JP7770866B2 - Fuel operation system for power generation facilities - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fuel operation system for a power generation facility.

Generally, coal used as fuel in power generation facilities equipped with boilers is stored in storage facilities such as piles or silos.

The coal stored in the storage facility is transported to a bunker using a reclaimer or belt conveyor, and then burned in a boiler. The fuel may be coal alone, or it may be mixed with biomass.

The transportation of the coal is carried out by skilled personnel who create an operation plan for each piece of transportation equipment based on the power generation plan, and then operate each piece of transportation equipment individually based on that operation plan.

For example, Patent Document 1 shows the general state of the art related to the operation of plant equipment such as power generation facilities.

JP 2019-144624 A

In recent years, systems have been developed that automatically create operation plans based on power generation plans, but the reality is that the actual operation of transport equipment is left to the individual responsible. Because humans are involved in individual tasks, there is a risk of delays in the operation of fuel for power generation equipment, or of miscommunication or operational errors, during the process of creating an operation plan for the entire power generation facility, creating an operation plan for each piece of transport equipment, and actually operating the transport equipment.

Furthermore, current transport equipment operation requires a separate interface (e.g., operation buttons and displays) for each piece of transport equipment, which has the drawback of increasing the costs of designing, manufacturing, and installing these, as well as the cost of regular maintenance.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and aims to provide a fuel management system for power generation equipment that can eliminate stagnation and errors in fuel management and reduce costs.

The present invention provides a fuel operation system for a power generation facility in which coal stored in a storage facility is transported to a bunker by a transport device and burned in a boiler,
a management computer that continuously manages information on fuel stock, including fuel type, stock amount, storage location, storage calories, possible storage period, and planned fuel receiving amount, and also inputs a required amount of power generation, determines a storage facility for fuel that should be consumed preferentially and a required amount of fuel based on the information on fuel stock and the required amount of power generation, and creates a transportation schedule from the storage facility to the bunker based on the determined storage facility and the required amount of fuel;
and a control device that outputs automatic operation commands to the transportation equipment based on the transportation schedule created by the management computer.

In the fuel operation system for the power generation facility, the transportation equipment can include a reclaimer that discharges coal from a storage facility, a belt conveyor that transports the coal discharged by the reclaimer to a bunker, and a damper that changes the route of the coal transported by the belt conveyor.

In the fuel operation system of the power generation facility, biomass can also be mixed with the coal and combusted in the boiler.

The fuel management system for power generation equipment of the present invention can achieve the excellent effects of eliminating delays and mistakes in fuel management and reducing costs.

1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a fuel operation system for a power generation facility according to the present invention; 1 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a fuel operation system for a power generation facility according to the present invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 and 2 show an embodiment of a fuel operation system for a power generation facility according to the present invention.

In the fuel operation system of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the power generation facility 10 includes a boiler 20, and coal as fuel stored in a storage facility 30 is transported to a bunker 50 by a transport device 40 and combusted in the boiler 20. Biomass may also be mixed with the coal from a bunker (not shown) and combusted in the boiler 20.

Stored fuel information I, including the fuel type (coal type), amount, storage location, retained calories, possible storage period, and planned fuel receipt amount of coal stored in the storage facility 30, is continuously managed by the management computer 60.

The required power generation amount M of the power generation facility 10 is input into the management computer 60, and based on the stored fuel information I and the required power generation amount M, the management computer 60 determines the coal storage facility 30 that should be prioritized for consumption and the required amount of coal. A transport schedule S from the storage facility 30 to the bunker 50 is created based on the determined storage facility 30 and required amount of coal. When coal and biomass are used as fuel, the mixing ratio is set and the required amount of each is determined.

The transport schedule S created by the management computer 60 is output to the control device 70, and the control device 70 outputs an automatic operation command A to the transport equipment 40 based on the transport schedule S.

The conveying equipment 40 may be, for example, a reclaimer 40a, a belt conveyor 40b, a damper 40c, etc.

The reclaimer 40a discharges coal from the storage facility 30.

The belt conveyor 40b transports the coal discharged by the reclaimer 40a to the bunker 50.

The damper 40c changes the route of the coal transported by the belt conveyor 40b.

Incidentally, when creating the transport schedule S, the reclaimer 40a to be operated, its dispensing start and end positions (dispensing range), dispensing amount [tons/h], and operation start and end times are clarified from the storage facility 30 for coal that should be consumed preferentially and the required amount of coal. Therefore, the movement of the reclaimer 40a, boom operation, etc. can be determined. Once the reclaimer 40a to be operated is determined, the belt conveyor 40b and damper 40c to be operated, and their operation start and end times, can also be determined.

In the example shown in Figure 1, coal as fuel transported by ship 80 is unloaded by unloader 90 and transported by belt conveyor 40b, and the coal transported by belt conveyor 40b is delivered to storage facility 30 by reclaimer 40a, which also serves as a stacker.

Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, the fuel management method of this embodiment includes a process for acquiring and managing information on available fuel, a process for inputting the required amount of power generation, a process for determining the amount of fuel consumed, a process for creating a transport schedule, and a process for carrying out transport.

The process for acquiring and managing fuel inventory information is a process for continuously managing fuel inventory information I, including fuel type (coal type), inventory quantity, storage location, storage calories, possible storage period, and planned fuel receipt quantity.

The required power generation amount input process is a process in which the required power generation amount M is input.

The fuel consumption determination process is a process in which the coal storage facility 30 that should be prioritized for consumption and the required amount of coal are determined based on the stored fuel information I managed in the stored fuel information acquisition and management process and the required power generation amount M input in the required power generation amount input process.

The transport schedule creation process is a process in which a transport schedule S from the storage facility 30 to the bunker 50 is created based on the storage facility 30 and the required amount of coal determined in the fuel consumption determination process.

The transport implementation process is a process in which the transport equipment 40 transports coal to the bunker 50 based on the transport schedule S created in the transport schedule creation process.

Next, we will explain the operation of the above example.

Coal as fuel is transported by ship 80, unloaded by unloader 90, transported by belt conveyor 40b, and delivered to storage facility 30 by reclaimer 40a, which also serves as a stacker. The stored fuel information I, including the fuel type (coal type), stock quantity, storage location, storage calories, possible storage period, and planned fuel receipt amount of the coal stored in storage facility 30, is continuously managed by management computer 60 (see the stored fuel information acquisition and management process in Figure 2).

The required power generation capacity M of the power generation facility 10 is input into the management computer 60, and based on the stored fuel information I and the required power generation capacity M, the management computer 60 determines the coal storage facility 30 that should be prioritized for consumption and the required amount of coal (see the fuel consumption determination process in Figure 2). If coal and biomass are used as fuel, the mixing ratio is set and the required amount of each is determined.

The management computer 60 creates a transport schedule S from the storage facility 30 to the bunker 50 based on the determined storage facility 30 and the required amount of coal (see the transport schedule creation process in Figure 2). The transport schedule S includes information on which reclaimer 40a, which belt conveyor 40b, and which damper 40c should be operated as transport equipment 40, and when.

The transport schedule S created by the management computer 60 is output to the control device 70, which then outputs an automatic operation command A to the transport equipment 40 based on the transport schedule S, causing the transport equipment 40 to transport the coal to the bunker 50 (see the transport implementation process in Figure 2).

Incidentally, for the reclaimer 40a that should be operating as the conveying equipment 40, a command including the dispensing start and end positions (dispensing range), dispensing amount [tons/h], and operation start and end times is output as automatic operation command A. Furthermore, for the belt conveyor 40b and damper 40c that should be operating, a command including operation start and end times is output as automatic operation command A.

As a result, in this embodiment, it is possible to process the planning of operations for the entire power generation facility 10, the planning of operations for each individual transport device 40, and the actual operation of the transport device 40 as a series of processes on a consistent system. This means that the actual operation of the transport device 40 is not left to the individual in charge, and there is no need for human intervention for individual tasks, eliminating concerns about stagnation in the use of coal as fuel for the power generation facility 10 or the occurrence of communication or operational errors.

Furthermore, the individual interfaces (e.g., operation buttons and displays) that were previously essential for operating the current conveying equipment 40 can now be replaced with centralized management interfaces, significantly reducing the costs required for designing, manufacturing, and installing individual interfaces, as well as the costs associated with regular maintenance.

This will eliminate delays and errors in the use of coal as fuel and reduce costs.

The fuel operation system for the power generation facility of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10 Power generation equipment 20 Boiler 30 Storage facility 40 Conveying equipment 40a Reclaimer 40b Belt conveyor 40c Damper 50 Bunker 60 Management computer 70 Control device 80 Ship 90 Unloader A Automatic operation command I Information on fuel reserves M Required power generation amount S Conveying schedule

Claims (3)

A fuel operation system for a power generation facility in which coal stored in a storage facility is transported to a bunker by a transport device and burned in a boiler,
a management computer that continuously manages information on fuel stock, including fuel type, stock amount, storage location, storage calories, possible storage period, and planned fuel receiving amount, and also inputs a required amount of power generation, determines a storage facility for fuel that should be consumed preferentially and a required amount of fuel based on the information on fuel stock and the required amount of power generation, and creates a transportation schedule from the storage facility to the bunker based on the determined storage facility and the required amount of fuel;
and a control device that outputs automatic operation commands to the transportation equipment based on the transportation schedule created by the management computer. 2. The fuel operation system of a power generation facility according to claim 1 , wherein the transportation equipment includes a reclaimer that discharges coal from a storage facility, a belt conveyor that transports the coal discharged by the reclaimer to a bunker, and a damper that changes the route of the coal transported by the belt conveyor. 2. The fuel operation system for a power generation facility according to claim 1 , wherein biomass is mixed with the coal and combusted in the boiler.