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A steam-load study of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute power plant

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

The VPI plant has met the load situation of the 1935-1936 heating season with a small margin of capacity. Should it have been considered necessary, as a matter of policy, to carry reserve through this heating season, 20,751 pounds per hour of steam capacity would have been lacking. To meet the maximum possible hourly-load anticipated for the 1936- 1937 heating season, it would require an increase in the present capacity of the plant of 11 percent. Considering the carrying of ample reserve, an increase of 117 percent would be necessary. In that the load has reached and passed the most economical output from the standpoint of fuel consumption, forcing of present equipment will now involve economic losses that may be used to offset the costs of a new boiler installation. The load duration curve shown in Fig. 11 will be valuable in economic studies of this type. In conclusion, the authors suggest the possibility of using capacity now latent in the plant. The building of a storage place to make dry coal available tor No.4 boiler would release approximately 6,700 pounds per hour of latent steam capacity. Further gains could be made by forcing boilers 1, 2, and 3 to higher ratings with excess air during the peak hours, while the use of a higher grade bituminous coal during the heavy heating season would also show substantial gains in capacity.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Mechanical Engineering
Department dc:contributor.department
Mechanical Engineering
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
1936

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Authors dc:creator
  • Creel, Robert B.
  • Young, Richard L.
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Ellis, W. T.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Norris, Earle Bertram
  • O'Shaughnessy, Louis

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
etd-07072010-020052
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/43540

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
related terms
citation

Creel, Robert B.; Young, Richard L.. A steam-load study of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute power plant. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 1936. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/43540