MEXICO CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Powerphase, a developer of upgrades for power plants, has been issued a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), US Patent No. 9,388,737 for a system that can improve the power, fuel efficiency and speed of power plants like those found in Mexico. Multiple Mexican patents are pending.
The system, dubbed “Turbophase,” solves the fundamental problem faced by all power plant combustion turbines. Combustion turbines lose output at high ambient temperatures or elevations like those often found in Mexico. For example, in Mexico City, at an elevation of 2,250 meters, combustion turbines are often missing 30% or more of their capable output. Turbophase enables power plants to operate at their full potential, reducing costs for Mexico’s electricity customers.
Mexico’s demand for electricity is increasing, which has the potential to drive up costs to consumers. Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) is working to keep rates low. Turbophase helps lower rates by allowing generators like CFE to get more power and better fuel efficiency from the power plants they have already paid to build and those that they plan to build in the future.
Turbophase employs an efficient air compression process, 35% more efficient than the power plant itself. The highly efficient air is then injected into the combustion turbine of the power plant, producing its optimum output in all conditions. “The connection to the power plant is safe and simple and takes just a day,” said Bob Kraft, the President & CEO of Powerphase, the US-based industrial OEM that makes Turbophase. Kraft continued, “Our innovative use of air creates a generational leap in power plant fuel efficiency. We like to say, ‘Air is cheaper than fuel.’”
Powerphase has partnered with Mexico City based Rengen Energy Solutions (Rengen) to bring Turbophase to Mexico. Founded in 2004, Rengen builds strategic alliances with globally renowned companies and helps deploy energy solutions throughout Latin America. “Turbophase is ideally suited to improve the efficiency of Mexico’s power plants,” said Oscar Scolari, President & CEO of Rengen.
Turbophase works on large combustion turbines used in electric power generation and also on smaller combustion turbines used in industrial processes like mining, gas processing facilities and natural gas pipelines. The transformative technology will help Mexico meet its growing power demand while helping to keep electric power costs low for Mexico’s rapid growth and prosperity.
