Clean electricity through advanced coal technologies

209 Pages·2012·7.101 MB·English

by  Nicholas P Cheremisinoff

Handbook of Pollution Prevention
and Cleaner Production Vol. 4
This page intentionally left blank
Handbook of Pollution
Prevention and Cleaner
Production Vol. 4
Clean Electricity through Advanced
Coal Technologies
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff

AMSTERDAMlBOSTONlHEIDELBERGlLONDONlNEWYORKlOXFORD
PARISlSANDIEGOlSANFRANCISCOlSINGAPORElSYDNEYlTOKYO
WilliamAndrewisanimprintofElsevier
WilliamAndrewisanimprintofElsevier
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Contents
Preface vii
About the Author ix
1 AirPollution 1
1.1 Overview 1
1.2 The National EmissionsInventory 3
1.3 Criteria AirPollutants 3
1.3.1 Carbon Monoxide 4
1.3.2 Lead 4
1.3.3 Nitrogen Dioxide 5
1.3.4 Particulate Matter 6
1.3.5 Ozone 8
1.3.6 SulfurDioxide 9
1.3.7 NAAQS 10
1.4 Comparing Emissions 10
1.4.1 National Emissions Inventory 10
1.4.2 ToxicsRelea se Inventory 10
1.5 Mercury Releases 25
2 Solid Wastes 31
2.1 Overview 31
2.2 Coal CombustionByproducts 32
2.3 Regulations 37
2.4 Origins andGeneral Properties ofFlyAsh 39
2.5 Flue-GasDesulfurization Material 42
2.6 Toxic HeavyMetals Found inFly Ashes 43
2.7 Beneficial Ash Characteristics and Markets 43
2.8 RadioactiveConstituents 60
3 Old and New GenerationTechnologies 63
3.1 Overview 63
3.2 Stoker-Fired Coal Combustion 63
3.3 Pulverized-Coal Combustion 64
3.4 CycloneCoalCombustion 66
vi Contents
3.5 Fluidized-Bed Combustion 66
3.5.1 Pressurized Fluidized-Bed CombustionSystems 69
3.6 Gasification 70
3.7 Comparing EnergyCosts 79
4 CarbonCaptureand Sequestration 83
4.1 Introduction 83
4.2 FactorsInfluencing GHG Emissions 84
4.3 Emissions Trading Scheme 84
4.4 Carbon Capture andStorage (CCS)Technologies 87
4.4.1 Safety and EnvironmentalSetbacks 94
4.4.2 Recyclingand NewMarkets 96
4.5 Commercial Status 97
4.6 ImprovingEfficiencies 100
5 The TVAAsh Spill 109
5.1 Introduction 109
5.2 Facility Background 110
5.3 Coal Sources andQuantities 114
5.4 Solid Waste Storage 115
5.5 Ash Analysis 117
5.6 The Spill 117
5.7 Facility EnvironmentalFootprint 122
5.8 Airborne Releases fromthe SpillIncident 127
5.9 Exceedances andExcursions 134

5.10 Toxins Released 139
5.11 AnEstimate ofthe Releases to Air 140
5.12 Industry-Wide Problem 164
Recommended Sources 171
Glossary 177
Index 187
Preface
The quality of life throughout mostof theworld is tied toelectricity. In this regard,
coal plays a vital role in electricity generation worldwide. Coal-fired power plants
currently fuel 41% of global electricity. In some countries, coal fuels a higher
percentageofelectricity.Comparedtootherelectricity-generatingtechnologies,itis
andislikelytoremainthemosteconomicalfuelsourcethroughthenextgeneration.
Coal also carries with it the largest environmental footprint of all known power-
producing technologies. Coal-fired power plants are the largest industry source of
greenhousegases.Andthesolidwasteissuesthataretheresultofdependingonthis
technologyarealmostmindboggling.IntheUnitedStatesalone,roughly1.05billion
tonsofcoalareburnedeachyeartogenerateelectricity.Morethan500coal-burning
plantsacrosstheUnitedStatesemit1.9billiontonsofcarbondioxideeachyearand
create120milliontonsoftoxicwaste.Coalcombustionwaste(CCW)constitutesthe
secondlargest waste stream after municipal solid waste inthe U.S.
Sulfur dioxide scrubbers, which are used for air pollution controls, also create
toxic waste. The flue-gas desulfurization (FGD) process creates a wet solid residue
containingcalciumsulfite(CaSO )andcalciumsulfate(CaSO ).Drymaterialsuchas
3 4
fly ashis added tostabilize the slu dge for transportand landfill storage.
Coal waste is disposed of in landfills generally referred to as ponds or surface
impoundments.Thepondsarelinedwithcompactedclaysoil,aplasticsheet,orboth.
When rain filters through the toxic ash pits, the toxic metals are leached out and
pusheddownwardbygravitytowardtheliningandthesoilbelow.Becauseallliners
eventually degrade, crack, or tear, landfills eventually leak and release their toxins
into thegroundwater. The Environmental Protection Agencyhas reportedthat a 10-
acrelandfillwouldleak0.2to10gallonsperday,orbetween730and36,500gallons
overa10-yearperiod.Thereareanestimated156ashwastepondsacrosstheUnited
Statescontainingmorethan19milliontonsoftoxicashwaste.In2008oneofthese
waste ponds owned by the Tennessee Valley Authority failed, releasing 5.4 million
cubicyards (4 million m3)into a community.
Coalhasbeendubbedbymuchofthegeneralpublicas“dirtycoal.”Itisthecause
ofmajorairpollution,globalwarming,andhasresultedinthereleaseoftoxicheavy
metals and radionuclides, which place communities at long-term health risks. The
coalindustrywasexemptfromreportingitsairemissionstothepublicuntilaboutthe
turn ofthe twenty-firstcentury.
This volume serves as primer on coal-burning technologies for electricity gener-
ation. Newer generation technologies that are emerging and being commercialized
viii Preface
have significantly smaller environmental footprints than conventional technologies
usedwiththeexistingcoal-firedinfrastructurethatcurrentlyexiststhroughoutmuch
of the world. This volume is a part of the Cleaner Production series and meant to
provide basic information and awareness of environmental issues and responsible
pollutionmanagement.
Theauthorextendsaheartfeltgratitudetothepublisherforitsfineproductionof
this volume andseries.
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff, Ph.D.
About the Author
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff has 30 years of international consulting and project
management experience across a broad spectrum of industry sectors dealing with
environmental management practices and technologies. His assignments have
focusedoncorporateresponsiblecarethroughtheapplicationofpollutionprevention
and cleaner production. He has served as both a practitioner and an educator to
industry stakeholders on responsible care practices that strive to improve environ-
mentalperformancethroughtheapplicationofcost-effectivecleantechnologies.He
hasdesignedandimplementedprojectsfortheUnitedStatesAgencyforInternational
Development,theWorldBankOrganization,theEuropeanUnion,theU.S.Tradeand
Development Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Department of
Defense,andanumberofFortune100andmultinationalcompanies.Hehasapplied
his experience and knowledge in major environmental toxic tort litigations as an
expertwitnessinthefieldsofenvironmentalforensics,inhistoricalreconstructionof
environmentalmanagementpractices,andinformulatingopinionsregardinglevelsof
responsible care exercised by industry stakeholders. He is the author, coauthor, or
editor of more than 160 book publications and numerous state-of-the-art review
articlesandR&Dpapers.Herecei vedhisB.S.,M.S.,andPh.D.degreesinchemical
engineeringfrom Clarkson Collegeof Technology.