About the history of CHPP-1
“This is the oldest station in Daugavpils – it was commissioned in 1911. We built a boiler and a DC generator with a capacity of 500 kilowatts. From that moment on, the electrification of our city began. The first electric light bulbs appeared, and from that moment on, our station provided electricity (until 2017) and heat to the city’s residents.
At the moment we only produce thermal energy. But we still have a steam turbine with an electrical power of 4 megawatts. We hope that someday it will work. But, with the current situation in the energy market of our state, it is unprofitable to launch it.
During the entire period of operation, CHPP-1 had only one long break – less than two years. In 1944, when German troops were retreating from the city, there was a bombing and one aerial bomb hit right in the center of our station.”
About the work of Daugavpils siltumtīkli in summer
“As soon as we put into operation a 30-megawatt woodchip boiler house at CHPP-3, in the summer it began to provide hot water to almost the entire city. The city’s peak load in summer is 16 megawatts.
The exceptions were the microdistricts of the city remote from CHPP-3, where we have separate boiler houses – Rugeli, Cherepovo, Starye Stropy, Griva, Kalkuny, Fortress, Kryzhi, etc. In total, there are 10 such local boiler houses in the city, of which only one works with operational staff. All other boiler rooms are automatic.
This year we commissioned a new wood chip boiler house with a capacity of 20 megawatts at CHPP-2 and it began to provide most of the city with hot water between heating seasons.”
About chemical water purification
“The water at the enterprise is different from what consumers are used to seeing in the water supply. We specially soften water using a special softening installation; a few months ago we installed a new, modern such installation. Old filtration equipment was kept in reserve.
After softening, water becomes specific – if you try to wash your hands with it, you will feel as if the water is soapy. By the way, if such water flows from your tap, you can immediately understand that the heat exchanger is broken somewhere.
The second stage of chemical purification is water deoxygenation. This stage also takes place with the help of special equipment – a vacuum-type deaerator. At a certain temperature, a vacuum is created, the water boils and excess oxygen is removed. This way we achieve a minimum oxygen content in the water. This is necessary in order to avoid the process of oxidation and the appearance of rust in the pipes.”
About the chimney at CHPP-1
“This is a historic brick chimney that is 100 meters high. The pipe was designed to run on fuel oil or natural gas, so now the smoke from it is visible only in the most severe frosts. The pipe can only be used under the condition that the gases coming out of it are hot enough, otherwise the internal lining will not withstand it.
We are currently working with new heat recovery devices. If gases come out of the boiler at a temperature of 100 degrees, then after installing new devices, the temperature of the exiting gases is only 15-20 degrees. We convert the remaining 80-85 degrees into useful heat, heating the network water.”
About switching to propane
“In 2022, an energy crisis loomed on the horizon and we did not know whether there would be natural gas at all, whether we would be able to provide heat to the townspeople during the 2022/2023 heating season, prices were very high. Then, right during the heating season, we carried out a reconstruction, which in my experience happened for the first time, and switched to propane.
Special containers were installed, all communications were installed, burner devices were installed, and from January 2023 we switched from natural gas to propane. At the moment, we can heat the city with 4 types of fuel: propane, natural gas, wood chips and pellets. The last type of fuel belongs to two local boiler houses, which are located in Kalkuni and Griva.”
Prepared with the support of Daugavpils municipality
Gorod ON AIR: an exclusive tour of Daugavpils heating networks
The guest of this Gorod ON AIR program was the chief energy engineer of Daugavpils thermal grid Māris Laudiņš, who led the audience on an exclusive tour of thermal power plant No. 1.
About the history of thermal power plant No. 1
“This is the oldest station in Daugavpils – it was put into operation in 1911. A boiler and a direct current generator with a capacity of 500 kilowatts were built. From that moment, the electrification of our city began. The first electric lighting lamps appeared, and until 2017, the station provided the city’s residents with electricity and warmth.
At the moment we only produce thermal energy. But we still have a steam turbine with 4 megawatts of electricity. We hope that someday it will work again, but with the current situation in the national energy market, its operation is not profitable.
During the operation of thermal power plant No. 1, there was only one long interruption – less than two years. In 1944, when the German troops retreated from the city, there was a bombing, and one aerial bomb hit right in the center of the station.”
About Daugavpils heat network work in summer
“As soon as we put into operation the wood chip boiler house with a capacity of 30 megawatts in the territory of the thermal power plant No. 3, during the summer period it began to supply almost the entire city with hot water. The maximum summer load of the city is 16 megawatts.
The exception is the remotest micro-districts of the city, where boiler houses operate separately – Ruģeļi, Cherepova, Vecstropi, Grīva, Kalkūni, Cietoksnis, Križi, etc. In total, there are 10 such local boiler houses in the city, and only one of them works with operational staff. The other boiler houses are automated.
This year, we put into operation a new wood chip boiler house with a capacity of 20 megawatts in the territory of the heating plant No. 3, and it began to provide most of the city with hot water between the heating seasons.”
About the chemical treatment of water
“The water in the company is different from what consumers see in the water supply. We specially soften the water using a special softening device. We installed a new, modern device a few months ago, but left the old one in reserve.
After softening, the water becomes specific – if you try to wash your hands with it, the water will seem soapy. By the way, if such water starts to flow from your tap, it means that the heat exchanger element is damaged somewhere.
The second stage of chemical purification is water deoxygenation. This is done using a vacuum deaerator. At a certain temperature, a vacuum is created, the water begins to boil, and excess oxygen is removed. This allows to minimize the oxygen content in the water to prevent pipes from rusting.”
About the chimney of the heating plant No. 1
“It is a historic brick chimney with a height of 100 meters. The chimney was designed to work with fuel oil or natural gas, so the smoke from it is visible only in very strong islands.
We are currently working on new heat recovery equipment. If the temperature of the gases coming out of the boiler is 100 degrees, then after installing the new equipment it is only 15-20 degrees. The remaining 80-85 degrees are converted into useful heat by heating the mains water.”
About switching to propane
“In 2022, due to the energy crisis, we did not know whether natural gas would be available at all and whether we would be able to provide the city with heat in the heating season in 2022/2023. The prices were very high. Then, for the first time in my practice, we carried out the reconstruction right during the heating season and we switched to propane.
Special tanks were installed, all communications were installed and burner devices were adjusted. As of January 2023, we switched from natural gas to propane. Currently, we can provide heat to the city using four types of fuel: propane, natural gas, wood chips and pellets. The latter refers to two local boiler houses in Kalkūnis and Grīvā.”
Prepared with the support of the municipality of Daugavpils
Source: www.gorod.lv
