Power Plant Heat Rate
Power Plant Heat Rate
Heat rate measures a power plant’s fuel efficiency: the heat input needed per unit of electrical output. Lower is better.
The heat rate is HR = Q_fuel/W_elec. where Q_fuel is the fuel energy and W_elec the electrical output.
Inputs
Q_fuel := 10000 kJ=1e+07 Nm
W_elec := 3800 kJ=3.8e+06 Nm
Divide fuel energy by electrical output.
HR := Q_fuel/W_elec=2.63
Results
A heat rate of about 2.6 means 2.6 units of fuel energy per unit of electricity — the inverse is the thermal efficiency (here ~38%).
Assumptions & limitations
- Consistent energy units.
- Over the same period.
- Inverse of thermal efficiency.