Jeffrey Energy Center
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey Energy Center is a sub-bituminous coal-fired power plant
located seven miles (11 km) northwest of St. Marys, Kansas
, at 39°17′10"N 96°07′01"W. Jeffrey EC is jointly owned by Westar Energy
, Topeka, Kansas
and Aquila Corp., Kansas City, Missouri
. Jeffrey EC is composed of three separate 720-MW units providing a name-plate energy center capacity of 2.16 gigawatts. Unit 1 began operation in 1978, unit 2 in 1980 and unit 3 in 1983.
Jeffrey EC is a typical modern coal-fired energy center. Its primary mission is to convert the chemical energy available from its Wyoming
Powder River Basin
sub-bituminous coal supply into electric energy.
created by a quadrupling of world oil prices. Its inauguration in July, 1978 was heralded with a visit by Vice President Walter Mondale
praising its use of domestic coal reserves at a time when many power stations were still using imported oil. The opening ceremonies included a performance by the US Army Golden Knights
parachute team, and the arrival of a special train carrying company officials and state dignitaries from Topeka, Kansas
.
The center was originally designed for four generating units, but was scaled back when the anticipated growth in demand for electricity did not materialize.
The steam turbine
s and generator
s were imported from Germany
. The unit 2 intermediate pressure turbine had to be replaced by the unit 3 turbine when the original unit was lost on a ship that sunk during the crossing of the Atlantic ocean
.
As of December, 2007, Foundation Coal has shipped approximately 220,000,000 tons of Powder River Basin
Coal to Jeffrey Energy Center.
Jeffrey EC burns the coal delivered by about 11 miles (17.7 km) of coal train cars each week. The heating value of this coal is about 8,400 BTU/lb (19.5 MJ
/kg) and at full load Jeffrey EC burns about 3000000 pound of coal per hour.
Jeffrey EC has the capacity to generate 1,857 MW of electrical power.
Jeffrey EC is not located close to any large bodies of natural water. Its water supply comes from a series of wells drawing from the aquifer
under the Kansas River
.
The overall efficiency of the conversion process is about 33%, or about 1/3 of the coal's available chemical energy is converted to electric energy. The remainder of the energy (2/3) is rejected to the environment as low-grade waste heat with poor thermodynamic availability.
Steam generating (nuclear, gas, coal, geothermal, and solar furnace) energy centers, like Jeffrey, operate their steam plant on the Rankine cycle
.
Fossil fuel power plant
A fossil-fuel power station is a power station that burns fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or petroleum to produce electricity. Central station fossil-fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation...
located seven miles (11 km) northwest of St. Marys, Kansas
St. Marys, Kansas
St. Marys is a city in Pottawatomie and Wabaunsee counties in the U.S. state of Kansas, approximately 20 miles west of Topeka on U.S. Route 24. The population was 2,198 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Manhattan, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, at 39°17′10"N 96°07′01"W. Jeffrey EC is jointly owned by Westar Energy
Westar Energy
Westar Energy is an investor owned electric utility headquartered in Topeka, Kansas. Westar is the largest electric company in Kansas, serving 687,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in the eastern third of the state. Westar Energy generates more than 27,000,000 megawatt-hours of...
, Topeka, Kansas
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
and Aquila Corp., Kansas City, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. Jeffrey EC is composed of three separate 720-MW units providing a name-plate energy center capacity of 2.16 gigawatts. Unit 1 began operation in 1978, unit 2 in 1980 and unit 3 in 1983.
Jeffrey EC is a typical modern coal-fired energy center. Its primary mission is to convert the chemical energy available from its Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
Powder River Basin
Powder River Basin
The Powder River Basin is a geologic region in southeast Montana and northeast Wyoming, about east to west and north to south, known for its coal deposits. The region supplies about 40 percent of coal in the United States. It is both a topographic drainage and geologic structural basin...
sub-bituminous coal supply into electric energy.
History
Jeffrey EC came into operation during the late 1970s in the wake of an energy crisisEnergy crisis
An energy crisis is any great bottleneck in the supply of energy resources to an economy. In popular literature though, it often refers to one of the energy sources used at a certain time and place, particularly those that supply national electricity grids or serve as fuel for vehicles...
created by a quadrupling of world oil prices. Its inauguration in July, 1978 was heralded with a visit by Vice President Walter Mondale
Walter Mondale
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale is an American Democratic Party politician, who served as the 42nd Vice President of the United States , under President Jimmy Carter, and as a United States Senator for Minnesota...
praising its use of domestic coal reserves at a time when many power stations were still using imported oil. The opening ceremonies included a performance by the US Army Golden Knights
United States Army Parachute Team
The United States Army Parachute Team, nicknamed and commonly known as the Golden Knights, is a demonstration and competition parachute team of the United States Army...
parachute team, and the arrival of a special train carrying company officials and state dignitaries from Topeka, Kansas
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
.
The center was originally designed for four generating units, but was scaled back when the anticipated growth in demand for electricity did not materialize.
The steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s and generator
Electrical generator
In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
s were imported from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The unit 2 intermediate pressure turbine had to be replaced by the unit 3 turbine when the original unit was lost on a ship that sunk during the crossing of the Atlantic ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
.
As of December, 2007, Foundation Coal has shipped approximately 220,000,000 tons of Powder River Basin
Powder River Basin
The Powder River Basin is a geologic region in southeast Montana and northeast Wyoming, about east to west and north to south, known for its coal deposits. The region supplies about 40 percent of coal in the United States. It is both a topographic drainage and geologic structural basin...
Coal to Jeffrey Energy Center.
Operation
Coal is delivered to Jeffrey EC by a unit train. A unit train contains about 110 cars, constructed of aluminum to conserve weight, and is approximately 1 miles (1.6 km) long.Jeffrey EC burns the coal delivered by about 11 miles (17.7 km) of coal train cars each week. The heating value of this coal is about 8,400 BTU/lb (19.5 MJ
Joule
The joule ; symbol J) is a derived unit of energy or work in the International System of Units. It is equal to the energy expended in applying a force of one newton through a distance of one metre , or in passing an electric current of one ampere through a resistance of one ohm for one second...
/kg) and at full load Jeffrey EC burns about 3000000 pound of coal per hour.
Jeffrey EC has the capacity to generate 1,857 MW of electrical power.
Jeffrey EC is not located close to any large bodies of natural water. Its water supply comes from a series of wells drawing from the aquifer
Aquifer
An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...
under the Kansas River
Kansas River
The Kansas River is a river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is the southwestern-most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is in turn the northwestern-most portion of the extensive Mississippi River drainage. Its name come from the Kanza people who once inhabited the area...
.
The overall efficiency of the conversion process is about 33%, or about 1/3 of the coal's available chemical energy is converted to electric energy. The remainder of the energy (2/3) is rejected to the environment as low-grade waste heat with poor thermodynamic availability.
Steam generating (nuclear, gas, coal, geothermal, and solar furnace) energy centers, like Jeffrey, operate their steam plant on the Rankine cycle
Rankine cycle
The Rankine cycle is a cycle that converts heat into work. The heat is supplied externally to a closed loop, which usually uses water. This cycle generates about 90% of all electric power used throughout the world, including virtually all solar thermal, biomass, coal and nuclear power plants. It is...
.