Chapter 15, Problem 3P

Describe geothermal energy and how we harness it, and evaluate its advantages and disadvantages

For a building located in Madrid, Spain with annual heating degree-days (dd) of 4654, a heating load (heat loss) of 30,000 kj/h, and a design temperature difference of 30° C (20° C indoor), estimate the annual energy consumption. If the building is heated with a furnace with an efficiency of 92%, how muchgas is burned to keep the home at 20° C? State your assumptions.

Consider a 400-MW, 32 percent efficient coal-fired power plant that uses cooling water withdrawn from a nearby river (with an upstream flow of 10-m3/s and temperature 20 °C) to take care of waste heat. The heat content of the coal is 8,000 Btu/lb, the carbon content is 60% by mass, and the sulfur content is 2% by mass. How much electricity (in kWh/yr) would the plant produce each year? How many pounds per hour of coal would need to be burned at the plant? Estimate the annual carbon emissions from the plant (in metric tons C/year). If the cooling water is only allowed to rise in temperature by 10 °C, what flow rate (in m3/s) from the stream would be required?  What would be the river temperature if all the waste heat was transferred to the river water assuming no heat losses during transfer?  Estimate the hourly SO2 emissions (in kg/h) from the plant assuming that all the sulfur is oxidized to SO2 during combustion.