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Dunston Power Station

Coordinates:54°57′37″N1°39′32″W/ 54.96028°N 1.65889°W/54.96028; -1.65889
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Dunston power station
Dunston B Power Station
Viewed from southwest
Map
Official nameDunston A and B power stations
CountryEngland
LocationDunston
Coordinates54°57′37″N1°39′32″W/ 54.96028°N 1.65889°W/54.96028; -1.65889
StatusDemolished
Construction began1908 (A station)
1930 (B station)
1947 (Gas turbine)
Commission date1910 (A station)
1933-51 (B station)
1955 (Gas turbine)
Decommission date1975-81
Owner(s)Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company
(1910–1947)
British Electricity Authority
(1948–1954)
Central Electricity Authority
(1954–1957)
Central Electricity Generating Board
(1957–1981)
Thermal power station
Primary fuelCoal
Secondary fuelNatural gas
Power generation
Units operationalA station:
Two 7.2 MWAEG,one 6.25 MWBrown Boveri,one 13.2 MWBrown Boveriand later one 15 MWC. A. Parsons and Companygas turbine
B station:
Six 50 MWC. A. Parsons and Company
Nameplate capacity1910: 33.85 MW
1951: 333.85 MW
1955: 348.85 MW
1981: 98 MW
External links
CommonsRelated media on Commons
[edit on Wikidata]
Sometimes confused with the nearbyStella power stations.

Dunston Power Stationrefers to a pair of adjacentcoal-fired power stationsin theNorth East of England,now demolished. They were built on the south bank of theRiver Tyne,in the western outskirts ofDunstoninGateshead.The two stations were built on a site which is now occupied by theMetroCentre.The first power station built on the site was known asDunston A Power Station,and the second, which gradually replaced it between 1933 and 1950, was known asDunston B Power Station.The A Station was, in its time, one of the largest in the country, and as well as burning coal had early open cycle gas turbine units. The B Station was the first of a new power station design, and stood as a landmark on the Tyne for over 50 years. From the A Station's opening in 1910 until the B Station's demolition in 1986, they collectively operated from the early days of electricity generation in the United Kingdom, through the industry'snationalisation,and until a decade before itsprivatisation.

Dunston A had a generating capacity of 48.85megawatts(MW) in 1955, and Dunston B had a generating capacity of 300 MW. Electricity from the stations powered an area coveringNorthumberland,County Durham,Cumberland,Yorkshireand as far north asGalashielsin Scotland.[1]

Dunston A Power Station

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History

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With the expansion of the electric supply industry in the early 1900s, power stations were built to supply homes with electric lighting. AroundNewcastle upon Tynethis led to the construction of power stations atLemington,The CloseandCarville.Two supply companies built the stations, theNewcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company(NESCo) to the east of Newcastle, and theNewcastle and District Electric Lighting Company(DisCo) to the west.[2]To meet an increasing demand for electricity, NESCo commissioned Dunston Power Station (later Dunston A Power Station) on the Derwent Haugh, a largeflood plainto the west ofGateshead,to balance the supply of the Newcastle area with the Carville station.[3][4]Construction of the new station began in 1908, the work undertaken by the company ofSir Robert McAlpine.They completed the construction in the short time of 20 months, and this was to be their first in a large number of power station constructions, following the decline of the railway industry.[5][6]In 1910, the station was opened and began generating electricity.[4][7]

Design and specification

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The station was of a similar design to other local power stations at Carville and Lemington, and was a largetriple-gabledbrick building.[3][8]However Dunston A was built several years after the other local stations, and so because of advances in power station design, was larger and was able to produce more electricity than the others. The station was originally equipped with twoturbo-alternatorsrated at 7.2megawatts(MW), made byAEGof Germany, and two turbo alternators rated at 6.25 MW and 13.2 MW, made byBrown Boveriof Switzerland, for a total generating capacity of 33.85 MW.[3][9]The turbo alternators were supplied with steam from 24 coal burningBabcock & Wilcoxmarine water-tube boilers.

Low temperature carbonisation plant

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In 1925, NESCo set up separate plant at the power station for the low temperaturecarbonisationtreatment of coal, before being burned in boilers and the steam used for electricity generation. The treatment plant was manufactured by Babcock & Wilcox, and set up in a self-contained boiler house which contained four boilers, fourretortsand pulverising mills. The building was also fitted with gas-stripping and by-product plants. The carbonising plant could handle up to 100 tonnes of coal per day, while its boilers produced 78,000 lb of steam per hour.[10]This plant was extended in 1931.[11]

Gas turbine plant

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Between 1947[3]and November 1955,[12]the station was extended, and a 15 MWParsonsgas turbineturbo alternator was installed, bringing the capacity of the station up to 48.85 MW.[3][13][14]The gas was supplied by pipe line from the Norwood Coke Works, 1.5 mi (2.4 km) away in theTeam Valley.[3][15]

The electricity output from the A station was as follows.[16]

Dunston A electricity output
Year 1954 1955 1956 1957
Electricity output, GWh 53.032 56.967 46.991 25.461

Dunston B Power Station

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As part of a transition from the 40Hertz(Hz) system, used by the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company, to the 50 Hz system, used by the newUK National Grid,which took place in 1932, a new power station was built to replace the A power station.[17]

Design and specification

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The new Dunston B Power Station was designed by consulting engineersMerz & McLellan.[18]Its design was different from the design of other power stations at the time because it enclosed the machinery in asteel frameclad with glass.[1]This was a departure from the usual power station designs, which normally enclosed the machinery in a concrete or brick wall. Dunston B is thought to be the first power station in the UK and possibly even the world to be built in this way.[4]The station was also the first in the world to use metal cladswitchgearat a voltage as high as 66,000 V.[19]

Construction of the new power station started in 1930, but the Second World War delayed its full completion until 1951. The station was opened in stages throughout its construction, as generating units were able to be put into production while the other sections were still under construction. The first units were commissioned in January 1933.[7][14]

The new station had a capacity of 300megawatts(MW), produced by six 50 MW generating sets. These were made byC. A. Parsons and Companyand were the largest machines ever constructed underCharles Algernon Parsons' supervision.[14][20]

The station's units were the first application ofreheated steamin steam turbines in the world, an improvement which gave them a heat consumption of only 9,280BTUperkilowatt hour,the most efficient system in the UK. In 1939 the station was said to be"at the head of all the Power Stations in Great Britain as regards thermal efficiency."[21]The station remained one of Britain's most efficient systems until the 1950s.[1][14]

The stations' buildings were around 100 ft (30 m) tall. Flue gas was discharged through six 250 ft (76 m) tallchimneys,one for each of the station's six generating units.[22]The station was fitted with twoelectrostatic precipitatorsin 1953, one completed in June that year and the other in September. They were fitted to reduce smoke and pollution from the station.[23]

Operations

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The plant's water system was cooled by using the nearby River Tyne, rather than using acooling towersystem.[1]Coal for the station was supplied from variouscoal minesin theNorth Durhamcoalfields,and was brought to the station by train, on what was a freight only line. Since the station's closure, this line has been upgraded for use by passenger trains and is now used as part of theNewcastle & Carlisle Railway.[1]Once delivered to the station, coal wasshuntedby CEGB No. 15 "Eustace Forth", which was built byRobert Stephenson & Hawthornsin 1942, and No. 13 "The Barra", which was built byHawthorn Leslie & Companyin 1928. These two engines are now stored atNational Railway Museum ShildonandTanfield Railwayrespectively.[24][25]

Various ships disposed of the station's ash waste, by carrying thefly ashdown the river and dumping it in theNorth Sea.These vessels included"Bobby Shaftoe","Bessie Surtees"and"Hexhamshire Lass",which were also used by the nearbyStella power stations;as well as a number oftugstowinghopper barges,including"Mildred".[26][27]

In 1971 the station had an installed capacity of 282.5 MW comprising two 52 MW and four 44 MW generator sets.[28]The boilers had an output capacity of 2,250,000 pounds per hour (283.4 kg/s) of steam at 600 psi (41.4 bar) and 427/454 °C. In 1971 the station delivered 508.83 GWh of electricity.[28]

The electricity generating capacity and output of Dunston B power station are shown in the tables. Separate figures are given for the Part I plant (1933–39) and the part II plant (1949–50).[16][29][30]

Dunston B (part I plant) electricity capacity and output
Year 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958
Installed capacity, MW 184 184 184 184 184
Electricity output, GWh 1,057.600 1,014.282 872.428 695.021 583.341
Dunston B (part II plant) electricity capacity and output
Year 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1967 1971 1979
Installed capacity, MW 96 96 96 96 96 282.5 (total I & II) 282 (total I & II) 104
Electricity output, GWh 743.548 725.263 672.284 495.410 632.392 576.899 508.831 117.145

Closure, demolition and present

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See also:MetroCentre (shopping centre)
The partially demolished station, viewed from Benwell in 1986, with the almost completed Metrocentre visible behind.
All that remains of the station is a large indoor sub-station.
There is now aCostco Wholesaleon the site of the power station.

In its time, Dunston B Power Station ranked consistently in England's leading stations, both in terms of thermal efficiency and cost per unit of electricity.[14]However, the station eventually became outdated, and notification of its partial closure was given in October 1975, with some units being closed the following October.[31]It was then only used as a stand-by station, operating only at peak electrical demand times. Finally, after some units having been in operation for about 40 years, the station ceased to generate electricity on 26 October 1981. At the time of closure, only 98 MW of the station's capacity was in use.[32]

The station was demolished in 1986 to make way for theMetroCentre,which became Europe's largest shopping and leisure centre.[33]The land on which the MetroCentre was built was bought for only £100,000, because the site was water-logged and had been used for dumping ash produced by the power station. Americanwarehouse clubchainCostcohave since built a store on the actual site of the power station.[34]The power station's large indoorsub-stationstill stands alongside it, as the only trace of the site's former use.

Due to the closure of Dunston power station, along with the later closures of the power stations atStellaandBlyth,the northern part ofNorth East Englandhas become heavily dependent upon theNational Gridfor electrical supply. However, in the south of the region there are still two large power stations atHartlepoolandTeesside,meaning that the south of the region does not depend upon the National Grid for electrical supply as much as the north of the region.[35]

Visual and cultural impact

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The power station's sixchimneyswere a prominent local landmark, visible from along a 8.6-mile (13.8 km) stretch of the Tyne valley running fromBenshamin Gateshead toHeddon-on-the-Wallin Northumberland.[36]

When in operation, the B station briefly featured inGet Carter,a 1971 crime film starringMichael Caine.Dunston B appears as part of the film's backdrop, viewed from the now demolished Frank Street inBenwell,as the funeral cortège of the main character's brother Frank leaves a house on the street.[34][37]

The station was also a popular subject forphotographers.It featured in the work ofdocumentaryandpress photographerBert Hardy,who photographed it from Benwell, using it as a backdrop whilst photographing a mother and child.[38]It was also photographed by Welsh documentary photographerJimmy Forsyth (photographer)as part of hisScotswood Roadcollection.[39]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcde"Dunston Power Station".Whickham Web Wanderers.u3a. Archived fromthe originalon 3 May 2013.Retrieved29 June2008.
  2. ^"North Eastern Electricity Board".The National Archives.Retrieved13 June2010.
  3. ^abcdef"Dunston Power Station".The Electrician.87.James Gray: 259. 1947.Retrieved17 June2010.
  4. ^abc"History of Dunston".Retrieved13 June2010.
  5. ^Jux, Frank (August 1974)."Sir Robert McAlpine & Sons Ltd: The End of an Era".The Industrial Railway Record.Retrieved2 July2010.
  6. ^Institution of Civil Engineers (1937)."Minutes of proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers".240(2): 3.Retrieved13 June2010.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  7. ^ab"Structure Details".Newcastle University.26 March 2004. Archived fromthe originalon 13 June 2011.Retrieved17 June2010.
  8. ^"000841:Power Station Dunston unknown not dated".Newcastle Libraries. 25 August 2009.Retrieved13 June2010.
  9. ^Hughes, Thomas Parke (1993).Networks of power: electrification in Western society, 1880–1930.JHU Press. p. 456.ISBN0-8018-4614-5.Retrieved13 June2010.
  10. ^"Low-Temperature Carbonisation at Dunston".Durham Mining Museum.November 1928.Retrieved10 August2011.
  11. ^"A Notable Low-Temperature Plant".Durham Mining Museum.April 1931.Retrieved10 August2011.
  12. ^"The Electrical Journal".155.1955.Retrieved17 June2010.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  13. ^"Gas Turbines".Electrical Times.123:68. 1953.Retrieved13 June2010.
  14. ^abcdeThe Electricity Council."Electricity Supply in the United Kingdom"(PDF).pp. 55, 67, 75. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 1 April 2017.Retrieved17 June2010.
  15. ^Dr D G Edwards."By-Product Coking Plants in Britain: An Outline History"(PDF).The Coke Oven Managers' Association.p. 7. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 25 July 2011.Retrieved17 June2010.
  16. ^abGarrett, Frederick C., ed. (1959).Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol.56.London: Electrical Press. pp. A-52–53, A-119–120.
  17. ^Pears, Brian (23 February 2003)."Norfolk to Northumberland".Rootsweb.Archived fromthe originalon 15 July 2011.Retrieved9 September2009.
  18. ^"Dunston 'B' Power Station, Dunston".RIBA Architecture.
  19. ^North-Eastern Electric Supply Company Limited 1889-1948.Newcastle upon Tyne: T.M Grierson Ltd. March 1948.
  20. ^Scaife, Garrett (2000).From galaxies to turbines: science, technology, and the Parsons family.CRC Press. p. 507.ISBN0-7503-0582-7.Retrieved17 June2010.
  21. ^Parsons, R.H. (1939). "X".The Early Days of the Power Station Industry.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 183.
  22. ^Marks, Percy L. (2008).Chimneys and Flues – Domestic and Industrial.Read Books. pp. 92–98.ISBN978-1-4437-7294-5.
  23. ^Mr. Joynson-Hicks; Mr. Popplewell (11 May 1953)."Power Station, Dunston-on-Tyne (Electrostatic Precipitators)".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).Retrieved28 July2009.
  24. ^ "Steam Locomotive, named Eustace Forth".nrm.org.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 27 September 2011.Retrieved17 July2011.
  25. ^"Dunston Power Station No. 13 'The Barra'".steamlocomotive.info.Retrieved17 July2011.
  26. ^Wilson, Ian (3 March 2003)."Hardworking Bessie".Evening Chronicle.Retrieved3 July2010.[dead link]
  27. ^"Tyne Tugs".Aspects of South Shields.Archived fromthe originalon 17 May 2008.Retrieved29 June2008.
  28. ^abCEGB (1972).CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1972.London: CEGB. p. 15.
  29. ^CEGB (1972).CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1972.London: CEGB. p. 15.
  30. ^CEGB (1979).CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1978-9.London: CEGB. p. 8.
  31. ^Mr. Eadie (5 December 1975)."Power Stations".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).Retrieved28 July2009.
  32. ^Mr. Redmond (16 January 1984)."Coal-fired Power Stations".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).Retrieved28 July2009.
  33. ^Henderson, Tony (19 March 2007)."A bridge to a better and greener future".The Journal.Retrieved20 November2008.[dead link]
  34. ^abNoah, Sherna (4 October 2004)."Caine No 1".Sunday Sun.Retrieved13 June2010.
  35. ^Bone, Anthony; Morag Hunter; Bill Wilkinson (1999)."Energy for a new century"(PDF).North East England:Government Offices for the English Regions. pp. 50, 106. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 10 August 2009.Retrieved6 August2009.
  36. ^Newcastle upon Tyne, Sunderland, Durham(Map) (1980 ed.). 1: 15840.A to Z.Geographers' A–Z Street Atlas.p. 36–37, 54–60.
  37. ^"Film Locations Get Carter".Archived fromthe originalon 11 May 2010.Retrieved5 August2009.
  38. ^"Newcastle Street".Getty Images.Retrieved6 August2009.
  39. ^"Dunston Power Station, November 1955".Amber Online. Archived fromthe originalon 3 September 2009.Retrieved6 August2009.
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  • iSee Gateshead– Various photographs from the construction of the B Station
  • Appeal– An appeal for former employees of the power station, after a former worker at the station died fromperitoneal mesotheliomaa rare form of cancer caused by exposure toasbestos fibers.
  • YouTube– Footage from a train passing the power station in 1983

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