“Improving Power Plant Efficiency and Power Generation” was Hot Topic on August 8, 2013

Richard F (Dick) Storm - Storm Technologies, provided some insights based on his decades of experience relative to improving boiler operations. He stated that there are both competitive pressures of natural gas-fueled power plants combined with ever increasing regulations. An engineer in a coal-fueled utility or large IPP plant might want to take a fresh look at some fairly low cost options to improve emissions, provide fuel flexibility, improve reliability, increase capacity and while at it, make the generating units more responsive to load demand changes. These are difficult challenges. The vastly overlooked opportunities are to first apply the Fundamentals. You may have heard me say this before. “I have been publishing and presenting this approach for a long time. The facts are that most pulverized coal-fired power plants can still reap major benefits by applying the Fundamentals first.” What fundamentals? Here are some examples:

• Improve airflow measurement and control accuracy for the Primary Airflow, Secondary Airflow and the Over-Fire Airflow. Make certain the DCS keeps these in proportion throughout the load range.
• Increase fuel fineness from the pulverizers
• Reduce air in-leakage
• Tune the boiler controls so that the primary airflow is helpful in making load changes.
• Optimize the primary air/fuel ratios during operation.
• Make sure the entire O&M Team is working on the same plan.

The path to excellence in applying the above is relatively low cost compared to the large capital costs of major backend equipment. However, those of us that concentrate on the furnace “Inputs” wonder why so much capital is spent on the backend when it is the “Inputs” that can make a dramatic impact for performance improvements.

This presentation touched on a number of classifications which are needed in decision making. Here are some:

Decisive Classification of options to meet environmental goals and minimize costs

This presentation showed how to optimize combustion while meeting the substantial challenge of blending fuels to reduce costs. Relative to optimizing combustion the options include adjusting.

 (Words that are underlined are keywords which are used in searching the Intelligence System.)

Charles W. Bullinger - Great River Energy, discussed a process for improving power plant efficiency when burning lignite coals. The DryFining^™ technology is a patented process developed by Great River Energy (GRE). The technology utilizes fluid bed based heat exchangers to reduce coal moisture content by recovering waste heat generated by a power unit. In addition, the DryFining^™ beneficiates coal by separating undesirable constituents, such as sulfur, mercury and ash. GRE has been continuously operating eight 125 ton/hr DryFining^™ units at their 1200 MW Coal Creek station since 2009, where implementation of the technology resulted in a significant improvement of the plant thermal efficiency. The benefits are shown pictorially below.

Decisive Classification for decision to improve efficiency and reduce emissions for a lignite-fired boiler.

TODD MELICK – PROMECON USA, Inc. explained that PROMECON provides process instrumentation for measuring coal, air, unburned carbon-in-ash, and high temperature gas streams. Balancing the air and fuel will allow a reduction in excess air while monitoring the carbon-in-ash, which will result in improved boiler efficiency. Tribo-electric technology is used to measure particle size and velocity in the coal pipes. The unburned carbon is measured by an in-situ method which is much less complicated as shown below.

In the discussion period Todd estimated that most plants are doing manual sampling of UBC. Their in-situ approach has been chosen in a number of locations but there are also a number of extractive systems in place

Decisive Classification to monitor   unburned carbon

Scott Affelt – Zolo Technologies explained how real-time, laser-based measurements can be used to create two-dimensional profiles of key combustion constituents (Temperature, O₂ and CO) directly in the furnace. Measurement information from the furnace can allow operators and/or automated control systems to properly balance combustion thereby allowing more optimized combustion, improved efficiency, and reduced emissions. Real-time, in-furnace measurements using TDLS have significantly improved performance in coal-fired power plants. Just measuring air and fuel and parameters in the back pass are not sufficient. Todd used the analogy of a cake. You have to have the right ingredients but the success depends on how the ingredients are mixed.

Decisive Classification for maximizing  Efficiency   效率 using Tunable Diode Laser Spectroscopy  includes measurement of oxygen, carbon monoxide and temperature in the furnace as opposed to just in  backpass or just  measuring air/fuel ratios.

Bios, Abstracts and Photos can be seen at: BIOS, ABSTRACTS, PHOTOS - 8-8-13

The individual presentations are as follows:

• Improving Power Plant Efficiency and Power Generation Webinar - Hot Topic Hour August 8, 2013  (Webinar Recording  Dated:  8/8/2013)

• Mecontrol Boiler Combustion Optimization by Todd Melick, PROMECON USA - Hot Topic Hour August 8, 2013  (Presentation  Dated:  8/8/2013)
• DryFining Fuel Enhancement Process by Charles Bullinger, Great River Energy - Hot Topic Hour August 8, 2013  (Presentation  Dated:  8/8/2013)
• Laser-based Sensor for Real-time Combustion Optimization by Scott Affelt, Zolo Technologies - Hot Topic Hour August 8, 2013  (Presentation  Dated:  8/8/2013)
• Suggestions to consider on Coal Plant Challenges by Richard Storm, Storm Technologies - Hot Topic Hour August 8, 2013  (Presentation  Dated:  8/8/2013)