Krzysztof BADYDA
Wind power industry. Actual development trends in Poland
During the last few years the wind power industry, because of the installed power growth, has noticeably started affecting the functioning of the Polish Power System. Specified are data concerning fluctuations in the wind power generation starting from the second half of the year 2012 until March 2013. Given is the total amount of electric energy produced from wind and the character of its 24 hours’, weeks’ and seasons’ fluctuations. Presented are forecasts for the wind power industry development in the present and the next decades. Attention is paid to the fact that difficulties connected with controlling the wind power generation are not limited only to indigenous generation from domestic resources. The fundamental problem is the incapacity of the German power system to transmit electrical energy from wind power stations located mainly in the north of this country. There is a lack of the suitably developed structure of transmission lines in the north–south direction - that is why we deal with an energy transfer through Poland, Czech Republic and Austria as one of the possible ways. In the year 2011, according to the data published by the Polish Transmission System Operator (PSE), about 5 TWh of electrical energy generated by the north Germany wind turbines flowed through the Polish power lines. It is worth paying attention to the fact, that in Germany the level of installed wind capacity is close to 30 000 MW what, in relation to the total installed power in Germany, is remarkably more than in Poland now. There are some joint actions taken by the Polish and the German sides aimed at reduction of this phenomenon (installing of phase shifters), but the effects can be observed not earlier than only in a few years (after the year 2015).
Keywords: renewable energy sources, wind power industry, influence of wind power stations on the work of a power system
Jan J. HYCNAR
Economic aspects of coal combustion products (CCPs) management
Kind of coal and type of combustion as well as methods of desulphurization and flue gas dedusting have a big influence on solutions and costs of CCPs management. Additionally, the cost of CCPs management in power plants, CHP plants and heating stations depends greatly on an implemented model of their removal. For years, deposition of wastes in nearby landfills was one of the simplest and cheapest solutions. At present, with a big increase of CCPs production and difficulties/impossibilities connected with acquisition of new landfill areas, a very often used method of solving this problem is to transfer the responsibility for CCPs management to some cooperating (coal mines and others) or specialized units. Together with the research development, utilization of CCPs in the form of a raw material or a product systematically grows and eliminates the CCPs deposition in the environment. Very considerable economic results were achieved in the Great Britain, Germany, the Republic of South Africa, China and India as the effect of the enlarged CCPs reprocessing method. Alongside with the increase of the raw material CCPs utilization not only the negative influence on the environment reduces but also economic effects in the power industry and at the end-users become bigger.
Keywords: coal combustion products (CCPs), CCPs management costs, ways of growth of economic and ecological effects
Joanna KRZEMIEŃ, Marcin JASKÓLSKI, Eugeniusz JĘDRYSIK
Model investigations of a national power system with the application of MARKAL optimization tool
Described are possibilities which gives you the MARKAL computer program. It is a tool, serving for building and optimization of a power system, which structure is based on linear programming. The effect of its work is “Model solution of biomass energy potential utilization in Poland with the application of the energy technology systems optimization tool MARKAL”. Presented is the MARKAL program characteristics, the description of the Polish power system in the MARKAL program, a proposal of new technological solutions for power plants, CHP plants and heating stations, and also the obtained modelling results. The effects present the optimum technology path to obtain electric energy and heat until the year 2030 and fuels for their generation. Power system optimization in a long-range time horizon is a complex process dependent on many factors. The basic task of national power systems is to cover the prognozed demand for energy carriers. The need to ensure the national energy security imposes an obligation to diversify the energy generation sources. Additionally we must remember to meet Polish obligations concerning the emission reduction of gaseous pollution. The long-range time horizon of the model obliges to take into consideration all possible, that does not necessarily mean the at present available ones, generation technologies and methods to cover the energy demand. The authors here have mainly in mind the taking into consideration renewable energy sources, nuclear fuel and coal gasification technology. These conditionings are favouring the legitimacy of computer programs application as the tool for prognozing, simulating or optimizing the condition of the energy sector. The basic fuel for electric energy and heat generation will be, until the year 2030, the hard coal – after 2015 the natural gas consumption will be reduced. Observed is a visible, systematic increase of biomass and biogas utilization, which share in the year 2030 will amount to almost 15% of all fuels used for electric energy and heat generation. Electric energy production from hydropower and pumped storage plants will be on a steady level for the whole time, as well as from wind power plants. The obtained model results confirm that the MARKAL program structure is based on linear programming. The model has selected, as the priority technologies in the national power system structure, the new thermal power and the CHP plants fired with hard and brown coal and the new biogas CHP stations. These are the technological options ensuring achieving of the lowest cost of the whole power system, allowing at the same time to reach strategic goals in the range of minimum share of electric energy generated from renewables and from highly efficient cogeneration in the electric energy end-use in Poland.
Keywords: MARKAL, energy modelling, national power system
Grzegorz BŁAJSZCZAK
Using real estates for purposes of electric energy delivery – provisions of Civil and Building Codes
Industrial power engineering sector uses, to a considerable extent, private lands on which there are located overhead transmission lines and transformers. Commented are here the most important law provisions concerning the return of taken, expropriated or seized private properties and recompensation for their usage. Discussed are also the more important elements of civil responsibility of the energy infrastructure owner for the accidents caused by its installations.
Keywords: private lands, compensation, accidents
Karina ATŁAS, Rafał CZAPAJ-ATŁAS
Risk of being Internet addicted for operators working in a continuous operation in the power industry – on the example of an American nuclear plant
Presented are effects of the excessive use of Internet by continuous operation workers on the example of improper practices that some operators in one of the USA nuclear plants had been indulged in in the year 2010 and the whole problem was only revealed at the turn of the year 2011/2012. Discussed is the aspect of a danger coming from the cyberspace and explained is the influence of excessive use of Internet on an individual worker. Additionally described are the symptoms and consequences of the Internet addiction and methods to diagnoze it, that can be applied in the realities of the continuous operation operators’ work, putting a special stress on power and electric industry. The practical aim of this article is to show the factors concerning the Internet excessive use that can indirectly raise the risk of the appearance of anomalies in the duty performance by operators working in a continuous operation.
Keywords: nuclear power plant, energy and cybernetic safety, Internet addiction, symptoms, consequences
Mirosław GORCZYCA
Statistical factors concerning power industry of the 27 European Union countries
Presented is a comprehensive survey of statistical data concerning the EU energy dependency and the energy generation and consumption in the 27 EU countries. Attention is called to the process of diminishing energy production in these countries and the growing EU energy import dependency. Indicated is that the best solution is the decrease of the high energy-consuming production in the way of implementation of energy saving production technologies. This concerns especially the less technologically advanced member countries, as in the more advanced ones the reserves in this range are running short. The ambitious assumption of the radical increase of renewable energy carriers in the energy balance is regarded as the palliative solution, if not completely unachievable. Despite the diversification of primary energy carriers import sources, anxiety must be aroused by the increasing role of Russian suppliers that can end with the “sui generis” submissiveness, considering the Russian energy dictate.
Keywords: statistical factors of the EU countries power industry, energy carriers and electrical energy balances, renewable energy sources
Krzysztof BILLEWICZ
The ethical side of smart grids implementation
Presented are ethical aspects of smart grids implementation in the framework of the developing process of electrical power engineering informatization. Attention is called to the fact that, basing on American and English solutions, it will in the end bring not only advantages but also the challenges. One of the more important aspects of the most recent technologies implementation is the ethical side of this procedure. Technologies are being implemented to make man’s life easier – smart technologies are for a man and not the other way round. Described are some aspects of smart grids implementation about which we can have some reservations as being unethical; given are also possible solutions. Postulated is an introduction of ethical code containing the general directives concerning main principles and obligations for certain electric power firms and clients. Such codes would protect concrete persons (clients, employees) and describe the desirable and blameworthy behaviours.
Keywords: ethics, smart grids, smart metering