Gone are the days when only large industrial facilities consider CHP and utilities fight them tooth and nail.
As a result of new and more stringent environmental regulations, the power industry faces a twofold challenge to significantly reduce sulfur dioxide (SO2) and other acid gases, mercury (Hg), particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) from air emissions while concurrently eliminating wet disposal of ash generated by coal fired power plants.
Water conveyance for hydropower in the high mountains of the Andes is often a technical challenge and, in many cases, can result in greater construction costs. One company successfully designed a hydropower project that overcame these challenges with a steel penstock installation and other innovative engineering technologies.
Even minor traces of chloride, sulfate, and sodium hydroxide can cause severe problems in steam systems, and especially turbines. In the case of sodium hydroxide, stress corrosion cracking of turbine blades and rotors may occur very rapidly.
Power producers require a practical plan for analyzing and optimizing a plant’s water usage and minimizing its wastewater production. This article explores the challenges created by new regulations, limited water resources and new priorities and standards.
Wisconsin Energy invested US$3b in new power plants with a total capacity of 2,800 MW, US$1.3 billion to upgrade existing power plants and US$2.7 billion to upgrade the distribution system.
In 2015, a coal-fired unit in Canada was successfully converted to burn thermally upgraded wood pellets. The first-of-a-kind project was executed with a capital cost of about $30 per kilowatt and has demonstrated its feasibility at full scale.
HRSG Maintenance from a Bird’s Eye View
Gas Turbines operate at a constant volume of very clean air. It's the density of this air however that holds the key if we want to keep our Gas Turbine Power Output levels high.
During the heyday of coal-fired power plant construction and operation in the last century, many lessons were learned regarding correct water/steam chemistry control in high-pressure, fossil-fuel steam generators.