Instrumentation and Controls for Coal-Fired Power Plants is Hot Topic on March 3, 2011

Proper, well functioning and reliable instruments and control systems are critical to maintaining power plant operation at optimum levels with the highest efficiency, lowest air emissions, minimum maintenance required and lowest cost of operations. There are many types of instruments and control systems available to measure or monitor and control virtually every component and variable in a modern power plant. However, cost considerations and minimizing maintenance while insuring reliability dictate that the number of sensors or instruments and controls should be kept to the minimum necessary to optimize performance. The following speakers will discuss the various instruments and technologies available to monitor and control the equipment and processes in a power plant and explain the advantages or disadvantages of each for specific applications and site conditions. In view of the coming MACT regulations for the utility industry and the lower emission limits that will be required, the speakers may also comment on how instrumentation and control systems can help plant operators achieve the required limits as well as any new instruments or systems under development.

Ravi Jethra, Power Industry Specialist at Endress + Hauser, Inc. – “Today’s global power industry faces many challenges which include GHG emissions, aging plants and workforce. The demand for electricity continues to grow.  The power industry is also a focal point for the global environmental imperative to contain greenhouse gas emissions, primarily carbon dioxide (CO₂). Thus, the power industry must find effective solutions for meeting the increasing demand for electricity, while simultaneously minimizing its significant carbon and other emissions “footprint”.  The presentation will cover process instrumentation in power plants, primarily coal-fired power plants. It will also discuss challenges for Plant Managers in day-to-day operations and review some new technologies that help improvise.”

Todd Melick, Vice-president of PROMECON USA, Inc. - “Promecon provides instrumentation for optimization in coal-fired utilities, cement plants, and steel mills. The discussion will begin with our on-line unburned carbon in ash system that provides direct feedback from the combustion system. I will also cover our on-line particle size analysis for coal fineness monitoring and air flow measurement for hot dusty applications.”

David Early, Sales Manager at AMC Power, a Division of Air Monitor Corp. – “Combustion optimization at coal-fired power plants can be achieved with the use of various instruments that are available today but did not exist just a few years ago. Low NO_x burners give power plants the ability to control air to each burner - yet most don't have a measurement to tell you how MUCH air each burner is getting. Accurate measurement of burner secondary air (SA) is now available for ANY low NO_x burner so that control with the burner SA can be optimized.  Likewise, the amount of coal flow to each burner can be continuously measured and controlled for best combustion practices. Combined, these devices can be used for continuous control that turns the equivalent of a coal fired carbureted engine into a fuel-injected engine.  Another component of combustion optimization is excess air.  If optimum combustion can be achieved, do we need as much EXTRA air in the furnace as we did with poor combustion?  The industry standard is to measure the excess O₂ in the boiler backpass. Control of excess oxygen is performed by averaging the measurements from several O₂ probes. The excess air set point at most plants is usually between 2.5 percent and 3 percent. So this is approximately 22 percent plus extra air. But if combustion is optimized, we really don’t need that much extra air. Since O₂ measurements are often influenced by air in-leakage on balanced draft units, it is often uncertain just how good combustion is. CO measurement is much less affected by air in-leakage and can thus be used to determine how well combustion has been improved and how low the O₂ set point can be. This presentation will review individual burner air and coal flow measurements as well as back-end CO measurement. It will show how the use of these measurements can lead to improvements in O₂, CO, NO_x, LOI and more.”

To register for the "Hot Topic Hour" on Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 10 a.m. CST (Chicago time), click on: http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/hot_topic_hour_registration.htm

Bob McIlvaine

President

847 784 0012 ext 112

rmcilvaine@mcilvainecompany.com

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