squonk 39,039 #1 Posted September 25, 2014 Had some excitement first thing this morning. A cogeneration unit caught fire at work. This is a 454 Chevy marine engine turning a generator that produces 75 KW. Don't know the cause yet but the nat gas line to the carb was burned off! Fire dept took out the switch gear in the room. All I could think of when I walked into the room was the Apollo 1 fire. Fiberglass enclosure melted smelled like a Corvette body shop. We have no idea what all we lost. Took all day to get cooling back on as the system is connected to a 700 ton absorption chiller. Fun times ahead! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Geno 1,928 #2 Posted September 25, 2014 Wow what a mess. Do you get to fix that? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Digger 66 3,477 #3 Posted September 25, 2014 What did you have to do to the fuel delivery system to ready it for Nat gas ? Same compression ratio ? Re jet or re program ECU ? What about the natural lubricity of petrol as opposed to the N-gas ? ( top end / valve seals etc... ) How much more is required to deliver the same numbers as gasoline ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 39,039 #4 Posted September 25, 2014 An outside source handles the Co-Gens. We supply pumps,fuel and electric.If you look at the last pic, the round item on the top is the "Carb" or what's left of it. These engines run in the low 2000 RPM range. Lots of issues with the top end parts like rocker arms pushrods ect. It has it's own specially designed electronic control system for both the engine and generator. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Digger 66 3,477 #5 Posted September 25, 2014 Always wondered about stuff like that ^ Thanks for the reply . One reason I ask is my mom's house has a whole house generator & wondered if the small engines powering them were set up & designed specifically to be compatible ( longevity wise ) with NG Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shorts 182 #6 Posted September 26, 2014 I'm glad that no one was injured. With my previous involvement with standby power and engine test and development, I'm suprised that the engine didn't have a dedicated safety shutdown and fire suppression system installed, it's also interesting that a non metal sound attenuation enclosure was used on a power unit that was installed in a building. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 39,039 #7 Posted September 26, 2014 (edited) I'm sure after the insurance companies get done fighting it out, all of those things mentioned will be installed. I won't be surprised if the co gen plant disappears entirely. We had a big expansion now and we don't use as much steam as we used to as sterilization is now done in another building. Cooling load is lower too and the absorber doesn't need as much steam unless it's 90 plus outside. We had Trane in today to try to get the programming for the heat exchanger right so we could run the absorber again. At noon the speed drive for the boiler expolded and the other boiler was apart after being inspected. We had to thrash all afternoon to get it up and running. Edited September 26, 2014 by squonk Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
