Advantage And Disadvantages Of Thermal Power Station
Advantages Of Thermal Power Station
1) Less initial cost as compared to other generating stations.
2) It requires less land as compared to a hydropower plant.
3) The fuel (i.e. coal) is cheaper.
4) The cost of generation is lesser than that of diesel power plants.
Disadvantages Of Thermal Power Station
1) It pollutes the atmosphere due to the production of a large amount of smoke. This is one of the causes of global warming.
2) The overall efficiency of a thermal power station is low (less than 30%).
Efficiency Of Thermal Power Station
A huge amount of heat is lost in various stages of the plant. A major part of the heat is lost in the condenser. That is why the efficiency of thermal plants is quite low.
Thermal Efficiency
The ratio of ‘heat equivalent of mechanical energy transmitted to the turbine shaft’ to the ‘heat of coal combustion’ is called as thermal efficiency.
Thermal efficiency of modern thermal power stations is about 30%. It means, if 100 calories of heat are produced by coal combustion, the mechanical energy equivalent of 30 calories will be available at the turbine shaft.
Overall Efficiency
The ratio of ‘heat equivalent of electrical output’ to the ‘heat of coal combustion’ is called as overall efficiency.
