Measuring Particulate Continuously is Hot Topic Hour on December 1, 2011
Since the Utility MACT was first proposed by the EPA in May, many persons have
expressed concern over the ability of the industry to accurately measure mass
particulates at the limits proposed by EPA. In various presentations both during
McIlvaine Company Hot Topic Hours and elsewhere, concern parties have questioned
the accuracy and efficacy of the EPA test procedures. Some have presented
evidence of errors and biases in and between various test procedures.
Measurement accuracy can have a serious impact on existing sources that may not
meet the new limits once the MACT and the proposed test methods within it and
the Cross State Air Pollution (transport) Rule (CSAPR) become the law of the
land.
The following speakers will describe the current and proposed methods for
continuous measurement of particulates, tell participants what they need to do
to insure accurate, repeatable data and to discuss the implications for the
utility industry of errors in their measurement data.
Derek Stuart,
Market Sector Manager for Combustion and Environmental at AMETEK Land, will
discuss opacity measurement for determining the PM in stack gases. The use of
transmissometry to measure smoke and dust emissions from stacks dates back to
the work of Professor Ringelmann in the 19th century. For many years, continuous
opacity monitors have been used to demonstrate compliance with emissions
regulations in the USA. Calibrating an opacity monitor to measure PM according
to 40 CFR 60 Appendix B Performance Standard 11 is relatively straightforward
and provides a direct, reliable measurement of PM concentration.
David Moll,
Senior Program Manager at AECOM Environment, will discuss the different types of
continuous particulate emission monitors, their measurement techniques and
limitations to perform measurements on certain emission sources. He will
review EPA certification requirements for PM CEMs and the EPA test procedures
used to correlate these instruments. He will also discuss upcoming
challenges for industry if included in the final Utility MACT regulations.
Craig Clapsaddle,
BetaGuard PM Sales Manager at Mechanical Systems, Inc,
will briefly describe the MSI BetaGuard PM CEM and discuss what companies
can do to insure accurate, repeatable data from their PM CEMs.
Anand Mamidipudi,
Product Line Manager, Systems at Thermo Fisher Scientific/Thermo Environmental
Instruments.
Kevin Crosby,
Technical Director at The Avogadro Group, LLC, Stationary Source Testing
The EPA Performance Specification for PM CEMS requires a significant amount of
testing for determination of the system's accuracy and precision. The
presentation will describe the daily and periodic procedures required to assure
the quality of the data from the monitoring system. These include initial
calibration and correlation testing, daily calibration checks and quarterly
audits - Absolute Correlation Audits, Response Correlation Audits and Relative
Response Audits. These procedures include a significant number of
particulate emission test runs using EPA reference methods, so costs can become
significant. Some potential certification and auditing problems will be
described so that plant personnel may plan for success and for cost control.
To register for this “Hot Topic Hour” on Thursday, December 1, 2011 at 10:00
a.m. CST, click on:
http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/hot_topic_hour_registration.htm.
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Here are the Headlines for the November 11, 2011 – Utility E Alert
UTILITY E-ALERT
#1050 – November 11, 2011
Table of Contents
COAL – US
COAL – WORLD
GAS / OIL – US
GAS / OIL – WORLD
CO2
NUCLEAR
BUSINESS
HOT TOPIC HOUR
For more information on the Utility Environmental
Upgrade Tracking System, click on:
http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/energy.html#42ei.
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Power Plants should be Producers of Chemicals and Pure Water
Fossil-fired power plants convert less than half the energy in the fuel into
power. However, by operating the plant as a producer of power and of other
synergistic products the net greenhouse gases are reduced. There are many
combinations which result in a lower combined cost for the power and the
product. These are the conclusions reached in Fossil & Nuclear Power
Generation published by the McIlvaine Company.
Some of these combinations are well established: power plus desalination, power
plus district heating, power plus disposal of sewage sludge, power plus disposal
of municipal solid waste. But there are many other combinations which need to be
pursued.
There is a big potential to manufacture hydrochloric acid. Coal-fired power
plants generate hydrogen chloride during coal combustion. New regulations
require that it be removed from the exhaust gas. The cost to make salable acid
is no more than the cost of scrubbing and disposing conventionally. By
eliminating the chloralkali plants, which would otherwise produce the acid,
there is a big environmental benefit.
Regulators in Pennsylvania and other states and countries who are starting to
take advantage of gas shale extraction are searching for ways to cost
effectively handle the fracturing flow back water. This water contains 10
times the amount of salt found in seawater. Thousands of trucks are utilized in
transporting this slurry to a final destination. The first choice was municipal
wastewater treatment plants. However, the highly acidic water killed the
microbes which make biological treatment successful, so this option was
eliminated.
The preferred option now is evaporation and generation of distilled water and
solids. Rather than achieve this in a dedicated plant it will be better to
utilize the waste heat from coal-fired power plants in the area. Power plants
run at peak load during the daytime but run at lower capacity during the night.
So with batch holding tanks for the wastewater, the evaporation process can be
conducted in the off peak hours.
Cellulosic ethanol plants provide a unique synergy with coal-fired generators.
Acids produced by the power plant can be used for the first stage sugar
separation. Steam produced by the power plant can be used for processing.
Biosolid waste produced by the ethanol plant can be burned as supplemental fuel
in the power plant.
The Spiritwood Station under construction in Jamestown, North Dakota
incorporates a number of integrated processes. The plant owned by Great
River Energy will be in operation next year. Here are some of the
innovative processes incorporated:
Electricity generators, regulators, and in particular, environmentalists have to
start thinking more innovatively about the very big opportunity to coordinate
power production with other products to improve the environment and reduce
production costs.
For more information on Fossil & Nuclear Power Generation: World Analysis &
Forecast click on:
http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/energy.html#n043
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The Unites States had over 40 GW of installed wind capacity at the end of 2011.
Construction continues at a steady pace and with that comes construction jobs.
McIlvaine Renewable Energy Update and Projects tracks them
all.
*****
Puget Sound Energy erected the last of 149 wind turbines that will power the
utility's 343-megawatt Lower Snake River Wind Project-Phase I in southeast
Washington.
The milestone came six months after PSE crews began the project's
turbine-assembly work. Crews now are focused on finishing the construction of
two large substations and eight miles of high-voltage transmission lines that
will send the wind facility's electricity to a nearby Bonneville Power
Administration substation. From there, the renewable energy will move onto the
region's electric grid.
The PSE wind project in western Garfield County is scheduled to be operational
by next spring. The facility will be the largest of PSE's three wind-power
operations and one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest — generating enough
electricity, on average, to serve 100,000 homes.
Construction of the Lower Snake River Wind Project began in May 2010 when PSE
and its lead contractor, RES Americas — together with turbine manufacturer
Siemens Energy and various subcontractors — started building turbine-access
roads and laying underground electric and fiber-optic cable between the 149
individual wind-turbine locations.
About 150 construction workers, on average, are on the project site, though the
number may exceed 250 on any given day. About half the construction workers are
from Eastern Washington, with about a quarter hailing from Washington's
southeast corner.
The wind project's new operations and maintenance building on the outskirts of
Pomeroy also is nearing completion. Approximately 25 permanent employees from
PSE and Siemens Energy are expected to occupy the 15,000-square-foot building by
October.
*****
GE will supply 300 megawatts of its latest wind turbine technology including
operation and maintenance services for the Settlers Trail Wind Farm in Iroquois
County, IL, and the Pioneer Trail Wind Farm in Iroquois and Ford Counties in
Illinois. E.ON Climate & Renewables, NA (ECRNA) is developing the projects.
A total of 188 GE 1.6 wind turbines, the latest evolution of the company’s wind
turbine technology, will power the Settlers Trail and Pioneer Trail wind
farms. The GE wind turbines — 94 at each wind farm — will be spread across
several thousand acres of rural farmland in northeast Illinois.
According to a recent study by Illinois State University’s Center for Renewable
Energy, Illinois wind farms have created more than 9,900 full-time construction
jobs and nearly 500 permanent positions in rural areas of the state. Operating
wind farms also have provided $18 million in local property taxes and $8.3
million in rental income to farmers and landowners.
****
Invenergy Wind LLC and DTE Energy welcomed more than 150 invited guests,
including local, state and federal officials, and business and community
leaders, at the official groundbreaking ceremony for the Gratiot County Wind
Project.
Once operational, Gratiot will be a 133-turbine, 212.8-megawatt (MW) project
that will generate enough clean, renewable energy to power more than 50,000
Michigan homes. DTE Energy will own and operate nearly half of the wind farm and
purchase the remaining power from Invenergy under a 20-year power purchase
agreement. The wind project will help DTE Energy meet Michigan's renewable
energy goals.
Located on approximately 30,000 acres of private land near the town of
Breckenridge in the townships of Wheeler, Bethany, Emerson, and Lafayette, the
wind project is employing approximately 200 skilled construction workers and
will employ 14 full-time workers to operate and maintain the facility. The wind
farm will contribute to the area's economic development through property tax
payments, which can be used for schools, fire and police protection, road
repair, and other improvements.
For more information on Renewable Energy Projects and Update
please visit
http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/Renewable_Energy_Projects_Brochure/renewable_energy_projects_brochure.htm
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Bob McIlvaine
President
847-784-0012 ext 112
rmcilvaine@mcilvainecompany.com
www.mcilvaine@mcilvainecompany.com
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191 Waukegan Road Suite 208 | Northfield | IL 60093
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