A novel performance monitoring strategy for economical thermal power plant operation

A need-based integrated performance monitoring strategy is proposed to economize the operation of a thermal power plant, exploiting the immensely powerful resources of newly retrofitted modern distributed control systems (DCS). After reviewing the performance monitoring practice of a typical 200 MW oil/gas fired thermal power plant at Ballylumford, N. Ireland, the paper analyses its shortcomings and then suggests remedial measures through the proposed strategy. A simulation of this plant has been used for investigation purposes. The twin key aspects of performance monitoring, i.e. monitoring of performance indices and controllable parameters, are addressed in more effective and novel ways. The achievable best efficiency values of plant components, needed for comparative performance evaluation, are shown to be more reliably and accurately obtainable through neural network performance models. A method based on histogram plots is shown to be highly effective in monitoring the performance of plant controllers in reducing the variability of plant variables and then modifying the set-points to improve the thermal performance of the plant.