Thermal power plant

Claim 1

A thermal power plant comprising a gas turbine, an electric generator driven by said gas turbine, a compressor arranged to generate compressed air, a compressed air magazine arranged to receive compressed air from said compressor and to deliver the compressed air to said gas turbine, a water reservoir having its lower end located at a considerably higher level than the upper end of said compressed air magazine, and a water conduit extending between said water reservoir and said compressed air magazine in direct contact with the water in said reservoir and providing a passage through which the water is led from said water reservoir to said compressed air magazine while said magazine is being discharged and is led to the opposite direction while said magazine is being charged, wherein the improvement comprises that said compressed air magazine comprises an enclosed below-ground level rock chamber arranged for the storage of compressed air at a pressure at least twice as high as the static pressure corresponding to the difference in level between the rock chamber and the water reservoir, said water conduit forming a closed passage extending downwardly from its upper end connected to said reservoir below the water level therein to its lower end connected to the lower end of said compressed air magazine, means for pressurizing the water in said water conduit to a pressure at least twice that of the static pressure head Acting on said compressed air magazine through the water in said conduit due to the difference in level between the water level in said reservoir and the bottom of said compressed air magazine, said means comprises a pump located in said water conduit intermediate the ends thereof below said water reservoir and above said compressed air magazine for pressurizing the water in said conduit communicating with said compressed air magazine.