Integrating a Cogeneration Facility into Engineering Education

对新建的25兆瓦热电联产设施的实时数据进行分析的能源生产和管理研究正在纳入化学和机械工程课程。为学生提供来自实际过程的实时数据，以及理解这些数据所需的建模工具，可以活跃和丰富热力学、传热学、系统分析和过程控制等学科。正在开发的工具基于通用平台：EXCEL；VBA；以及广泛可用的商业流程模拟器。这些数据可以在网上获得，使大二学生能够对主要单元操作进行真实世界的物质和能量平衡计算，包括燃气轮机和蒸汽轮机、空调系统、冷却塔和锅炉。将自然地介绍包括数据简化和数据对账在内的主题。三年级的学生正在探索高级过程建模，包括热回收蒸汽发生器中的能量回收。这种独立运营的垂直整合使高年级学生能够探索能源生产和管理中的全球问题，包括公用事业成本的优化、与过程颠覆和高度可变的负荷相关的过程动力学分析，以及由此产生的最优控制策略。

A study of energy production and management with the analysis of real-time data from a newly constructed 25MW cogeneration facility is being incorporated into the Chemical and Mechanical Engineering curricula. Providing students real time data from actual processes, along with the modeling tools necessary to make sense of the data,is enlivening and enriching such subjects as Thermodynamics, Heat Transfer, Systems Analysis, and Process Control. The tools being developing are based on universal platforms: Excel; VBA; and, widely available commercial process simulators.The data, web-available, is allowing sophomore-year students to perform real-world material and energy balance calculations on major unit operations including gas and steam turbines, air conditioning systems, cooling towers, and boilers. Topics including data reduction and data reconciliation will be introduced naturally. Junior-year students are exploring advanced process modeling, including energy recovery in a heat recovery steam generator. Vertical integration of such individual operations is enabling senior-year students to explore global issues in energy production and management, including the optimization of utility costs and the analysis of process dynamics associated with process upsets and highly variable loads, and the resulting optimal control strategies.