April 2015 - Power Air Quality Insights 203

InterWebviews™, decision guides, hot topic hours, coordinated conferences and decision orchards combine to provide you with a new unique route to market

McIlvaine has free programs for operators of coal and gas turbine generating plants. Why would McIlvaine inform EON, ENEL, Duke, Ameren, TVA, etc. that they no longer have to pay thousands of dollars per year in subscription fees? The reason is that McIlvaine wants its programs used by every power plant in the world. (The programs are explained at Power Plant Decisions.)

McIlvaine has conducted nearly one thousand hours of recorded hot topic hour discussions and writes multiple weekly and monthly Alerts and Newsletters which appear in the database. So many of the vendor activities are being intensely covered. However, McIlvaine believes that one of the most important building blocks will be InterWebviews™.

The presentations you are presently making to customers can be recorded and made available at a very low cost. You receive the rifle shot benefit because the recording is linked from your website and from the relevant Decision Tree area. You receive the shot gun benefit as well with the posting on YouTube. The presentations can be in other languages. For example, the CBI presentation on mercury in one of our hot topic hours was also provided in Chinese with more than 1,000 hits and immediate requests for meetings. Here are the details: InterWebviews™

Changing fuel prices, government regulations and technology all combine to make decision making difficult for operators and developers of coal-fired power generation facilities around the world.

Power plant designers in developing countries face new local environmental regulations plus additional requirements stipulated by lenders such as the World Bank. In the developed world, the regulations keep getting tougher. So operators must not only deal with the current round of upgrades but the next round as well.

Recent extreme changes in the price of oil and gas need to be factored into decisions. The price and availability of coal needs to be forecast. The option to burn gas in an existing coal-fired boiler or to retire the boiler and replace it with a more efficient gas turbine combined cycle power plant is relevant for older coal-fired power plants subject to expensive environmental upgrades.

The most difficult challenge is to keep up with all the new technology options. Stringent mercury regulations have resulted in the following choices:

· SCR catalyst with higher conversion rate of elemental mercury to the oxidized form

· Use of mercury CEMS for double duty including compliance and process control (other option is a 2^nd CEMS)

The technology to capture SO₂ has constantly expanded and improved since the first commercial installation in 1968 at Union Electric in St Louis. Options now include:

· Spray drier with lime slurry and direct sorbent injection upstream for higher efficiency

· Circulating dry scrubbers (CDS) with either fluid bed (CFB) or gas suspension absorber (GSA)

· Direct sorbent injection (DSI) with sodium, lime or even finely powered limestone

· Hot gas catalytic filter with DSI with either high surface area hydrate or finely ground limestone injected in the furnace or both

The requirements for particulate removal are more stringent everywhere. In Russia, China, South Africa, the U.S. and many other countries existing precipitators are going to be upgraded or replaced to meet limits as low as 5 mg/Nm³. Options include:

· New 850^oF ceramic fabric filter with more efficient heat exchanger for improved boiler efficiency

· Wet precipitator with only a venturi scrubber ahead of it for particulate control and SO₂ capture

· Various combinations of the above and various control locations e.g. tail end SCR after the scrubber

The power plant decision maker has to keep moving back and forth among decision trees as he makes the above decisions. Some limit fuel selection. Some present solid waste problems. Some contribute to water pollution problems.

This complex set of tasks has been organized into a system: 44I Power Plant Air Quality Decisions. This system is free of charge to any of the world’s power plant operators and by yearly subscription to others. The operating system is the 4As. This includes Alerts, Answers, Analysis and Advancement. The answers are contained in a Decision Orchard. The complex navigation is greatly simplified by Global Decisions Positioning Systems™ (GdPS). Here are two examples:

For more information or to arrange a custom online demonstration, contact: editor@mcilvainecompany.com or just phone 847-784-0012.

The market for NO_x control systems, reagents and catalyst will exceed $21 billion this year according to the McIlvaine Company in its continually updated NO_x Control World Market. (www.mcilvainecompany.com)

Subject	2015
Catalyst	585
Reagent	2,788
SCR	17,376
Total	20,749

The equipment market will reach a peak next year and fall whereas the quantity of reagent and catalyst will steadily increase over the next five years. Presently, the major market is China. They are completing a program to retrofit over 400,000 MW of coal-fired boilers with SCR. When this is complete, the Chinese market will be mostly limited to new coal-fired boilers and industrial applications.

The market is growing in countries which traditionally have not enforced NO_x control. Ahlstom just received a large order for NO_x control for boilers in Russia. The program in Eastern Europe is moving forward.

There are a variety of approaches to NO_x control. Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) is the most prolific. Selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) is mostly used in industrial installations. The market for NO_x control for gas turbines is growing due to the many new installations underway in the U.S.

One new technology which could significantly change the industry is the catalytic filter. NO_x and particulate are removed in one device operating at 850^oF. An efficient heat exchanger can then be used to extract heat from the clean gas and improve boiler efficiency. Haldor Topsoe has announced construction of a new facility in Houston, TX to produce these elements. The Filtration Group has supplied their elements to many incinerators, combustors and glass plants in Europe and the U.S.

DONG Energy has agreed to take over RES Americas Developments Inc.’s (RES) more than 1000 MW newly assigned development project rights off the coast of Massachusetts.

At the offshore wind auction held by Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on January 29, 2015, RES secured the rights to develop one of the two leases that were awarded. The lease comprises an area that could potentially accommodate more than 1000 MW. Following approval from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the lease will be taken over by DONG Energy. RES Americas will continue to support development of the lease area as agreed with DONG Energy.

Entering the U.S. Offshore wind market earmarks DONG Energy’s entry into the first project outside Europe.

“The Massachusetts lease has a total size of 760 square kilometers, is located approximately 90 kilometers from shore. Water depth is between 40-50 meters,” said Samuel Leupold, Executive Vice President of Wind Power.

“The site conditions are quite similar to those we currently work with in North-Western Europe, which means that the project could be developed using well-known technology and logistics.”

Trina Solar to Supply 116 MW Modules to Japan’s Largest Solar Power Project

Trina Solar Limited announced it signed a module supply agreement with Toyo Engineering Corporation (Toyo Engineering) to supply approximately 116 MW high efficiency modules to the largest solar power project in Japan, an approximately 231-megawatt facility to be built in Setouchi City, Okayama Prefecture.

The project managed by special purpose company, Setouchi Future Creations LLC. will utilize approximately 446,000 pieces of Trina Solar TSM-260PC05A high efficiency modules. Toyo Engineering will build the solar photovoltaic power plant on 260 hectares (1,210 acres) of city land on the former Kinkai salt field. The project is expected to reach commercial operations in the second quarter of 2019.

Construction of the Þeistareykir Geothermal Power Station in the North East of Iceland has begun. The development of the Þeistareykir Power Station is in line with Landsvirkjun’s policy on the responsible utilization of renewable energy resources. The first phase of the development involves the construction of a 45 MW station. The further expansion of the station is under consideration as the National Energy Authority has issued a power production license for a 100 MW geothermal station in Þeistareykir.

The facility is scheduled to commence power production in the autumn of 2017. The project schedule includes the erection of a steam supply system, civil works such as the construction of the power station, the installation and commissioning of mechanical and electrical equipment as well as control equipment.

Landsvirkjun has been involved in preparation measures for the Þeistareykir geothermal power project for the last few years including research, drilling and preparation work, excavation work, the construction of access roads to the project site and the installation of a water supply system. Þeistareykir already harnesses enough steam to generate the equivalent of 50 MW of electrical energy.

Landsvirkjun has signed a contract with LNS Saga for the construction of the powerhouse and steam supply system for the Þeistareykir Geothermal Power Station. The company has also signed a contract with the consortium of Fuji Electric and Balcke Dürr for the purchase of a 45 MW power-generating unit and cold end equipment for the Station.

$ 4.9 Million Grant from California Energy Commission Awarded for Forest Biomass Gasification Plant in North Fork, CA

Phoenix Energy's joint venture, North Fork Community Power's project was awarded a $4.9 million grant. The award will be used to construct one of the first forest-sourced biomass gasification plants, as well as research into the emerging field of forest biomass utilization. The plant will utilize local forest biomass sustainably sourced from restoration and fuel reduction activities on local forest lands, including the Sierra National Forest. The biomass will be used to make electricity, heat and biochar − a solid carbon byproduct that is used as a soil conditioner and filter media. The project will also be one of the first projects to use forest-based fuel under California's new SB 1122 bioenergy law.

The plant will be built in phases with an initial 1 MW financed mainly by the California Energy Commission grant and private and community investors.

Phoenix Energy is an independent power producer that operates a network of small, distributed generation biomass gasification plants in partnership with businesses and communities. By focusing on small plants in the 1-3 MW range, the company strives to keep electricity, heat and fuel local to the plant, where the value of energy is highest and transportation costs are lower. The gasification technology utilized also produces biochar, which serves to permanently sequester carbon in solid form and is valued as a soil conditioner and filter media.

OutBack Power Launches Energy Storage Incentive Program for Solar Installers

OutBack Power Technologies, Inc., a designer and manufacturer of advanced power electronics for renewable energy, backup power and mobile applications, announced SystemEdge, its new energy storage incentive program designed to encourage installers to integrate energy storage into their renewable energy systems. A recognized leader in the off-grid power generation industry, OutBack Power is taking a leadership position to advance the use of energy storage one project at a time. The incentive program will run through October 31, 2015.

Utilities and other regulatory bodies are discussing the future of energy storage and trying to figure out how to incentivize it at the state and utility level. OutBack Power is thinking locally by incentivizing installers to add storage to their renewable energy installations. Installers who participate in OutBack’s SystemEdge program can use the incentive any way they want to build their businesses.

OutBack Power’s storage-backed renewable energy systems of at least 4 KwH are eligible for the incentive. The incentive scales based on the amount of storage and system capacity present, but will range from $200 to $800 per project. The program will run from April 6 to October 31, with a grace period until December 15 to submit claims.

· TVA proposes New Dewatering Facility at Kingston Coal-fired Power Plant in Tennessee

· Alstom to install Integrated Air Quality Control Systems at Nizhnekamskaya TPP-2 CHPlant in Russia

· BHEL Commissions Second 800 MW Supercritical Boiler at Indian Thermal Power Plant

· Naugatuck Environmental Network hosts discussion on Towantic Gas-fired Power Plant

· Advanced Power AG secures financing for $899 Million Gas-fired Power Plant in Carroll County

· Burns & McDonnell to build Nuclear Power Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory

· Ovivo awarded C$5 Million Contract in the Middle East for a Water System Feeding a Power Plant using Recycled Wastewater

· Duke Energy appeals Fine issued by North Carolina Environmental Regulators

· DSI is an effective Route for SO₃, SO₂, and HCl reduction - Hot Topic Hour Conclusions

· “CEMS for MACT and MATS Compliance” is Hot Topic Hour on April 16, 2015

On Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. Central time, McIlvaine hosts a 90 minute web meeting on important energy and pollution control subjects. These Webinars are free of charge to owner/operators of the plants. They are also free to McIlvaine Subscribers of Power Plant Air Quality Decisions and Utility Tracking System. The cost for others is $300.00 per webinar.

See below for information on upcoming Hot Topic Hours. We welcome your input relative to suggested additions

DATE	SUBJECT	DESCRIPTION
April 23, 2015	No Webinar but on-site interviews at Electric Power in Chicago.
April 30, 2015	MACT Update
May 7, 2015	Wet Calcium FGD
May 14, 2015	Gas Turbine Intake Filters
May 21, 2015	Power Plant Valves
May 28, 2015	No webinar but on-site interviews at Industrial Valve Summit in Bergamo, Italy