveyors for storage in coal
stockyard through conveyors and transfer points. Crushed coal is sent to stockyard when coal bunkers
are full. Stacking/reclaiming of coal is done by bucket wheel type stacker-cumreclaimer moving on
rails. The stacker-cum-reclaimer can stack coal on either sides of the yard conveyor. During stacking
mode coal is fed from conveyors on boom conveyor and while in reclaim mode, boom conveyor
discharges coal on the yard conveyor for feeding coal to bunkers through conveyors and transfer points.
The yard conveyor can be reversible type depending on layout requirement.

Coal Crushing Mechanism:

Three stage crushing system is used in plant.
• Double Roll Crusher
• Rotary Breaker Crusher
• Impact Crusher

Coal is conveyed from an external stack and ground to very fine powder by a large metal
spheres in the pulverized fuel mill. There it is mixed with preheated air driven by a forced
draught fan. The hot air-fuel mixture is forced at high pressure into the boiler where it rapidly
ignites.
PRINCIPLE OF COMBUSTION:
The most suitable combustible fuels are those made up primarily of carbon or hydrocarbons where the
main constituents are carbon and hydrogen. All fossil fuels derived originally from carboniferous matter
fall into this category. Other elements such as sulfur are also combustible and, if present in the fuel,
contribute to the generation of heat but produce undesirable products such as sulfur dioxide. Pure
hydrocarbon fuels have the advantage of producing carbon dioxide and water vapor, both relatively
innocuous products. Oxygen is readily available from the atmosphere but is not pure. The major
constituent of the air is nitrogen and, although the relatively inert gas passes through the combustion
process largely unreacted, it does produce some undesirable nitrogen oxide at high temperatures.
Generally combustion for large scale heat production should proceed continuously under stable
conditions. This implies that the fuel and oxygen must be supplied to the combustion zone continuously
and the products of combustion likewise removed. Within the combustion zone the air containing
oxygen must be brought into intimate contact with the fuel, irrespective of whether it is in gaseous,
liquid or solid form. This requires that fuel be well dispersed and the air turbulent in the combustion
zone. Liquid and solid fuels require suitable division into small particles to ensure intimate mixing with
the air. Solid fuels usually produce significant amounts of ash which must be removed from the
combustion zone but only after sufficient time has been allowed for the combustible elements within
the fuel particles to have fully reacted with the oxygen of the air. The purpose of combustion is to
produce heat which is radiated from the combustion zone or carried away by the gaseous products of
combustion. This heat is to be transferred effectively to the working fluid of the thermodynamic cycle
but a certain portion is inevitably lost to the environment when the exhaust gases are discharged to the
atmosphere.

COMBUSTION EQUATIONS:
When various elements are burned in oxygen the products of the combustion process can be determined
from basic chemical equations. When a solid fuel such as carbon is used, the product is carbon dioxide:
C + O2 = CO2 (1)
When a simple gaseous fuel such as methane is burned, water vapor as well as carbon dioxide is
produced:
CH4 + 2O2 = CO2 + H2O (2)
For more complex liquid hydrocarbon fuels, such as oil, which contain mixtures of different
hydrocarbons, the equations have to be written in a slightly different form and the amount of each
element in the fuel has to be considered.
An electrostatic precipitator (ESP) is a filtration device that removes fine particles, like dust
and smoke, from a flowing gas using the force of an induced electrostatic charge minimally
impeding the flow of gases through the unit.
In contrast to wet scrubbers which apply energy directly to the flowing fluid medium, an ESP
applies energy only to the particulate matter being collected and therefore is very efficient in
its consumption of energy (in the form of electricity).
PRINCIPLE OF ESP:
The basic principle of electrostatic precipitator is that gas borne particles( mainly ash) are
ionised by the high voltage discharge electrode by the CORONA EFFECT.The ash particles
ionise to negative charge and are attracted to the positively charged collector plates.

PURPOSE:
Due to increase in concern towards the environment, Central pollution control board sets
National ambient air quality standards (NAAQ). In order to meet the NAAQ requirements ESP
is used.
MAIN COMPONENTS OF ESP:
1. Rigitrode (Discharge electrode):
The discharging electrode which ionises the ash particles. This is done by high voltage DC
supply. And DC supply is obtained by TR set i.e. Transformer Rectifier set.
Transformer: AC to AC. Rectifier: AC to DC

2. Modulok ( Collecting plate):

The ash particles after being ionised flow on to the plates and get attached. Generally these
collector plates are grounded.
3. Rapping mechanism (ESI):
The ash particles that are attached to collecting plates are removed with the help of rapper. It
is a hammer which hammers the plate and due to impact the ash particles fall to the bottom.
The rapping rate is controlled by the PLC in the control panel. The rapping rate should be
optimum because if it is too fast the ash particles before getting formed in to a cake ( or a large
sized layers) detaches from the surface and get entrained in the flue gas flow. And if the rapping
rate is too slow there is a back corona effect. The thickness of the ash layer on collecting plates
increases and due to ash resistivity there is a back corona effect. Both the fast and slow rapping
rates highly effect the efficiency of the ESP.
4. Gland screen:
The function of the gland screen filter is to transform the turbulent flow of flue gas in to the
streamline. The streamline flow of flue gas ensures proper gas distribution into the 6 columns
of ESP passages. There are 3 gland screen filters placed at the inlet and 1 at outlet. The gland
screen filters are also rapped so as to remove the attached ash particles.

There are many other equipments used in ESP such as Support insulation heater, Hopper heater,
Hopper feeder sensor etc.

SILO:
A silo (from the Greek σιρός – siros, "pit for holding grain") is a structure for storing bulk
materials. Silos are used in agricultureto store grain (see grain elevators) or fermented feed
known as silage. Silos are more commonly used for bulk storage of grain, coal, cement, carbon
black, woodchips, food products and sawdust. Three types of silos are in widespread use today:
tower silos, bunker silos, and bag silos.

Types of silos
Tower silo

Storage silos are cylindrical structures, typically 10 to 90 ft (3 to 27 m) in diameter and 30 to

275 ft. (10 to 90 m) in height with the slip-form and Jump-form concrete silos being the
larger diameter and taller silos. They can be made of many materials. Wood staves, concrete
staves, cast concrete, and steel panels have all been used, and have varying cost, durability,
and airtightness trade-offs. Silos storing grain, cement and woodchips are typically unloaded
with air slides or augers. Silos can be unloaded into rail cars, trucks or conveyors.
Tower silos containing silage are usually unloaded from the top of the pile, originally by hand
using a silage fork, which has many more tines than the common pitchfork, 12 vs 4, in
modern times using mechanical unloaders. Bottom silo unloaders are utilized at times but
have problems with difficulty of repair.
An advantage of tower silos is that the silage tends to pack well due to its own weight, except
in the top few feet. However, this may be a disadvantage for items like chopped wood. The
tower silo was invented by Franklin Hiram King.
In Canada, Australia and the United States, many country towns or the larger farmers in
grain-growing areas have groups of wooden or concrete tower silos, known as grain
elevators, to collect grain from the surrounding towns and store and protect the grain for
transport by train, truck or barge to a processor or to an export port. In bumper crop times, the
excess grain is stored in piles without silos or bins, causing considerable losses.
Bunker silos
Bunker silos are trenches, usually with concrete walls, that are filled and packed with tractors
and loaders. The filled trench is covered with a plastic tarp to make it airtight. These silos are
usually unloaded with a tractor and loader. They are inexpensive and especially well suited to
very large operations.
Bag silos

Bag silos are heavy plastic tubes, usually around 8 to 12 ft (2.4 to 3.6 m) in diameter, and of
variable length as required for the amount of material to be stored. They are packed using a
machine made for the purpose, and sealed on both ends. They are unloaded using a tractor
and loader or skid-steer loader. The bag is discarded in sections as it is torn off. Bag silos
require little capital investment. They can be used as a temporary measure when growth or
harvest conditions require more space, though some farms use them every year.
Fly ash is a very fine material produced by burning of pulverized coal in a thermal power plant,
and is carried by the flue gas and is collected by the electrostatic precipitator or cyclones. The
high temperatures of burning coal turns the clay minerals present in the coal powder into fused
fine particles mainly comprising aluminium silicate. Fly ash produced thus possesses both
ceramic and puzzolona properties. The problem with fly ash lies in the fact that not only does
its disposal requires large quantities of land, water and energy, its fine particles, if not managed
well, by virtue of their weightlessness, can be air borne. Typically for a 2X500 MW plant based
on indigenous coal, the amount of cash generated is around 300 to 400 tph depending on gross
calorific value and ash content of worst coal. Currently, 100 million tons of fly ash being
generated in India, with 65000 acres of land being occupied by ash ponds such a huge quantity
does pose challenging problems, in the form of land usage, health hazards, and environmental
dangers. Both in disposal, as well in utilisation, utmost care has to be taken, to safeguard the
interest of human life, wild life and environment. The ash handling system covers evacuation
of ash and disposal in wet and dry from. The ash is produced in two forms viz. fly ash which
is fine texture and bottom ash which is comparatively coarser.

Depending upon the source and make up of the coal being burnt, the composition of fly ash
and bottom ash are considerable. Fly ash includes substantial amounts of silicon dioxide and
calcium oxide which are the main ingredients of many coal bearing rocks. Toxic constituents
of fly ash depend upon the specific coal bed make-up, but may include one or more of the
following elements in quantities or trace amounts to varying percentages:
Arsenic,molybdenum,selenium,cadmium,boron,chromium,lead,manganese,mercury,strontiu
m,thallium,vanadium,beryllium along with dioxins.Fly ash is a fine,glass powder recovered
from the gases of burning coal during the production of electricity.The micron-sized earth
elements consist of primarily of silica,alumina and iron.When mixed with the limewater,the fly
ash forms a Cementous compound with Properties very similar
to that the Portland cement.
ASH POND LAYOUT:
Following point should be considered while selecting the location and layout of an ash pond:-
The ash pond area should be close enough to the thermal power plant to reduce the pumping
cost. Provisions for vertical and horizontal expansion should be made considering the life of
the power plant. The area should be far away from any water bodies like river,lake etc.to avoid
environmental hazard due to any leakage of fly ash-water slurry. In coastal areas where as the
ground water is already saline,the water from ash pond should be preferably drained through
the bottom of the ash pond and this type of pond has greater stability.
DESIGN OF BUND:
The cost of construction of a single ash pond is generally high.But this cost can be reduced by
constructing the ash pond in stages by various methods like
a) upstream construction method,
b) downstream construction method and
c) centre line construction method.
Each stage has an increasing or incrementing height of 3-5 m.The above methods are described
in brief and their advantages&disadvantages:-
Ash Water System
The entire water requirement of the ash handling system is met from cooling tower below down
of the station and decanted recovery water from the ash pond. A connection from raw water is
also provided for fast fill and emergency make-up purposes. Clear water as necessary for
equipment sealing and cooling is provided from station clarified water.DM water may also be
used for cooling purposes in closed cycle. In case of jet pump system, BALP(bottom ash low
pressure)pumps supply water for refractory cooling ,BA hopper cooling water to maintain
hopper at 60 deg. C, BA hopper fill and make-up, seal trough make-up/fill, slurry sump hopper
make-up water etc. In case of SSC system, BALP pumps supply water for refractory cooling,
cooling water for upper trough of SSC to maintain water temp at 60 deg. C, seal trough make-
up, cooling water to inspection windows, wash water to grinder,BA sump make-up, ash slurry
sump make-up etc. Fly ash HP water pumps(FAHP)supply water to wetting heads,air washers,
F.A. Slurry or trench jetting,combined ash slurry sump make-up, combined ash slurry sump
agitation etc. Seal/cooling water pumps are provided for gland sealing of Slurry pumps,
packing pumps cooling of compressors and sealing water requirement of clinker grinders.
Alternatively, Plant DM water can be used in closed cycle for cooling purpose. In order to
conserve water used in weight ash disposal, an ash water recovery system is provided to
recirculate the decanted water from the ash pond and reusing this water for ash handling
purposes.BA hopper cooling water overflow can also be recirculated after treating in settling
tank and surge tank.
Bottom Ash Hopper-
It is a water filled Hopper placed below the furnace water of wall ring headers to receive bottom
ash generated out of the combustion coal.
Electrostatic Precipitator:
A small part of fly ash gets deposited in economiser hoppers, Air Preheater ash hoppers and
duct hoppers before it enters into the electrostatic precipitator where majority of fly ash is
separated out.

Hydro Evocator-
The hydro evocator is used to create necessary vacuum for producing air flow to convey dry
ash particles through transport lines of pneumatic material handling system.
Wetting Head-
It is used to mix conveyed material with water before entering the sump by using a concentric
ring of nozzles which direct the high-pressure streams of water into the mass of fly ash. The
slurry falls freely by gravity into the sump.

Disposal of Fly Ash-

The fly ash collected in each of the electrostatic Precipitator hopper, air pre-heater hopper and
the duct hopper drop continuously to a feeder ejector apparatus provided under each hopper
where fly ash gets mixed with water and the resultant slurry drops into the ash sluice trench
provided below the feeder ejectors apparatus in case of wet disposal system.The ash slurry is
then transported to the ash slurry slump by gravity aided with high pressure. Slurry at the sump
is pumped too far off disposal area(Ash Pond)through cast iron or basalt lined disposal
pipelines.
A boiler or steam generator is a device used to create steam by applying heat
energy to water. Although the definitions are somewhat flexible, it can be said that older steam
generators were commonly termed boilers and worked at low to medium pressure (7–
2,000 kPa or 1–290 psi) but, at pressures above this, it is more usual to speak of a steam
generator.
A boiler or steam generator is used wherever a source of steam is required. The form and size
depends on the application: mobile steam engines such as steam locomotives, portable
engines and steam-powered road vehicles typically use a smaller boiler that forms an integral
part of the vehicle; stationary steam engines, industrial installations and power stations will
usually have a larger separate steam generating facility connected to the point-of-use by piping.
A notable exception is the steam-powered fireless locomotive, where separately-generated
steam is transferred to a receiver (tank) on the locomotive.
The steam generator or boiler is an integral component of a steam engine when considered as
a prime mover. However it needs to be treated separately, as to some extent a variety of
generator types can be combined with a variety of engine units. A boiler incorporates
a firebox or furnace in order to burn the fuel and generate heat. The generated heat is
transferred to water to make steam, the process of boiling. This produces saturated steam at a
rate which can vary according to the pressure above the boiling water. The higher the furnace
temperature, the faster the steam production. The saturated steam thus produced can then either
be used immediately to produce power via a turbine and alternator, or else may be
further superheated to a higher temperature; this notably reduces suspended water content
making a given volume of steam produce more work and creates a greater temperature gradient,
which helps reduce the potential to form condensation. Any remaining heat in the combustion
gases can then either be evacuated or made to pass through an economiser, the role of which is
to warm the feed water before it reaches the boiler.
A steam turbine is a device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to
do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir
Charles Parsons in 1884.[1][2]
The steam turbine is a form of heat engine that derives much of its improvement
in thermodynamic efficiency from the use of multiple stages in the expansion of the steam,
which results in a closer approach to the ideal reversible expansion process. Because
the turbine generates rotary motion, it is particularly suited to be used to drive an electrical
generator—about 85% of all electricity generation in the United States in the year 2014 was by
use of steam turbines.[3]

Principle of operation and design

An ideal steam turbine is considered to be an isentropic process, or constant entropy process,
in which the entropy of the steam entering the turbine is equal to the entropy of the steam
leaving the turbine. No steam turbine is truly isentropic, however, with typical isentropic
efficiencies ranging from 20–90% based on the application of the turbine. The interior of a
turbine comprises several sets of blades or buckets. One set of stationary blades is connected
to the casing and one set of rotating blades is connected to the shaft. The sets intermesh with
certain minimum clearances, with the size and configuration of sets varying to efficiently
exploit the expansion of steam at each stage.
Practical thermal efficiency of a steam turbine varies with turbine size, load condition, gap
losses and friction losses. They reach top values up to about 50% in a 1,200 MW (1,600,000 hp)
turbine; smaller ones have a lower efficiency. To maximize turbine efficiency the steam is
expanded, doing work, in a number of stages. These stages are characterized by how the energy
is extracted from them and are known as either impulse or reaction turbines. Most steam
turbines use a mixture of the reaction and impulse designs: each stage behaves as either one or
the other, but the overall turbine uses both. Typically, lower pressure sections are reaction type
and higher pressure stages are impulse type.
The steam turbine operates on basic principles of thermodynamics using the part 3-4 of
the Rankine cycle shown in the adjoining diagram. Superheated steam (or dry saturated steam,
depending on application) leaves the boiler at high temperature and high pressure. At entry to
the turbine, the steam gains kinetic energy by passing through a nozzle (a fixed nozzle in an
impulse type turbine or the fixed blades in a reaction type turbine). When the steam leaves the
nozzle it is moving at high velocity towards the blades of the turbine rotor. A force is created
on the blades due to the pressure of the vapor on the blades causing them to move. A generator
or other such device can be placed on the shaft, and the energy that was in the steam can now
be stored and used. The steam leaves the turbine as a saturated vapor (or liquid-vapor mix
depending on application) at a lower temperature and pressure than it entered with and is sent
to the condenser to be cooled.[28] The first law enables us to find a formula for the rate at which
work is developed per unit mass. Assuming there is no heat transfer to the surrounding
environment and that the changes in kinetic and potential energy are negligible compared to
the change in specific enthalpy we arrive at the following equation
Ẇ / ṁ = h3 - h4 where,

Ẇ is the rate at which work is developed per unit time

ṁ is the rate of mass flow through the turbine

In electricity generation, a generator is a device that converts motive power (mechanical
energy) into electrical power for use in an external circuit. Sources of mechanical energy
include steam turbines, gas turbines, water turbines, internal combustion engines and even
hand cranks. The first electromagnetic generator, the Faraday disk, was invented in 1831 by
British scientist Michael Faraday. Generators provide nearly all of the power for electric power
grids.
The reverse conversion of electrical energy into mechanical energy is done by an electric
motor, and motors and generators have many similarities. Many motors can be mechanically
driven to generate electricity and frequently make acceptable manual generators.
Electromagnetic generators fall into one of two broad categories, dynamos and alternators.

 Dynamos generate pulsing direct current through the use of a commutator.

 Alternators generate alternating current.
Mechanically a generator consists of a rotating part and a stationary part:
Rotor
The rotating part of an electrical machine.
Stator
The stationary part of an electrical machine, which surrounds the rotor.
One of these parts generates a magnetic field, the other has a wire winding in which
the changing field induces an electric current:
Field winding or field (permanent) magnets
The magnetic field producing component of an electrical machine. The magnetic field
of the dynamo or alternator can be provided by either wire windings called field
coils or permanent magnets. Electrically-excited generators include an excitation
system to produce the field flux. A generator using permanent magnets (PMs) is
sometimes called a magneto, or permanent magnet synchronous generators (PMSMs).
Armature
The power-producing component of an electrical machine. In a generator, alternator, or
dynamo, the armature windings generate the electric current, which provides power to
an external circuit. The armature can be on either the rotor or the stator, depending on
the design, with the field coil or magnet on the other part.
WATER TREATMENT PLANT (W.T.P):
Water is one of the key input requirements for thermal power generation. Electricity is
produced by converting water into steam in steam generator (boiler) and then by utilizing the
heat of the generated steam for driving the turbo generator. By quality considerations and end
use considerations water in a thermal power plant can be classified as: Raw water, Clarified
water, DM water, Drinking water, Service water, Ash water, Cooling water or circulating
water, Fire water, etc. In M.T.P.S the source of water is from the river Damodar. The river
water generally termed as raw water contains soluble and insoluble organic and inorganic
matters which are harmful for the system and which must be completely separated and
removed to make the water suitable for being used in the system. Treated sewage water may
also be used as a source of raw water. Continuous make up water, that is about 1% of the
water lost due to boiler blow down, is added to the boiler water system after passing the water
through the Water Treatment Plant and the Demineralization Plant. The processes involved in
the water treatment plant are as follows:-

AERATION:-
In this process raw water is sprayed over cascade aerator in which water flows downwards
over many steps in the form of thin waterfalls. Cascading increases surface area of water to
facilitate easy separation of dissolved undesirable gases. Removal of gases can be improved
by increasing the temperature, time of aeration and surface area of water.

FLOCCULATION & COAGULATION:-

It takes place in the clariflocculator. Coagulants destabilizes suspended solids and
agglomerates into heavier floc, which is separated out through sedimentation. Prime
chemicals used for coagulation are alum and poly-aluminium chloride(PAC).

FILTRATION:-
Filters remove coarse suspended matter and remaining floc or sludge after coagulation and
also reduce the chlorine demand of water. Filter beds are developed by placing gravel or
coarse anthracite and sand in layers. These filter beds are regenerated by backwashing and
air blowing through it.
CHLORINATION:-Neutral organic matter contains many classes of high
molecular weight organic compounds. Chlorine water or sodium
hypochloride solution is used as oxidative biocides to reduce this organic
load.
DEMINERALIZATION PLANT
Demineralizatión is the process of removing the mineral salts from water by ion exchange.
Impurities that remain dissolved in the water dissociate to form negative and positive charged
particles known as ions. The harmful ingredients present in the raw water along with their
properties which affect the system are:

CALCIUM AND MAGNESIUM:

These ions when associate with anions form their compounds of sulphate, bicarbonate,
carbonate, chloride and nitrate. At higher temperatures these compounds get separated and
adhere to the walls of the tubes forming scales. These scales being poor conductor of heat
badly affect transfer of heat through the tube walls resulting in tube failure due to excessive
high tube wall temperature.

SILICA:
Silica if carried with water in colloidal form remains suspended in then normal temperature
and pressure. At higher boiler pressure and converted in reactive form and is carried over
with steam water at temperature, it gets from boiler drum and forms very hard deposits at low
temperature region of turbine blades and diaphragms which reduces turbine efficiency

CHLORIDE:
Chlorides of calcium, magnesium, sodium present in natural water being very soluble take
path in pure condensate water. The chloride if carried over with steam from boiler drum
causes damage of boiler tube and sometimes turbine material due to formation of highly
reactive nascent hydrogen

OXYGEN:
The rate of copper pick up from condenser copper tubes increases in presence of ammonia
and dissolved oxygen due to formation of copper complex corrosion to damage boiler tubes.

IRON:-
Corrosion of metal is guided by its reduction potential value and gets deposited in the water
wall tubes in high heat flux zone of the boiler.

CARBON DIOXIDE:-
Carbon dioxide forms carbonic acid with water and causes corrosion in steam and return
lines.
THE PROCESSES INVOLVED IN A DE-MINERALIZED PLANT ARE AS
FOLLOWS:
FILTRATION:-
The filtered water of the water treatment plant is passed through the pressure sand filter(PSF)
to reduce turbidity and then through activated charcoal filter(ACF) to adsorb the residual
chlorine and iron in filter water. The role of ACF is to protect the polymeric chain length of
the resin since the residual chlorine has a tendency to oxidize the resin bed and thereby
reducing its life span.

CATION REMOVAL:-
The water from ACF is passed through the cation exchange resin column. The sulphuric,
carboxylic groups in resin of cation exchange column traps all cations (1.e. calcium,
magnesium, sodium, etc) of filter water keeping anions unchanged and liberates equivalent
amounts of hydrogen ions at the cost of cations resulting in formation of acidic solution. The
acidic solution mainly contains carbonic acid and partly frees mineral acid (i.e HCL, H2S04)

ANION REMOVAL:-
In anion exchange column , the quaternary amine group of resin forms ionic bond with anions
like chlorides, sulphates, etc. present in degasified water. The liberated OH- ions combine
with the H+ to form water.

FINAL WASHING(MIXED BED):-

Finally, the anion exchange outlet water is passed through cation and anion mixed resin bed
to arrest those ions which may come from cation or anion resin bed. The outlet water from
mixed bed is stored in a tank, commonly called DM storage tank from where the water is
used in the system, as and when required. This water is completely de-mineralized.

REGENERTION OF RESINS:-
The cation and anion exchange resins are regenerated with the help of concentrated HCL or
H2S04 and NaOH.

QUALITY OF TREATED WATER FROM A DE-MINERALIZATION PLANT

1.pH-6.8 to 7.0
2. conductivity 0.7 Us/cm
3. soluble silica <0.02 ppm
This water requires further chemical conditioning during its circulation through the system.
These chemicals are applied at different stages with the help of pumps.
The bottom-most layer was WBM (Water bound Macadum) Road over which stone dust
was provided. The Lean Concrete (1:3:6) layer was above it on which the reinforced
concrete (1:1.5:3) section of the road lied. At bottom 25 mm cover was provided but at
top the cover was 75 mm to withstand constant wear & tear. Main reinforcement
parallel to shorter side was laid and binders perpendicular to it. Separators were in
place to keep top and bottom reinforcement apart at their position. Curing. (both 07 days& 28
days) which is very crucial was carried out Repair work to be carried in. out using bitu-
mastic.
Macadam is a type of road construction pioneered by Scottish engineer John Loudon
McAdam in around 1820. The method simplified what had been considered state of the art at
that point. Single-sized aggregate layers of small stones, with a coating of binder as a
cementing agent, are mixed in an open-structured roadway.

WATER BOUND MACADUM (WBM):

Its a usual bitminous road and anoter name of water bound macadam road which made
by cut and fill the earth, then levelling the subgrade by road roller then boulders filled
with sand, then 40 mm blue metal stone mixed with bituminous. final coat with 10 mm
down size aggregate mixed with Tar/bitumun applied over the road is called water
bound macadam road.
A dowel bar retrofit (DBR) is a method of reinforcing cracks in highway pavement hy
inserting steel dowel bars in slots cut across the technique several states have cracks. It is a
successfully used to address faulting in older jointed plain concrete pavements. The typical
approach is to saw cut and jackhammer out the slots for the dowels. Following dowel
placement the slots are then typically backfilled with a non- shrink concrete mixture (grout)
and the pavement is diamond-ground to restoresmoothness.

CAMBERING:
It is provided to prevent water logging on the road. A gradient is provided on both sides from
a central crest in a crOsS sectional view so that water may flow to the side of the road.

BLEEDING OF BITUMEN:
Bleeding occurs when asphalt binder fills the aggregate voids during hot weather and then
expands onto the pavement surface. Since bleeding is not reversible during cold weather,
asphalt binder will accumulate on the pavement surface over time.
REPAIR WORK: BITUMASTIC –
A protective coating of asphalt and filter used on structural metals that are exposed to
weathering.
The MGR (+) or merry go round rail track in MIPS is mainly used for receiving coal
consignment although heavy machinery may also be transported. Apart from three incoming
and three outgoing lines, there is a separate ODC (Over Dimensional Consignment) Line.
The track type is broad gauge (1760 mm- is provided at curves inner face to inner face of
track) Super-elevation The broad gauge comprises of 52 kg and 60 kg rail sections. In case
two adjacent tracks of different sections are to be joined, combination fish plates are used. 40
mm check rails provided at crossings and guard rails on bridges to avert derailment.
Sleepers:
PSC (Pre-Stressed Concrete) sleepers are used instead of wooden (teak) ones Each sleeper
weighs around 295.

BOBRN types rakes are used to transport coal. The coals drop on to hopper from which two
conveyor belts take the coal to crusher mill. The conveyors are kept taut using counterweight.
For switching tracks, two types of gradients were present: 1 in 8.5 and 1 in12. For first case,
the switch takes place from one track to another in 67 sleepers whereas for the second case it
is completed in 97 sleepers. Links are operated from cabins. The track distance between the
stock rail and tongue rail increases gradually which is maintained by a distance block. The
immediate next track is called lead rail lets out the train through the station.
RAILWAY TRACK:
The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure
consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleepers, British English) and ballast (or slab
track), plus the underlying subgrade. It enables trains to move by providing a dependable
surface for their wheels to roll upon. For clarity it is often referred to as railway track (British
English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (predominantly in the United States). Tracks
where electric trains or electric trams run are equipped with an electrification system such as
an overhead electrical power line or an additional electrified rail.
RAILWAY TRACK
Railway Sleepers:
Definition:
It is a component of permanent way laid transversely under the rails and performing the
following functions.
 To support the rails firmly and evenly.
 To maintain the gauge of the back correctly.
 To distribute the weight common on the rails over a sufficiently large areas of the
ballast.
 To act as an elastic medium between the rail and the ballast and to absorb the vibrations
of the trains.
 To maintain the track at proper grads.
 To align the rail properly.
Characteristics of Ideal Railway Sleepers:
 Initial cost and maintenance cost should be low.
 They should resist weathering, corrosion, decay and other deterioration.
 They should bear the wheel load efficiently and satisfactorily.
 They should maintain the correct gauge.
 They should absorb shocks or vibrations due to moving vehicles.
 It should distribute the load properly and uniformly over the ballast.
 Fastenings of rail with sleepers should be strong and simple.
 They should not break while packing of ballast.
 Weight should not be low or high.

Types of Railway Sleepers:

Depending upon the position in a railway track, sleepers may be classified as:
1. Longitudinal Sleepers
2. Transverse Sleepers
i. Timber / wooden sleepers
ii. Steel Sleepers
iii. Cast Iron Sleepers
iv. Concrete Sleepers
Indian Railways are generally using prestressed concrete sleepers. Its advantages &
disadvantages are given below.
Concrete sleepers:
R.C.C and pre-stressed concrete sleepers are now replacing all other types of
sleepers except to some special circumstances such as crossing bridges etc. here timber sleepers
are used. They were first of all used in France round about in 1914 but are common since 1950.
They may be a twin block sleepers joined by an angle iron. It may be a single block pre-stressed
type.
Advantages of Concrete Sleepers:
 Durable with life range from 40-50 years.
 They can be produced on large quantities locally by installing a plant.
 Heavier than all other types thus giving better lateral stability to the track.
 Good insulators and thus suitable for use in track circuited lines.
 Efficient in controlling creep.
 They are not attacked by corrosion.
 Free from attacks of vermin and decay, suitable for all types of soils.
 Most suitable for welded tracks.
 Prevent buckling more efficiently.
 Initial cost is high but proves to be economical in long run.
 Effectively and strongly hold the track to gauge.
Disadvantages of Concrete Sleepers:
 Difficult to be handled.
 Difficult to be manufactured in different sizes thus cannot be used in bridges and
crossing.
 Can be damaged easily while loading and unloading.

Ballast:
Track ballast forms the track bed upon which railroad ties (sleepers) are laid. It is
packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to bear the load from the railroad ties, to
facilitate drainage of water, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track
structure. This also serves to hold the track in place as the trains roll by. It is typically made of
crushed stone, although ballast has sometimes consisted of other, less suitable materials, for
example burnt clay. The term "ballast" comes from a nautical term for the stones used to
stabilize a ship

Railway Gauge:
In rail transport, track gauge is the spacing of the rails on a railway track and is
measured between the inner faces of the load-bearing rails. All vehicles on a network must
have running gear that is compatible with the track gauge, and in the earliest days of railways
the selection of a proposed railway's gauge was a key issue. As the dominant parameter
determining interoperability, it is still frequently used as a descriptor of a route or network.

Different Types of Railway Gauge:

1. Broad Gauge:
 Broad gauge refers to any gauge wider than standard gauge or 1676 mm (5 ft 6 in) .
 Broad gauge is used to provide better stability and provide the easy transfer of rolling
stock.
 It is used for main cities and routes of heavy intensities.
2. Meter Gauge:
 Standard gauge is referred the gauge having a length equal to 1.00m.
 It is used in undeveloped area having comparatively Less intensity.
3. Narrow Gauge:
 In hilly areas and very thinly populated areas where it uneconomical to use Meter
gauge, narrow gauge is used.
 2’-00” and 2’-6” Narrow gauges are generally used.

Advantages and disadvantages of different track gauges:

When selecting a gauge, there is always a trade-off between different pros and cons:
  Narrow Gauge:
Pros: Lower cost, less demanding right-of-way and construction
Cons: Lower speed, less stability, less load carrying capacity
 Broad Gauge:
Pros: Higher speed, stability and capacity
Cons: Higher cost, more demanding right-of-way and construction.
Fish Plate & Fish Bolts:
In rail terminology, a fishplate, splice bar or joint bar is a metal bar that is bolted
to the ends of two rails to join them together in a track. The name is derived from fish, a wooden
bar with a curved profile used to strengthen a ship's mast. The top and bottom edges are tapered
inwards so the device wedges itself between the top and bottom of the rail when it is bolted
into place. In rail transport modeling, a fishplate is often a small copper or nickel silver plate
that slips onto both rails to provide the functions of maintaining alignment and electrical
continuity. 5mm gap is provided at fish plate junction. Both 4-bolt (length 600mm) as well as
6-bolt(length 1000mm) fish plates are provided on the tracks. The bolts are each of 20mm
diameter and 140 mm long placed at 150mm c/c. Adhesive on 6-bolts fish plates also act as
insulators and break the circuit at the junction of the two tracks.

COMPOSITE REINFORCED GROOVED RUBBER SOLE PAD:

A composite reinforced grooved rubber sole plate for railway track,
particularly the rail pad comprises of the vulcanized rubber of high crosslink density reinforced
and bounded by specially engineered polymer in such a way that it restricts the lateral
movements of the pad on application of shear and compressive stress thereby preventing the
wear and tear of the pad, which increases the service life by many folds.
CHECK RAIL AND GUARD RAIL:
The broad gauge comprises of 52 kg and 60 kg rail sections. In case two adjacent
tracks of different sections are to be joined, combination fish plates are used. 40 mm check
rails provided at crossings and guard rails on bridges to avert derailment.

SWITCHES AND CROSSINGS:

S&Cs are subjected to high concentrated loads from passing
vehicles. This makes S&Cs sensitive to damages.
 S&Cs are highly represented in operational failure statistics and a S&C failure will
cause major operational disturbances.
 The “Health” of a switch depends on several influences: vehicles, substructure and
maintenance at the right time.
DERAILING SWITCH:
This switch is provided at junction of two rail tracks and its function is to avert
collision between two trains on same outgoing track. When one train is passing, the switch is
automatically open. It will derail any incoming train on the other track. For switching tracks,
two types of gradients were present: 1 in 8½ and 1 in 12. For first case, the switch takes place
from one track to another in 67 sleepers whereas for the second case it is completed in 97
sleepers. Links are operated from cabins.
Switch Part
The track distance between the stock rail and tongue rail increases gradually, this
is maintained by a distance block. The immediate next track called lead rail lets out the train
through the section.
Introduction
Cooling towers are a very important part of many chemical plants. The primary task of a cooling
tower is to reject heat into the atmosphere. They represent a relatively inexpensive and dependable
means of removing low-grade heat from cooling water. The make-up water source is used to
replenish water lost to evaporation. Hot water from heat exchangers is sent to the cooling tower.
The water exits the cooling tower and is sent back to the exchangers or to other units for further
cooling.

Cooling Tower Types

Cooling towers fall into two main categories: Natural draft and Mechanical draft. Natural draft
towers use very large concrete chimneys to introduce air through the media. Due to the large size of
these towers, they are generally used for water flow rates above 45,000 m3 /hr. These types of
towers are used only by utility power stations. Mechanical draft towers utilize large fans to force or
suck air through circulated water. The water falls downward over fill surfaces, which help increase
the contact time between the water and the air - this helps maximise heat transfer between the
two. Cooling rates of Mechanical draft towers depend upon their fan diameter and speed of
operation.

Natural draft cooling towers

In the natural draft cooling tower, the necessary air mass flow is caused by density
differences (buoyancy). The heat exchange surfaces are right in the lower part of the tower,
producing current by buoyancy. Compared with the mechanical draft system, the advantage is
that the natural draft cooling tower does not demand power for the fans. The result is a
positive impact on the achieved balance of the whole power station. A natural-draft cooling
tower (NDCT), on the other hand, is preferred for power plants located near the load centres,
which means far from the coal source point because this process works without any rotating
equipment (i.e., cooling fans), thereby saving on costly power. The air-flow rate through a
NDCT depends on the density difference between ambient air and relatively hot and humid
light air inside the tower. For a plant site, where duration of high summer ambient
temperature is considerably greater combined with an environment having low relative
humidity, an adequate density difference would not be available for suitable performance of a
NDCT as per design and operational data. For such sites, IDCT is much a better choice. The
natural-draft CT may be of counter flow or crossflow type with draft air flowing through the
packing provided by the buoyancy effect of hot and humid air inside the tower shell as
compared to outside ambient air.

Mechanical draft towers

Mechanical draft towers are available in the following airflow arrangements:
1. Counter flows induced draft.
2. Counter flow forced draft.
3. Cross flow induced draft.
In the counter flow induced draft design, hot water enters at the top, while the air is introduced
at the bottom and exits at the top. Both forced and induced draft fans are used. In cross flow
induced draft towers, the water enters at the top and passes over the fill. The air, however, is
introduced at the side either on one side (single-flow tower) or opposite sides (double-flow
tower). An induced draft fan draws the air across the wetted fill and expels it through the top
of the structure. Mechanical draft towers are available in a large range of capacities. Normal
capacities range from approximately 10 tons, 2.5 m3 /hr flow to several thousand tons and m3
/hr. Towers can be either factory built or field erected - for example concrete towers are only
field erected. Many towers are constructed so that they can be grouped together to achieve the
desired capacity. Thus, many cooling towers are assemblies of two or more individual cooling
towers or "cells." The number of cells they have, e.g., an eight-cell tower, often refers to such
towers. Multiple-cell towers can be lineal, square, or round depending upon the shape of the
individual cells and whether the air inlets are located on the sides or bottoms of the cells.

Components of Cooling Tower.

The basic components of an evaporative tower are: Frame and casing, fill, cold water basin,
drift eliminators, air inlet, louvers, nozzles and fans.

Frame and casing:

Most towers have structural frames that support the exterior enclosures (casings), motors, fans,
and other components. With some smaller designs, such as some glass fiber units, the casing
may essentially be the frame.

Fill:
Most towers employ fills (made of plastic or wood) to facilitate heat transfer by maximising
water and air contact. Fill can either be splash or film type. With splash fill, water falls over
successive layers of horizontal splash bars, continuously breaking into smaller droplets, while
also wetting the fill surface. Plastic splash fill promotes better heat transfer than the wood
splash fill. Film fill consists of thin, closely spaced plastic surfaces over which the water
spreads, forming a thin film in contact with the air. These surfaces may be flat, corrugated,
honeycombed, or other patterns. The film type of fill is the more efficient and provides same
heat transfer in a smaller volume than the splash fill.

Cold water basin:

The cold water basin, located at or near the bottom of the tower, receives the cooled water that
flows down through the tower and fill. The basin usually has a sump or low point for the cold
water discharge connection. In many tower designs, the cold water basin is beneath the entire
fill. In some forced draft counter flow design, however, the water at the bottom of the fill is
channeled to a perimeter trough that functions as the cold water basin. Propeller fans are
mounted beneath the fill to blow the air up through the tower. With this design, the tower is
mounted on legs, providing easy access to the fans and their motors.

Drift eliminators:
These capture water droplets entrapped in the air stream that otherwise would be lost to the
atmosphere.

Air inlet:
This is the point of entry for the air entering a tower. The inlet may take up an entire side of a
tower–cross flow design– or be located low on the side or the bottom of counter flow designs.

Louvers:
Generally, cross-flow towers have inlet louvers. The purpose of louvers is to equalize air flow
into the fill and retain the water within the tower. Many counter flow tower designs do not
require louvers.

Nozzles:
These provide the water sprays to wet the fill. Uniform water distribution at the top of the fill
is essential to achieve proper wetting of the entire fill surface. Nozzles can either be fixed in
place and have either round or square spray patterns or can be part of a rotating assembly as
found in some circular cross-section towers.

Fans:
Both axial (propeller type) and centrifugal fans are used in towers. Generally, propeller fans
are used in induced draft towers and both propeller and centrifugal fans are found in forced
draft towers. Depending upon their size, propeller fans can either be fixed or variable pitch. A
fan having non-automatic adjustable pitch blades permits the same fan to be used over a wide
range of kW with the fan adjusted to deliver the desired air flow at the lowest power
consumption. Automatic variable pitch blades can vary air flow in response to changing load
conditions.

Tower Materials:
In the early days of cooling tower manufacture, towers were constructed primarily of wood.
Wooden components included the frame, casing, louvers, fill, and often the cold water basin.
If the basin was not of wood, it likely was of concrete. Today, tower manufacturers fabricate
towers and tower components from a variety of materials. Often several materials are used to
enhance corrosion resistance, reduce maintenance, and promote reliability and long service
life. Galvanized steel, various grades of stainless steel, glass fiber, and concrete are widely used
in tower construction as well as aluminum and various types of plastics for some components.
Wood towers are still available, but they have glass fiber rather than wood panels (casing) over
the wood framework. The inlet air louvers may be glass fiber, the fill may be plastic, and the
cold water basin may be steel. Larger towers sometimes are made of concrete. Many towers–
casings and basins–are constructed of galvanized steel or, where a corrosive atmosphere is a
problem, stainless steel. Sometimes a galvanized tower has a stainless steel basin. Glass fiber
is also widely used for cooling tower casings and basins, giving long life and protection from
the harmful effects of many chemicals. Plastics are widely used for fill, including PVC,
polypropylene, and other polymers. Treated wood splash fill is still specified for wood towers,
but plastic splash fill is also widely used when water conditions mandate the use of splash fill.
Film fill, because it offers greater heat transfer efficiency, is the fill of choice for applications
where the circulating water is generally free of debris that could plug the fill passageways.
Plastics also find wide use as nozzle materials. Many nozzles are being made of PVC, ABS,
polypropylene, and glass-filled nylon. Aluminum, glass fiber, and hot-dipped galvanized steel
are commonly used fan materials. Centrifugal fans are often fabricated from galvanized steel.
Propeller fans are fabricated from galvanized, aluminum, or moulded glass fiber reinforced
plastic.

THERMODYNAMICS OF COOLING TOWER:

Thermodynamics also dictate that the heat removed from the water must be equal to the heat
absorbed by the surrounding air:
L (T1 –T2) = G (h2 – h1)
L /G= (h2 – h1) / (T1– T2)
Where,
L/G = liquid to gas mass flow ratio (kg/kg)
T1 = hot water temperature (°C)
T2 = cold water temperature (°C)
h2 = enthalpy of air-water vapor mixture at exhaust wet-bulb temperature (same units as
above)
h1 = enthalpy of air-water vapor mixture at inlet wet-bulb temperature (same units as above).
BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS:
Township project in colony A township project was in full swing in the MTPS colony
comprising G plus three and G plus eight type buildings. The estimated cost of the whole
project was around rupees two hundred crores. Shallow foundations were provided in G
buildings whereas pile foundation was being laid for the G plus eight buildings. Concrete
slabs were also being casted after providing the required reinforcement detailing. Formwork
was also in place.
PILE FOUNDATION:
Pile foundations are long, slender, columnar elements in a foundation that are installed into
the ground. They are typically made from steel or reinforced concrete and possibly timber. A
foundation is described as piled when its depth is more than three times its breadth. Pile
foundations are principally used to transfer the loads from a superstructure, through weak,
compressible strata or water onto stronger, more compact, less compressible and stiffer soil
or rock at depth, increasing the effective size of a foundation and resisting horizontal loads.
They are used in very large buildings, and in situations when the soil under a building is not
suitable to prevent excessive settlement.
PILES CAN BE CLASSIFIED BY THEIR FUNCTION:
End bearing piles are those where most of the friction is developed at the toe. Friction piles
are those where most of the pile bearing capacity is developed by shear stresses along the
sides of the pile.
There are two types of pile foundation installations:
DRIVEN PILES AND BORED PILES:
Driven piles are normally made from precast concrete which is then hammered into Bored
piles are cast in situ, the soil js bored out from the ground, under reaming is performed and
then the concrete is poured into the hole. Alternatively, boring of the soil and pouring of the
conerete can take place simultaneously, in which case the piles are called continuous fight
augured The choice of pile used depends on the location and type of structure, the ground
conditions, durability of the materials in the enviroment and cost Most piles use some end
bearing and some friction, in order to resist the action of loads. Driven piles are useful in
offshore applications, are stable in soft squeezing soils and can densify loose soil. However,
bored piles are more popular in urban areas as there is minimal vibration, they can be used
where headroom is limited, there is no risk of heave and it is easy to vary their length.
Pile Cap:
A pile cap is a thick concrete mat that rests on concrete or timber piles that have been driven
into soft or unstable ground to provide a suitable stable foundation. It usually forms part of
the foundation of a building, typically a multi-story building structure or support base for
heavy equipment. The cast concrete pile cap distributes the load of the building into the piles.
A similar structure to a pile cap is a "raft", which is a concrete foundation floor resting
directly onto soft soil which may be liable to subsidence.
DESIGN:
A geological survey must be carried out first to establish the stability of the proposed site for
the support cap. The cap thickness will be determined by the load that it has to support and the
number of piles used to distribute the load into the underlying soil. Other considerations, such
as any localised loading that any part of the mat must support are taken into account. Some soil
is so fluid in nature (such as clay and sand), that screw shaped piles are used, these resist the
tendency for the pile to sink under the added weight of the cap and the load placed upon it.
Standard engineering practice is followed with regard to the square area of the cap, thickness,
and its design loading. From a set of appropriate calculations the sizes will be determined and
the quantity of concrete required calculated.

SHALLOW FOUNDATION-
Shallow foundation is a type of foundation which transfers building loads to the earth very
near the surface. It includes spread footing foundation, Mat slab foundation, slab on grade
foundation, pad foundation, rubbled trench foundation and earth bag foundations.

SPREAD FOOTING FOUNDATIONS-

It is the type of foundations which is typically used in residential building and has a wider
bottom portion than the load bearing foundation it supports. These foundations are common in
residential constructions that include the basement and in many commercial structures.

MAT SLAB FOUNDATION-

They are used to distribute heavy column and wall loads across the entire building area to lower
the contact pressure compared to the conventional spread footing foundations. Mat slab
foundations can be constructed near the ground surface or at the bottom of basement. In high
rise buildings mat slab foundations can be several meters thick with extensive reinforcements
to ensure relatively uniform load transfer.

SLAB ON GRADE FOUNDATIONS-

They are used where the concrete slab is used to serve as the foundations for the structure Is
formed from a mould set into the ground. The concrete is then placed into the mold leaving no
space into the ground and the structure.

REINFORCED CONCRETE-
Reinforced concrete is a composite material in which concretes relatively low tensile strength
and ductility are counteracted by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength
and ductility. The reinforcement are usually steel reinforcing bars (rebar) and are usually
embedded in the concrete passively before the concrete sets.

For a strong, ductile and durable construction the reinforcement needs to have the following
properties.

1. High relative strength.

 2. High toleration of tensile strength.

3. Good bond to the concrete irrespective of pH, moisture and similar particles.

4. Thermal compatibility, not causing unacceptable stresses in response to

changing temperatures.

5. Durability in the concrete environment.

CONSTRUCTION:
The mat is made of concrete which is an aggregate of small rocks and cement. This mixture
has to be supported by a framework to avoid sagging and fracture whilst setting. This process
is known as shuttering and reinforcing. The materials used are long twisted steel bars between
the piles held in shape by thinner tie wires. Once this steel mat is laid, timber is attached around
the perimeter to contain the wet concrete mixture. Once poured, (usually as a series of small
loads), the concrete is stirred to remove any air pockets that might weaken the structure when
set. The concrete undergoes a chemical change as it hardens and this produces a lot of heat.
Sometimes, if the mass of concrete is very large, pipes carrying refrigerant coolant are used in
the mass to assist the setting process to prevent the concrete from cracking.

CONCRETE SLAB:
A concrete slab is a common structural element of modern buildings. Horizontal slabs of
steel reinforced concrete, typically between 100 and 500 millimeters thick, are most often used
to construct floors and ceilings, while thinner slabs are also used for exterior paving.

In many domestic and industrial buildings a thick concrete slab, supported on foundations or
directly on the subsoil, is used to construct the ground floor of a building. These can either be
"ground-bearing" or "suspended" slabs. In high rise buildings and skyscrapers, thinner, pre-
cast concrete slabs are slung between the steel frames to form the floors and ceilings on each
level.

FORMWORK:
Formwork is the term given to either temporary or permanent moulds into which concrete or
similar materials are poured. In the context of concrete construction, the form work supports
the shuttering moulds.

Vertical jacks with adjustable length were erected during the construction project. Both flat top
and U-shaped top jacks were provided.
Some construction components were in operation from which details of tower crane with gantry
girder and concrete batching plant are being given.

TOWER CRANE:

Tower cranes are a modern form of balance crane that consist of the same basic parts.
Fixed to the ground on a concrete slab (and sometimes attached to the sides of structures as
well), tower cranes often give the best combination of height and lifting capacity and are used
in the construction of tall buildings. The base is then attached to the mast which gives the crane
its height. Further the mast is attached to the slewing unit (gear and motor) that allows the crane
to rotate. On top of the slewing unit there are three main parts which are: the long horizontal
jib (working arm), shorter counter-jib, and the operator's cab.

The long horizontal jib is the part of the crane that carries the load. The counter-jib carries a
counterweight, usually of concrete blocks, while the jib suspends the load to and from the
center of the crane. The crane operator either sits in a cab at the top of the tower or controls the
crane by radio remote control from the ground. In the first case the operator's cab is most
usually located at the top of the tower attached to the turntable, but can be mounted on the jib,
or partway down the tower. The lifting hook is operated by the crane operator using electric
motors to manipulate wire rope cables through a system of sheaves. The hook is located on the
long horizontal arm to lift the load which also contains its motor.

In order to hook and unhook the loads, the operator usually works in conjunction with a signaler
(known as a 'dogger', 'rigger' or 'swamper'). They are most often in radio contact, and always
use hand signals. The rigger or dogger directs the schedule of lifts for the crane, and is
responsible for the safety of the rigging and loads.

THE COMPONENT OF TOWER CRANE:

Tower Cranes are used extensively in construction and other industry to hoist and move
materials. There are many types of tower cranes. Although they are different in type, the main
parts are the same, as follows:

1. Mast: The mast is the main supporting tower of the crane. It is made of steel trussed sections
that are connected together during installation.

2. Slewing Unit: The slewing unit sits at the top of the mast. This is the engine that enables the
crane to rotate.

3. Operating Cabin: The operating cabin sits just above the slewing unit. It contains the
operating controls.

4. Jib: The jib, or operating arm, extends horizontally from the crane. A "luffing" jib is able to
move up and down; a fixed jib has a rolling trolley that runs along the underside to move goods
horizontally.

5. Hook: The hook (or hooks) is used to connect the material to the crane. It hangs at the end
of thick steel cables that run along the jib to the motor.

6. Weights: Large concrete counterweights are mounted toward the rear of the mast, to
compensate for the weight of the goods lifted.
A tower crane is usually assembled by a telescopic jib (mobile) crane of greater reach and in
the case of tower cranes that have risen while constructing very tall skyscrapers, a smaller crane
(or derrick) will often be lifted to the roof of the completed tower to dismantle the tower crane
afterwards, which may be more difficult than the installation.

CONCRETE BATCHING PLANT:

A concrete plant, also known as a batch plant, is a device that combines various ingredients
to form concrete. Some of these inputs include sand, water, aggregate (rocks, gravel, etc.), fly
ash, potash, and cement. There are two types of concrete plants:
ready mixplants and central mix plants. A concrete plant can have a variety of parts and
accessories, including but not limited to: mixers (either tilt-up or horizontal or in some cases
both), cement batchers, aggregate batchers, conveyors, radial stackers, aggregate bins, cement
bins, heaters, chillers, cement silos, batch plant controls, and dust collectors (to minimize
environmental pollution).

The center of the concrete batching plant is the mixer. There are three types of mixer: Tilt, pan,
and twin shaft mixer. The twin shaft mixer can ensure an even mixture of concrete and large
output, while the tilt mixer offers a consistent mix with much less maintenance labor and cost.

The batching plant in operation in the township project could produce a batch of 0.5 m3 of
concrete in 30 seconds. The concrete was then poured in the transit mixer (Capacity: 6 m3)
which carried it to construction site.
RECOVERY UNIT
Recovery unit is a very important technological innovation in the field of waste water
management in thermal power plants in the ash handling system. The consumptive water
requirement for coal based plants with cooling tower used to be 7m3/hour per MW without ash
water recirculation and 5m3/hour per MW with ash circulation. In recent times plants have
been designed with consumptive water requirement in the range 3.5-4 m3/hour per MW.
The decantation wells in the ash pond collect the water which gets accumulated at the
pond and brings it back to the plant where this water is recycled for reuse in the recovery unit.
About 70% of the water that is mixed with the ash for its disposal is recycled back thus saving
a large quantity of water The ash water which if had not been recycled would have passed
through channels to the rivers which would have polluted the river water, deteriorated ground
water quality as well as would have been detrimental for aquatic flora and fauna.
It consists of the following main units: FLOCCULATOR, PARSHALL FLUME,
LAMELLA CLARIFIER, and HOLDING TANK AND CHEMICAL HOUSE
Principle of operation: Effluent enters the lamella clarifier where it is usually flash mixed
with a polymer flocculent and then gently agitated with a separate mixer. The water then flows
downward through the inlet chamber in the center of the unit and enters the plate rack through
side-entry plate slots. This cross-current entry method reduces the risk of disturbing previously
settled solids. As the liquid flows upward, the solids settle on the inclined, parallel plates and
slide into the sludge hopper at the bottom. Further thickening of the sludge is achieved in the
hopper due to compression of the sludge, as is the case with a conventional clarifier. The
clarified liquid leaves the plate assembly through orifices or weirs at the top and
is distributed into collection channels leading to the clarified water outlet. Underflow is
removed from the sludge hopper or sludge tank below the unit, and usually dewatered
prior to disposal.
LAMELLA CLARIFIER:
A lamella clarifier is a water treatment process that features a rack of inclined metal
plates, which cause flocculated material to precipitate from water that flows across the plates.
Inclined plate settlers or lamella clarifiers are primarily used in the water and wastewater
treatment industries to separate solids from liquids in effluent streams. The clarifier is the
third step in what is usually a four step process for water and wastewater treatment. Effluent
enters the inclined plate clarifier where it is usually flash mixed with a polymer flocculant and
then gently agitated with a separate mixer. The water then flows downward through the inlet
chamber in the center of the unit and enters the plate rack through side-entry plate slots. This
cross-current entry method reduces the risk of disturbing previously settled solids. As the liquid
flows upward, the solids settle on the inclined, parallel plates and slide into the sludge hopper
at the bottom. Further thickening of the sludge is achieved in the hopper due to compression of
the sludge, as is the case with a conventional clarifier.
PARSHALL FLUME:
A Parshall flume is a fixed hydraulic structure used in measuring volumetric flow
rate in surface water, wastewater treatment plant, and industrial discharge applications. The
Parshall flume accelerates flow though a contraction of both the parallel sidewalls and a drop
in the floor at the flume throat. Under free-flow conditions the depth of water at specified
location upstream of the flume throat can be converted to a rate of flow.

WATER RESERVOIR:
A reservoir is an artificial lake is used to store water. Reservoirs may be created in river
valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by
conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete. The term reservoir
may also be used to describe underground reservoirs such as an oil or water well.
ASH POND
An ash pond is an engineered structure for the disposal of bottom ash and fly ash. The wet
disposal of ash into ash ponds is the most common ash disposal method, but other methods
include dry disposal in landfills. Dry-handled ash is often recycled into useful building
materials. Wet disposal has been preferred due to economic reasons, but increasing
environmental concerns regarding leachate from ponds has decreased the popularity of wet
disposal.[1] The wet method consists of constructing a large "pond" and filling it with fly
ash slurry, allowing the water to drain and evaporate from the fly ash over time. Ash ponds
are generally formed using a ring embankment to enclose the disposal site. The embankments
are designed using similar design parameters as embankment dams, including zoned
construction with clay cores. The design process is primarily focused on handling seepage
and ensuring slope stability.
Leachate from fly ash can contain heavy metals in excess of allowable RCRA standard. The
flow of water through the fly ash and into ground water is controlled by using low-
permeability clay layers and cut off trenches/walls. Low-permeability clays
have permeability on the order of 10−7 cm/s. Vertical flows through the foundation are
controlled by siting fly ash ponds on areas of thick clay or rock layers that provide suitably
low permeability through the base of the pond. Areas with high sub-surface permeability can
be improved by importing suitable clay. Horizontal flows through the embankment are
controlled using clay zones within the embankment. Cut off trenches and cut off walls are
used to connect the embankment clay zones and the foundation clay layers. Cut off trenches
are trenches that are dug into the selected low-permeability sub-surface layer and backfilled
with clay to key the embankment clay zone into the sub-surface. Cut off trenches are
generally used when the low permeability foundation layer(s) are near surface. Cut off walls
are similar to cut off trenches, but are generally much deeper and narrower, and use either
slurry or grout instead of clay.
FLY ASH DISPOSAL:
FIRE BENEATH ASH:
Indian coal has very high ash contain. When it burns, it produces fly ash –fine solid particles
of ash, dust and soot containing lead, arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, silica, mercury and other
toxic elements. It becomes deadly source of health hazard when carried to the atmosphere.
However, at the emission point, fly ash is captured using electrostatic precipitations and
dumped as slurry in ash dykes. As particles of toxic metals seep into the ground, or fly with
wind, they
 Severely contaminate ground water .
 Lower the soil fertility.
 Harm aquatic plants.
 Disturbed the food chain.
With about 70 thermal power plant in India-and there are plenty in offing-fly ash dykes have
claimed nearly 30000 hectares, turning them unfit for use.
SEEPAGE WATER, DYKE & RECOVERY WATER POND:
Thermal power plant using coal is chief source of energy in our country and it is likely to
remain so in near future. The total production of fly ash per annum has already crossed 100
million tons and disposal of the fly ash is causing several challenges. Utilization of fly ash
has picked up but till the percentage utilization is far below satisfaction and power plants are
no option but to dispose the fly ash to the ash pond. No well defined design procedure or
codal provisions exist for the ash pond construction and maintenance. Fly ashes being a waste
product, power plant do not pay much attention on maintenance of the ash pond; there are no.
of serious failures in ash pond which resulted in escape of ash slurry into the surrounding
areas, including water bodies and create environmental hazards.

FOLLOWING POINTS SHALL BE NOTED WHILE SELECTING THE LOCATION

AND LAYOUT OF THE ASH POND:
 The area shall be as close as possible to the power plant to reduce the pumping cost.
 Provisions shall be made for vertical and horizontal expansion of the ash pond
depending on estimated life of the power plant.
 To the extent possible, the area shall be away from the water bodies such as river,
lake etc. to prevent pollutions of the water body due to the seepage of water from ash
slurry.
 In coastal area where ground water is already saline, area with pervious soil is
preferable to effectively drain the water through the bottom of the ash pond. Such ash
pond can have good drainage, get drain faster and have better stability.
 In the interior areas, even if it is away from the water bodies, it is preferable to have a
fairly impervious stratum to prevent migration of ash water into the ground water.as
per the pollution control board norms ,an impervious membranes has to be provided
to prevent the pollution of the ground water
 If hilly terrain is within reasonable distance ,a suitable valley can be identified for
forming ash pond. In such case, the hill slope will serve as ash dyke and the length of
the dyke to be built will considerably reduce (example: Mejia thermal power station)

METHOD OF SLURRY DISCHARGE:

For ash pond of this nature it is most important that the discharge of slurry is distributed
uniformly over the entire perimeter of the ash dyke ,except at the location close to the water
exit point .it I s observed that out of various sizes of ash particles ,coarse particles have
tendency to settle near the discharge point and the finer particles get carried away from the
discharge point. Therefore the properties of particles near the discharge point is much better
with coarse size ,high angle of friction better permeability/drainage and less compressibility.
On the other hand, the particles which are carried further are of final nature, with high
compressibility, pure drainage and low angle of friction.
Therefore, the discharge points have to be uniformly distributed. This will provide adequate
bearing capacity and resistance against slip circle failure for the construction of ash dyke over
the deposited ash along the perimeter.it is noticed that though more no. of discharge points
have been provided, only few of them (2or 3)are operated at a timidities better that the
discharge shall be simultaneously made from all the discharge points for more uniform beach
formation along the perimeter. If any leakage is from in the slurry discharge pipe, the same
shall be immediately blocked as this will otherwise create erosion of the downstream face and
deposition of ash on the downstream face leading to dust pollution.
If the distance between discharge point more than 30m, it is preferable that 1 or 2 flexible
hushes of 15 to20 m length are attached to the discharge point and the other end of the hose is
manually shifted within a radius of 15 to 20 m on either side of the discharge point this will
prevent local heap formation and provide uniform beach.
Apart from the above, careful watch shall be exercised to ensure that a minimum freeboard of
.5 m is available at the dyke location. Even after uniformly distributing the slurry ,if the
beach length is less than 30m,the discharge pipe shall be extended into the pond by
supporting the pipe suitable over the deposited ash to the extend such that minimum 50 m
wide beach is formed. Reduction in beach length will increase the seepage on the
downstream site and can create problem of instability of the downstream slope.
When the free board in the reservoir is less than 0.5m, further discharge shall be switched
over to the other pond .the construction sequence shall be planned in such a way that the
other pond is ready to all respect to pond the discharge. Even if the other pond is not ready,
alternate arrangement shall be made to divert the discharge elsewhere instead of taking a risk
by continuing the discharge in the same pond and reducing the free board.

SALIENT FEATURES OF AN ASH POND-

 Only the ash particles settle close to the bund and the water travel away from the bund
forming a slopping beech.
 The bund is not subjected to hydrostatic pressure over the full height of the bund as
the water travels away from the bund. Due to provision of good drainage all around
the bund the phreatic line is maintain at very low level to ensure that the bund section
at the deposited ash particles closer to the bund are in dry condition.
 The water after decantation is not allowed to settle in the pond but it is removed from
the pond to ensure that the phreatic line maintain at lower level.

DESIGN AND MAINTENANCE OF ASH POND FOR FLY ASH DISPOSAL

ABSTRACT:

Thermal Power Plants using coal is chief source of energy in our country and it is likely to
remain so in near future. The total production of fly ash per annum has already crossed 100
million tones and the disposal of the fly ash is causing several challenges. Utilization of fly
ash has picked up but till the percentage utilization is far below satisfaction and power plants
are no option but to dispose the fly ash in ash pond. No well-defined design procedure or
codal provision exists for the ash pond construction and maintenance. Fly ash being a waste
product, power plants does not always pay much attention on maintenance of the ash pond.
There are number of serious failures in ash pond which resulted in escape of ash slurry into
the surrounding areas, including water bodies and created environmental hazard.
FLY ASH POND EMBANKMENT:

Out of various alternatives for disposal of fly ash, use of ash pond in which ash slurry is
discharged is most widely used by thermal power plants. Fly ash and bottom ash from the
power plant is mixed with water in a ratio varying from 1 part ash and 4 to 20 parts of water.
The slurry is then pumped up to the ash pond which are located within few kilometres
distance from the power plant. Depending on the distance and elevation difference, energy
required for pumping is very high and often requires booster pumps at intermediate locations.
There is a basic difference between an ash pond and a Water reservoir. The major differences
are highlighted below.

1. Only the ash particles settle close to the bund and the water after decantation
travel away from the bund forming a sloping beech.
2. The bund is not subjected to hydrostatic pressure over the full height of the bund as
the water travel away from the bund. Due to provision for good drainage all along the
bund, the phreatic line is maintained at very low level to ensure that the bund section
and the deposited ash particles closer to the bund are in dry condition.
3. The water, after decantation is not allowed to accumulate in the pond but it is
removed from the pond to ensure that the phreatic line is maintained at lower level.
4. The ash pond can be designed economically utilizing the advantage of low phreatic line as
mentioned above. This describes important issues related to design, operation and
maintenance of ash pond. It is noticed that in many cases, some of the important requirements
have not been met with which results in unsatisfactory performance of the ash pond.

ASH POND LAYOUT:

Following points shall be noted while selecting the location and layout of the ash pond:
1. The area shall be as close as possible to the power plant to reduce the pumping cost.
2. Provisions shall be made for vertical and horizontal expansion of the ash pond depending
on estimated life of the power plant.
3. To the extent possible, the area shall be away from water bodies such as river, lake, etc. to
prevent pollution of the water body due to the seepage of water from ash slurry.
4. In the interior areas, even if it is away from water bodies, it is preferable to have a fairly
impervious stratum to prevent migration of ash water into the ground water. As per Pollution
Control Board norms, an impervious membrane has to be provided to prevent pollution of the
ground water.
Fig: KEY PLAN OF THE ASH POND SHOWING THE PIPE LINE LAYOUT
SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT:
INTRODUCTION:

Sewage is a major carrier of disease (from human wastes) and toxins (from industrial wastes).
The safe treatment of sewage is thus crucial to the health of any community. This article focuses
on the complex physical and biological treatment used to render sewage both biologically and
chemically harmless.

FLOW TABLE:

THE SITE:
The 2.70 MLD capacity sewage treatment plant for the township is located within MTPS
.The daily average ambient temperature throughout the year ranges between 5°C & 50°C. the
area is subjected to monsoon rains with 25mm to 75mmper day in the month of June to October.
The average annual rainfall in the area is about 1500 mm.

COLLECTION OF SEWAGE:
The sewage treatment plant at MTPS is to treat the domestic sewage of township which
is received from each quarter through the network of sewer lines and ultimately discharging at
receiving chamber of the sewage treatment plant.
NECESSITY OF TREATMENT:
The domestic sewage bears large amount of organic matter in the form of suspended,
colloidal & dissolved. The direct discharge of sewage into water bodies causes depletion of
dissolved oxygen of receiving water body which in turn destroys aquatic flora and fauna.
Hence, in order to meet the recommended standard of quality, it is necessary to treat the sewage
before it is finally disposed of. This sewage treatment facility provides for removal of major
pollutants from the sewage.

FLOWS:
The treatment plant is designed for average flow of 2.70 MLD (112.50 cum/hr.) peak
flow of 6.80 MLD (283.33 cum/hour) and a lower lean flow of 1.35 MLD
(56.25cumecm/hour) of sewage.
The STP had been designed for a raw sewage BOD of 250 mg/l at 20°C and total
suspended solids of 350 mg/l. Since the treated effluent is being discharged in the outlet drain,
BOD and suspended solids of final treated shall be either equal or better than 20 mg/l at 20°C
and 30 mg/l respectively.

SCREEN:
The purpose of the screen is to protect the mechanical plant used within the ST plant by
removing rag, plastic, debris etc. from the sewage flow. It must be well maintained to ensure
reliability. Screening is to be done daily, fixing hourly intervals and screened materials to be
kept is screening pits the maintenance of the mechanical screen shall be done as per guideline
/instructions of the manufacturer. Proper functioning of the mechanical screen shall be checked
regularly. The chains of the mechanical screen shall be lubricated regularly. The rake of the
screen must be checked daily.in case of any non-functioning or jerks of the mechanical screen
it shall be reported forthwith to E-I-C. In case, mechanical screen is under maintenance, the
manual screen to be used for same purpose.

GRIT CHAMBER:
The purpose of the grit chamber is to remove the grit from the incoming sewage.it shall
be operated continuously including the incline drake or classifier and organic return
mechanism. The floor scraper organic return pump and classifier shall be inspected daily at
regular intervals.

PARSHALL FLUME:
The object of the unit is measured the flow of raw sewage into the treatment plant by
means of flow meter with flow indicator. The flow meter is provided in conjunction with flume.
Counter weight and float to be checked regularly for its correct working.
 BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT (AERATION TANK):
Biological treatment can be summarized as the removal of the majority of the
remaining organic matter by the convention of oxygen transfer to the influent by the aerators.
All the aerators must be checked daily .all the components must be lubricated properly. Any
fault noticed in any of the aerators must be recorded in machine history book or log book giving
all details and rectified by the tenderer immediately.
All the aerators should be started and run continuously as and when the level in the aeration
tank reaches the top water level and start overflowing the outlet weir. MLSS concentration
check daily in aeration tank. Check influent COD or BOD and suspended solids (SS) regularly
and determine the COD/BOD/SS ratio of the sewage .these tests enable a quick measure of
the efficiency through activated sludge treatment process and a quick measure of estimating
of organics (BOD) to the microbial population (MLSS) usually referred to as food to
microorganism ratio(F/M).

ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS:

DEFINITION:
The activated sludge process is a type of wastewater treatment process for
treating sewage or industrial wastewaters using aeration and a biological floc composed of
bacteria and protozoa.
PURPOSE:
In a sewage (or industrial wastewater) treatment plant, the activated sludge process is
a biological process that can be used for one or several of the following purposes:
oxidizing carbonaceous biological matter, oxidizing nitrogenous matter:
mainly ammonium and nitrogen in biological matter, removing nutrients (nitrogen and
phosphorus).
PROCESS DESCRIPTION:
The general arrangement of an activated sludge process for removing carbonaceous
pollution includes the following items:
 Aeration tank where air (or oxygen) is injected in the mixed liquor.
 Settling tank (usually referred to as "final clarifier" or "secondary settling tank") to allow the
biological flocs (the sludge blanket) to settle, thus separating the biological sludge from the
clear treated water.
Treatment of nitrogenous matter or phosphate involves additional steps where the mixed
liquor is left in anoxic condition (meaning that there is no residual dissolved oxygen)
A normally operated plant of the type shall have the F/M ratio around 0·20. Activated
sludge operation should include periodical tests and recording of flow rates of sewage and
return sludge, dissolve oxygen(DO),MLSS and Biological live sludge edge ,air supply rate and
aeration period in hours ,suspended solids (SS),BOD at 20°C,COD and nitrate in both influent
and effluent In general aerators are to be run continuously along with sludge recirculation .in
the case of preplanned shut down for a longer period the entire sludge from the secondary
clarifier is to be returned to the aeration tank and the aerators may be turned off.in such cases
after the decommissioning the final effluent characteristics may be deteriorated for a few days
initially which may again be reestablished within a short duration.

FINAL SETTLING TANK/SECONDARY CLARIFIER:

SECONDARY CLARIFIER
The purpose of this to remove the settleable solids from the biological liquors .the
scrapper bridge shall be operated continuously and drives should be checked regularly. The
tanks shall be monitored periodically during normal working hours specially during peal flow
conditions for any chance of rising sludge

RECTANGULAR PUMP /RETURN SLUDGE PUMP:

During no flow period top water level in aeration tank shall be maintained in operational
state by using recirculation of the final effluent and the continuous return of the secondary
clarifier sludge. The returned of secondary sludge is preferable as it will ensure any sludge in
the humus tank is not allowed to remain in this tanks as it will be returned to the head of the
works ,it will ensure that primary tanks do not become stagnant .however the main benefit is
to maintain the filters in operational state.
The pumping regime will be dictated by the current state of plant the filter arm shall be rotated
all the times by using a combination of incoming flow and recirculation of the final effluent
and secondary clarified sludge. The contractor has to decide the no. of recirculation pump
operation to be kept during low flow/no flow condition.

SLUDGE DRYING BED:

The sludge drying beds are provided for dewatering of sludge and for reducing
moisture content of the sludge. Each set of bed is filled up with sludge and should be kept un-
operated till it gets dried. The dried sludge is scraped off manually and collected in screening
pits.
CHLORINATION:
Disinfection of effluent refers to the selective destruction of disease causing
organisms. All though organisms are not destroyed during the process .Disinfection
differentiates from sterilization which is the destruction of all organisms. In the field of waste
water treatment the three categories of human enteric organisms of the greatest consequence in
producing disease are bacteria, virus and amoebic cysts. Dosage is to be controlled manually.
The operator changes the feed rate to suit conditions. The required dosage is usually determined
measuring the residual after 15 minutes of contract time and adjusting the doses to obtain a
residual of 0.5 mg/l. Chlorine gas is both poisonous and very corrosive. Adequate
exhaust/ventilation at floor level should be provided because chlorine gas is heavier than air.
Fan controls and gas masks should be located at the room entrance.
CLEAR WATER PUMP:
This pump should be operated as and when required as per the demand of the clear water
supply to the whole plant. This pump should be kept always in good conditions.

PRINCIPLE OF TREATMENT:
The principle of treatment here is Biological waste water treatment and no chemicals are
used. The organic matter present in the waste is degraded biologically by living organisms i.e.
bacteria. The process consists of both primary and secondary treatment. The major goal of
primary treatment is to remove those pollutants that can settle or float. The purpose of
secondary treatment is to remove the soluble organics that escape the primary treatment and to
provide further removal of suspended solids. The primary treatment is mainly achieved in
Detritus tanks/ Grit chambers. Secondary treatment i.e. the Biological treatment is achieved in
Aeration Tanks and secondary clarifier units. Grits i.e. inorganic suspended solids like sand,
ash, kankars, etc. are removed in Detritors of Grit Chambers.
The Activated sludge process is an aerobic, biological sewage treatment system. The essential
units of the process are an Aeration Tank, a secondary clarifier, a sludge return line from the
sludge sump at the downstream of the secondary clarifier to the aeration tank and an excess
sludge waste line to the sludge holding tank. In this process, raw sewage is aerated in an
aeration tank by means of mechanical aerator, during the aeration; the micro-organisms in the
sewage multiply by eliminating organic matter is synthesized into new cells and part is oxidized
to derive energy. The synthesis reaction followed by subsequent separation of the resulting
biological mass and the oxidation reactions are the main mechanism of BOD removal in the
activated sludge process. The BOD removal is evaluated based on the COD at 20°C of the final
effluent after sludge separation. The biological mass generated in the aeration tank consists of
bacteria and micro-organisms like protozoa, Rotifers etc. in the dissolved oxygen. The biomass
is generally flocculants and quick settling. It is separated from the aerated sewage in the
secondary clarifier and is recycled continuously to the aeration tank and an essential feature of
the process. The mixture of recycled sludge and sewage in the aeration tank is referred to as
Mixed Liquor. The recycling helps in the initial build-up of a high concentration of active
micro-organisms in the mixed liquor has been reached. Its further increase is prevented by
regulating the quantity of sludge recycled and wasting the excess from the system.
CONCLUSION
The practical experience that I have gathered during the overview training of large thermal
power plant having a large capacity of 2340 MW for Unit# I to VIII in three weeks will be
very useful as a stepping stone in building bright professional career in future life. It gave me
large spectrum to utilize the theoretical knowledge and to put it into practice. The trouble
shooting activities in operation and decision making in case of crisis made me more confident
to work in the industrial atmosphere.
Moreover, this overview training has also given a self-realization & hands-on experience
in developing the personality, interpersonal relationship with the professional executives, staffs
and to develop the leadership ability in industry dealing with workers of all categories.
At the end I sincerely thank the MTPS, DVC crew who helped me in enriching the
industrial experience and also for the valuable service they are providing to the whole nation.
I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks to Mr. S. Saha, Mr. P. K. Niyogi from Civil Dept.
& Mr. P.K.Dubey (Training Advisor) for their kind assistance to make the training complete.
This Training will massively help in shaping my career in future.

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