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EEE8157
eyup
122
Mechanical Engineering
Undergraduate 4
05/16/2025

Additional Mechanical Engineering Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Requirements to achieve Net Zero?
Definition

Change in supply side: Moving towards low/zero carbon energy supply.

 

Change in demand side: Reducing demand for high-carbon energy.

 

Removing or offsetting remaining emissions.

Term
What are the 3 aspects of the energy transition dilemma?
Definition

Energy Security

 

Energy Equity

 

Energy Sustainability

Term
What is energy security?
Definition
A nation's capacity to meet current and future energy demands reliably, and to withstand and bounce back swiftly from supply shocks with minimal disruption.
Term
What is energy equity?
Definition
A country's ability to provide universal access to affordable, fairly priced and abundant energy for domestic and commercial use.
Term
What are the '4 Ds' of energy transition?
Definition
Decarbonisation, digitalisation, decentralisation, democratisation.
Term
What is the decentralisation of energy?
Definition
The move towards a more distributed energy system, where power is generated by many small-scale sources, rather than a few large-scale power plants.
Term
How has consumption of energy in the UK trended since 2010?
Definition
Total consumption down by 15%, domestic consumption down by 9%, industrial consumption down 20%
Term
Roughness length in cities & forests? What about suburbs and wooded countryside?
Definition

z0 for cities and forests? 0.7m

 

z0 for suburbs and wooded countryside? 0.3m

 

Term

Roughness length in villages and countryside with trees and hedges?

 

What about flat grassy plains?

Definition

0.1m

 

0.01m

 

 

Term

Roughness length in open farmland?

 

What about flat deserts or rough seas?

Definition

0.03m

 

0.001m

Term
What 4 assumptions are made using Bernoulli's equation? Which isn't valid for wind flow passing through a turbine?
Definition

1) Flow is steady-state

2) Flow is incompressible

3) Friction can be neglected

 

Can't be assumed:

 

4) Energy is balanced - no energy is being injected or extracted from the fluid

Term
What two methods can be used to control angle of attack?
Definition
Pitch regulation and Stall regulation
Term
What can happen if angle of attack is too great?
Definition
Stalling
Term
What does a graph of power vs wind speed look like for pitch and stall control?
Definition
[image]
Term
Pros of stall regulation against pitch regulation?
Definition

- Stall has no moving parts, pitch regulation requires a control system and actuators to rotate the blades which are mounted on the hub with bearings.

 

- Gives smooth power control, whilst pitch can result in large power transients due to dynamic behaviour of wind flow.

 

- Cheaper

 

Term
Pros of pitch regulation vs stall regulation?
Definition

- Gives maximum power extraction, whilst stall can be difficult to predict along the blade.

 

- Additional braking techniques are required in stall regulation, whist pitch alterations can be used for pitch regulation.

 

- At high speeds, high wind speeds induce large thrust forces on the rotor in stall regulation. In pitch regulation, pitching can reduce the forces.

Term
Wind turbine requirements?
Definition

- Needs to convert rotational mechanical power to electrical power

- Connect to the national grid

 

Not essential but beneficial:

- Control turbine speed to enable maximum power point tracking

- Allow control of power factor/reactive power

- Ride through a fault on the electricity network

- Provide services (e.g. frequency response) to the electricitynetwork

Term
What are 3 options for electrical system design in wind turbines?
Definition

1) DC Machine

2) Induction (Asynchronous) Machine

3) Synchronous Machine

Term
How does speed control work for different types of electrical design in wind turbines?
Definition

DC Machine - Proportional to voltage

 

Induction (Asynchronous) Machine - Proportional to frequency with slip

 

Synchronous Machine - Proportional to frequency

Term
How complex are DC Machines for use in wind turbines?
Definition
High - requires maintenance and prone to failure.
Term
How complex is using induction machines in wind turbines?
Definition
Low - no connection required to the rotor.
Term
How complex is using synchronous machines in wind turbines?
Definition
Medium complexity if a wound rotor, low complexity if using a permanent magnet.
Term
Is the rotor on the inside or outside?
Definition
Inside
Term
What are the characteristics of an induction machine?
Definition

- Induction machines are mechanically simple, robust and widely used.

- They generally have no connection to the "squirrel cage" rotor.

- As the name would suggest, they are inductive – they consume reactive power (lagging power factor).

Term

What happens in induction machines if slip is negative? What about positive?

 

 

Definition
If slip is negative it acts as a generator, if it is positive it acts as a motor.
Term
What relationship do slip and rotor resistance have for constant torque?
Definition
Approximately inverse relationship[image]
Term
What is pull-out torque?
Definition
The pull-out torque defines the maximum torque an induction motor can deliver when driven at a certain speed, without losing its synchronisation.
Term
What are the characteristics of synchronous machines?
Definition

• Rotor has its own excitation

• Rotor follows stator magnetic field

• Rotor and stator must be going at the

same speed (dictated by the grid)

Term
How does the basic operation of synchronous machines work?
Definition

- A magnetic field is generated by the stator

- The rotor has its own magnetic field, which wants to align with the stator field

- The AC current across the causes the stator field to rotate.

- The alignment causes the rotor to rotate at the same speed

 

Term
What is torque a function of in a synchronous machine? What is this?
Definition

- Load angle

 

- Load angle is the angular displacement between the rotor's magnetic field and the stator's induced magnetic field

Term
How to change the speed of the rotor in a synchronous machine?
Definition
- Need to control the stator frequency to change the speed. Power electronics can be used to do this.
Term
What are the differences between a standard induction generator and a doubly-fed induction generator?
Definition

- Doubly-fed induction generator is a more complex design with power electronics. 

- This design allows for some reactive power control. 

- Unlike a standard IG, DFIG allows speed variability (about 30%).

- Standard IG only used in early turbines, DFIG are now widely used in onshore turbines.

Term

What are the advantages of using a synchronous machine with a fully rated converter?

Where are they used?

Definition

- Full control of reactive power and speed

- No gearbox needed (direct drive).

- Design is simple (although large power electronics requirements).

 

- Used widely in large offshore wind turbines.

Term
Most basic difference between synchronous and asynchronous machines?
Definition

- Rotational speed of the rotor in synchronous machines is equal to the synchronous speed of the rotational magnetic field.

 

- In asynchronous machines, the two are different (defined by slip).

Term
What factors influence tide size?
Definition

- Shape of the coastline and seabed (greater when closer to the shore).

- Gravitational and centrifugal force of the moon (lunar tides).

[image]

- Solar tides (added in spring, subtracted for neap tides).

Term
Unit measurements of tide impacts?
Definition

- Lunar tide is 1 per unit.

- Solar effect is 0.464 per unit, therefore spring tide is 1.464 per unit and neap is 0.536.

 

- High/low tides occur every 12 hours and 25 minutes (as in switches every 6 hours approx).

Term
What factor applies to wind turbines but not tidal turbines?
Definition
Betz Limit.
Term
Ideal location for tidal turbines? Why?
Definition
Within channels, water can be directed through the turbine. Increases power production, due to potential increase of flow rate pressure drop.
Term
How do tidal barrages operate?
Definition

Extraction of gravitational potential energy from the water. Lagoons and barrages create a height difference between high and low tides. 

 

There is some storage, but if the energy is generated too far from low tide, some energy will be

wasted

Term

Where is wave energy most abundant?

What is a challenge for wave energy conversion?

Definition

Far from shore.

 

Waves vary in height, length, and frequency, which makes technology design challenging.

Term
How can hydropower scheme size be split?
Definition

Large - greater than 10MW

Small - 10MW or less

Mini - 100kW to 1MW

Micro - 10kW to 100kW

Term

World's largest Hydroelectric Dam?

Capacity?

Definition

Three Gorges Dam, Hubei.

 

22.5GW

Term
Impacts of the 3 Gorges Dam?
Definition

632km2 of land flooded.

 

Triggering landslides

 

May have been tied to major earthquakes

 

 Affecting biodiversity and fragmentation of habitats.

 

Decrease in freshwater flow downstream.

Term
What 2 factors impact the type of hydroelectric turbine used?
Definition

- Head 'H' (the difference in height between where the water enters and leaves).

- Flow 'Q' (the volume of water crossing the turbine).

Term
When using PE=mgh, what needs to be considered?
Definition
Height is H/2 as it is average height. If equation already has 0.5 then ignore!
Term
What are the three types of impulse turbine?
Definition

- Crossflow

- Turgo

- Pelton Wheel

Term
How does an impulse turbine work?
Definition

-Water potential energy converted to kinetic energy at a nozzle or spout.

- Uses velocity of water to move the turbine runner.

- Discharges to atmospheric pressure.

- Water stream hits each bucket on the runner

- Suitable for high head, low flow

[image]

Term
Example of reaction turbine?
Definition

- Francis Turbine

- Kaplan Turbine

- Archimedes Screw

Term
How does a reaction turbine work?
Definition

- Water potential energy converted to pressure energy

- Uses the pressure drop across the turbine/runner.

- Suitable for wide range of head and flow conditions.

Term
What is a net head vs. discharge plot used for?
Definition

Deciding suitable hydroelectric turbine to use.

[image]

Term

What is NS in this equation?

[image]

Definition
Specific speed of hydroelectric turbine. Different pumps will have different specific speeds, and so can use this equation to find the most effective turbine for it.
Term
Why are fully rated power converters needed for photovoltaics?
Definition
To convert from DC electricity.
Term
What are factors to be considered when integrating solar farms into the power grid?
Definition

- Storability

- Uncertainty

- Land use

- End of life management

Term
Trend in UK photovoltaic schemes?
Definition
Proportion of small-scale schemes dropping.
Term
Optimal photovoltaic orientation?
Definition
Due south with 35° inclination.
Term
How are photovoltaics grouped?
Definition
Individual cells -> Aggregated to form modules -> Interconnected to form arrays.
Term
Impact of temperature on photovolatics
Definition
Increased temperature -> Reduced voltage output
Term
What is the shading effect? How can it be reduced?
Definition

When cells are interconnected, a shaded cell will act as a resistor, and limit the output voltage of the string.

 

Bypass diodes can reduce the shading effect.

[image]

Term
How is maximum power point tracking done in PVs?
Definition

By changing the value of the resistor, the operating point changes. The power changes for the same irradiation.

 

The same can be achieved through the power converter used to interface the PV with the grid.

[image]

Term
Requirements of grid interfacing for PVs?
Definition

As the output power can be variable, grid interface should be able not only to serve as a suitable conversion stage but also extract maximum power. This increases efficiency and thus profits.

 

DC/AC power converter needed.

 

1) Capture max. power from the PV

2) Increase the voltage levels (voltage boosting).

3) Synchronise with the grid delivering the power (active/reactive power control).

 

Term
Three methodologies for energy system planning?
Definition

Investment planning - planning horizon is more than 1 year

 

Maintenance planning - planning horizon less than 1 year

 

Operational planning - planning horizon less than 1 week

Term
What are three key areas of technology in regards to energy systems?
Definition

- Generation technologies

- Transmission technologies

- Distribution technologies

Term
What are constraints to consider for power grid planning?
Definition

Power flow limitations - for all planning horizons:

- Kirchoff's circuit law

- Kirchoff's voltage law

 

Capacity of units and lines - all planning horizons.

 

Operational limits of thermal units - usually short-term:

- Ramp-up and ramp-down

 

Time Limits:

- Construction time

-Maintenance time

- Minimum up-time and down-time of thermal units

 

Reliability, resiliency, and flexibility limits – super critical

 

Financial constraints

Term
Continuous vs discrete variables for power system planning?
Definition

Continuous variables:

- Active/reactive power of units

- Active/reactive flow of lines

- Voltage/current

 

Discrete variables:

 - Investment status of components: 0 (not-built) or 1 (built)

- Maintenance status of components: 0 (unavailable) or 1 (available)

- Operation status of components: 0 (off) or 1 (on)

Term
What is net present value?
Definition
NPV evaluates the potential profitability of a specific investment by calculating the difference between present value (P) of expected cash inflows and outflows, considering the time value of money with discount rate r over n periods.
Term
Describe a simplified overview of the UK energy structure?
Definition
Power generation -> Generation transformer -> High Voltage Transmission -> Lower Voltage Distribution -> Heavy Industry Large Factories -> Light Industry Medium Factories  -> Small commercial and residential
Term
At what voltage is high voltage transmission done in the UK, what about lower voltage distribution?
Definition

275kV or 400kV.

 

 

132kV

Term
At what voltage is energy used commercially in the UK?
Definition
240V
Term
Give reasons that smart grids are better than conventional grids?
Definition

- Two-way real-time connection (as opposed to none/one-way, not real-time)

- Active customer interaction (rather than passive).

- Digital metering allows for real-time pricing and metering.

- Generation can be both centralised and decentralised

- Power flow control is fully automated (rather than partially)

- Rather than radial (one-way) power flow, it is meshed (bi-directional).

 

Term
What is NGET? What do they do?
Definition

National Grid Energy Transmission

 

They are responsible for:

- Maintaining network assets

- Upgrading existing assets

- Providing new connections

- Developing interconnectors

Term
What is NESO? What do they do?
Definition

National Energy System Operator

 

Often summarised as 'keeping the lights on'.

Need to balance supply and demand.

The entity responsible for managing and planning the UK's electricity and gas networks.

 

Term
Who operates energy distribution? Examples?
Definition

Owned and operated by 'DNOs'. Distribution Network Operators.

 

Ones with most customers:
UK Power Networks (8.3 million)

Western Power Networks (7.9 million)

Term
What is ER P2/7? What is its purpose?
Definition

Energy Recommendation P2/7

DNOs are obligated to design networks based on it.

 

It defines:

- The time allowed to restore customers after a fault depending on the capacity of customers connected (group demand)

- Options for redundancy and reconfiguration

 

Term
What is the role of suppliers in a smart system?
Definition

- Buy energy from the wholesale market and arrange for it to be delivered to the end consumer. 

 

Term
What is an Economy 7 tariff?
Definition

Offered by all suppliers, however consumer needs a smart meter or dedicated Economy 7 meter to get them.

 

Consumer is charged different rates for peak (higher price) and off-peak (lower price) electricity use.

Term
Who is responsible for ensuring frequency and adequacy limits are followed?
Definition
Transmission System Operator (TSO)
Term
Units of Active Power? Reactive? Apparent?
Definition

Active: W, kW, MW

 

Reactive: VAr, kVAr, MVAr

 

Apparent: VA, kVA, MVA

Term
What type of power is current found directly from?
Definition
Apparent Power
Term
What variation is allowed in voltage when supplied to the consumer?
Definition

- Low-Voltage connections 230V+10/-6%

- Medium-Voltage connections (11kV) ±6%

- High-Voltage connections (33kV) ±10%

Term
What does a high X/R ratio mean?
Definition
High ratio of reactance to resistance, meaning that voltage variation on transmission lines is dominated by reactive power.
Term
Effects of active power injection? Potential problems?
Definition

- It can lead to a rise in voltage.

- In the winter this generally isn't an issue, but in summer it can lead to voltage outside of the tolerance band.

[image]

Term
What are the two types of tap changing transformers?
Definition

On-Load (OLTC)

De-energised (DETC)

Term
How is voltage change controlled in tap changing transformers?
Definition

The turns-ratio is altered

[image]

Term
Key factors of controlling current in the grid system?
Definition

All assets that power travels through must be rated to carry the continuous current and withstand fault current for a short duration.

 

Equipment ratings must be observed and seasonal ratings are often applied. Environmental conditions will have an impact. Thermal timescales are relatively long (short term overload is permissible).

Term

 

What is a direct impact on energy frequency in the grid?

Definition

It is a physical outcome of the difference between supply and demand.

If demand is greater than generation, frequency decreases. If generation is greater than demand, frequency increases.

Term

What is the main source of system inertia for the power grid?

Impact of system inertia?

Definition

Steam generators.

 

The system inertia dictates sensitivity to imbalances in supply and demand.

Term
What are range limits of frequency in UK energy systems?
Definition

Statuatory: 49.5-50.5 Hz

 

Operational: 49.8-50.2 Hz

Term
If there was a sudden drop in frequency in the UK power grid, what are aimed response times?
Definition

Primary Response: Within 10s, hold for 20s.

Secondary Response: Within 30s, hold for 30mins.

[image]

Term
Why does a failure in a distribution line lead to frequency drop?
Definition
Failure in distribution line can lead to a supply drop. This leads to greater demand/generation imbalance and thus a frequency drop.
Term
What is an impact of system inertia and flexible production of dispatchable units reducing?
Definition
Increased reliance on battery storage systems
Term
Who is responsible for ensuring adequate generation for demand?
Definition
NESO
Term
What does the reliability standard say is allowable inadequacy.
Definition
Less than 3 hours each year
Term
Why must technical capacity be far greater than de-rated generation capacity?
Definition
To account for both planned and unplanned outages.
Term
What is the energy reserve margin? UK value?
Definition

Difference between de-rated generation and underlying demand. De-rated margin of 4.8GW (8.3%). This accounts for the likelihood of availability when needed.

[image]

Term
What is LOLE?
Definition
Loss of Load Expectation. It is used to assess adequacy and must be less than 3 hours over a year.
Term
Why was the capacity market introduced?
Definition
Introduced in 2014 to maintain sufficient levels of capacity to ensure security of energy supply.
Term
How does the capacity market work?
Definition

- The CM provides revenue in the form of capacity payments to potential capacity providers. 

- In return, participants must commit to delivering electricity at times of system stress and face penalties if they fail to do so.

- Capacity payments are determined via competitive Auctions, held four years (T-4 Auction) and one year (T-1 Auction) before each delivery period.

Term
What factors need to be considered in adequacy calculations about the availability of generators?
Definition

Based on the needs at system peak, but demands need to be met at ALL times.

 

Considerations:

- Maintenance cycles

- Variability in resources

-Contingencies (such as if a generation plant is lost).

 

Term
What is the primary method of energy storage used globally?
Definition
92.3% of global operational energy storage is completed using pumped hydro storage (PHS).
Term
Who dominates electrochemical storage?
Definition
Korea, China, the USA and Germany
Term
Trend in change of annual energy storage?
Definition
Shifting away from grid-scale storage to behind-the-meter storage such as residential batteries.
Term
What is renewable firming?
Definition

A strategy to ensure a reliable and consistent supply of electricity from intermittent renewable sources like wind and solar. This is achieved by integrating other energy resources, such as storage or dispatchable generators, to balance the variability of renewables and meet consistent demand. 

Term
How does scale of energy storage systems change with network position?
Definition

Domestic units: 5kW, 10kWh

Secondary distribution: 50kW, 100kWh

Primary Distribution: 6MW, 10MWh

Transmission: 1.8GW, 10GWh

Term
What is peak shaving?
Definition
Usage of energy storage at peak times for the prevention of overload.
Term
What are main features of active network management?
Definition

- Monitoring of all assets (real-time)

- Ensuring all technical limitations of the network cost-effectively

- Reacting to any changes in production/consumption and the network

Term
What is demand-side response?
Definition

Adjusting the consumption (or production), 'behind-the-meter', to change the net electricity demand seen by the distribution network.

Consumers provide DSR in response to a specific incentive (reduction in costs).

[image]

Term
What are impacts of the use of DSR?
Definition

- It is less expensive to control load than to upgrade infrastructure.

- No reduction in initial energy use

- Final energy use might increase

- Process quality might decrease

- New peak might be created

[image]

Term
What are advantages of the use of smart meters?
Definition

- Demand-Side Response Offered

- Reductions in fraud and theft

- Reductions in meter reading costs

- Reductions in peak demands (lower costs)

- Reduction in energy demands

 

Term
What are 4 options for Demand Side Response control mechanisms?
Definition

• A manual response – simplest approach

• A response to a measured quantity

• A response to a direct control signal

• A response to a specific algorithm

Term
What is a significant potential risk of widespread smart meter implementation?
Definition
Cyber Attacks
Term
How to build resilience to cyber attacks of smart meter systems?
Definition

- Identifying critical assets and their interdependencies

- Amending security in response to previous incidents

 - Backing up data and maintaining reserve systems

- Communicating risks to external stakeholders

- Preparing and testing incident response plans 

Term
How are NOPs and NCPs shown in a diagram?
Definition

NOP - Unfilled Circle

NCP - Filled Circle

Term
What does a single substation single line feeder diagram look like?
Definition
[image]
Term
What may be needed for network reconfigurations?
Definition

- Reductions of power losses

- Planned outages (MV or HV) 

- Unplanned outages (MV or HV)

- Excessive power flow on the MV or upstream HV feeder

- Excessive voltage drop/rise on the MV or upstream HV feeder

Term

[image]

What would be the effect if the NOP was shifted one to the right?

Definition

Increase in losses on the left, decrease in losses on the right. 

Unclear what the impact on overall losses would be.

Term
Manual vs semi-automated/automated network reconfiguration?
Definition

Manual carried out by operators at substations, semi-auto requries a SCADA or similar system.

Manual more common in poorer countries:
- Less safe and slower

- Safety implications for people close to switches

Manual can take several hours and several people if many locations.

 

Term
What increases chance of component failure in a network?
Definition

- Increased operation of assets may have adverse impacts on the lifetime of the asset.

- Frequent switching (especially on-load) will increase wear on components.

[image]

 

Term
What does ANM stand for?
Definition
Active Network Management
Term
Static vs Dynamic thermal rating in Active Network Management?
Definition

Static ratings:

Rating is fixed during a season

[image]

Dynamic ratings:

Rating is calculated in real time, based on the conditions of the conductor.

Term
List methods of power flow management in smart grids?
Definition

- Controllable consumption with DSR + Storage

- Controllable production with storage

- Network reconfiguration

- Real-time thermal rating

- Back-to-back converters

Term
What are advantages of back-to-back converters (SOPs)?
Definition

Enables two AC networks to pass power between them despite differences of frequency, number of phases or phase shift (circulating currents).

Can be both scaled down and scaled up.

Term
What does the transition to smart grids mean for decentralisation?
Definition

- Smaller scale power generators can be integrated with more flexibility. 

- Can integrate at secondary distribution or even low voltage level.

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