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Power-first Cogeneration
Heat-first Cogeneration
Cogeneration FAQs
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Power-first Cogeneration
Power-first cogeneration is a way of recovering more of the energy that
would otherwise be wasted by an electrical generator. As an example, a
typical natural gas-powered electrical generator might achieve approximately
30 to 35 percent efficiency, with most of the energy consumed being
converted to waste heat.
A CHP arrangement, by contrast, can improve the overall efficiency by
capturing more of this waste heat and using it in other plant processes. For
example, the waste heat might be recovered by a heat exchanger, and provide
power to an absorption chiller. Typically, another 30 to 40 percent of the
consumed energy can be recovered this way, leading to an overall efficiency
of 60 percent or more. Depending on the size of the facility, this could
represent significant energy savings every year.
Cogeneration is an economical, ecologically friendly method of conserving
our planet’s resources. Power plants that burn fossil fuel can, through
cogeneration, improve efficiency and may significantly reduce the plant’s
overall need for fuel.
Cogeneration also serves to reduce the pollution produced by power plants,
both through reduction of actual fuel consumption and through the second
generation process. The process captures the generator’s surplus heat and
exhaust, reducing pollutants released into the environment.
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