Update on Oxy-fuel Combustion is the Hot Topic Hour
for January 10, 2013
Oxy-fuel combustion may offer the fossil fueled power
producing utility industry the solution to a number of significant problems –
mandated GHG reduction, regulations requiring near zero emissions of a growing
number of pollutants, high capital costs of flue gas cleaning equipment and
increasing fuel and operating costs. When used in a pulverized coal-fired
boiler, the oxy-fuel process produces a concentrated stream of CO2
which may allow the CO2 to be captured for use in enhanced oil
recovery (EOR) projects or underground storage in a more cost effective manner
compared to post combustion capture of CO2 from an air-fired boiler.
In addition, when the process is optimized, it could significantly reduce the
emissions of all regulated pollutants from the stack gases. The oxy-fuel
technology is less complex than other clean coal technologies and the process
can be retrofit to existing coal-fired power plants or incorporated into new
power plant designs. In either case, the adoption of oxy-fuel combustion could
be more cost effective and require less capital than a conventional power plant
with all of the extra air pollution control equipment required to meet current
and future emission limits. Also if oxy-fuel combustion is combined with
circulating fluidized bed technology, it should allow the combustion of a wide
range of fuels including co-firing of all forms of biomass, sludge and waste
with coal or as the only fuel.
The following speakers will update us on the status of
oxy-fuel combustion technology, describe their experience with the design,
construction and operation of new or retrofit fossil fueled power plants
utilizing oxy-fuel combustion and discuss the costs and benefits associated with
utilization of oxy-fuel combustion in both retrofit of existing power plants and
new construction and how these costs and benefits related to fuel type. They
will also describe any new equipment designs, technology and systems being
developed to improve oxy-fuel combustion, discuss the research and development
that must be conducted to perfect this technology and address how the oxy-fuel
technology compares to other technologies under development and testing to
achieve "zero emissions" and reduce GHGs.
Robert Gagliano, Combustion Group Manager at
Air Liquide - Delaware Research and Technology Center or Chendhil Periasamy,
will present an "Update on Oxy-fuel Combustion System Design for Natural
Gas-fired Power Plants with Flue Gas Recirculation". They will describe
the latest developments on oxy-fuel combustion system design for power plants
firing natural gas. Key design considerations for burner and combustion
system of the boiler island will be discussed. The role of flue gas
recirculation ratio in reducing NOx will also be highlighted.
The use of computer modeling in supporting burner design and pilot scale testing
will be explained.
Keith L. Pronske, President and Chief
Executive Officer at Clean Energy Systems
Richard Axelbaum, Ph.D., Director of the
Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization and Professor of Energy, Environmental and
Chemical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, will present "Staged
Pressurized Oxy-Combustion for Next Generation Carbon Capture and Storage". His
talk will describe a novel system for carbon capture and storage (CCS) wherein
coal and oxygen are combusted in stages under pressure. This approach
increases plant efficiency and is expected to reduce the cost of electricity as
it addresses a number of the challenges associated with traditional
oxy-combustion for carbon capture.
Robert (Bob) Marrs, ThermoEnergy Power
Systems, LLC
To register for the Hot Topic Hour on January 10, 2013
at 10:00 a.m. (CST), click on:
)
The U.S. upgrade market will be driven by the
following factors:
·
Coal will again become the low cost power option
·
Building new coal-fired power plants will be difficult
·
Automation will reduce operating costs
·
Environmental rules will require more air pollution control
·
Water quality issues will require cooling and treatment investments
Estimates range from 200,000 to 250,000 MW of
coal-fired capacity remaining in place as opposed to the 300,000 MW in place in
2005. A conservative estimate is for 200,000 MW of capacity to spend a minimum
of $400/kW for upgrades. This is only 15 percent of the cost of a new
coal-fired power plant and will therefore be an attractive option.
Coal will become the low cost alternative because gas
prices in the U.S. will rise to international levels which in turn will be set
by the price of oil. If the extraction cost of gas remains low, it will be
converted to LNG or liquids, so low cost gas for power generation is temporary.
The U.S. will apparently remain the only country which
will regulate to prevent new clean coal-fired power plants while continuing to
operate the older power plants. But this oddity means that there will be a big
investment in these old power plants.
Operators will be motivated to cut operating costs
including the amount of coal consumed per unit of power produced.
Optimization, automation and the most modern digital control systems will
provide not only increased energy efficiency but reduced labor costs and many
other enterprise management benefits.
Upgrades to decrease air emissions will continue to be
driven by a series of regulations. Over the next ten years, the older power
plants will find themselves subject to the same stringency level as new power
plants. Most power plants will make a series of investments over this period.
Some will be obsolesced by the next stringency level. This will raise the total
cost of compliance.
Older power plants with ponds will be forced to invest
in technologies resulting in dry solid wastes. Those with once-through cooling
will be required to invest in cooling towers and recirculation systems.
For more information on Fossil & Nuclear Power
Generation: World Analysis & Forecast, click on:
or 847-784-0012 ext 112.
North America Municipal Wastewater Treatment
Facilities and People Headlines
December 2012
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ARIZONA
Goodyear WWTP Upgrade to Cost $1.6 Million
CALIFORNIA
Malibu Moves Forward with WWTP Project
Santa Clarita Fined for High Chloride Levels
Davis to Consider WWTP Project with Woodland
Regulators Find Violations at South County Sewage
Treatment Plant
COLORADO
Boulder WWTP to Debut New UV Disinfection System
CONNECTICUT
$250 Million for New Phosphorous Regulations across
State
Greenwich Requesting Bids for Wastewater Project
Norwich Plans $96 Million WWTP Project
FLORIDA
$30 Million for St. Petersburg WWTP Project
GEORGIA
North Hall Treatment Plant Would Cost $3.2 Million
IDAHO
Hayden Requesting Bids for WWTP Improvement Project
ILLINOIS
Savanna Pursues Funding for $9.9 Million WWTP Project
INDIANA
Buchanan Needs WWTP Upgrade
KANSAS
Leavenworth Plans to Address Sewer Inflow,
Infiltration
Lawrence WWTP Needs Upgrade
MAINE
Bucksport to Build New Wastewater Plant
MARYLAND
$75 Million to Help Upgrade Patapsco WWTP
Emmitsburg to Receive $5 Million More for Wastewater
Project
MASSACHUSETTS
Assabet River facilities Find way to meet Water
Quality Standards
Marlborough could cut Sewer Tie with Northborough
Harwich Wastewater Treatment to cost $180 to $230
million
MICHIGAN
$5.6 Million for Kalamazoo Water/Wastewater Upgrades
East Jordan Considers Wastewater Treatment Plant
Improvements
MISSISSIPPI
Meeting to Address Hattiesburg Wastewater Treatment
System
Jackson Agrees to Spend $400 Million to Rebuild Sewage
System
Hattiesburg Wastewater Treatment Project Moves Forward
MISSOURI
Higher Limits Help Sedalia save Money on Water Plant
New Wastewater Treatment Plant Discussed for Sunrise
Beach
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Over $1 Million in DPW Project Bids Approved
EPA Releases Permit for Exeter’s WWTP
NEW JERSEY
Hurricane Sandy Delivered a Body Blow to Several NJ
Sewage Plant
NEW MEXICO
Cimarron Seeks Funds for $4 Million WWTP Project
NEW YORK
$1 Million to Study Expanding Sewer Treatment Capacity
in Southern Orange County
Norwich Receives $3.6 Million for Water Treatment
Upgrades
Holtsville WWTP Project Authorized to Seek Design Bids
OHIO
Knox County Will Rebid Wastewater Project
OREGON
Gold Hill Needs New WWTP
SOUTH DAKOTA
$9.1 Million for Alpena WWTP Project
TENNESSEE
Clarksville Requesting Bids for $55 Million WWTP
Project
Report Highlights Needs at Morristown WWTP
TEXAS
South Laredo Wastewater Treatment Plant Groundbreaking
VIRGINIA
McDonnell Proposes $5 Million for Hopewell Wastewater
Treatment
WASHINGTON
Othello Raises Sewer Rates for New WWTP
$16.3 Million for Port Angeles WWTP Project
Contractor Approved for Upgrade to Central Kitsap WWTP
CANADA
Toronto Requesting Bids for WWTP Upgrade
$738 Million Victoria Wastewater Project Moving
Forward
Medications, Pesticides Still Seep into River from
Montreal WWTP
Regina Clarifies Cost for New Wastewater Treatment
Plant
BUSINESS NEWS
Aquatech Expands Wastewater Treatment Solutions
Portfolio with New, Operator-Friendly Aqua-EMBR Enhanced Membrane Bioreactor
United Water and KKR Sign Utility Partnership with
Bayonne, NJ
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