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Duel-fuel Engine Generator Control Retrofitting

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It would have cost over $5 million to replace this duel-fuel engine generator which was no longer cost-effective to operate using its manual pneumatic controls. Instead, SKW extended its productive life for almost 50 years by retrofitting it with a PLC-based control system, which involved modifying the engines. The new system, which is monitored remotely from the main power plant, self-adjusts to run optimally by using a minimum of fuel.

For the City of Ottawa, Kansas, it was a win-win situation. For a small investment in engine modification and a PLC-based control system, the City was able to retain power generation capacity it would have cost $5 million to replace.

In addition, the substation, which had required manual operation of its obsolete pneumatic control system, now operates totally unmanned. Except for fuel, operating costs are negligible.

But that's not all. Under the new control system, the modified dual fuel (simultaneous diesel and gas) engines self-adjust to run optimally, saving on fuel costs. The system performs adaptive load shedding and automatic unit dispatch. SKW’s scope of work included design, fabrication, installation and commissioning of the monitoring and control system.

From the new power plant, operators monitor the feeders and perform any required substation control remotely. The substation system was easily integrated with the main plant SCADA system.