Power plants – Fluid motor means driven by waste heat or by exhaust energy... – Having fluid motor motive fluid treating – controlling or...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-24
2001-06-26
Nguyen, Hoang (Department: 3748)
Power plants
Fluid motor means driven by waste heat or by exhaust energy...
Having fluid motor motive fluid treating, controlling or...
C060S698000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06250080
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mobile intermodal cogeneration systems. The present invention also relates to the modular transportation structure for the mobile cogeneration system components
2. Statement of the Prior Art
The energy business is undergoing major changes. No longer is the large, centralized power plant with widespread transmission systems the obvious choice for power generation. Small, modular, intermodal decentralized cogeneration plants are one of the energy solutions for tomorrow. It makes good economical sense to put the energy production facility exactly where it is needed. Power, heat (hot water), cooling and refrigeration (for use, for example, in the food processing, petrochemical and pharmaceutical industries) can be generated and utilized locally and overall energy losses reduced. This has the added benefit of system flexibility, independence and increased competitiveness.
Cogeneration systems were originated to increase the efficiency of power and heat production as well as for power load management. The capacities of municipal or regional utility systems are sometimes inadequate to meet the demands placed on them particularly during periods of peak load. Base load is the minimum power demand placed on a generation system while peak load is power demand above base load. Other reasons may also exist for the inability to meet consumer load demands, including but not limited to maintenance, breakdowns, natural disasters, etc. In such cases it may become necessary to purchase or generate auxiliary power. Thus, the need exists for a modular mobile intermodal power system that can be easily, quickly, and inexpensively moved to any desired location. This need may be for a supplemental or emergency power system or may, in fact, be able to supply all of the power needs of a small town, a college campus, a hospital, a hotel, an industrial facility, etc.
A cogeneration apparatus comprising a transporting structure and a support frame for transporting the cogeneration apparatus is specially built for the cogeneration apparatus. This includes fabricating the support structure, wheels etc. While this does make the cogeneration apparatus mobile it neither makes it modular nor intermodal.
A carbon dioxide production and cogeneration facility exists where the waste heat recovery unit and carbon dioxide recovery unit are portable and mounted on skids for ease of movement. In other words, the apparatus is palletized and thus moveable. A facility must still be constructed for the apparatus, even if the facility is temporary, and thus, additional costs are incurred.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
SOURCE™ is a small, modular, intermodal natural gas cogeneration system. It can generate from 1-10 MW of power burning most natural gases as well as biogases with extremely low emissions and high efficiency. Its aesthetics and low noise emissions permit the system to be located in the heart of the power load, in the heart of a city, at industrial or field sites, on educational campuses, at shopping malls, in rural or even desolate areas. The mobile modular intermodal cogeneration plant of the present invention generates electric power by driving or powering an engine with gas. The engine releases hot exhaust gasses, which are then captured so that the thermal energy contained in the hot exhaust gasses can be reused. A portion of the output power of the engine can be used to drive or power a boiler to produce hot water. The entire mobile modular intermodal cogeneration plant can be cooled or vented by cooling towers or radiators.
The present invention provides a mobile cogeneration system comprising modular cogeneration components fitted into modular intermodal transportation units. The mobile cogeneration components include single or double engines, alternators, boilers, absorption or centrifugal chillers, electrical units, and single or double cooling towers or radiators. All of the mobile cogeneration system components, except the cooling towers or radiators, are fitted into the modular intermodal transportation units, are shipped in the same modular intermodal transportation unit, and are operated in the same modular intermodal transportation unit. The cooling towers need not be transported in the modular intermodal transportation units and when installed are outside of the remainder of the components because of their inherent functionality. The cooling towers or radiators are, however, mounted on, shipped on and operated on a base frame or support grid comprising the floor, longitudinal support framing members, horizontal support framing members, and flooring supports, beams or joists. The cooling towers or radiators may even be remote from the remainder of the cogeneration system components. The open space units comprise the base frame only. The modular intermodal transportation units are well known in the art. They are the containerized shipping units that can be transported by truck, train, or ship. They can be any color and for purposes of the present invention it may even be beneficial to color code each type of component a different color. Further, the modular intermodal transportation unit becomes the operating environment for the mobile cogeneration system. The electrical modular intermodal transportation unit can be used to house switchgear, for storage, for control operations, for offices, or for maintenance etc. The electrical modular intermodal transportation units could also be fitted with built in office furniture and temperature and humidity insulated. Control operations can include any or all of the operations or maintenance stations and control computers etc. All of the above provides for “plug and play” operation. If a component fails simply unplug it (remove all cables, wires, pipes, etc.) remove it and plug in a new component. Alternatively, simply switch the failed unit out and repair it on site. It is also be possible to have not only standby components but a standby system of the present invention due to the significantly lowered costs of the present invention.
A further object of the invention is the ability to quickly, easily and inexpensively deploy a mobile cogeneration system to any location that can be reached by truck, train or ship. This means that a mobile modular cogeneration system as described herein could be rapidly deployed to areas that have lost power due to natural disasters. Such a mobile modular cogeneration system could be grown or expanded modularly as power needs increased. Thus, configuration and reconfiguration to meet changing needs can be readily accommodated.
Such a mobile modular cogeneration system could be deployed to remote petrochemical field sites, for example. In the event that the power needs decreased or were no longer necessary, the components could be easily, quickly and inexpensively relocated. Thus, most of the investment costs could be recouped because the modular mobile intermodal cogeneration system was not specially designed for a particular site but rather comprises a set of standard “plug and play” components. The modular mobile intermodal cogeneration system of the present invention may even be appropriate for use once a beach head of a battle zone has been secured to provide power for operational or command posts.
The modular mobile intermodal nature of the cogeneration system of the present system also allows for recoupment of financed costs through repossession by a lender in case of default by the purchaser.
A further object of the present invention is to obtain revenues from sales of electrical power to utilities and to reduce costs by means of tax incentives. Current federal legislation in the form of Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) requires the native utility to purchase the excess electrical output of a “qualifying facility,” at prices established on the basis of the utility's projected avoided cost. The present system would be able to qualify as a cogeneration facility and, as such, would be entitled to receive this pr
Cerquetti Jeffrey
Finn Dennis
Han Zhen
Shelor F. Mack
Burdett James R.
Nguyen Hoang
Venable
Wartsila NSD North America, Inc.
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