Combined Heat and Power

WHAT IS CHP?

CHP is the combined production of heat and power in a single process. It takes advantage of the heat rejected in the thermo-dynamic conversion process from primary fuel to power and heat supplied for useful purposes.

It therefore typically saves around 25% of the energy that would have been required to produce electricity in a conventional power station and heat in separate heat-only boilers as illustrated in Fig 1. A commensurate saving of emissions including carbon dioxide (CO2), Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) and Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) can also be achieved, though the extents will vary between technologies and the impact on other electricity generating plant operating at the time.  Furthermore, the deployment of CHP will affect the geographical distribution of emissions, as there will be a decrease in emissions from large ‘central’ electricity only power stations and a lesser aggregate increase in emissions from smaller ‘local’ CHP stations.

Fig. 1: Sankey diagram displaying how 25% energy saving is achieved using CHP compared to the separate production of heat and centralised electricity.

For further information on other interesting areas of CHP click here.

For information on the CHP Promotion Programme please click here.

CHP Promotional Events