Subject: How about steam engines for energy generation ?

From: [email-masked] (Gaetan Mailloux)
Date: 26 Mar 1997 03:47:55 GMT

How about steam engines for energy generation ?

Anyone have some eficiency numbers compare to others ways to generate
electricity ? 

At leat it's low tech. relativately easy to design, and work with any
source of heat... 

I think use it as a secondary electricity generation source, so the first
one would be solar and wind , but here in Canada it's hard and cold winter
so we can heat the house and heat the steam engine boiler in the same time :-)

Any opinions  are welcome.

BTW, for a first try I will use plans in the book Model Stationary and
Marine Steam Engine by K.N. Harris. 

Bye

Gaetan

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From: [email-masked] (M Simon)
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 1997 05:41:28 GMT

If you think designing and building a high effiency steam
engine/generator combination is easy you are no doubt unfamiliar
with thermodynamics, heat transfer and fluid flow and possibly
one or two other disciplines ( metalurgy, electrical
controls,feed flow pumps, boiler control) that might prove
useful. 

Simon - Naval Nuclear Power Graduate
----------------------------------------------------------

>Gaetan

In the end people get the government they deserve.

Read "The Weapon Shops of Isher" by A.E. vanVogt

Simon

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From: [email-masked] (Gene A. Townsend)
Date: 26 Mar 1997 17:09:03 -0700

>Gaetan

I would strongly suggest trying a very low pressure engine first.  I
believe that an atmospheric pressure operating Newconmen type engine
could be easily built with hand tools at low cost and be safe and low
teck.

The thermodynamic efficiency would be about 2% for a 2 to 5 hp engine.

Even higher pressure SMALL steam engines will have efficiencies in the
1 to 5% range, and be more dangerous.

If the goal is to produce electric from wood fuel, then the gas
producer is the technology to use.

I'm thinking of building an engine like I'm describing.

Cheers,

Gene A. Townsend

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From: "LETH'R" <[email-masked]>
Date: 27 Mar 1997 21:52:09 GMT

Gaetan Mailloux <[email-masked]> wrote in article
<[email-masked]>...
> How about steam engines for energy generation ?
Reasonable question........I've been running steam "engines" for years to
produce electricity.
> At leat it's low tech. relativately easy to design, and work with any

Low Tech??????   Obviously, you haven't researched this yet.

> Any opinions  are welcome.

IMHO, you need to take a serious look at what you are getting into.  
Building and operating a steam plant to generate electricity is a difficult
and time consuming task.  A steam plant does not run on its own.......they
need constant supervision and maintenance.  A fuel supply is also a
problem.   If you plan on using gas as a fuel, check out the gas companies'
policy for providing fuel during cold, and/or hot weather.  Residential
users get first crack at the gas.  Electricity producers are not at the top
of the list unless they purchase high priced "FIRM" contracts.  Even then,
they can and will be cut in favor of the residential load.
> Marine Steam Engine by K.N. Harris. 

READ EVERYTHING YOU CAN LAY YOUR HANDS ON concerning this decision.