The Close Power Station
Encyclopedia
Close Power Station was a coal-fired power station
situated on Newcastle upon Tyne's
Quayside
, in Tyne and Wear
. The station was built by the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
in 1902, near their Forth Banks Power Station
.
and brick
clad
construction with the boiler house and turbine hall built alongside each other, a modern design at the time. The station had no rail sidings and so instead coal was brought to it by cart from the colliery. Coal was also delivered by barge
, via a nearby boat landing on the River Tyne
. The coal fired five Stirling boilers
, each with 600 HP capacity. Two further boilers were installed in 1907. Coal was fed into the boilers by overhead hoppers, which used automatic stokers. Conveyor belt
s were used to transport coal to the boilers, and to take ash away from them.
The station initially used one Parsons
steam turbine to drive two 500 kilowatt (kW) dynamo
s, giving the station a total generating capacity of 1,000 kW. However, by 1907 the station had been extended to generate using two DC Parsons 1,500 kW sets, fitted with vacuum augmenters, and a further two 1,000 kW generators. This gave the station a total generating capacity of 5,000 kW. Condensing water was pumped directly from the River Tyne, which it was situated upon.
1,540 customers would come to the power station's shops to have their meters tester and repaired.
required frequent expansion, as demand grew. It was built on a large adjacent piece of land. During the Second World War there was a suspected unexploded bomb
found in a coal dump at the station, however it was discredited. The station continued operating until roughly 1948, when the UK's
electrical supply industry
was nationalised. The station has since been demolished, and an electric substation now stands on the site.
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...
situated on Newcastle upon Tyne's
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
Quayside
Quayside
The Quayside is an area along the banks of the River Tyne in Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead in the North East of England, United Kingdom....
, in Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in north east England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972...
. The station was built by the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
The Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company was a pre-nationalisation, private electricity supply company, based in Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. The company was set up in 1889 by Charles Algernon Parsons...
in 1902, near their Forth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station refers to a now-demolished coal-fired power station in North East England. It was situated in the city centre of Newcastle upon Tyne on Forth Banks, a street to the rear of Newcastle's Central Station...
.
Specification and operation
The station was of a steel frameSteel frame
Steel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal -beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
and brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
clad
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
construction with the boiler house and turbine hall built alongside each other, a modern design at the time. The station had no rail sidings and so instead coal was brought to it by cart from the colliery. Coal was also delivered by barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
, via a nearby boat landing on the River Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
. The coal fired five Stirling boilers
Water-tube boiler
A water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes...
, each with 600 HP capacity. Two further boilers were installed in 1907. Coal was fed into the boilers by overhead hoppers, which used automatic stokers. Conveyor belt
Conveyor belt
A conveyor belt consists of two or more pulleys, with a continuous loop of material - the conveyor belt - that rotates about them. One or both of the pulleys are powered, moving the belt and the material on the belt forward. The powered pulley is called the drive pulley while the unpowered pulley...
s were used to transport coal to the boilers, and to take ash away from them.
The station initially used one Parsons
C. A. Parsons and Company
C. A. Parsons and Company was a British engineering firm which was once one of the largest employers on Tyneside.-History:The Company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1889 to produce turbo-generators, his own invention. At the beginning of the Twentieth Century, the company was producing...
steam turbine to drive two 500 kilowatt (kW) dynamo
Dynamo
- Engineering :* Dynamo, a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator* Dynamo theory, a theory relating to magnetic fields of celestial bodies* Solar dynamo, the physical process that generates the Sun's magnetic field- Software :...
s, giving the station a total generating capacity of 1,000 kW. However, by 1907 the station had been extended to generate using two DC Parsons 1,500 kW sets, fitted with vacuum augmenters, and a further two 1,000 kW generators. This gave the station a total generating capacity of 5,000 kW. Condensing water was pumped directly from the River Tyne, which it was situated upon.
1,540 customers would come to the power station's shops to have their meters tester and repaired.
History
The station was built after the neighbouring Forth Banks Power StationForth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station refers to a now-demolished coal-fired power station in North East England. It was situated in the city centre of Newcastle upon Tyne on Forth Banks, a street to the rear of Newcastle's Central Station...
required frequent expansion, as demand grew. It was built on a large adjacent piece of land. During the Second World War there was a suspected unexploded bomb
Unexploded ordnance
Unexploded ordnance are explosive weapons that did not explode when they were employed and still pose a risk of detonation, potentially many decades after they were used or discarded.While "UXO" is widely and informally used, munitions and explosives of...
found in a coal dump at the station, however it was discredited. The station continued operating until roughly 1948, when the UK's
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
electrical supply industry
Electrical power industry
The electric power industry provides the production and delivery of electric energy, often known as power, or electricity, in sufficient quantities to areas that need electricity through a grid connection. The grid distributes electrical energy to customers...
was nationalised. The station has since been demolished, and an electric substation now stands on the site.