Forecasting a Sustainable Operation of Energy Plants at Designing Stage.

A drop of thermodynamic efficiency of combustion engines with increasing intake air temperature raises the problem of cooling air and improving the efficiency of engine inlet air cooling (EIAC) system urgently. The sustainable operation of any power plant, based on combustion engine, takes place at maximum rate of its loading according to output criteria: fuel saving, power generation and other effects gained. A corresponding thermal load on EIAC system (cooling capacity), providing a maximum rate of engine annual effect increment due to cooling (fuel saving as example), is considered as optimal one. At optimal cooling capacity the sizes of EIAC system are of permissible minimum. In general case, the maximum effect due to EIAC is achieved at installed cooling capacity higher than optimal value. It has been shown, that the developed EIAC system rational designing methodology enables to forecast the sustainable operation of combustion engines at lowered intake air temperature and maximum rate of EIAC system loading to provide close to maximum effect (fuel saving) gained in various climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]