Advanced Coal-Fired Power Plants

Abstract

The U.S. Department of Energy is partnering with industry to develop advanced coal-fired electric power plants that are substantially cleaner, more efficient, and less costly than current plants. Low-emission boiler systems (LEBS) and high-performance power systems (HIPPS) are based, respectively, on the direct firing of pulverized coal and the indirectly fired combined cycle. LEBS uses a low-NOx slagging combustion system that has been shown in pilot-scale tests to emit less than 86 g/GJ (0.2 lb/106 Btu) of NOx. Additional NOx removal is provided by a moving bed copper oxide flue gas cleanup system, which also removes 97–99 percent of sulfur oxides. Stack levels of NOx can be reduced to below 9 g/GJ (0.02 lb/106 Btu). Construction of an 80 MWe LEBS proof-of-concept plant is scheduled to begin in the spring of 1999. Engineering development of two different HIPPS configurations is continuing. Recent tests of a radiant air heater, a key component of HIPPS, have indicated the soundness of the design for air temperatures to 1150°C. LEBS and HIPPS applications include both new power plants and repowering/upgrading existing plants.