Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
CORNERSTONE
The World Coal Association has been influencing policy at the highest
level for almost 30 years. No other organisation works on a global basis
on behalf of the coal industry.
The WCA has recently appointed Harry Kenyon-Slaney, Chief Executive www.worldcoal.org
of Rio Tinto Energy, as its new Chairman. It is an exciting time for the www.worldcoal.org/extract
WCA and for the global coal industry. If you have an interest in the twitter.com/worldcoal
future of the coal industry, contact us to see how you can get involved: www.youtube.com/worldcoal
membership@worldcoal.org facebook.com/WorldCoalAssociation
WCA Members
Alpha Natural Resources Inc China National Coal Group Peabody Energy
Anglo American Glencore Rio Tinto Energy
Arch Coal Inc Joy Global Shenhua Group
BHP Billiton Karakan Invest. LLC Vostsibugol
Bowie Resource Partners LLC Mitsubishi Development Pty Ltd Whitehaven Coal Limited
Caterpillar Global Mining Orica Ltd Xcoal Energy & Resources
R
enewables and coal are the two fastest growing forms of energy today.
The growth of these energy sources is particularly prominent in developing
countries, where most expansion in electricity capacity is occurring. Coal and
renewables often require less upfront investment, less infrastructure, and are more
widely distributed globally than other energy options, making them ideal choices
for regions that need to add electricity capacity in the near term.
Coal and renewable energy systems can be integrated in such a way that the advan-
tages of each energy source can be more fully harnessed. For instance, coal and
biomass cofiring and cogasification, the most widespread combinations practiced
today, allow for larger, more cost-effective plants than would be possible with only
biomass, but a smaller carbon footprint than would be possible using coal with-
out carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). In fact, there are many more
examples of optimized systems in which renewable and coal energy systems could
be optimally integrated.
The main issues facing increased integration of coal and renewable energy sys-
tems are not technical. Instead, they are generally institutional. Advocates for such
integration are few and far between. However, some of the advantages are worth
consideration: Integration can produce more power than a standalone renewable
Holly Krutka plant and can be an enabling technology to get high-cost renewables, such as uncon-
Executive Editor, Cornerstone ventional geothermal and concentrated solar power, deployed in the near term. Yet
such projects are generally not included under renewable portfolio standards or
clean energy standards. In addition, negative net greenhouse gas emissions, which
can be achieved through cofiring coal and biomass with CCS, are often not recog-
nized by emissions trading schemes.
Recently, low-carbon energy production from coal took a major step forward with
the commencement of operation of SaskPower’s Boundary Dam project. This
monumental CCUS project is now demonstrating that low-carbon coal is within our
grasp. As coal and renewables grow globally, improved integration and efficiency
as well as deployment of CCUS can ensure that coal and renewables can both con-
tribute to decreasing the carbon footprint of the energy sector without sacrificing
reliability, energy security, and eventually cost. Further demonstration, develop-
ment, and deployment will be necessary to reduce costs, which emphasizes why
increased integration of coal and renewables must find support within the global
energy discussion today.
This issue of Cornerstone offers a wide range of articles that discuss the many areas
in which coal and renewables do and could intersect. On behalf of the editorial
team, I hope you enjoy it.
1
www.cornerstonemag.net
CONTENTS
VOICES
11 The Rise of Electricity: Offering Longevity,
Improved Living Standards, and a Healthier Planet
Frank Clemente, Penn State University
11
ENERGY POLICY
17 Understanding the National Enhanced Oil Recovery Initiative
Patrick Falwell, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions
Brad Crabtree, Great Plains Institute
STRATEGIC ANALYSIS
25 The Flexibility of German Coal-Fired
Power Plants Amid Increased Renewables
21
Hans-Wilhelm Schiffer, World Energy Council
31
4 Cover Story
The Energy Frontier of
Combining Coal and
Renewable Energy Systems
Stephen Mills
The global demand for energy continues to increase—as the fastest
growing sources of energy, coal and renewables are largely responsible
for meeting that demand. A Senior Consultant at the IEA Clean Coal
Centre explores the projections for coal and renewable deployment as
well as opportunities for optimization.
2
TECHNOLOGY FRONTIERS
Making Coal Flexible:
Getting From Baseload to Peaking Plant 41
Jaquelin Cochran, National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Debra Lew, Independent Consultant
Nikhil Kumar, Intertek
GLOBAL NEWS
Covering global business changes, publications, and meetings
67
LETTERS
71
VOLUME 2 AUTHOR INDEX
73
67
Chief Editor Copyright © 2014 World Coal Association
Gu Dazhao, Katie Warrick
Editorial Office
Executive Editor Shenhua Science and Technology Research
Holly Krutka, Liu Baowen Institute Co., Ltd 006 mailbox
Official Journal of World Coal Industry Shenhua Science and Technology Park,
Responsible Editor Future Science & Technology City,
Chi Dongxun, Li Jingfeng Changping District
Beijing 102211, China
Copy Editor
Li Xing, Chen Junqi, Zhang Fan Phone: +86 10 57336026
Sponsored by Shenhua Group Corporation Limited Fax: +86 10 57336014
Production and Layout
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Email: cornerstone@shenhua.cc (Chinese)
Email: cornerstone@wiley.com (English)
CORNERSTONE (print ISSN 2327-1043, Website: www.cornerstonemag.net
online ISSN 2327-1051) is published four times a
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
year on behalf of the World Coal Association by The content in Cornerstone does not necessarily
Wiley Periodicals Inc., a Wiley Company reflect the views of the World Coal Association or
111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774. its members.
3
www.cornerstonemag.net
C O VE R S T O RY
T
he world is undoubtedly hungry for energy and this natural gas, and coal will continue to be used widely, although
hunger is growing. There are strong incentives to in some situations, the increasing use of renewable energy
develop improved sources of energy. By 2040, the sources may reduce the amount of fossil fuels currently used.
world’s population will have reached nearly nine billion.1 All
Regardless, on a global basis, coal will continue to play a major
of these people will need to be housed, fed, and have the
opportunity to make a living; this inevitably means that much role. This will be particularly true in some of the emerging
more energy is going to be needed. By 2040, global energy economies where growing industrialization and urbanization
demand will be about a third greater than current levels.2 Oil, continue to relentlessly drive electricity demand upward.
4
of Combining Coal and
Renewable Energy Systems
At the moment, over 1.2 billion people lack access to any
electricity, and another two billion are considered to have
inadequate access. A key goal of the 2010 Copenhagen Accord
is to provide energy to these underserved populations. There
may be few energy source options available—in some coun-
tries, coal is the only economically available bulk source
capable of providing reliable energy. Although its use is set to
decline in some developed economies, coal will continue to be
used widely and in considerable quantities. For over a decade,
global coal consumption has risen steadily; in some non-OECD
countries, in particular, both production and consumption
have increased dramatically. During this time, consumption
has risen by nearly 60%, from 4.6 Gt in 2000 to about 7.8 Gt in Poland’s Belchatów coal-fired power station is Europe’s largest
2012.3 Despite efforts to diversify, coal remains vitally impor- thermal power plant (courtesy PGE Elektrownia Belchatów).
tant for many economies. Since 2000, apart from renewables,
it has been the fastest-growing global energy source. It’s the electricity. Global renewable power capacity continues to
second source of primary energy after oil, and provides more increase. In 2013, hydropower and solar PV each accounted
than 30% of global primary energy needs. for about 33% of new renewable capacity, followed by wind
at about 29%.5
The biggest individual coal reserves are in the U.S., Russia,
China, Australia, and India. In all of these countries, coal is Several driving forces support the growth in renewables. All
used to generate large percentages of electricity. In several, it developed nations rely heavily on an adequate and acces-
also provides important economic benefits as it is exported to sible supply of electricity and, for a long time, demand has
other power-hungry economies. At the moment, coal’s princi- continued to rise in nearly every country. However, in recent
pal use remains electricity generation; coal-fired power plants years, concerns over issues such as the depletion of energy
produce 41–42% of the world’s electricity. In the coming resources and global climate change have been heightened.
years, electricity will continue to be provided by many differ- The preferred response of many western governments has
ent generating technologies, but the projected combinations been a supply-side strategy—namely, to raise the share of
are highly site-specific. The IEA World Energy Outlook (2012) renewables (especially renewables other than hydropower) in
suggests that, for the foreseeable future, power production the energy mix toward 20% and beyond. To date, wind power
from most sources will continue to increase (Figure 1).4 In has emerged as the most competitive and widely deployed
many countries, coal and renewable energy systems are being renewable energy, although levels of solar power are also
deployed at greater percentages and, thus, there is increased growing steadily. Renewable energy technologies such as wind
interest in how to optimally integrate these systems. In fact, and solar have obvious features that make their use attractive.
there are a significant number of opportunities.
14k
Generation Mix (TWh)
12k Coal
AN ODD PARTNERSHIP? Renewables
Global Power
10k
With the ever-increasing use of all types of fossil fuels, there 8k
Gas
has also been a marked increase in the uptake of renewable 6k
energy sources. In many economies, these now represent a Nuclear
4k
rapidly growing share of electricity supply; Table 1 shows the
top regions and countries at the end of 2012. 2k
Oil
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035
In 2013 renewables made up more than 26% of global gen-
erating capacity; in 2013 they produced 22% of the world’s FIGURE 1. Global power generation mix4
5
www.cornerstonemag.net
C O VE R S T O RY
Technology World Total EU-28 BRICS China U.S. Germany Spain Italy India
Bio-power 88 35 24 6.2 15.8 8.1 1 4 4.4
Geothermal 12 1 0.1 ~0 3.4 ~0 0 0.9 0
Tidal 0.5 0.2 ~0 ~0 ~0 0 ~0 0 0
Solar PV 139 80 21 19.9 12.1 36 5.6 17.6 2.2
CSP 3.4 2.3 0.1 ~0 0.9 ~0 2.3 ~0 0.1
Wind 318 117 115 91 61 34 23 8.6 20
Total RE power capacity* 560 235 162 118 93 78 32 31 27
Hydropower 1000 124 437 260 78 5.6 17.1 18.3 44
Total RE power capacity 1560 360 599 378 172 84 49 49 71
*Excludes hydropower.
Note: BRICS = Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa
Although initial capital costs for renewables-based systems forms may be subject to limited or seasonable availability, and
can be high, operating costs can be low; emissions generated various pre-treatments may be needed. Inevitably, such chal-
during day-to-day operation are effectively zero. lenges can add complexity and cost to energy production.
Especially in faster-growing energy markets, these renew- Co-utilization of coal and biomass need not be limited to co-
able energy systems are not replacing existing or even new combustion in existing power plants—there are a number of
coal-fired power plants. Renewables and coal-fired power other possibilities such as co-gasification. Coal gasification is
generation are growing simultaneously. Therefore, it is worth a well-established versatile technology. Combining these two
exploring the many options for combining these very different different feedstocks can be beneficial. For instance, facilities
forms of energy in the most cost-effective, environmentally that co-gasify biomass in large coal gasifiers can achieve high
conscious, and efficient means possible. A growing number of efficiencies and improve process economics through greater
hybrid coal-renewables systems have been proposed or are economies of scale compared to a biomass-only facility. Such
being developed around the world, several of which could a combination can also help reduce the impact of fluctuations
offer significant potential. in biomass availability and its variable properties. Combining
biomass and coal in this way can be useful, both environmen-
Coal and Biomass tally and economically, as it may be possible to capitalize on
the advantages of each feedstock, and overcome some of their
Combining biomass with coal is a prime example of combining individual drawbacks. Biomass can have an impact on CO2
renewables and coal. Such a combination is already deployed emissions from a combustion or gasification process. Replacing
fairly widely in the form of cofiring biomass in large conven- part of the coal feed with biomass (assuming that it has been
tional coal-fired power plants. Around the world, a growing produced on a sustainable basis) can effectively reduce the
number of power plants regularly replace a portion of their overall amount of CO2 emitted. Potentially, the addition of
coal feed with suitably treated biomass. More than 150 coal- carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology could result in a
fired power plants now have experience with cofiring biomass carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative process. Globally, con-
or waste fuels, at least on a trial basis. There are ~40 pulver- siderable quantities of biomass are potentially available—in
ized coal combustion (PCC) plants that cofire biomass on a many countries, biomass remains an underexploited resource.
commercial basis, with an average of 3% energy input from
biomass.6 Similar to many conventional coal-fired power plants, several
commercial-scale, coal-fueled, integrated gasification com-
Biomass comes in many forms and can be sourced from bined cycle (IGCC) plants in operation have at least trialed com-
dedicated energy crops (such as switchgrass and miscanthus), bining biomass with their coal feed, and several proposed IGCC
short-rotation timber, agricultural crops and wastes, or forestry projects aim to do the same. For instance, a planned IGCC and
residues. When combined with coal, biomass can provide a chemicals production plant (with CCS) at Kędzierzyn in Poland
number of advantages. However, its use on a large commercial will co-gasify coal and biomass.7 To date, useful operational
scale could create a number of issues. For example, the vol- experience in co-gasifying has been gained with all major
umes to be harvested and handled can be substantial, some gasifier variants (entrained flow, fluidized bed, and fixed bed
6
systems). Different types of coal have been co-gasified suc- Most major wind and solar facilities do not operate in isola-
cessfully with a wide range of materials, many of which are tion. Generally, they feed electricity into existing power grids
wastes that would have otherwise ended up in landfills or, at or networks. Often, such grids are fed by a variety of different
least, created disposal problems. types of power plants—there may be various combinations
of coal- and gas-fired power plants, some hydro, and possi-
Co-utilizing coal and biomass is not limited to power gen- bly nuclear. The grid makeup and ratio between plant types
eration. In a number of countries, hybrid concepts for the is never the same, as these factors differ from country to
production of SNG, electricity and/or heat, and liquid trans- country based on the local circumstances. On the face of it,
port fuels have either been proposed or are in the process the addition of a large amount of wind power into a grid, for
of being developed or tested. Coal/biomass co-gasification example, is a positive development. However, a large input
features in some of these. However, as well as incorporating from intermittent sources into existing power systems can
biomass, some propose to take this a step further by adding upset grid stability and have major impacts, particularly on
yet another element of renewable energy to the system, gen- how thermal power plants within the system operate. Many
erally by incorporating electricity generated by intermittent coal- and gas-fired power plants no longer exclusively provide
renewables (such as wind and solar power). baseload power, but are now required to operate on a more
flexible basis. Many are increasingly switched off and on, or
ramped up and down, much more frequently than they were
Coal, Wind, Solar, and Geothermal designed to be. Inevitably, this is guaranteed to throw up a
number of issues—significantly increasing wear and tear on
Wind power has become the most widely deployed renewable plant components, reducing the operating efficiency of units
energy. In 2013, global capacity hit a new high of 318 GW. In not designed for variable operation, and impairing the effec-
that year, China alone installed more than 16 GW; by 2020, the tiveness of emission control systems. Ideally, such important
IEA projects the country will more than double its wind power impacts should be taken into consideration and factored into
capacity from the present level of 90 GW to around 200 GW.8 any energy-producing scheme, but this is particularly true in
For comparison, the European Union countries have a com- cases where coupling intermittent renewables with conven-
bined ~90 GW of installed capacity. In 2013, wind surpassed tional thermal power plants is being proposed.
nuclear to become the number three source of energy after
coal and hydropower in China.9 Reportedly, this is part of the Clearly, the most significant drawback with wind and solar
greatest push for renewable energy that the world has ever power is their intermittency. Consequently, periods of peak
seen.10 power output often do not correspond with periods of high
International Power’s 1-GW Rugeley power station in the UK. Like many others, this power plant has trialed cofiring various
biomass materials with coal (courtesy Russell Mills Photography).
7
www.cornerstonemag.net
C O VE R S T O RY
Smøla wind farm in Norway (courtesy Statkraft) Hybrid thermal systems operate by using heat from renewable
energy to increase the temperature of the coal-fired power
electricity demand, and vice versa. At times, there can be plant boiler feedwater. This increases the efficiency of the
significant amounts of surplus unwanted electricity available, power plant, effectively displacing some coal for renewable
particularly from wind farms. This can be quite a widespread energy (or using the same amount of coal and producing more
phenomenon, and the usual solution is to take wind turbines electricity). Such thermal hybrid projects may be the most
offline. However, rather than “waste” this electricity, it would cost-effective option for large-scale use of solar thermal and
be much more beneficial to find an effective means of using it. geothermal energy, although, to be employed, this approach
One option is to use electricity not needed to fill demand to must be recognized under renewable energy incentives. In
electrolyze water, producing hydrogen and oxygen. Both gases the future, there may also be an opportunity for renewable
have the potential to be component parts of hybrid energy sources of energy to provide the thermal load required for
systems and there are various schemes that propose feeding carbon capture and storage, thus significantly reducing the
the hydrogen into syngas from gasification systems, use it in overall impact to the power plant and contributing to large-
fuel cells or directly as a transport fuel, or combust it in gas scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
turbines to generate electricity.
8
Currently, around 15 hybrid solar thermal plants, including could also be incorporated into systems fueled by coal/bio-
those on coal- and natural gas-fired power plants, are being mass combinations.
developed, with a total capacity of 460 MW.12 Thermal hybrid
projects based on unconventional geothermal resources are A number of projects are more advanced than others, with
at an earlier stage of development and the field will require development programs well underway. Some components
additional research prior to large-scale demonstrations.13 (such as co-gasification) have now been well established, and
others are under development or being trialed (such as the
commercial-scale demonstration of hydrogen production from
CURRENT STATUS
wind power and testing of advanced electrolyzers). A number
of proposed hybrid systems show potential—although in the
Some systems are at early stages in their development or
near to medium term, assuming outstanding technical and
have been undertaken at a very small size, hence extrapo-
economic issues can be resolved fully, most seem likely to be
lating to commercial scale and obtaining firm process costs
applied initially to niche markets, or to find application under
remains problematic. For a variety of reasons, not all of the
specific, favorable circumstances.
different schemes being considered appear to be technically
and/or economically viable. However, some do appear to be
more robust. On-going developments (in, for instance, gasifier CLOSING THOUGHTS
and electrolyzer design) should improve cost competiveness.
Where hydrogen and/or oxygen production forms part of Set against a background of growing global population and ris-
a hybrid energy scheme, reductions in the cost of electric- ing energy demand, there is a pressing need to come up with
ity provided by renewable energy sources (such as wind and new, cost-effective, clean, reliable energy systems. To help
solar) would also be beneficial in making electrolysis more tackle this, many hybrid energy schemes have been proposed,
cost effective. Some examples of on-going hybrid projects are some more practical than others. Despite efforts by many
given in Table 2. Although some are currently focused only on countries to diversify their fuel mix, fossil fuels such as coal will
biomass, potentially different elements from these processes continue to provide a significant part of the world’s energy for
9
www.cornerstonemag.net
C O VE R S T O RY
REFERENCES
10
V O ICES
New power lines providing access to electricity allow for energy to be utilized with increasing efficiency.
11
www.cornerstonemag.net
V O ICE S
technologies are more efficient than their fuel-burning coun- will move to, ever-growing cities. Urbanization may offer the
terparts and, unlike traditional fuels burned by the user, no chance to lift oneself out of poverty, but the electricity must
waste and emissions evolve at the point of use—no smoke, be available to support the business and industries that can
ash, combustion gas, noise, or odor. Clearly, it’s important that provide much-needed opportunities.
there are emissions controls in place when electricity is gen-
erated; controlling criteria emissions (e.g., particulate matter,
THE DISPARITY OF ELECTRIFICATION
SOx, NOx, mercury) at the source of large-scale electricity gen-
eration is possible using commercially available technologies.
Figure 1 provides a comparison of the UN’s Human Develop-
In addition, electrification increases the efficiency of society’s ment Index (HDI) and the per capita electricity utilization of
primary energy consumption and, therefore, reduces the many nations. Note that the major aspects of the HDI, such as
energy intensity of greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon capture life expectancy, educational attainment, and per capita GDP,
and storage (CCS) technologies are also being developed that are statistically related to increased access and utilization of
will allow for the carbon footprint of fossil fuel-based sources electricity.
of electricity to be dramatically reduced.
0.9
3. Urbanization
0.8 Brazil
Russia
The projections are staggering. By 2050, the global economy 0.7
China
India
is projected to quadruple to US$280 trillion in real terms. At 0.6
least 80% of this increase will be in the developing world, and 0.5
Nigeria
many of these nations will depend on coal to advance their 0.4
economies. By 2050, the world will add 2.4 billion people—67 0.3
million every year or 184,000 every day.5 In essence, the 0 2000 4000 6000 8000 10,000 12,000 14,000 16,000
entire population of Rome is added to the global rolls every Electricity Use per Capita per Year (kWh)
two weeks. Most of these people will either be born in, or FIGURE 1. Human Development Index versus electricity use6
12
clean water, better sanitation, adequate food, medicine, and Sub-Saharan Africa, a region with a population of more than
more education to improve earning power—all things that 900 million people, uses less electricity per year (145 TWh)
can be taken for granted in the developed West.8 At least 1.5 than the U.S. state of Alabama (155 TWh) with just 4.8 million
billion women and girls live on less than $2 per day, and this residents.12,13 There is only enough electricity generated in the
feminization of poverty is endemic to areas without electric sub-Sahara to power one light bulb per person for three hours
power.9 Merely gathering traditional fuels consumes a large a day.14 Africa has 15% of the world’s population—50% of
part of a woman’s day throughout the developing world. Girls these people live without electricity. In fact, of the 25 nations
are kept out of school to obtain fuel. In areas such as South at the bottom of the UN HDI (see Figure 1), 24 are in Africa.15
Darfur, women walk up to seven hours per day to collect fuel,
making mothers and their daughters highly susceptible to rob- In Cambodia, 69% of the population lacks access to electricity.
bery, violence, and rape. This inequitable access to energy has In Pakistan, it is 33% and in Uganda an astounding 92%. Of the
far-reaching socioeconomic ramifications. For example, the almost 160 million people in Bangladesh, 63 million lack access
infant mortality rate in Germany is less than four per 1000 to any sort of electric power.16 About three billion people use
live births; in Nigeria, it is 74. In the European Union, virtually rudimentary stoves to burn wood, coal, charcoal, and animal
100% of the population has improved sanitation; in Indonesia dung, releasing dense black soot into their homes and the
alone, 104 million people lack such sanitation.10 environment. Annual deaths from this household air pollution
exceed four million per year.17,18 This gathering and burning of
No nation holds more of the world’s poor than India. At least wood and other biomass leads to deforestation, erosion, land
300 million people have no power whatsoever and more than degradation, and contaminated water supplies. Families are
700 million people lack access to modern energy services for pushed off the land and migrate to cities in search of a better life.
lighting, cooking, water pumping, and other productive pur-
poses. One hundred million do not have an improved water URBANIZATION REVEALS THE IMPORTANCE
supply and over 800 million lack access to improved sanita- OF ON-GRID ELECTRICITY
tion. These problems will only intensify going forward as India
has about 630 million people less than 25 years old and will Much energy poverty occurs in rural locations; in such set-
surpass China as the most populated nation before 2030.11 tings, off-grid options, such as roof-top solar, have much to
An increasingly urban global population presents challenges, but also an opportunity to increase electrification rates.
13
www.cornerstonemag.net
V O ICE S
contribute. Undoubtedly, such solutions must play a role. In natural gas, liquid fuels, and chemicals, although CCS, which
the near term, more efficient stoves and cleaner cooking fuels will be much less expensive at such facilities, will be required
could dramatically improve indoor air quality and save lives. to control CO2 emissions. The liquid fuels produced from coal
However, rural off-grid solutions may only meet the minimum conversion inherently have less sulfur than petroleum-derived
standards for electricity. It would be difficult, if not impossible, fuels, which can address another major contributor to air
for rural, minimal electrification to support the job-creating pollution by offering cleaner transportation fuels. Finally, the
growth and industries so sorely needed to fundamentally potential for less direct coal use is significant: Only about 53%
address energy poverty. Perhaps most importantly, to expect of China’s coal demand is for power generation, compared to
to rely only on off-grid solutions because of where energy over 90% in the U.S.4 Together, these steps could significantly
poverty occurs today ignores a pressing reality: rapid global reduce China’s air quality problems and allow continued eco-
urbanization. nomic growth.
14
actual generation also helps to highlight coal’s real role: Coal’s technology, operate at increasingly higher temperatures and
share of generation (as a percentage) is almost always signifi- pressures and, therefore, achieve higher efficiencies than
cantly greater than its capacity percentage. For decades, coal conventional plants. Upwards of 500 GW of supercritical units
has been the default fuel when sanguine projections of gas, are in operation or planned around the world, but many more
nuclear, and wind have fallen short. This is one of the reasons are needed.26 Highly efficient modern coal plants emit up to
the IEA has projected that coal will supply at least 50% of the 40% less CO2 than the average coal plant currently installed.27
on-grid electricity to eliminate energy poverty by 2030.24 Importantly, these supercritical plants are a prerequisite for
next-generation development of CCUS, which itself is broadly
Clearly, attempting to remove the contribution of one energy recognized as required for global emission goals, which was
source is not a viable strategy—especially when attempting the other important component of the Copenhagen Accord.
to eradicate energy poverty. Nevertheless, western finan-
cial institutions such as the U.S. Export-Import Bank, the
World Bank, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and A PLAN TO END ENERGY POVERTY
Development have refused to fund coal projects even in areas
of abject electricity poverty. Such a stance disregards the need The underlying theme of the position presented here is
for widespread electrification above and beyond basic access. straightforward: Electricity, socioeconomic security, and a
It can also be argued that such a position is counterproductive clean environment are inalienable human rights. Efforts to
to the fundamental objective of such institutions, which is to eliminate coal-fired power plants would forgo an opportunity
promote development and alleviate poverty. to help meet burgeoning electricity demand, reduce depriva-
tion, elevate the global quality of life, and significantly reduce
emissions from energy. Without contributions from coal,
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
economic growth will be stunted, the environment will be
Development banks and other poverty alleviation groups do degraded, and the crisis of energy poverty will not be solved. If
not need to choose between alleviating poverty and environ- a global goal is truly the “[e]radication of poverty in the field,”
mental protection. As has been explained, there are substantial the world’s most abundant source of electricity must remain
environmental benefits to electrification. In addition, clean an integral part of the solution.28 Policymakers must recognize
electricity generation from coal could be assured by sup- the scale of electricity required to meet that goal. By 2050,
porting plants with high efficiency, advanced environmental the world will have 9.6 billion people, with the large majority
controls, and that are made ready to implement CCS/CCUS. in cities, where they have fuller access to electricity. I agree
with many coal industry leaders that we should implement
Clean coal technologies are in use today and allow for the con- a technologically based plan, which will help meet the ever-
sumption of more coal with greatly reduced emissions. New rising need for power and improve the lot of all members of
pulverized coal combustion systems, utilizing supercritical the human race.
14,000
5 hours a day of...1 fan...1 mobile phone...2 flourescent bulbs
12,000
11 12 1
Average Electricity Access
10 2
10,000
[kWh/(capita·yr)]
9 3
8 4
8000 7 6 5
6000
4000
2000
0
U.S. EU China World India Pakistan Sub-Saharan IEA Avg.*
Africa
FIGURE 2. Electricity access of select nations and a comparison to IEA’s basic energy service in rural settings24
*250 kWh per rural household, 500 kWh per urban household
15
www.cornerstonemag.net
V O ICE S
The five most important steps of a plan to increase access to 10. Central Intelligence Agency. (2013). The world factbook, Nigeria,
clean electricity include: Germany, Indonesia, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-
world-factbook/
11. Rajendram, D. (2013, 10 March). The promise and peril of India’s
1. Work to eliminate energy poverty by ensuring that at least youth bulge. The Diplomat, thediplomat.com/2013/03/the-
half of on-grid new generation is fueled by coal promise-and-peril-of-indias-youth-bulge/
2. Replace older, traditional coal plants with plants utilizing 12. U.S. Energy Information Administration. (2014, February).
advanced coal technologies Electric power monthly, www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/
current_year/february2014.pdf
3. Develop at least 100 major CCS/CCUS projects around the
13. IRENA. (2012). Africa’s renewable future, www.irena.org/
world within 10 years DocumentDownloads/Publications/Africa_renewable_future.
4. Deploy significant coal‐to‐gas, coal‐to-chemicals, and coal‐ pdf
to‐liquids projects globally in the next decade, which will 14. World Bank. (2013). Fact sheet: Infrastructure in sub-Saharan
spur industry and reduce pollution from transportation Africa, web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/AF
RICAEXT/0,,contentMDK:21951811~pagePK:146736~piPK:1468
fuels. Note that such projects would be particularly useful
30~theSitePK:258644,00.html
for low-cost CCS/CCUS demonstrations. 15. SABC. (2013, 25 May). Free Africa from poverty and conflict: AU,
5. Commercialize next‐generation clean coal technologies www.sabc.co.za/news/a/8bce1b804fc0bb519d4eff0b5d39e4
to achieve near‐zero emissions, with supercritical power bb/Free-Africa-from-poverty-and-conflict:-AU-20132505
plants as the next step along that path 16. World Bank. (2013). Access to electricity (% of population), data,
worldbank.org/indicator/EG.ELC.ACCS.ZS
17. Yamada, G. (2013). Fires, fuel and the fate of 3 billion. New York:
This plan employs 21st century coal technology to cleanly and Oxford University Press.
affordably use abundant global reserves—which approach 18. World Health Organization. (2014). Household (indoor) air
900 billion tonnes, are distributed across 70 countries, and are pollution, www.who.int/indoorair/en/
accessible through a far reaching and expanded network of 19. World Energy Council. (2011, December). Global Transport
established infrastructure—to produce and deliver electricity Scenarios 2050, www.worldenergy.org/publications/2011/global
-transport-scenarios-2050/
to all, especially to the billions of children, women, and men 20. Mackenzie, A. (2013, 8 August). Productivity boost will keep us
who currently live in energy poverty.29 at No. 1. The Australian, www.theaustralian.com.au/business/
opinion/productivity-boost-will-keep-us-at-no-1/story-
REFERENCES e6frg9if-1226693062147
21. UN. (2013). We can end poverty, www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
1. United Nations (UN). (1972, 16 June). Report of the United poverty.shtml
Nations Conference on the Human Environment, www.unep. 22. World Bank. (2013). World development indicators, data,
org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?documentid=97&arti worldbank.org/indicator, (accessed 2013).
cleid=1503 23. World Bank. (2014). World development indicators, data,
2. National Academy of Engineering. (2003). The greatest worldbank.org/indicator, (accessed October 2014).
engineering achievements of the 20th century, www. 24. IEA. (2011, November). World energy outlook 2011, www.iea.
nationalacademies.org/greatachievements/List.PDF org/publications/freepublications/publication/world-energy-
3. International Energy Agency (IEA). (2002, September). World outlook-2011.html
energy outlook 2002, www.worldenergyoutlook.org/media/weo 25. Worldwatch Institute. (2012, 31 January). Energy poverty
website/2008-1994/weo2002_part1.pdf, www.worldenergy remains a global challenge for the future, www.worldwatch.org/
outlook.org/media/weowebsite/2008-1994/weo2002_part2. energy-poverty-remains-global-challenge-future-1
pdf 26. Platts. (2014). New Power Plant Database, 2014.
4. IEA. (2013, October). World energy outlook 2013. 27. World Energy Council. (2013). World energy resources: Coal,
5. UN News Centre. (2013, 13 June). World population projected www.worldenergy.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/WER
to reach 9.6 billion by 2050, www.un.org/apps/news/story. _2013_1_Coal.pdf
asp?NewsID=45165#.VDXo9haNWFI 28. European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Eradicating
6. World Bank. (2013). World development indicators: Human poverty in the field, www.ebrd.com/pages/news/features/taff.
Development Index, 2013, data.worldbank.org/indicator shtml
7. UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. (2009). Full 29. BP. (2014, August). Statistical review of world energy, www.
Text of the Convention, unfccc.int/essential_background/ bp.com/content/dam/bp/pdf/Energy-economics/statistical-
convention/background/items/1362.php review-2014/BP-statistical-review-of-world-energy-2014-full-
8. UN. (2014). We can end poverty, www.un.org/millenniumgoals/ report.pdf
childhealth.shtml (accessed October 2014).
9. SowHope. (2013). About us, www.sowhope.org/aboutus The author can be reached at fac226@psu.edu
16
E N ERGY POLI CY
S
ince 2011, the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions
(C2ES) and the Great Plains Institute (GPI) have convened could lead to the production of
the National Enhanced Oil Recovery Initiative (NEORI).
Bringing together leaders from industry, the environmental over eight billion barrels of oil
community, labor, and state governments, NEORI has worked
to advance carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) and the underground storage of
as a key component of U.S. energy security, economic, and
environmental strategy. Currently, most CO2-EOR is done with more than four billion tonnes
natural underground reservoirs of CO2, yet the industry’s future
growth depends on taking advantage of the large amounts of of CO2 over 40 years…”
CO2 that result from electricity generation and industrial pro-
cesses. NEORI therefore is working to turn a waste product
into a commodity and to encourage policies that will help bring
an affordable supply of man-made CO2 to the market. BACKGROUND ON CO2-EOR
As such, NEORI has offered consensus recommendations for Although commonly considered a “niche” extractive tech-
federal- and state-level policy action. In May, Senator Jay nology, CO2-EOR is a decades-old practice. Since the 1970s,
Rockefeller (D-WV) introduced legislation in the U.S. Congress CO2-EOR projects have utilized CO2 to produce additional oil
adopting NEORI’s centerpiece recommendation to reform from otherwise tapped-out fields. CO2 readily mixes with oil
and expand an existing federal tax incentive for the capture not recovered by earlier production techniques, swelling the
of man-made CO2 and its geologic storage through CO2-EOR. stranded oil and bringing it to the surface. The CO2 is then sep-
arated from the oil and re-injected in a closed-loop process.
Each time CO2 is cycled through an oil reservoir, the majority
of it remains trapped in the underground formation, where,
over time, all utilized CO2 will be stored permanently.
17
www.cornerstonemag.net
E N E RG Y P O L I C Y
recoverable reserves.2 Recovering this oil would require 8.9–16.2 2. Income taxes on private royalties collected from CO2-EOR
billion tonnes of CO2 that would predominantly come from man- producers
made sources. Technically recoverable reserves offer potential 3. Royalties from CO2-EOR production on federal land
to produce additional oil and utilize more man-made CO2 that is
currently otherwise emitted into the atmosphere. Together these sources equate to nearly 20% of the sales
value of an additional barrel of oil and generate the source
The main barrier to taking advantage of CO2-EOR’s potential of public revenues that will in turn cover the cost of newly
has been an insufficient supply of affordable CO2. For an oilfield allocated incentives.
operator looking to implement CO2-EOR on a depleted oilfield,
there is a cost gap between what they could afford to pay for NEORI’s most recent analysis of the budget implications of
CO2 under normal market conditions and the cost to capture a tax incentive reflects the legislation introduced by Senator
and transport CO2 from power plants and industrial sources. Rockefeller. This analysis shows that an improved federal
For some industrial sources, such as natural gas process- incentive could lead to the production of over eight billion
ing or fertilizer and ethanol production, the cost gap is small barrels of oil and the underground storage of more than four
(potentially $10–20/tonne CO2). For other man-made sources billion tonnes of CO2 over 40 years and generate federal rev-
of CO2, including power generation and a variety of industrial enues that exceed the value of tax incentives awarded within
processes, capture costs are greater, and the cost gap becomes the U.S. Congress’ standard 10-year budget window.
much larger (potentially $30–50/tonne CO2). Recognizing the
cost gap as a significant barrier, NEORI has worked to deter-
mine the role that public policy can play in narrowing it.
“For the last three years, NEORI
NEORI’S CONSENSUS RECOMMENDATIONS has brought together a broad and
AND ANALYSIS
diverse group of constituencies
For the last three years, NEORI has brought together a broad
and diverse group of constituencies that share a common inter- that share a common interest in
est in promoting CO2-EOR. Some NEORI participants support
CO2-EOR as a way to provide a low-carbon future for coal by promoting CO2-EOR.”
managing and avoiding its carbon emissions. Others are inter-
ested in the jobs and economic growth that deploying new CO2
capture projects, pipelines, and EOR operations will bring. Still
other participants want to advance innovative technologies that NEORI PROPOSES AN ENHANCED
can capture and permanently store CO2 underground. Despite FEDERAL INCENTIVE
differences of opinions among participants on other issues, all
agree that CO2-EOR is a positive endeavor and that public policy NEORI recommends a reform and an expansion of an existing
can play an important role in realizing CO2-EOR’s many benefits. federal tax incentive, the Section 45Q Tax Credit for Carbon
As such, NEORI’s participants have crafted a set of consensus Sequestration. First authorized in 2009, the 45Q tax credit
recommendations for federal and state policy incentives to provides a $10 tax credit for each tonne of CO2 captured from
enable the widespread deployment of carbon capture tech- a man-made source and permanently stored underground
nologies to provide CO2 for use in CO2-EOR, while addressing through enhanced oil recovery (a $20 tax credit is available for
concerns about how incentives have been allocated in the past. CO2 stored in saline formations). While enacted with the best of
intentions, the existing 45Q program has been unable to encour-
To support its consensus recommendations, NEORI also pre- age widespread adoption of carbon capture technologies for two
pared a quantitative analysis to estimate the extent to which a main reasons. First, 45Q is only authorized to provide tax credits
federal initiative could spur new CO2-EOR projects and improve for 75 million tonnes of CO2, a relatively small amount consider-
the federal budget at the same time. An incentive awarded for ing how much CO2 could possibly be utilized through CO2-EOR.
capturing CO2 from man-made sources for use in CO2-EOR has As of June 2014, tax credits for approximately 27 million tonnes
the potential to be self-financing, given that it could lead to of CO2 had already been claimed, and it is foreseeable that the
new oil production that is taxed at the federal level. CO2-EOR remaining pool of credits will be exhausted in the near future.
in the U.S. generates federal revenue from three sources: Second, 45Q has been unable to provide needed certainty to
carbon capture project developers that they will be able to
1. Corporate income taxes collected on the additional oil claim the incentive, due to rigid definitions in the tax code and
production the lack of a credit reservation process. Carbon capture project
18
developers have not been able to present the guarantee of or tranches, would be established. The creation of separate
credit availability when seeking private-sector finance. lower-cost industrialA and higher-cost industrialB tranches for
power plants would ensure that an incentive is available for
Under NEORI’s proposal, a larger pool of 45Q credits would be the diversity of potential man-made sources of CO2.
established, while suggested reforms would increase certainty
and private-sector investment, improve transparency, and
Tax Credit Certification
help the program pay for itself fiscally within 10 years.
A certification process would provide essential up-front cer-
Allocating New 45Q Credits via tainty to carbon capture project developers and enable them
Competitive Bidding and Tranches to reserve their allocation of 45Q tax credits to be claimed in
the future. Upon receiving an allocation of 45Q tax credits
To minimize the cost of new 45Q tax credits to the federal gov- through competitive bidding, a project would have to apply
ernment, NEORI recommends that carbon capture projects for and meet the criteria of certification within 90 days. For
of similar cost bid against one another for allocations of tax example, a carbon capture project would need a contract
credits. Under annual competitive bidding processes, carbon in place to sell its CO2 for use in CO2-EOR to be certified. To
capture projects would bid for a certain tax credit amount that maintain certification, a carbon capture project would have to
would cover the difference between their cost to capture and complete construction in three years, if it is a retrofit, and five
transport CO2 and the revenue they would receive from selling years, if it is a new facility.
CO2 for use in CO2-EOR. The project submitting the lowest bid
would receive an allocation of tax credits, and allocations would
be made to capture projects up to specified annual limits. Revenue Positive Determination
and Program Review
Given the wide difference in capture costs for potential
man-made sources of CO2, three separate pools of credits, Following the seventh annual round of competitive bidding,
the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury would assess whether newly
allocated 45Q tax credits have been revenue-positive to the
federal government. If the new 45Q tax credits are not proving
to be revenue-positive, the Secretary will make recommen-
dations to Congress to improve the program. Otherwise,
competitive bidding will continue until the next review.
19
www.cornerstonemag.net
E N E RG Y P O L I C Y
NEORI is designed to boost U.S. domestic oil production while providing much-needed financial support for CCUS projects.
policymakers and stakeholders in A. Lower-cost industrial sources of CO2 include natural gas pro-
cessing, ethanol production, ammonia production, and existing
projects involving the gasification of coal, petroleum residuals,
common purpose.” biomass, or waste streams.
B. Higher-cost industrial sources of CO2 include cement production,
iron and steel production, hydrogen production, and new-build
Not all of these entities have sufficient tax liability to allow
projects involving the gasification of coal, petroleum residuals,
them to realize the economic benefit of a tax credit. As such, biomass, or waste streams.
NEORI recommends that carbon capture projects have the
ability to assign 45Q tax credits to other parties within the REFERENCES
CO2-EOR supply chain. This provision could facilitate tax equity
partnerships, but only among entities directly associated with 1. Kuuskraa, V., & Wallace, M. (2014, 7 April). CO2-EOR set for
the project and managing the CO2. growth as new CO2 supplies emerge. Oil & Gas Journal, www.
ogj.com/articles/print/volume-112/issue-4/special-report-eor-
heavy-oil-survey/co-sub-2-sub-eor-set-for-growth-as-new-co-
CONCLUSION sub-2-sub-supplies-emerge.html
2. Wallace, M., Kuuskraa, V., & DiPietro, P. (2013). An in-depth
look at “next generation” CO2-EOR technology. National Energy
In a time of considerable disagreement on U.S. energy and cli- Technology Laboratory, www.netl.doe.gov/File%20Library/
mate policy at the federal level, NEORI members believe that Research/Energy%20Analysis/Publications/Disag-Next-Gen-
CO2-EOR offers broad benefits and the rare opportunity to CO2-EOR_full_v6.pdf
unite policymakers and stakeholders in common purpose. The
NEORI coalition therefore remains committed to educating The authors can be reached at FalwellP@c2es.org and
members of both political parties and the broader public as to bcrabree@gpisd.net
20
Developing Country Needs Are
Critical to a Global Climate Agreement
By Benjamin Sporton original “Earth Summit” in Rio de Janeiro, the negotiation pro-
Acting Chief Executive, World Coal Association cess produced the Kyoto Protocol, which came into effect in
2005 but covered only around one third of global CO2 emis-
sions. A 2009 summit in Copenhagen was originally intended
A
to be the apex of the process with a binding global deal on
s another round of climate talks approaches, recent
emissions reduction, but it failed to live up to expectations.
headlines have highlighted the critical role developing
World leaders will gather again in Paris in November 2015
countries play in achieving a climate agreement—and
for the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United
they are. Concerned about the restrictions it might place on
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
their efforts to grow their economies and eradicate poverty,
for what is now expected to be the pinnacle of the climate
many developing countries are cautious about what a future
negotiations process.
global agreement on climate change might mean. With one
billion people living in extreme poverty in addition to a similar
number with incredibly low standards of living, it is hardly sur-
prising that poverty eradication ranks number one on the list “There is a pathway that provides a
of priorities for developing country governments.1 The recent
proposal document for new Sustainable Development Goals role for coal in achieving both climate
also acknowledged that “poverty eradication is the greatest
global challenge facing the world today”.2 and development objectives.”
This is the reason that developing countries are key to a global
climate agreement: Any proposed agreement that hampers
This September, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon hosted a
their ability to grow their economies and eradicate poverty
summit in New York intended to push climate change back up
will not win their support.
the international agenda and spur action toward November
2015. With celebrity endorsements and a series of coordinated
THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD announcements from activists, governments, and the private
sector, the summit did have some success in raising the profile
Negotiations toward a global agreement on climate change of an issue that has struggled to maintain the profile it once
have been long and tortuous. Beginning in 1992 with the had, but which has since been drowned out by other priori-
ties, chief among them economic and security crises.
21
www.cornerstonemag.net
E N E RG Y P O L I C Y
Coal
Coal’s role in development explains why coal consumption in
Southeast Asia is projected to grow at 4.8% a year through
Renewables to 2035 along with significant growth in other developing
regions (see Figure 1).7 It is why a 2012 report from the World
Gas
Resources Institute8 identified 1199 planned new coal plants
Nuclear (representing 1400 GW) across 59 countries—most of them in
developing and emerging economies.
Oil
-100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 Coal’s critical role in development is one of the reasons coal
TWh has been the fastest growing fossil fuel for decades and why its
FIGURE 1. Southeast Asia incremental electricity generation share of global primary energy consumption in 2013 reached
by fuel: 2011–20357 30.1%, the highest since 1970.9 Even under the IEA’s New Policies
Scenario (which accounts for all currently announced climate pol-
bulb and cook stove” solutions: that is, solutions that address icies) coal demand is expected to grow from 3800 million tonnes
the immediate needs of poverty and climate without addressing of oil equivalent (Mtoe) today to almost 4500 Mtoe in 2035.5
the longer-term fundamentals needed for poverty alleviation.
These figures alarm climate activists who argue for an end to coal
This fact was recognized in recent remarks by World Bank and encourage divestment from the coal industry. What they
President Jim Yong Kim at the U.S.–Africa Leaders Summit in ignore, however, is that there is a pathway that provides a role
August when he said that “there’s never been a country that for coal in achieving both climate and development objectives.
has developed with intermittent power”3 and that, despite
recent policy announcements, the World Bank would still
A PATHWAY THAT INTEGRATES
likely fund coal projects. His statement came as African leaders
CLIMATE AND DEVELOPMENT
argued they were living in “energy apartheid” and demanded
the right to use their natural resources, particularly coal, to
Alongside last year’s climate summit in Warsaw, the World
fuel their economic development.4
Coal Association joined with the Polish government to host
the International Coal and Climate Summit. The summit was
If the climate negotiation process is to have any success it
widely criticized by environmental groups for trying to take
must integrate development and climate objectives.
the focus away from climate negotiations, an argument which
ignored the significant contribution cleaner coal technologies
THE DEVELOPMENT AND ENERGY CHALLENGE can make to achieving ambitions to reduce CO2 emissions.
A key part of the summit was the launch of the Warsaw
With 1.3 billion people globally lacking access to modern Communiqué, a document that called for increased interna-
electricity and about double that number lacking access to tional action on deployment of high-efficiency, low-emissions
clean cooking facilities, it is hardly surprising that developing (HELE) coal-fired power generation.
country governments are focused on affordable and reliable
energy to help grow their economies.5 Energy is fundamen- 21st-century HELE coal technologies have huge potential. It is
tal to development. Without reliable modern energy services well known by now that a one percentage point increase in
hospitals and schools can’t function and business and industry efficiency at a coal plant results in a two to three percentage
can’t grow to provide employment and economic growth. point decrease in CO2 emissions. Less widely known is that
the average efficiency of the global coal fleet currently stands
In its 2011 World Energy Outlook, the International Energy at 33%. Off-the-shelf technologies for supercritical and ultra-
Agency (IEA) reviewed what would be needed to meet their supercritical coal have about 40% efficiency or higher, while
own “minimal energy access for all” scenario—a scenario that more advanced technologies expected to become available in
would barely meet basic energy needs, but is the basis for the the near future will approach 50% efficiency. The IEA estimates
proposed Sustainable Development Goal on energy access for that increasing the average efficiency of the global coal fleet
all. Even in this minimal energy access scenario, half of the on- up to 40% would save around two gigatonnes of CO2 annu-
grid electricity needed comes from coal.6 A more ambitious ally—roughly equivalent to India’s total annual emissions.10
target would likely see a much larger role for coal—and it is a
more ambitious scale of development and energy access that Taken in the context of other climate policies the potential
developing and emerging economies are targeting. That is impact of improving the efficiency of the global coal fleet is sig-
why statistics about coal’s growing role in the world continue nificant. The Economist recently published a graphic showing
to confound those who forecast its demise. the impact various policies or events have had on global CO2
22
emissions, which has been reproduced in Figure 2.11 If a global adverse to coal may have unintended consequences.
initiative were in place to increase the average efficiency of In the 450 Scenario, which limits the global average
the global coal fleet to the level of off-the-shelf technology, its temperature increase to 2°C, world investment in coal-
two gigatonnes of savings would place it fourth on this list of fired capacity totals $1.9 trillion (25% higher than in
20 activities. It would be more than three times more effective the New Policies Scenario), of which $800 billion is for
in reducing CO2 emissions than the global deployment of all plants fitted with carbon capture and storage (CCS).
non-hydro renewable energies combined. Coal-fired power plants become more expensive on
average because, in most regions, more efficient tech-
Nowhere is the potential of HELE technology better demon- nologies are deployed, as well as greater emphasis
strated than at J-Power’s Isogo power plant outside of Tokyo. on CCS technologies. If development banks withhold
J-Power is the largest producer of coal-fired electricity in Japan financing for coal-fired power plants, countries that
and is leading the way in HELE deployment with its 600-MW build new capacity will be less inclined to select the
ultra-supercritical plant. The plant achieves gross thermal effi- most efficient designs because they are more expen-
ciency of 45% and has reduced emissions to the equivalent of sive, consequently raising CO2 emissions and reducing
a high-performing natural gas plant. the scope for the installation of CCS. In addition, many
of the countries that build coal-fired capacity in the
However, plants like that come at a cost. Developing countries 450 Scenario need to provide electricity supply to
need international support to deploy the most efficient plants. those who are still without it, a problem that may be
In the face of decisions by the World Bank and European Bank resolved less quickly if investment in coal-fired power
for Reconstruction and Development to limit funding for coal plants cannot be financed.
projects, the IEA raised some serious concerns:12
This is a warning from the IEA: International action against coal
While increased investor awareness of climate-related creates two distinct risks. First, from a climate perspective,
issues is a positive development, policies deliberately failing to invest in new coal technologies risks higher future
Cumulative
Policy/Action Period Annual emissions*
emissions
FIGURE 2. Emissions reductions impact (in terms of billions tonnes CO2 equivalent)11
*Annual emissions are cumulative emissions divided by the relevant period. The estimate for the current emissions avoided under the Montreal protocol is
eight billion tonnes CO2 equivalent. The annual figure for the collapse of the USSR refers to the years 1992–1998.
**Cars and light trucks
***Heavy trucks
23
www.cornerstonemag.net
E N E RG Y P O L I C Y
emissions from coal; second, failing to invest in coal threatens It is clear that if the November 2015 climate summit in Paris
the energy access and development priorities in some of the is going to achieve any level of success, then it must support
world’s poorest countries. the development ambitions of the world’s poorest countries.
It must integrate the priorities of countries like India, which
need to address their poverty situation and provide affordable
AFFORDABLE, LONG-TERM ACTION
and reliable electricity, with global climate ambitions. It means
that rather than ignoring coal, the international community
As the IEA notes, deployment of HELE plants is also an impor-
must recognize 21st century coal as part of the solution.
tant first step in the longer term drive for near-zero emissions
coal-fired plants incorporating carbon capture, utilization, and
REFERENCES
storage (CCUS). CCUS technology is critical to achieving global
climate objectives. More importantly, CCUS plays a significant 1. World Bank Group. (2014). Ending poverty and sharing pros-
role in reducing the economic costs of limiting CO2 emissions. perity: Global Monitoring Report 2014/2015, www.worldbank.
org/en/publication/global-monitoring-report
The recent New Climate Economy report by the Global 2. United Nations. (2014). Outcome document – Open Working
Commission of Energy and Climate, led by former Mexican Group proposal for Sustainable Development Goals, sustainable
development.un.org/focussdgs.html, (accessed 29 September 2014).
President Felipe Calderón, argued that substantial emissions 3. Ginski, N. (2014, 5 August). World Bank may support African coal
cuts would effectively pay for themselves when a range of power, Kim says. Bloomberg, www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-
co-benefits are considered.13 That reflected recent work from 08-05/world-bank-may-support-african-coal-power-kim-says.
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which html, (accessed 30 September 2014).
stated that annual GDP growth would decline by as little as 4. Scientific American. (2014). Africa needs fossil fuels to end energy
apartheid, www.scientificamerican.com/article/africa-needs-fossil-
0.006 percentage points with substantial emissions reduction. fuels-to-end-energy-apartheid/, (accessed 30 September 2014).
5. International Energy Agency (IEA). (2013). World energy outlook
Many environmental activists argue that this demonstrates 2013, www.worldenergyoutlook.org/publications/weo-2013/
the viability of renewable energy technologies as the exclu- 6. IEA. (2011). World energy outlook 2011, www.worldenergy
sive energy pathway toward a near-zero emissions economy. outlook.org/publications/weo-2011/
7. IEA. (2013). World energy outlook special report 2013:
However, analysis by the Council on Foreign Relations’ leading Southeast Asia energy outlook, www.iea.org/publications/free
energy expert Michael Levi noted that CCUS is far more critical publications/publication/SoutheastAsiaEnergyOutlook_
to achieving the 2°C target.14 He highlighted that in the IPCC WEO2013SpecialReport.pdf
research, failing to deploy CCUS causes the cost of climate 8. World Resources Institute. (2012, November). Global coal risk
action to rise by about 140%, but that the most likely outcome assessment, www.wri.org/publication/global-coal-risk-assessment
9. BP. (2014). Statistical review of world energy 2014, www.
is that the 2°C target could not be reached at all. bp.com/en/global/corporate/about-bp/energy-economics/
statistical-review-of-world-energy.html
10. IEA. (2012). Energy Technology Perspectives 2012 – How to
A CLIMATE DEAL CAN ACHIEVE secure a clean energy future.
BOTH OBJECTIVES 11. The Economist. (2014, 20 September). The deepest cuts, www.
economist.com/news/briefing/21618680-our-guide-actions-
If global action to reduce CO2 emissions is to be affordable have-done-most-slow-global-warming-deepest-cuts
and have a realistic chance of meeting the 2°C target it must 12. IEA. (2014). World energy investment outlook, www.iea.org/
publications/freepublications/publication/WEIO2014.pdf
account for the role of cleaner coal technologies in achieving 13. The New Climate Economy. (2014). New climate economy,
that aim. That is even more critical when the need for afford- newclimateeconomy.report/, (accessed 20 September 2014).
able and reliable energy for development is accounted for. 14. Levi, M. (2014). Is solar power making climate policy cheap?,
blogs.cfr.org/levi/2014/09/19/is-solar-power-making-climate-
India’s new Environment Minister made clear recently where policy-cheap/, (accessed 30 September 2014).
15. Davenport, C. (2014, 24 September). Emissions from India
his country’s priorities lie: “India’s first task is eradication of will increase, official says. The New York Times, www.nytimes.
poverty … Twenty percent of our population doesn’t have com/2014/09/25/world/asia/25climate.html?_r=0, (accessed
access to electricity, and that’s our top priority.”15 30 September 2014).
24
S TR ATEGI C ANALYSI S
G
erman energy policy is determined by different ambi-
tious targets. That is especially true as far as the “Today, fluctuations in the feed-in
electricity sector is concerned. The main characteris-
tics of electricity-sector policy are a complete phasing out of of renewables-based electricity
nuclear energy, the transition to a power supply based mainly
on renewable energy, and the reduction of energy consump- are already having a considerable
tion by continuously increasing efficiency. The main purpose
of these changes is to reach a nearly CO2-free power supply impact on the load to be covered by
by 2050. The central challenges are keeping the power sys-
tem stable and secure while maintaining consumer electricity conventional power stations.”
prices at a competitive, affordable level.
CURRENT STATUS AND TRENDS Following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011,
however, the German conservative-liberal government coali-
The German government´s energy policies have undergone a tion made an abrupt U-turn by mandating the complete
profound change over recent years. In September 2010, the phase-out of 8.4 GW of nuclear capacity immediately, with
the remainder (12.1 GW) to be decommissioned between
government launched a comprehensive “Energy Concept”
2015 and 2022. With the decision to shut down all nuclear
featuring a large number of policy goals for future decades
capacity by 2022, the government returned to a phase-out
schedule conceived in 2001 by the socialist-green govern-
ment in power at the time. In the coalition contract of the
new conservative-socialist government, signed in November
2013, the phasing-out decision for nuclear energy was con-
firmed. Furthermore, the coalition partners agreed on slightly
modified targets concerning the reduction of greenhouse gas
emissions, the consumption of electricity, and the increase
of the share of renewables in the electricity supply for 2020
(35%), 2025 (40–45%), 2035 (55–60%), and 2050 (80%).
25
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
• Keeping power prices on a competitive level for industry TABLE 1. Renewable energy capacity in Germany as of the
and an affordable level for private households; end of 2013
• Ensuring continuous, secure supply.
Source Capacity (MW)
The main instrument being used to make renewable energy Wind Onshore 33,757
the backbone of the German power supply is the Renewable
Wind Offshore 903
Energy Sources Act, last amended on 1 August 2014. This law
provides guaranteed feed-in tariffs for renewable electricity Hydropower 5619
for 20 years after a power plant is commissioned. Grid opera- Biomass 8153
tors are obliged to purchase the entire quantity of renewable
Solar Photovoltaic 35,948
electricity with priority. The trade companies pass on the
deficit (i.e., feed-in tariff minus market price) to customers by Geothermal 24
imposing a reallocation charge. Source: AGEE-Stat, August 2014
The renewable capacity for power generation increased from The subsidies are financed via a reallocation charge that is paid
12,330 MW in 2000 (less than 10% of total capacity) to 40,357 by electricity consumers through a markup on the grid-access
MW by the end of 2008 and to 84,404 MW by the end of fee. Starting on 1 January 2014, this reallocation charge was
2013 (45%) (see Figure 1). In 2000, renewable energy’s share increased to €62.40/MWh. The reallocation charge has now
of consumption was less than 7%, then grew to over 25% by reached a level at which it is twice as much as the wholesale
2013. The total amount of renewable energy capacity on 31 price of electricity.
December 2013 is shown in Table 1.
A comparison between electricity prices reveals the dilemma
Within just the last five years (between the end of 2008 and facing Germany today. Power prices for industry are on the
the end of 2013) the capacity increase was 29,828 MW for same level as those in Japan. In fact, private customers in
photovoltaics (PV) and 10,845 MW for wind energy. This dem- Germany pay even more for electricity than private consum-
onstrates that the funding system for renewables has been ers in Japan. Within the EU, Germany’s private consumers pay
quite effective. a higher price than any country except Denmark. Electricity
prices in Germany are more than twice the OECD average and
However, the growth of renewables in Germany has come three times as high as in the U.S.
at a cost. The total feed-in amounts based on subsidized
renewables in Germany stood at 125.7 TWh in 2013. The CHALLENGES FOR POWER PRODUCERS1
remuneration paid to plant operators and premium payments
totaled €20.4 billion in 2013. Deducting income from mar- With the increase in renewable energy, power producers also
keting, on balance, net subsidy payments were approximately face a new challenge. In the past a main focus was offsetting
€16.2 billion in 2013. fluctuations in consumption between day and night, work-
days and weekends, and seasonal variations. Today, feed-in
9
intermittency has added a new source of fluctuations that
Wind
19 5 are at least the same magnitude as those from changes in
Photovoltaics 11 consumption.
mass 5
19 r, bio
y d r o powe other 11 These demand and renewable energy feed-in fluctuations
H d
oil an
7 Fuel must be continuously balanced to provide electricity grid sta-
7 Natural gas
19 bility, which is putting pressure on the conventional power
15
Hard coal generation portfolio. Power generation from conventional
25
plants has to be able to flexibly adjust to the residual load
14
Lignite at any time (i.e., to compensate for the difference between
12 consumption and fluctuating renewable energy). This is a chal-
Nuclear 15 lenge for grid operators, especially when high wind feed-ins in
7
Power plant capacity Electricity production northern Germany force the “redispatching” of thermal units
186.8 GW (net) 596.4 TWh (net) intraday, often leading to lower coal-based output in the north
FIGURE 1. Percentages of capacity and production of various and a ramp up of capacity in the south to keep the system in
electricity sources (December 2013)1 balance.
26
The need for load adjustments by flexible power plants is par- However, since these markets are also expanding wind capaci-
ticularly critical when an increase in electricity demand occurs ties and consumer behavior in all markets shows substantial
at the same time as the feed-in from wind power plants dra- similarity, the capacity to adjust imports and exports to meet
matically decreases. German electricity market fluctuations is limited.
There has been a need for load adjustments of >50 GW (i.e., Therefore, the required flexibility to meet load fluctuations
>60% of the peak load) within an eight- to 10-hour period. This must be predominantly managed by existing national power
sort of demand fluctuation is generally random, but can be plants. Existing power plants in Germany are all designed
forecast up to two days in advance (e.g., via a wind forecast). to cater for flexible operation, and these requirements are
equally met by new NGCC plants and new coal-fired power
Thus, conventional power generation plants are faced with plants.
massive technical and economic challenges. Today, fluctua-
tions in the feed-in of renewables-based electricity are already Many of the conventional power plants operating in Germany
having a considerable impact on the load to be covered by today were built in the 1980s and 1990s, before expansion
conventional power stations. To illustrate the effect of such targets for wind and photovoltaic plants had been adopted. In
fluctuations, looking closely at electricity demand and sources many plants, measures to allow greater flexibility have been
can be helpful. Due to the high demand and low feed-in of implemented subsequently, so that power plants can meet
electricity from renewable energies, on 24 January 2013 up increased requirements for market load adjustments. As a
to 74,335 MW—92% of the peak demand of 80,739 MW in result, there are very few dedicated German baseload power
Germany—had to be covered by conventional power plants. plants that do not allow for flexible operation.
Conversely, on 24 March 2013, a Sunday with low electric-
ity demand coupled with high feed-in from wind and solar, a The necessary operational flexibility of coal- and gas-fired
minimum of 14,405 MW had to be covered by conventional power plants can be illustrated with an example from 1 and
power stations. This represents a tremendous shift in the role 2 January 2012 (see Figure 2). On Sunday, 1 January, power
of conventional power plants. demand was relatively low due to low industrial demand and
mild temperatures of approximately 8°C (46°F). Around the
Flexibility to Meet Load Fluctuations evening peak, a temporary daily maximum consumption of
56 GW was reached in the German power grid, after which
The German electricity transmission network is part of the demand decreased to a minimum value of less than 41 GW
European synchronous zone and is connected with neighbor- until the late evening.
ing European markets. A regular exchange of electricity takes
place with all adjacent countries (i.e., France, Netherlands, At the same time, the amount of wind feed-in temporarily
Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, and Switzerland). reached a very high level of more than 16 GW. Further feed-ins
GW GW
80 80
70 70
Gas
60 60
Increasing
50 power demand 50 Wind
40 40
30 30 Coal
Declining
20 wind feed -in 20
10 10 Nuclear
0 0 Must-run
Sunday, 1.1.2012 Monday, 2.1.2012 Sunday, 1.1.2012 Monday, 2.1.2012
FIGURE 2. Power consumption (left) and dispatch (right) of German power plants1
27
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
that day came from other renewable energy sources, including 20 100%
run-of-the-river hydro and biomass power plants, which also 18 90%
benefit from feed-in priority. The feed-in from those plants
consistently amounted to about 5 GW. The power generation 16 80%
The left-hand side of Figure 2 displays the parallel development had previously been off the grid. Grid synchronization of fossil-
of increased power consumption and decreased, intermittent fired plants commences approximately one to four hours after
wind feed-in, requiring a high degree of load adjustment from initial boiler firing. Subsequent to the grid synchronization,
the conventional power generation portfolio. newly started coal-fired power plants met the required load
increase until about midday.
Power generation from German nuclear power plants contrib-
uted, almost without interruption, a supply of about 12 GW. Generally, available gas-fired power plants are returned from
There is a degree of flexibility available from the German nuclear downtime to meet the load peaks on Monday. The first feed-
power stations, although their low-variable power generation ins from gas-fired plants are normally in the early morning,
costs ensure that this is only used once the load adaptability from 5:00 am onward. Over the course of the day, load bal-
of the fossil-fired power plants has been exhausted. As seen in ancing is mainly regulated by gas-fired power plants, and the
the right-hand side of Figure 2, the necessary load adjustment
coal-fired power plants remain at full load until the evening.
of about 50 GW on Monday morning was almost completely
provided by the coal- and gas-fired power plants.
On the particular Monday being evaluated, load adjustments
were made by a combination of available coal- and gas-fired
On Sunday night, almost 40% of the coal-fired power plants
power plants. In doing so, the coal-fired power plants pro-
were still in operation, although the requirements for coal-
vided about 75% of the required flexible output.
fired power plants at that time had reduced to about 20–60%
of their installed output capacity. Overall, their contribution
was only about 10 GW. Flexible Use of Coal- and Gas-Fired Power
Plants due to Fluctuations of PV Feed-In
The conventional gas-fired power plants were almost com-
pletely off the grid on Sunday night, since part-load operation The average cycle between strong and weak wind phases
of gas-fired power plants is considerably more expensive than is about three to five days in northwest Europe. Even in the
it is for coal-fired power plants. event of short-term changes, as portrayed in the first example,
the thermal power plant portfolio has several hours in which
In the early hours of Monday morning the increase of residual to adjust load.
load was initially covered by coal-fired power plants supporting
the grid by means of less than full load operation. In parallel, Short-term feed-in fluctuations are also triggered by the out-
additional coal-fired power plants went into operation that put of widely developed solar photovoltaic power plants in
28
LINGEN CCPP BoA1–3 BoA PLUS
Max capacity: 2x440 MW Max capacity: 1000 MW Max capacity: 2x550 MW
Min capacity: 520/260 MW Min capacity: 500 MW Min capacity: 350/175 MW
Max load change rate: +/-32 MW/min Max load change rate: +/-30 MW/min Max load change rate: +/-30 MW/min
1100 MW
1000
800
600
2-boiler operation
Notes: BoA is a German abbreviation for “lignite-fired power station with optimized plant engineering“. BoA 1–3 are in operation and BoA PLUS is in the planning
stages.
Germany. The effects can be seen from the beginning of spring 16 March was one of the first days in 2012 with intensive solar
as the daily level of solar radiation increases. radiation in Germany. The feed-in from photovoltaic plants
increased by about 16 GW between 8:00 am and 1:00 pm.
The timing of the increase in solar radiation in the morning Between 2:00 and 6:00 pm, it decreased. On that day, wind
does not coincide with the increase in power consumption. levels were extremely low (see Figure 3).
While electricity demand increases between 4:00 and 8:00
am, the increase in photovoltaic feed-in occurs between 8:00 To cover peak consumption in the morning, coal- and gas-fired
am and 1:00 pm. Similarly, photovoltaic feed-in decreases in power plants started operation. In order to accommodate the
the evening, some hours before the decline in power con- temporarily high photovoltaic feed-in around midday, and
sumption. Consequently, thermal power plants have to kick in afterward provide full load to cover the evening peak, the gas-
at short notice twice—in the morning and in the evening—on fired and coal-fired power plants were intermittently operated
days with a high photovoltaic generation. between partial and full-load operation.
TABLE 2. Sample flexibility parameters for coal- and gas-fired power plants
Minimum-load
point/rated-load % ~60 ~25–40 ~25b–40 ~20
point (Pmin/PRated)
29
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
Figure 3 shows the course of intermittent feed-ins and the In contrast, a new coal-fired power plant has a lower minimum
adjusted operation of conventional power plants (new gas and load capability of approximately 40%, with further potential
steam power plant, new coal-fired power plant, and an existing to reduce this to 20–25%. The reason is that the output of the
coal-fired power plant with optimized flexibility parameters), coal boiler is controlled via direct fuel combustion and not, as
following changes in demand and available generation from is the case with a gas combined-cycle power plant, via a heat
renewable energy sources. In the case of 16 March 2012, recovery steam generator with an upstream gas turbine.
German coal- and gas-fired power plants were able to accom-
modate photovoltaic feed-in variations mutually because of German power plant operators have also made it possible
their short-term flexible operating capability. to reduce the minimum load of operation at existing power
plants by optimizing the boiler-turbine system using modern
control systems. Today’s optimized coal-fired power plants are
“Despite the continued increase able to operate at a partial-load level of less than 20% of full-
load capacity.
in renewable capacity, the role of
The change (i.e., ramp) between partial load and full load at
fossil fuels for power generation in power plants involves load changes of approximately three
percentage points per minute, and the change in mode of
Germany will be more or less the operation can therefore be achieved at all plants in less than
half an hour (see Table 2 and Figure 4).
same in 2023 as in 2013.”
PROSPECTS1
Flexibility Characteristics of German Despite the continued increase in renewable capacity, the role
Coal- and Gas-Fired Power Plants of fossil fuels for power generation in Germany will be more or
less the same in 2023 as in 2013 (see Figure 5).
In the regular configuration of two gas turbines and one steam
turbine, the minimum load of a new gas-fired combined-cycle The fundamental reason is the complete phasing out of
plant is typically around 60% of its installed capacity. An even nuclear power capacity by the end of 2022. By 2034 the
lower minimum load is achievable by switching off one gas total capacity on the basis of renewables is expected to be
turbine; this, however, causes a substantial decrease in effi- approximately 173 GW, which is twice as much as the peak
ciency, and thus is rarely employed. load in Germany.2 However, a conventional capacity of 82 GW
will still be needed (compared to 100 GW in 2012) to cover
634 TWh the demand when the wind is not blowing and/or the sun is
609 TWh
7.5% not shining.2 The required flexibility to meet the fluctuations
527 TWh 23.9%
Renewables 4.0% is being fulfilled just as well by coal-fueled as by gas-fueled
~40%
27.1% power plants. These plants are being made increasingly flex-
Nuclear 29.2% 15.4%
ible, ensuring that they can continue to serve their important
role in Germany’s electricity market.
30
Toward Carbon-Negative
Power Plants With Biomass
Cofiring and CCS
By Janne Kärki achieved by employing CCS, utilizing high shares of biomass
Research Team Leader, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland fuels, or a combination thereof. By combining biomass cofiring
and CCS, it is possible to achieve negative emissions (defined
as capturing CO2 from biomass combustion and storing it per-
Antti Arasto
manently isolated from the atmosphere). This is one of the
Business Development Manager,
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland few large-scale options to remove CO2 from the atmosphere,
which highlights the importance of these technologies.
However, such technologies require stronger government and
T
international support to encourage deployment. In addition,
he goal of CO2 emissions reductions and renewable increased costs for CO2 emissions or CO2 emission perfor-
energy incentives have led some power plant operators mance standards (EPS) could help advance the technology.1–3
to broaden their fuel palette to include various carbon-
neutral biomass fuels. Biomass can be carbon neutral because
it binds carbon from the atmosphere that is then released
when it is burned, minimizing net emissions. “Combining biomass cofiring and
Carbon capture and storage (CCS), another potential option CCS … is one of the few large-scale
to cut CO2 emissions from the power sector, is currently under
extensive research, development, and demonstration glob- options to remove CO2 from the
ally. CCS is advancing toward commercialization, but there are
still hurdles, mostly nontechnical, that are impeding its wide- atmosphere...”
spread deployment.
31
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
significantly smaller than PC plants. With cofiring, capital costs CONCEPTUAL STUDY OF BIOMASS
are increased only marginally, while the high electrical effi- COFIRING VERSUS CCS
ciency of large PC boilers and the favorable properties of coal
ash can be exploited to reduce the operational risks. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has conducted
several conceptual case studies on the feasibility of CCS and
Utilizing biomass in an existing thermal power plant can be biomass cofiring. In the case study discussed below, the fea-
accomplished through direct or indirect cofiring. Direct cofir- sibility of a coal-fired oxy-combustion CFB boiler with 99%
ing is the most straightforward, most commonly applied, and CO2 capture and storage (Case I) is compared to cofiring large
lowest-cost concept for partially replacing coal or other solid shares of biomass (Case II 70% and Case III 30%, with the bal-
fossil fuels with biomass. In direct cofiring, biomass and coal ance from coal). These cases are compared to a base-case
are burned together in the same furnace using the same or CFB coal-fired (air-fired, no biomass cofiring, and no CCS)
separate fuel handling and feeding equipment, depending on 500-MWfuel greenfield power plant situated in Finland that
the biomass, targeted biomass share, and site-specific charac- emits approximately 1.2 million tonnes CO2/year.
teristics. The percentage of biomass that can be successfully
employed in direct cofiring is modest, typically about 10%, The fuel mix affects the plant design, investment required, and
and the type of biomass is limited mostly to pellet-type fuels. operational parameters. The plant fuel input (on an energy
With torrefied biomass, however, higher shares are expected, basis) and designed steam parameters remain constant in
up to tens of percentages. Indirect cofiring consists of convert- all cases. Therefore, the use of biomass or oxy-combustion
ing the solid biomass to a gas or liquid prior to combustion in increases the required plant investment and operating costs.
the same furnace with the other fuel. This allows for greater Additional investment for biomass cofiring is required for bio-
amounts of biomass to be used, up to 50%. However, this mass handling and feeding equipment, additional loop seal
approach requires greater investment and a larger footprint.5 heat exchangers, advanced coarse material removal, more
expensive materials for heat transfer surfaces, larger flue gas
In general, fluidized bed boilers offer the best fuel flexibility. ducts and fans, extra soot-blowers, and possibly injection of
In a properly designed boiler, biomass fuels can be used combustion additives. Additional O&M costs include addi-
with coal in any percentage from 0–100% in circulating fluid- tional chemical and maintenance costs. For the CFB-Oxy-CCS
ized bed (CFB) boilers. The variety of biomass fuel options is case, the main additional investment involves boiler block
increasingly diverse, although the availability of some biomass modifications, a cryogenic air separation unit (ASU), and a
fuels can be limited. Power plants with high fuel flexibility can CO2 purification unit (CPU). The greatest impact of CCS on the
adapt to the prevailing fuel market by optimizing the fuel mix.6 O&M costs is the efficiency penalty, which in this study was
assumed to be eight percentage points. The captured CO2 was
One possibility to utilize biomass in existing PC boilers is to assumed to be transported and stored abroad with an overall
convert them into bubbling fluidized bed boilers. These retro- cost of €12/tonne CO2.7,8 The main assumptions and results,
fits are routine for the major fluidized bed boiler technology including net electricity output, are provided in Table 1.7,8
suppliers, and numerous such conversions have been con-
ducted in Europe. For example, at least eight conversions to The principal goal of the modeling was to evaluate annual
enable pure biomass combustion have been carried out in cash flows from an investor’s point of view in the three
Poland since 2008, with capacities from 100–200 MWth. reduced-CO2 emission cases compared with the base case.
32
Base Case Case I Case II Case III mostly dependent on electricity prices, CO2 and fuel costs, and
0 1.3 estimated peak load hours, which are all uncertain. For Finnish
-10 -12 -14 -5.0 -11 -0.3 thermal power plants with CCS, break-even prices of €70–100/
-12.4
-20 tonne were presented by Teir et al.10 In comparison to these
-23 -13 -31
-44 reported values, the CFB-Oxy-CCS case was quite competitive,
-40 but this is highly dependent on CO2 transport and storage
-15
costs, which were much lower in our estimation.10 In addition,
-60 -64 at some locations sufficient biomass may not be logistically
-38 -49
-38 or economically available. Similarly, CO2 storage sites are not
-80
universally accessible. Therefore, the exact modeling results
should not be extrapolated to other regions or situations.
-100
-27 -31 -28
-45
-120 The CO2 emissions in the different cases modeled are pre-
sented in Figure 2. Both cases of biomass cofiring as well as
-140 the CFB-Oxy-CCS offer significantly reduced emissions. It can
be seen that significant emission reductions can be achieved
CAPEX Fuel purchase
(including subsidies and taxes) with CCS and high shares of biomass cofiring. Note that for
CO2 allowances the energy penalty in CFB-Oxy-CCS case, the substitutive elec-
CO2 transport and storage
Substitutive electricity tricity production is assumed to be produced by unabated
Profit Other operating costs coal-fired power; if the replacement electricity was provided
by coal with CCS or some other blend of electricity, the carbon
FIGURE 1. Annual operating costs and overall profits of
footprint of the oxy-combustion case would be even lower.
compared technologies (with default input values) in millions
€ per year
If more aggressive climate policies are enacted in the future,
including other targets for renewable energy and other com-
The assumed fuel purchase prices were €10/MWh for coal
and €20/MWh for biomass (based on LHV, including all costs petition for biomass (existing forest industry, targets for liquid
and taxes), €75/MWh for electricity, and a CO2 allowance of biofuels, etc.), a significant increase in biomass prices could
€35/tonne [an estimated future price that is higher than EU result, at least in areas where sustainable biomass availability
Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) trading values today]. is limited. Increasing biomass prices would result in coal-fired
Peak load utilization rates of the plants were 7500 hours per
year. The overall costs (capital and operating) and profits for Base Case Case I Case II Case III
the four cases are presented in Figure 1. 2,000,000
33
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
oxy-combustion with CCS becoming economically advanta- of eight to 12 percentage points.11 Obviously, significant
geous compared to biomass cofiring with large shares. improvements in reducing the energy penalty would be very
helpful for the deployment of the CCS. One potential solution
Based on our results, CFB oxy-combustion with CCS could to increase the efficiency (of all plants) is combined heat and
become more competitive with quite realistic prices for bio- power, where over 90% process efficiency is achievable—if a
mass and CO2 in the future. For example, with prices of €24/ large heat distribution system and relatively continuous heat
MWh for biomass, €85/MWh for electricity, and €50/tonne consumption (or storage) in that system exist.12,13
CO2 allowance, the CFB-Oxy-CCS becomes the most profitable
case modeled, although all are almost equally competitive.7 The costs associated with biomass cofiring are mainly due to
the higher prices of biomass fuel in comparison to coal, higher
IS CCS SUITABLE FOR BIOMASS COFIRED PLANTS? plant investment, and higher O&M costs. The use of biomass
increases O&M costs of the cofiring retrofit plant through
The cases discussed thus far reduced CO2 emissions, but did negative effects on the availability of the boiler (i.e., boiler-
not eliminate them. An opportunity exists, however, for coal/ related issues cause increased plant downtime) and increased
biomass cofiring with CCS to not only eliminate CO2 emissions, maintenance work and consumables. When considering a
but actually offer negative CO2 emissions. This approach could retrofit option for biomass, the feasibility of the investment
help reach climate targets by offsetting historical emissions and the willingness to invest are affected also by the remain-
and emissions from sectors with expensive or more difficult ing lifetime of the plant and the annual operating hours.5,14 An
large-scale emission reductions (e.g., the transportation sec- indicative comparison on the CAPEX and operating expenses
tor) in the near term. In general, similar solutions are suitable (OPEX) in coal, biomass, and cofired CFB boiler with and with-
for capturing CO2 from applications utilizing biomass as for out CCS is presented in Figure 3.
fossil fuels. The main differences relate to the different kinds
of impurities in the combustion process: ash and flue gas. In The costs for CCS depend heavily not only on the characteris-
principle, there are no technical restrictions for capturing bio- tics of the facility and the operational environment but also on
genic CO2 via cofiring. However, the current EU ETS does not the assumptions related to future operation. From an inves-
recognize negative emissions, and thus no economic incentive tor’s point of view, the optimal solution depends on multiple
exists for capturing biogenic CO2 from installations combust- factors, electricity and EU ETS prices being the most domi-
ing even partly biomass. nant. As far as capturing biogenic emissions (and achieving
negative emissions) from power plants is concerned, the only
Despite fluidized bed technology’s high flexibility regarding the realistic applications are facilities that cofire biomass with coal
fuels, challenges exist in the case of biomass cofiring. Some of and implement CCS. Dedicated biomass-firing plants are not
these challenges may be emphasized when CCS is employed considered to be the optimal sites to apply CCS in the initial
at the plant. For example, with oxy-fired fluidized bed boilers phase as these facilities are likely smaller than fossil-fueled
even small concentrations of chlorine from the biomass fuel facilities and do not currently need to reduce their CO2 emis-
can lead to harmful alkaline and chlorine compound depos- sions. When discussing the biomass cofiring option, one must
its on boiler heat transfer surfaces. This is because of lack of also address questions related to how availability of biomass
nitrogen in furnace and the components’ increased concen-
trations as a result of flue gas recirculation.7 Fossil Fossil with Bio/Multi Bio/Multi with
CO2 capture • Agro CO2 capture
• Wood
COFIRING, CCS, OR BOTH?
34
affects pricing and the competition for raw material between REFERENCES
different users, such as the forest industry and liquid biofuel
producers. 1. ZEP. (2012). Biomass with CO2 capture and storage (bio-CCS):
The way forward for Europe, www.biofuelstp.eu/downloads/
bioccsjtf/EBTP-ZEP-Report-Bio-CCS-The-Way-Forward.pdf
CONCLUSIONS 2. IEAGHG. (2011, July). Potential for biomass and carbon dioxide
capture and storage. Report 2011/06, www.eenews.net/
assets/2011/08/04/document_cw_01.pdf
The possible and predicted high economic value on CO2 emis- 3. Koljonen, T., et al. (2012). Low carbon Finland 2050. VTT clean
sions as well as strict emission standards could provide a energy technology strategies for society. Espoo: VTT Technical
foundation for the development and deployment of biomass Research Centre of Finland, www.ashraeasa.org/pdf/VTT%20
cofiring and CCS as individual or combined technologies. Both Low%20Carbon%20Vision.pdf
options are applicable for existing and new power plants and 4. KEMA. (2009, July). Co-firing biomass with coal. Balancing US
carbon objectives, energy demand and electricity affordability.
the technologies have already been demonstrated. Biomass White paper. Burlington, MA: KEMA Inc.
cofiring is the most efficient means of power generation from 5. Kärki, J., Flyktman, M., Hurskainen, M., Helynen, S., & Sipilä, K.
biomass, and thus offers a CO2 avoidance cost lower than that (2011). Replacing coal with biomass fuels in combined heat and
for CO2 capture from existing power plants—provided reason- power plants in Finland. In: M. Savolainen (Ed.), International
ably priced carbon-neutral biomass is available. However, future Nordic Bioenergy 2011—Book of proceedings (pp. 199–206),
www.vtt.fi/inf/julkaisut/muut/2011/Finland_Karki.pdf
policies on legislation, subsidies, and carbon accounting remain
6. Nevalainen, T., Jäntti, T., & Nuortimo, K. (2012). Advanced CFB
the most vital factors for successful biomass cofiring business. technology for large scale biomass firing power plants. Paper
presented at Bioenergy from Forest, 29 August, Jyvaskyla,
Finland, www.fwc.com/getmedia/227a6ef3-a052-42e4-b81e-
ca642124869a/TP_FIRSYS_12_07.pdf.aspx?ext=.pdf
“There is a path forward for neutral 7. Arasto, A., Tsupari, E., Kärki, J., Sormunen, R., Korpinen, T., &
Hujanen. S. Feasibility of significant CO2 emission reductions in
or even negative carbon emissions at thermal power plants—Comparison of biomass and CCS. GHGT-
12 (submitted 15 September 2014).
8. Tsupari, E., Kärki, J., & Arasto, A. (2011). Feasibility of BIO-
power plants that combust coal.” CCS in CHP production—A case sudy of biomass cofiring plant
in Finland. Presented in Second international Workshop on
Biomass & Carbon Capture and Storage, 25-26 October, Cardiff,
Wales.
Economically, the difference between biomass cofiring and 9. Lüschen, A., & Madlener, R. (2013). Economic viability of
CCS varies depending on site-specific circumstances. In gen- biomass cofiring in new hard-coal power plants in Germany.
eral, however, the EU ETS price and electricity prices projected Biomass and Bioenergy, 57, 33–47, dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.
in the near future do not yet make CCS investment feasible. biombioe.2012.11.017
10. Teir, S., et al. (2011). Hiilidioksidin talteenoton ja varastoinnin
The economic viability of CCS in the EU is heavily dependent (CCS:n) soveltaminen Suomen olosuhteissa. Espoo, VTT. 76 s. +
on the CO2 allowance price. liitt. 3 s. VTT Tiedotteita - Research Notes; 2576 ISBN 978-951-
38-7697-5; 978-951-38-7698-2.
There is a path forward for neutral or even negative carbon 11. IEA. (2013). Technology roadmap: Carbon capture and storage,
emissions at power plants that combust coal. For negative www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/
technologyroadmapcarboncaptureandstorage.pdf
net emissions, capturing biogenic emissions is a widely avail- 12. Davison J. (2007). Performance and costs of power plants with
able option; power plants that cofire biomass with coal offer capture and storage of CO2. Energy, 32, 1163–1176.
the greatest potential and most straightforward applications. 13. Kärki, J., Tsupari, E., & Arasto, A. (2013). CCS feasibility in
However, the most important factors affecting the deploy- improvement in industrial and municipal applications by heat
ment of the combined carbon-mitigation technologies include utilisation, Energy Procedia, 37, 2611–2621.
14. Basu, P., Butler, J., & Leon, M.A. (2011). Biomass co-firing options
the availability of biomass, coal, and CO2 transportation and on the emission reduction and electricity generation costs in
storage options as well as the political will (expressed through coal-fired power plants. Renewable Energy, 36(1), 282–288,
carbon pricing and recognition of negative emissions) and dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2010.06.039
acceptance of the technologies. In reality, these technologies
are already available and nearly ready to be demonstrated The authors can be reached at janne.karki@vtt.fi and antti.
and then deployed. arasto@vtt.fi
35
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
Evolution of Cleaner
Solid Fuel Combustion
By Christopher Long study were based in the U.S. due to the larger amount of air
Principal Scientist, Gradient modeling data available, but were older and had more lim-
ited emissions controls than modern state-of-the-art plants.
Peter Valberg As a result, these plants are useful for representing the air
Principal, Gradient exposure impacts of plants that might be built in developing
countries today, including those built without international
support for meeting high-efficiency, low-emissions standards.
A
lthough uncommon in developed countries, solid For our comparisons, we focused on air exposure concentra-
fuels—including wood, charcoal, coal,A dung, and crop tions rather than emissions because possible exposure via
residues—are burned domestically by billions of people breathing cannot be characterized based solely on emissions
across the world for space heating, lighting, and cooking. For data (e.g., tons per year), but rather needs to be assessed
example, it is estimated that, as of 2010, approximately 41% of through examining concentrations of pollutants [masses of
the world’s households (approximately 2.8 billion people) rely
pollutants per unit volume of air—e.g., micrograms per cubic
mainly on solid fuels for cooking.1 A comprehensive assess-
meter (μg/m3)] that can potentially be inhaled. In addition, we
ment of respiratory risks from household air pollution recently
used an alternative metric of exposure, namely intake fraction
concluded that the health of one in three people worldwide
(iF), to supplement this analysis.
is at risk because of exposure to emissions from traditional
household solid fuel combustion.2
To provide some perspective on their relative air exposure “As compared to traditional
impacts, we have compared exposure of people to tradi-
tional household solid fuel combustion emissions (e.g., smoke household solid fuel combustion
from domestic burning of biomass material or coal) to those
of coal-fired power plants (CFPPs). We used data from pub- … modern coal-fired power plants
lished papers and reports and tabulated levels of people’s
exposure to common air pollutants from these two different represent a more sophisticated and
combustion sources. The coal-fired power plants used for the
cleaner approach to getting the
maximum energy out of solid fuel…”
ASSESSMENT OF REPORTED
AIR EXPOSURE LEVELS
36
TABLE 1. Summary of indoor PM2.5 and CO breathing zone exposure levels in developing-country households with traditional
household solid fuel combustion3
or fireplaces) leads to highly elevated exposures to household combustion and are considered to pose the greatest health
air pollutants. This is due to the poor combustion efficiency of risks.2 Table 1, adapted from Naeher et al.,3 summarizes indoor
the combustion devices and the elevated nature of the emis- air measurements of PM2.5 and CO associated with traditional
sions; moreover, they are often released directly into living household solid fuel combustion. As shown in the table, PM2.5
areas.3 Smoke from traditional household solid fuel combustion exposure levels have been consistently reported to be in the
commonly contains a range of incomplete combustion prod- range of hundreds to thousands of micrograms per cubic
ucts, including both fine and coarse particulate matter (e.g., meter (μg/m3); likewise, CO exposure levels as high as hun-
PM2.5, PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), dreds to greater than 1000 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/
sulfur dioxide (SO2), and a variety of organic air pollutants (e.g., m3) have been measured. Consistent with these data, a more
formaldehyde, 1,3-butadiene, benzene, acetaldehyde, acrolein, recent study of 163 households in two rural Chinese counties
phenols, pyrene, benzopyrene, benzo(a)pyrene, dibenzopy- reported geometric mean indoor PM2.5 concentrations of 276
renes, dibenzocarbazoles, and cresols).2 In a typical solid fuel μg/m3 (combinations of different plant materials, including
stove, approximately 6–20% of solid fuel mass is converted into wood, tobacco stems, and corncobs), 327 μg/m3 (wood), 144
toxic emissions, with such factors as the fuel type and moisture μg/m3 (smoky coal), and 96 μg/m3 (smokeless coal) for homes
content, stove technology, and stove operation influencing the using a variety of different fuel types and stove configurations
amount and relative composition of the pollution mixture.1 (vented, unvented, portable, fire pit, mixed ventilation stove).4
Even though the mixture of pollutants arising from traditional Air Modeling of CFPP Emissions Predicts
household solid fuel combustion is complex, most measure- Substantially Lower Air Quality Impacts
ment studies have focused on characterizing breathing-zone
exposure levels of two surrogate species in solid fuel smoke, In comparison to traditional solid fuels, CFPP emissions are
namely PM and CO, which are the main products of incomplete associated with far lower ground-level ambient exposure levels
37
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
of both PM2.5 and CO.B Table 2 provides a summary of model- the majority of the modeled plants are older CFPPs that lack the
predicted ground-level PM2.5 and CO concentrations from clean coal technologies characteristic of newer and retrofitted
publicly available studies of the ambient air quality impacts CFPPs. With respect to PM, these studies generally accounted for
of U.S. CFPPs. We relied on model-predicted concentrations both primary PM2.5 emissions and secondary atmospheric forma-
rather than measurement data because air-monitoring data tion of sulfate and nitrate particles from gaseous SO2 and NOx
are not specific to power plant emissions and include con- emissions, respectively. With respect to CO, we identified just a
tributions from a variety of other common anthropogenic, single modeling study that predicted the CO air quality impacts of
natural, and distant air pollution sources. As indicated in Table 2, emissions from CFPPs (as well as a number of natural gas power
all but one of the studies we identified reflect modeled air qual- plants).5 Most likely because CO emissions from U.S. CFPPs are
ity impacts for groups of U.S. CFPPs in the same general vicinity; low and not considered to pose significant air quality problems
thus, these data encompass air quality impacts higher than what or public health impacts, CO has not received as much attention
would be the case for a single newer U.S. power plant. Moreover, as PM2.5 in studies of the air quality impacts of power plants.6
TABLE 2. Model-predicted ground-level PM2.5 and CO concentrations associated with U.S. CFPP emissionsa,b
Model-Predicted Model-Predicted
Number of
Plant Capacity/ Ground-Level Annual Ground-Level Annual
Source Modeled Plant Location(s)
Characteristics Average PM2.5 Air Conc. Average CO Air Conc.
CFPPs
(µg/m3) a (mg/m3) a
>7500-MW total
Illinois, in close
nameplate capacity; 0.7, including both
Levy et al. proximity to or
9 all older plants grand- primary and secondary NA
(2002)8 upwind of the
fathered under the PM2.5
Chicago area, U.S.
Clean Air Act
38
The annual average ambient PM2.5 and CO concentrations Relative Intake Fractions for Traditional
in Table 2 are far below the comparable daily-average PM2.5 Solid Fuel Combustion Versus CFPPs
and CO indoor exposure levels associated with traditional
household solid fuel combustion in Table 1.C For PM2.5, sev- We identified just a single study11 that reported iFs for both
eral studies7–9 of groups of older, grandfathered U.S. CFPPs types of PM combustion emissions. Smith (1993) estimated
predicted annual average concentrations of less than 1 μg/m3 iFs ranging from approximately one to two one-thousandths
for maximally impacted locations, as compared to daily aver- for PM emissions from traditional solid fuel combustion in
biomass cookstoves versus substantially lower iFs of one one-
age PM2.5 exposure levels of hundreds to thousands of μg/
millionth for a U.S. CFPP and 10 one-millionths for a CFPP in a
m3 inside homes with traditional solid fuel combustion. For
least developed country (LDC) based on the assumption of a
CO, the single modeled estimate that we identified for 2002 greater population density. In other words, these results indi-
county-average CO impacts from three CFPPs/units (plus 18 cate that about one one-thousandth of what is released from
gas-fired power plants/units) in the San Antonio, TX, metro- traditional household solid fuel burning is inhaled, while only
politan area5 is over 10,000 times lower than the lowest CO about one one-millionth of what is released from a U.S. CFPP
exposure levels we found for traditional household solid fuel is inhaled.
combustion (Table 1).
These differences demonstrate the critical role of the proximity
of the emission source to people in determining its exposure
potential; whereas CFPP emissions are typically released from
INTAKE FRACTION AS AN ALTERNATIVE
tall stacks often far from heavily populated areas, emissions
COMPARISON TOOL
from traditional household solid fuel combustion in develop-
ing countries are often released directly into poorly ventilated
Defining Intake Fraction indoor spaces (e.g., kitchens), where they can remain trapped
for extended periods of time in direct proximity of people.
The iF is a well-established metric in the exposure assessment Smith12 has subsequently emphasized the concept that the
and public health fields for quantifying the emission-to-intake “place makes the poison”.
relationship, in large part because iFs facilitate comparisons of
the exposure implications of various emission sources. Intake More recent iF estimates for PM emissions from both tradi-
fraction can be defined simply as the fraction of material emit- tional household solid fuel combustion and CFPPs confirm
that iF differences between these sources span several
ted into the air from a given source that is actually inhaled;
orders of magnitude.9,13,14 For example, Levy et al.9 estimated
however, Bennett et al.10 provided a more thorough defini-
a slightly smaller iF for primary PM2.5 emissions from seven
tion of iF as “the integrated incremental intake of a pollutant, older northern Georgia (U.S.) CFPPs (0.0000006), and even
summed over all exposed individuals, and occurring over smaller iFs for secondary sulfates and nitrates (0.0000002 and
a given exposure time, released from a specified source or 0.00000006). In contrast, Grieshop et al.14 estimated iFs of
sources, per unit of pollutant emitted.” It is generally reported 0.0013 and 0.00024 for unvented and outdoor-vented cook-
as a unitless value, as expressed in the following equation10: stoves, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS
∑people, individual pollutant intake (mass, grams)
time
iF =
mass released into the environment (mass, grams) We found that measured PM2.5 and CO concentrations inside
homes burning traditional solid fuels are thousands of times
greater than even the high-end estimates of ground-level
ambient exposure levels from U.S. coal-fired power plant
iF thus sums pollutant intake over two measures—population
stack emissions. Even if a low-efficiency coal-fired power
size and time duration—and incorporates a variety of factors
plant with no emissions controls were employed—a likely
related to the emission scenario and exposure conditions. scenario in areas where traditional solid fuels are combusted
These factors include chemical properties of the contaminant, and in the absence of international support for efficiency
emissions locations (e.g., release height, indoor versus out- and environmental upgrades—order-of-magnitude differ-
door, proximity to people), environmental conditions (climate, ences would likely be observed compared to traditional
meteorology, land use), human receptor locations and activi- solid fuel combustion. Moreover, we saw similar, support-
ties, and population characteristics. Intake fractions can be ing results using an alternative comparison approach based
based on both modeling results and measurements. on intake fractions. Overall, these conclusions point to
39
www.cornerstonemag.net
S T R AT E G I C A NALY S IS
40
T E CHNOLOGY FRONTI ERS
P
ower systems in the 21st century—with higher penetration “Strategic modifications, proactive
of low-carbon energy, smart grids, and other emerging
technologies—will favor resources that have low marginal inspections and training programs,
costs and provide system flexibility (see Figure 1). Such flexibil-
ity includes the ability to cycle on and off as well as run at low and various operational changes to
minimum loads to complement variations in output from high
penetration of renewable energy. With a lack of general experi- accommodate cycling can minimize
ence in the industry, questions remain about both the fate of
coal-fired power plants in this scenario and whether they can the extent of damage and minimize
continue to operate cost-effectively if they cycle routinely.
cycling-related maintenance costs.”
To demonstrate that coal-fired power plants can become flexi-
ble resources, we discuss experiences from an actual multi-unit
North American coal generating station (CGS).A,1 This flexibil-
ity—namely, the ability to cycle on and off and run at below 40% A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CGS PLANT
of capacity—requires limited modifications to hardware, but
extensive modifications to operational practice. Cycling does When it came online in the 1970s, the CGS plant was intended
damage the plant and impact its life expectancy compared to to run at an 80% annual capacity factor. However, the addi-
baseload operations. However, strategic modifications, proac- tion of nuclear power soon thereafter displaced coal as the
tive inspections and training programs, and various operational principal source of baseload generation. Consequently, CGS
changes to accommodate cycling can minimize the extent of typically ran at 50% annual capacity factor until the early
damage and minimize cycling-related maintenance costs. 1990s. To understand the effects of “two-shifting” (i.e., cycling
on and off in a day) considerable research was conducted in
Curtailment
100 Wind
the 1980s. As a result, plant operations, the steam generator,
PV and supporting equipment were modified.
Generation (GW)
75 CSP
Storage
Other After a competitive market was introduced in the early 2000s,
50 Gas CT
Gas CC the CGS plant was operated for longer periods at full plant
Hydro
25
Geothermal output—this period was also marked by significant forced out-
Coal ages. For example, in 2004, the equivalent forced outage rate
0 Nuclear
Mar 25 Mar 26 Mar 27 Mar 28 Mar 29 Mar 30 Mar 31 Apr 01 (EFOR)—a measure of a plant’s unreliability—was 32%, which
FIGURE 1. Simulated dispatch of generation over one week represented the accumulated latent damage from the cycling
in a high renewable energy scenario (annual load served by that CGS performed in the 1990s. Typical EFOR for a baseload
25% wind, 8% solar photovoltaic). coal-fired power plant is 6.4%.2
Notes: PV = solar photovoltaic; CSP = concentrated solar power; CT = combustion
turbine; CC = combined cycle The competitive market created the incentive for CGS units to
Source: Lew et al., 2013 continue to operate flexibly—for example, that they be able to
41
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
FIGURE 2. Example of large nick in turbine fin (#96) due to impact These effects (summarized in Table 1) can cause equipment
with dislodged material formed by oxidation (Debra Lew) components, particularly in the boiler, to fatigue and fail. In turn,
equipment failure leads to increased outages, increased opera-
two-shift and operate at an output below intended minimum tions and maintenance (O&M) costs, additional wear and tear
load. Although the two- and sometimes four-shifting created from the increased O&M, and more extensive and sophisticated
wear and tear and reduced the plant’s cost competiveness, training, inspection, and evaluation programs.3 The damage
the CGS owners operated the plant in this fashion to compete from cycling is not immediate—for example, components may
in the wholesale power market. fail and EFOR may rise a few years after significant cycling.
Problem Impact/Cause
Failure of boiler tubes Caused by cyclic fatigue, corrosion fatigue, and pitting
Cracking in dissimilar metal
Due to rapid changes in steam temperature
welds, headers, and valves
Due to movement between the rotor and casing during “barring”
Cracking of generator rotors
(slow turns to keep rotors from being left in one position too long during turning-gear operation)
Oxidation from exposure to Oxides in boiler tubes can dislodge due to thermal changes and
air on start-up and draining lead to damage downstream, such as the turbine blades (see Figure 2)
From oxides, but also from wet steam that occurs on start-up, during
Corrosion of turbine parts
low-load operations, and during poor plant storage conditions when the plant is dried
Condenser problems Can occur when thin tubes crack from thermal stresses at start-up and shutdown
42
opportunities for corrosion, as described in Table 2. There were from cycling. Training programs to reinforce the skills needed
no major capital retrofits to allow additional cycling flexibility. to monitor the impacts of cycling were also central to the CGS
owner’s strategy.
Decisions on whether and when to replace parts or modify com-
ponents were made on a case-by-case basis. In other words,
A LOOK AT COSTS AND EMISSIONS
the plant owner based such decisions on whether wholesale
power market opportunities in the coming year justified the
The costs associated with cycling, and modifications made
cost of modifications to reduce the forced outage rate.
in response, are difficult to distinguish from normal opera-
tion efforts. Modifications were made over the course of
Operating Procedures decades, in response to both cycling and noncycling wear
and tear, to achieve EFOR rates that varied highly by unit and
The owner of CGS estimates that once the physical changes year. Extrapolating cost implications to other coal-fired power
were in place, 90% of future cost savings came from modifying plants generally from the experiences at CGS is difficult due to
operating procedures. For example, establishing procedures variations in age, design, and history of operations. Moreover,
and training on boiler ramp rates was especially effective. decisions on the scope and timing of modifications depend
Controlled ramp rates help minimize thermal fatigue; continual on business case justifications, which are highly market- and
reinforcement of the importance of controlled ramping through context-driven and could vary from year to year.
training helps ensure that ramp rate procedures are followed.
Studies of coal-fired power plants, such as Kumar et al.,5 evalu-
Another example of effective modifications to operating pro- ate cycling costs by calculating operating, maintenance, and
cedures is high-energy (i.e., high temperature or pressure repair costs associated with cycling. The plants in this study
steam) piping inspections, the value of which is not always represent typical operations where coal-fired power plants
appreciated at other coal-fired power plants. The inspection are operated and maintained according to baseload require-
program at CGS covers all the failure mechanisms that can ments. However, the CGS plant owner recognized early on that
occur (e.g., thermal and corrosion fatigue), and establishes a CGS would be cycling significantly and, therefore, modified
repair process and a repair program for each failure mecha- operating practices and equipment to minimize the impacts of
nism. The owner employs many similar inspection programs, cycling. Thus, because of the owner’s proactive changes, the
for example, for the hanger rods that hold the high-energy costs to mitigate cycling based on EFOR rates at CGS are likely
piping. These examples illustrate that effective operating pro- less than those for other plants with similar cycling and EFOR
cedures require an understanding of all components impacted rates whose owners are not as proactive.
by cycling—not just the major ones. Table 3 describes some of
the modifications that were made to CGS’s operating proce- Cycling also incurs costs associated with increased emissions
dures to support cycling. rate. The selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system, which con-
trols some emissions, must be operated at a minimum load.
Changes to plant operating procedures were critical to However, if a power plant needs to operate below this level,
enabling CGS to cycle on and off cost-effectively. Controlling the owners may have authority to run the plant without the
the rise in temperatures during plant start-up and temperature SCR system, as is the case with CGS. Other emissions impacts
drops on shutdowns as well as having rigorous inspection pro- occur due to increased fuel use at start-ups, reduced plant
grams for major and minor components limited the damage efficiency at less than full load, and reduced effectiveness
Added a metal overlay to water walls to minimize oxidation, cut back membranes in various areas to reduce
Boiler
start-up stresses, and replaced dissimilar metal welds.
Added drains, upgraded the lubrication system, modified vacuum pumps and low-pressure crossover bellows,
Turbines
and inspected the non-return valves, which can be damaged during shutdowns.
Generator Insulated and epoxied key parts to reduce rotor cracking from rubbing and established continual tests and
Rotors checks to monitor trends.
Plugged tubes at the top of the condenser that had been damaged as a result of low-load operation and
Condenser water impingement, reducing overall efficiency; also installed stainless-steel air removals and retubed the
existing brass on several units.
43
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
Accelerated forced cooling for the boiler enabled the owner to quickly shut down the unit to repair
a boiler tube and be back online in two days. However, after a year of implementing accelerated
Natural cooling
forced cooling, the units recorded a noticeable increase in corrosion and cyclic fatigue failures. The
shutdown procedures are now to keep the boiler shut for the first four hours (natural cooling).
Economizer inlet headers can crack from intermittent additions of cold feedwater to the hot inlet
Monitoring economizer
header. The plant owner keeps the temperature difference between the header and water at less
inlet headers
than 30°C, below the boiler manufacturer recommendations.4
Pressure part The owner established a pressure-part management program, reviewing every pressure
management component and establishing causes for degradation and failure.
These included a program to monitor boiler metal temperature; a tube replacement and
Other changes to boiler inspection strategy; a thermal and cyclic fatigue inspection and repair program; a fly-ash erosion
operating procedures program to reduce tube failures; and inspection programs for expansion joints, dissimilar metal
welds, and flow-accelerated corrosion.
The owner established training and monitoring procedures, with associated monitoring
Temperature monitoring
equipment, to limit ramp rates and to monitor temperature changes to thick-walled fittings,
for turbine parts
headers, and the casing to the main steam line.
To reduce corrosion, proper water chemistry must be maintained to protect surfaces that oxidize.
Water chemistry
Water chemistry varies with cycling, so the owner maintains a chemistry staff onsite
maintenance
and established a Chemistry Managed System (following ISO standards).
Overall monitoring The owner compared reports on best practices associated with cycling with CGS’s equipment
programs status and mitigating actions and created an overall plant monitoring program.
of pollution-control equipment when flue gas temperatures boiler to reduce thermal shocking of tubes in the boiler. In con-
at start-up are too low to support the chemical reactions trast, almost all other boilers in North America are a “pendant
needed.6 Although emissions rates during cycling can be design”, which results in water accumulating at the bottom of
higher than during noncyclic operation, Lew et al.6 showed the U-shape and leading to slow drainage. This design cannot
that the avoided emissions from the added wind and solar far be modified, although a $10–15-million bypass system could be
outweigh the impacts of cycling-induced emissions. added to improve temperature control and reduce tube failure.
CAN THE CGS EXPERIENCE BE REPLICATED? Automation of CGS’s drainage system, absent in most coal-
fired power plants, was also critical to reducing failures. Earlier
The CGS plant achieved the flexibility to cycle over several in plants’ projected lifetimes, such major retrofits could be
decades; this experience has provided valuable information economically feasible.
on impacts, recommended modifications to operations and
equipment, and relative costs. However, some of the aspects Operating Distinctions
of CGS that improve the plant’s flexibility might not easily
translate to other contexts. CGS experiences much higher EFOR rates than typically
accommodated in markets where coal-fired power plants run
Physical Distinctions at baseload. The plant owner can manage these high EFOR
rates because of the role CGS’s coal-fired units play in its sys-
Some of CGS’s original plant designs are conducive to cycling— tem operations. The owner found that EFOR rates could be
the owner did not need to conduct major-capital retrofits. For reduced by being highly proactive with inspections and strate-
example, CGS’s boiler tubes are horizontal, which facilitates gic operational modifications.
cycling by improving drainage; this reduces corrosion fatigue and
the time needed to come back online (see Figure 3). Effective However, a trade-off between maintenance costs and EFOR
operating practice requires drainage of any residual water in the rates exists. Grid operators may need to change how they
44
operate their systems, and coal-fired power plant operators Gas Flow
may require a cultural shift to adapt to higher EFORs. This is
particularly true because justifying maintenance costs over
EFOR rates could become increasingly difficult if the cost per
Gas Flow
unit of energy generated increases at low load.
Regulatory Distinctions
At CGS, the plant owner has achieved what few coal-fired NOTES
power plant operators have been able to do: modify a plant
that was intended to run only at baseload into one that can A. For commercial reasons the CGS is not further identified.
meet peak demands—cycling on and off up to four times a
day to meet morning and afternoon electricity demand. Key to
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
the owner’s success is changing operational practices: moni-
toring and managing temperature ramp rates; creating a suite This publication was produced under direction of the 21st
of inspection programs for all impacted equipment (large and Century Power Partnership by the National Renewable Energy
small); and continual training to reinforce the skills needed in Laboratory (NREL) under Interagency Agreement DE-AC36-
monitoring and inspections. 08GO28308 and Task Nos. WFH1.2010 and 2940.5017.
The owner’s success in cycling has also benefited from factors REFERENCES
specific to CGS. The original plant design, although intended for
baseload operation, included features that facilitate cycling. 1. Cochran, A., Lew, D., & Kumar, N. (2013). Flexible coal: Evolution
Although the cycling features were an advantage for the unit’s from baseload to peaking plant, NREL Report No. BR-6A20-60575.
operating regime, additional modifications and procedural Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. www.nrel.
changes were required to improve equipment reliability. gov/docs/fy14osti/60575.pdf
2. Vuorinen, A. (2007). Planning of power system reserves, www.
optimalpowersystems.com/stuff/planning_of_power_system_
Also, the decades-long practice in cycling has increased the reserves.pdf
owner’s tolerance for rates of forced outages that are higher 3. Electric Power Research Institute. (2001). Damage to power
than those that are typical for plants required for baseload. plants due to cycling. Product ID 1001507. Palo Alto, CA: EPRI.
www.epri.com/abstracts/Pages/ProductAbstract.aspx?Product
Id=000000000001001507
The ability of other coal-fired power plant operators to repli- 4. Babcock & Wilcox. (1994). Economizer inlet header cracking.
cate CGS’s flexibility will be instrumental in valuing coal in an www.babcock.com/library/pdf/PSB-22.pdf
increasingly low-carbon energy system. Although the CGS unit 5. Kumar, N., Besuner, P., Lefton, S., Agan, D., & Hilleman, D.
has certain inherent design features that assist in its operating (2012). Power plant cycling costs. NREL/SR-5500-55433. Work
mode, retrofits and operational modifications to other coal- performed by Intertek-APTECH, Sunnyvale, California. Golden,
CO: NREL. www.nrel.gov/docs/fy12osti/55433.pdf
fired power plants can allow for increased flexible generation 6. Lew, D., et al. (2013). The Western Wind and Solar Integration Study
across many power systems. Coal-fired power plants can Phase 2. NREL/TP-5500-55588. Golden, CO: National Renewable
cycle, and if designed and operated appropriately, can provide Energy Laboratory. www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/55588.pdf
flexibility, sometimes more significantly than even CGS. There
is a cost to cycle and also increased risk of unavailability, but The authors can be reached at Jaquelin.Cochran@nrel.gov,
this is true for other types of generation as well. debralew@gmail.com, and Nikhil.Kumar@intertek.com
45
www.cornerstonemag.net
T ECH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
T
believe that GAPG should be strongly considered as a means
he recent push to reduce carbon emissions from the
for integrating conventional energy with renewable energy in
electricity sector encompasses common, immediately
available approaches such as increasing power plant the most efficient manner possible.
efficiency and increasing the deployment of renewables. The
opportunity now exists to accomplish these goals simultane-
ously through the use of geothermal energy to increase the
“Up to three times as much power
power output, and decrease the carbon intensity, of thermal
power plants. This technology is referred to here as geothermal can be generated per kilogram of
assisted power generation (GAPG). Basically, GAPG employs
hot geothermal fluid to heat the boiler feedwater at a thermal geothermal fluid as can be achieved
power plant. The steam that would otherwise be taken from
the turbines to heat the feedwater is allowed to run through in a stand-alone geothermal plant.”
the turbines, thereby generating extra power and increasing
plant efficiency. Here we use efficiency to mean “fossil fuel
efficiency”, as more power is generated per unit heat (MMBtu)
of fossil fuel, because of the addition of the geothermal heat. UNCONVENTIONAL GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Not only would this technology increase the efficiency of exist- Geothermal energy has been defined as “utilizable heat from
ing thermal power plants, most of which are coal fired, it would the earth”.1 Given that the earth’s temperature increases with
also assist the development of the immature technology of depth below the surface, geothermal energy exists everywhere.
Further, since it is possible to use geothermal energy to gener-
ate power, it has the potential to be a renewable, carbon-free
source of baseload electricity. However, while geothermal
energy exists everywhere, the cost of extracting this energy
does not make it commercially viable everywhere. To be com-
mercially viable a geothermal resource must have sufficient
temperature and flowrate that can be accessed relatively simply.
46
VOLCANIC SEDIMENTARY ENHANCED GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS
HYDROTHERMAL
HOT ROCKS
VOLCANIC
FIGURE 1. Schematic of geothermal resources
The first step is to find geothermal resources with sufficient geothermal developments to allow stimulation trials/demon-
temperature and at a depth that can be drilled economically. strations to support the development of this technology.
Unconventional geothermal resources with the potential to be
used for electricity generation are divided into two types: deep In the near term, the development of unconventional geo-
natural reservoirs (DNRs) and enhanced geothermal systems thermal resources holds significant financial risks, which are
(EGSs).1 DNRs are systems that make use of deep, naturally largely based on specific geological formations and the need
occurring aquifers with high permeability. EGS resources have for stimulation. Such risks must be mitigated in some way;
little natural permeability, hence these resources must have from this perspective, GAPG is a major opportunity. Figure 1
their permeability increased via stimulation or fracturing. shows a simplified means of extracting geothermal energy.
Note that actual geothermal developments have many wells,
The most significant unknown in unconventional geothermal as each producing well can only produce a limited amount of
systems is the flowrate per well (or well pair). Unconventional flow. This means that the flow from any geothermal resource
geothermal resources are chosen for their heat and their increases in a stepwise manner, with each new producing well
potential permeability. The degree of permeability of a drilled.
resource is directly linked to its flowrate. However, when
there is insufficient natural flowrate, a reservoir’s permeability UNDERSTANDING GAPG THROUGH MODELING
can be increased by fracturing. Stimulation technology in a
geothermal context is immature, producing “good results some GAPG is based on the concept of using high-temperature
of the time”.1 However, stimulation technology has provided geothermal fluid to heat the boiler feedwater of a thermal
huge productivity improvements in oil and gas wells, so there power plant. It was first suggested by Khalifa et al. in 19782 as
is hope that similar results will be possible in unconventional a replacement for low-pressure feedwater heaters (FWHs). In
geothermal wells. Still, there must be sufficient unconventional 2002, Bruhn built on Khalifa’s design,3 making it significantly
47
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
more flexible by allowing GAPG to partially replace any of the and/or ṁG4 (depending on the temperature and flowrate of
low-pressure FWHs. After considering the low-temperature the geothermal fluid).
geothermal resources most often available near thermal
power plants, in 2010, Buchta focused on very low-temper- Given that geothermal fluids are not clean enough to mix with
ature geothermal fluids (30–100°C) and considered applying feedwater, GAPG can only be used to replace closed feed-
GAPG to only the first low-pressure FWH.4 water heaters (i.e., not the deaerator). In order to cool the
extra steam coming through the turbine(s), additional con-
Of course, geothermal energy is not the only renewable energy denser capacity is required, which could be managed by the
source that can be applied to increasing the efficiency of thermal installation of a new, small condenser.
power plants. Hu et al. investigated both geothermal and solar
thermal sources for efficiency gains5 and found that the higher
temperatures achievable from solar power makes it possible to RESULTS
consider applying heat to the intermediate- and high-pressure
FWHs. Then, more recently, Varney and Bean determined the In our modeling, we retrofitted GAPG to a 500-MW natural-
net-power gain for all feasible geothermal flowrates and, fur- gas-fired, supercritical steam power station, specifically, the
ther, discussed the flowrate and power limits of GAPG.6 Public Service Company of Oklahoma, Riverside Station Unit 1.
Although we modeled a gas-fired plant, the analysis could
Focused research over many years has generally found that have been applied to a coal-fired power plant and would yield
GAPG can be retrofitted to any large thermal power station, the same results.
although the economics are site-specific. It can be used to
fully or partially replace the low-, intermediate-, or high-pres- One major advantage of GAPG is it’s flexibility: Power can be
sure FWHs; however, it is most likely to be used to replace only generated from low geothermal fluid flowrates that otherwise
the low-pressure FWHs. Depending on the needs of the indi- might be of little value in a stand-alone geothermal facility.
vidual plant, GAPG can increase the power generated (power As these flowrates increase, power generation increases. For
boosting mode) or it can be run to reduce the amount of fos- example, see Figure 3 which shows the incremental electricity
sil fuel consumed (fuel saving mode). The simplest and most generated as the flowrate of the geothermal fluid is increased.
flexible implementation was described by Bruhn and is shown Note that three different temperatures were evaluated (i.e.,
in Figure 2.3 In Bruhn’s implementation of GAPG, feedwater 150, 175, and 200°C).
is withdrawn upstream of the first low-pressure FWH and is
then heated by the geothermal fluid in the geothermal feed- Using geothermal heat to boost the efficiency of a thermal
water heater (GFWH). The geothermally heated feedwater is power plant increases thermal efficiency above stand-alone geo-
then returned to the feedwater stream via flows ṁG1, ṁG2, ṁG3, thermal plants by 1.7 to 2.9 times, depending on the geothermal
ṁG
G1 ṁ1 G2 ṁ2 G3 ṁ3 G4 ṁ4
b1 b1_4
ṁT- ṁ7- ṁ6- ṁ5 FWH1 FWH2 FWH3 FWH4 ṁT- ṁ7- ṁ6- ṁ5
F1 F2 F3 F4
ṁ1+ ṁ2 + ṁ3 + ṁ4 ṁ2+ ṁ3 + ṁ4 ṁ3 + ṁ4 ṁ4
48
fluid temperature.6 However, there is a limit to the amount of 7
Maiximum Extra
totally replaced by geothermal feedwater heaters, no further 5
20
additional power can be produced. To achieve this maximum 4
power limit, a geothermal resource temperature greater than 15
the outlet of the hottest appropriate FWH (in our modeling the 3
hottest low-pressure FWH was ~160°C) is needed (see Figure 10 2
4a). As the geothermal resource temperature increases above
~160°C, the flowrate required to reach this maximum power limit 5 1
50 100 150 200 250
decreases (see Figure 4b). At temperatures less than ~160°C, the
Geothermal Fluid Temperature (°C)
maximum power limit cannot be achieved, irrespective of the
flowrate (see Figure 4a). Our modeling showed that power could 290
be increased by a maximum of ~6.5% in the modeled 500-MW
Maximum Geothermal
270
supercritical plant. To achieve maximum power, a geothermal
Flowrate (kg/s)
fluid flowrate of 190–290 kg/s was needed, with lower flow- 250
rates for the higher geothermal fluid temperatures and higher 230
flowrates for the lower geothermal fluid temperatures. Despite
210
this maximum power limit, considering the reduced risk to the
geothermal developer and the power producer, it is still likely to 190
be worthwhile to take advantage of GAPG. 170
150
UNDERSTANDING THE IMPLICATIONS 50 100 150 200 250
49
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
$10.5 million. However, in Australia, which has a small num- with enormous potential. Geothermal energy is one of the
ber of local drilling rigs and had to mobilize some rigs from few renewable energies capable of providing baseload power;
the U.S., the expected cost for similar wells is $6.6 million and further, the size of the unconventional resource is potentially
$15.3 million (all estimates are given in U.S. 2014 dollars).1 “truly vast”.1 For unconventional geothermal energy to prog-
ress it must take small steps and GAPG offers one such step.
Further, it is difficult to estimate how many wells are required,
because flowrate per well is the other significant unknown Additional opportunities may exist for the application of geo-
in unconventional geothermal developments. The highest thermal energy at conventional power plants in the future. For
flowrate from an unconventional geothermal well has been instance, low-temperature geothermal fluids are characterized
observed at a site in Landau, Germany, which has a flowrate by temperatures in the range of the regeneration tempera-
of 70 kg/s. However, the next highest flowrate per well was tures of post-combustion amine-based CO2 capture systems.
recorded at Habanero 1 in Australia, which achieved a maxi- When commercial CCS comes online, GAPG could provide the
mum flowrate of 40 kg/s. For these reasons, an average cost thermal load needed for CCS, thus allowing the power plant
for a GAPG development cannot accurately be provided. efficiency loss from CCS to be dramatically reduced.
Additionally, as mentioned earlier, stimulation technology,
which can potentially increase flowrate, is currently far from GAPG allows unconventional geothermal developers to con-
certain. Therefore, predicting the total costs to produce a centrate on the geothermal resource, not power conversion.
given flowrate at a particular site is currently highly uncertain. Accordingly, power conversion can be carried out by expert
However, with knowledge gained through further deployment thermal power plant operators, and up to three times as much
of GAPG (or other forms of exploration in unconventional geo- power can be generated per kilogram of geothermal fluid as
thermal resources) this uncertainty can be reduced. can be achieved in a stand-alone geothermal plant. GAPG
offers power plant operators a way to increase power produc-
Although accurate costings cannot be provided, it is fair to say tion and decrease their carbon footprint at essentially no risk.
that, in general, unconventional geothermal developments GAPG is potentially a win-win option for both the geothermal
(without the integration offered by GAPG) are not commer- developer and the power plant operator.
cially viable yet. Based on drilling costs from the U.S., it is
estimated that flowrates in the vicinity of 80–100 kg/s per REFERENCES
well are required for commercial viability.1 However, it is clear
1. Australian Renewable Energy Agency. (2014). Looking forward:
that GAPG provides up to three times more power than stand- Barriers, risks and rewards of the Australian Geothermal Sector
alone unconventional geothermal developments. As much as to 2020 and 2030. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.
geothermal energy development is driven by local markets, 2. Khalifa. H.E., DiPippo, R., & Kestin, J. (1978). Geothermal
including renewable portfolio standards, it is important that preheating in fossil-fired steam power plants. Proceedings of
GAPG be recognized as a renewable energy even though it is the 13th Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference,
San Diego, California.
integrated with existing thermal power plants. 3. Bruhn, M. (2002). Hybrid geothermal–fossil electricity generation
from low enthalpy geothermal resources: geothermal feedwater
Although the economics of GAPG will be uncertain until the preheating in conventional power plants. Energy, 27, 329–346.
technology is deployed, it is certain that GAPG is more eco- 4. Buchta J., & Wawszczak, A. (2010). Economical and ecological
aspects of renewable energy generation in coal fired power
nomical than stand-alone geothermal plants. In addition,
plant supported with geothermal heat. Paper presented at the
as greater experience and improved technology make lower Fourth IEEE Electrical Power and Energy Conference, 25–27
drilling costs and higher flowrates possible, unconventional August, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
geothermal developments used for GAPG will become an ideal 5. Hu, E., Nathan, G.J., Battye, D., Perignon, G., & Nishimura, A.
first step toward making unconventional geothermal energy (2010). An efficient method to generate power from low to
medium temperature solar and geothermal resources. Paper
commercially viable on a broad scale—to the future benefit of presented at Chemeca 2010: Engineering at the Edge, 26–29
both geothermal energy developers and the energy consumers September, Adelaide, South Australia.
who currently rely on electricity from thermal power plants. 6. Varney, J., & Bean, N. (2013). Using geothermal energy to preheat
feedwater in a traditional steam power plant. Proceedings of the
38th Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering, Stanford
LOOKING FORWARD University, Stanford, California.
Unconventional geothermal energy is a relatively immature The authors can be reached at Nigel.Bean@adelaide.edu.au
technology, with high capital costs and large risks, but also and Josephine.Varney@adelaide.edu.au
50
Shenhua’s Development
of Digital Mines
By Han Jianguo supported by recent policies on safer coal production, energy
Deputy General Manager, Shenhua Group Co., Ltd conservation, and emissions reduction.
President, China Shenhua Energy Co., Ltd
As the primary source of China’s energy and a raw material
for many industries, coal is pivotal to the nation’s economic
D
development. However, coal mining is a complicated opera-
igital mines are based on the innovative application of
tion, often carried out deep underground with many potential
well-established, advanced information technologies
to the areas of geological resource exploration, mine risks. These risks can be difficult to detect and even more so
design and construction, safe and efficient production, to predict. Among other reasons, advanced mining systems,
operations, and decision-making. Digital mining allows for such as those incorporated into digital mines, are important
because they can significantly reduce accidents.2
all aspects of mining to be evaluated simultaneously using
digitized displays. The digital mine system can respond to, pro-
cess, and utilize data to enable integration of different mining
processes so as to achieve unified, centralized management “Digital mining incorporates modern
of mining operations. Digital mining incorporates modern
mining operations characterized by increased safety, reduced mining operations characterized
environmental impact, intelligence, and high efficiency.1 In
China, Shenhua Group (Shenhua) has led the development by increased safety, reduced
and deployment of digital mines. The demonstration of
China’s first digital mine successfully came online in the Jinjie environmental impact, intelligence,
Coal Mine of Shenhua’s Shendong Coal Group, Co., Ltd on 27
December 2013, representing a major milestone for Shenhua and high efficiency.”
and China.
THE IMPETUS FOR DIGITAL MINES IN CHINA Recently, mining technologies in China have been improved in
significant ways: from the use of fully mechanized mining to the
China’s government made it clear that the coal industry application of large, automated equipment, information tech-
should increase efforts during the 12th Five-Year Plan period nologies, and artificial intelligence. Taking advantage of these
(2011–2015) to develop and deploy an innovative coal system, modern technologies has propelled the development of China’s
founded on science and technology, that addresses the needs coal industry—and digital mines are a necessary next step.3
of coal-producing enterprises, is market oriented, and is based
Today, China’s coal industry is facing the reality of a market
on collaboration between industry, universities, and other
characterized by slowing demand growth, decreased profits
research institutions. This transformation in mining is further
for many coal enterprises, and related problems such as
overstaffing, low efficiency, poor safety records, and poor man-
agement. These issues are restricting the healthy and steady
development of coal enterprises. Thus, digital mines and the
associated technologies are needed now more than ever.
51
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
52
Operaon
management
management
management
management
management
performance
supervision
automaon
producon
management
Equipment
Operaon and
Enterprise
Operaon
resources
and decision
decision
decision-making ERP system … …
support
Human
Project
Safety
system
Office
Coal
and
Enterprise service bus (ESB)
Electromechanical
conservaon and
One venlaon
environmental
3D exhibion
management
management
management
management
management
management
Central data
Business
Coal quality
Producon
prevenon
protecon
and three
subsystem
Dispatch
analysis
Producon
Energy
Design
Producon
Safety
execuon execuon system
*Data adapter
Centralized producon
Hardware interfaces: Upper computer, *Subsystem interfaces Soware interfaces: OPC, drives, DDE/NETDDE,
Controls PLC, subnetwork, extensions independent development
communicaon
Hydrogeology
Truck loading
Heading face
mechanized
surveillance
Dispatching
coal mining
monitoring
Detecon system
Monitoring system
Hoisng
… …
Safety
Fully
face
FIGURE 2. The interacting network for digital mines: underground coal mines
meeting international standards is provided at the network the coal mine and operation management through a single
and serial port levels, so that all subsystems can be connected display was achieved.
and various software and hardware can be integrated, making
the systems connected and interconnected. Aided by this coal mine monitoring software platform, the
demonstration digital mine operators were able to transition
from a conventional top-down management model to more
Architecture of the IT Infrastructure
efficient, data-based control of mining, excavating, machining,
The architecture of the IT infrastructure of Shenhua’s digi- transporting, and circulating. The use of this software platform
changed the dispatch room into a 24-hour command post,
tal mines can be divided into three layers, from the lowest
accomplishing full data sharing, intelligent linkage, and auto-
upward: network, mine machine room, and the application
matic control for mining, excavating, mechanical operating,
terminals (see Figure 3).
transportation, and circulating systems by enabling control
room operators to have full access to data throughout the
MAJOR INNOVATIONS FROM SHENHUA’S mine as well as control of automated equipment and commu-
DEMONSTRATION OF THE DIGITAL MINE nication with the personnel outside the control room.4
The Jinjie demonstration of Shenhua’s digital mine had several Another important accomplishment during the Jinjie demon-
successful aspects. For instance, a software platform for coal stration related to the GIS-based automated mining model,
mine monitoring was developed after analysis and assessment which allows the memory-based shear cutting of the coal-
in the Jinjie demonstration mine. Through use of this system, face to be controlled remotely from the surface. Models and
comprehensive monitoring and multifunctional operation of parameters for the slicing and control of the coal cutter were
53
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
54
Shendong’s C & C08 Switch Telecommunicaon
network
3G clock server
Enhanced safety: With the safety management system, acci- program is strategically significant for the industry. It will fur-
dent prevention and control has replaced reactive approaches ther improve production efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance
to safety. The artificial intelligence-based early warning sys- core competiveness for mining. It serves as a cornerstone to
tem has significantly improved the safety-related data and the construction of a modern, safe production management
considerably improved the safety of mining operations. system for the coal industry, leading to a modernized coal
industry with a highly technical foundation, profitable opera-
A newly formed GIS-based true three-dimensional emergency tions, low energy consumption, reduced pollution, increased
rescue system linking the underground with the surface has been safety, and efficient utilization of personnel.
created: Potential problems in operation can be remotely moni-
tored and diagnosed. Experts can propose effective solutions and REFERENCES
provide technical support directly online through consultation.
1. Han, J.G., Yang, H.H., Wang, J.S., & Pan, T. (2012). Research of
construction of digital mine of Shenhua Group. Industry and
Mine Automation, 2012, 38(3), 11–14. (In Chinese)
CONCLUSIONS 2. Lu, X.M., & Yin, H. (2010). Definition, connotations and progress
of digital mine. Coal Science and Technology, 38(1), 48–52. (In
The rapid development and mutual integration of IT and Chinese)
automation technology have rejuvenated organizational man- 3. Wu, L.X. (2000). The digital earth, digital China and digital mine.
Mine Surveying, 1, 6–9. (In Chinese)
agement, production and decision-making, and technology
4. Wang, J.S., & Pan, T. (2014). Practical exploration on construction
and production scales of China’s coal industry. The construc- of digital mine. Industry and Mine Automation, 40(3), 32–35. (In
tion and successful operation of Shenhua’s digital mines Chinese)
55
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
E
nergy, particularly electrical power, is one of the most and the second being a concentrated stream of CO2. Thus the
critical components of any modern industrial economy energy penalty for CO2 capture is significantly lower (almost
with most economies being based on low-cost abundant zero) compared to post-combustion capture. DCFCs are at
energy supplies. In this regard, coal continues to be the pri- an early stage of development, but a number of groups have
mary energy source of choice for electrical power generation. recently become involved in the development of this tech-
Coal can be stored easily and converted into electrical power nology leading to a range of novel systems and concepts being
on demand regardless of season or local weather conditions. investigated. In this article we provide a broad overview of the
However, conventional coal-fired power generation can result technology. More comprehensive technical information on
in high emissions of CO2 and other pollutants. These can be various systems can be accessed in References 1–3.
captured or neutralized; however, in some cases this can
greatly increase cost.
60
50
40 WHY FUEL CELLS ARE MORE
30
EFFICIENT THAN COMBUSTION
20
Fuel cells convert fuels to electricity via electrochemical oxi-
10 dation of fuel, rather than via combustion, to generate heat
0 and pressure that is then converted into electricity through a
Brown Black SC ST USC ST IGCC DICE DCFC heat engine, such as a steam or gas turbine. In conventional
Coal ST Coal ST
fuel cells, gaseous (CO, H2, CH4) or liquid (methanol, ethanol)
FIGURE 1. Average efficiency of coal-based power generation fuels are converted into electrical power. DCFCs operate via
technologies the same broad principle; however, the solid high-carbon fuel
Notes: Brown Coal ST = brown coal steam turbine; Black Coal ST = black coal (such as coal) is consumed to produce electrical power through
steam turbine; SC ST = supercritical steam turbine; USC ST = ultra-supercrit-
ical steam turbine; IGCC = integrated gasification and combined cycle (gas reactions (1) and (2), respectively occurring at the cathode
turbine); DICE = direct injection coal engine; DCFC = direct carbon fuel cell and anode electrodes of the cell. The two electrodes are kept
56
separated by an oxygen ion-conducting ceramic membrane coal to electricity of around 65–70% are considered attain-
(four types of direct carbon fuel cells are shown in Figure 2). able with the remainder of the energy being lost as waste
heat.1 If the waste heat can be utilized (for instance, for coal
Cathode: O2 + 4e- → 2O2- (1) drying or pyrolysis) then overall efficiencies in the region of
80–90% could be achieved. This is higher than attainable with
Anode: C + 2O2- → CO2 + 4e- (2) a gaseous fuel; for comparison, leading MW-scale molten
carbonate (FuelCell Energy) and solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC)
The fuel is housed on the anode side of the membrane with (Bloom Energy), operating on natural gas, have an electrical
air being used as the oxidant on the cathode side. The oxygen efficiency of around 47% and 52%, respectively.
molecules become ionized [reaction (1)], and the oxygen ions
flow across the membrane and react with the fuel to produce
CO2 [reaction (2)]. The electrons released via this process
move through an external load generating an electrical cur- “Solid fuels ... can be easily
rent. Fuel cells operate similarly to a battery; however, unlike
a battery, the fuel cell is continuously “charged” as the fuel is separated from the gaseous
replaced at the anode as it is consumed.
products ... leading to nearly
Electrochemical oxidation of fuels to produce electricity is
highly efficient because fuel cells contain few moving parts 100% fuel utilization...”
and do not rely on pressure or temperature gradients to
operate (again, not Carnot cycle limited). The efficiency of a
fuel cell system is defined by four factors: system losses, fuel FUEL CELL DESIGNS: KEY CHALLENGES
utilization, electrochemical losses, and the thermodynamic AND TECHNICAL MERITS
(theoretical) efficiency of the system. The system losses are
typically a minor component (approximately 10%) and are DCFC technology is at an early stage of development, with
largely similar for most high-temperature fuel cells. Solid many organizations focusing on the fundamental aspects of
fuels (such as coal) can be easily separated from the gaseous the technology.1,3 In general, the key challenge is to strike a
products (i.e., CO2 in the exhaust) leading to nearly 100% fuel balance between cost, performance, and lifetime.
utilization compared to 80–95% for conventional gaseous fuel
cells. Electrochemical losses are caused by slow reaction kinet- At the core of each proposed fuel cell system is the cell design,
ics at the electrode/electrolyte interface and transport of ions which determines all other features. The four most commonly
through electrodes and the electrolyte. These losses are sig- suggested fuel cell designs that can use solid fuels are shown
nificantly reduced by operating at high temperature but are in Figure 2 and compared in Table 1.
still greater for carbon than for conventional gaseous fuels.
The thermodynamic efficiency of a DCFC is largely indepen- The main difference between each of these systems, and com-
dent of temperature, and theoretically 100% of the chemical pared with other conventional fuel cells, is the fuel electrode
energy in the fuel is available for conversion to electricity. (anode) and the fuel delivery system. Modifying the fuel elec-
Taking the typical losses into account, practical efficiencies for trode allows a greater area for the reactions to occur between
57
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
Molten carbonate/hybrid
Descriptor Molten metal Gasification Solid state
with solid oxide*
“Metal shuffle” In the molten carbonate The fuel can be gasified The anode is a mixed
mechanism: system, the molten within the anode chamber ionic electronic
electrolyte is held or gasified externally, conducting (MIEC)
Metal is oxidized at
between porous then cleaned and fed material.
the surface of the
electrodes. to a conventional high-
solid electrolyte. The MIEC material
temperature solid oxide or
In the hybrid system, supplies oxide ions and
The metal oxide mixes molten carbonate fuel cell.
the electrolyte is a solid removes electrons,
with molten metal
Design oxide with the molten External gasification leads allowing the entire anode
then contacts the
principles carbonate only in the fuel to lower efficiency. Internal surface to be used for
fuel.
chamber. gasification requires novel fuel oxidation reactions.
The fuel reduces the anode materials not used
In both cases, fuel mixes
oxide back to metal. in conventional fuel cells.
with molten carbonate
which supplies oxygen Both systems can use
to the reaction sites via porous electrodes.
movement of carbonate
ions.
Potentially simple fuel Fuel is fed continuously Conventional solid oxide or Can consume both solid
feed system to the electrode/ molten carbonate fuel cell and gaseous fuels
electrolyte interface. can be used.
Fast fuel oxidation Solid anode material
reaction Could use a wide range of Waste heat can be used avoids corrosion and
solid fuels to produce gasification containment issues of
Could use a wide
Advantages products (CO and H2) to molten systems.
range of fuels Has the highest electrical
increase system efficiency.
efficiency of any Less complex than
High tolerance to
technology gasification systems
sulfur impurities
and allows kW-scale
deployment
before scale-up
Very low tolerance Short cell life Large, expensive plant Difficult to deliver solid
to ash needed to integrate all fuel to reaction sites
Difficult to stop the
components (e.g., gasifier,
Tested mainly with reaction between the Slow reaction kinetics for
hot gas cleanup, high-
high-purity non-solid molten carbonate and fuel oxidation reaction
temperature fuel cell, gas
fuels, e.g., heavy oils, other cell materials
Disadvan- turbine, etc.).
natural gas
tages Molten carbonate can
Comparably low
Low cell operating speed up the formation
efficiencies if waste heat
voltages reduce of carbon monoxide
from fuel cells is not used
efficiency (CO), which is lost to the
for gasification.
exhaust, reducing overall
efficiency
Potential
electric ~30%1 up to 80%1 35–58%1,3 65–70%1
efficiency
*Various other molten salts and mixtures of molten salts have been trialed, including sodium and potassium hydroxides with consumable carbon anodes.1
58
The direct contact solid state designs fall in-between the exter-
nal gasification fuel cell systems and systems with molten
components and are more resilient to impurities than conven-
tional SOFCs or fuel cells containing molten components. This
is because the MIEC anodes are typically a solid ceramic mate-
rial, which is far more resistant to chemical attack or poisoning
and thus will tolerate a greater level of impurities and ash than
molten systems. High levels of ash will still be detrimental to the
performance of the fuel cell and will be more difficult to remove
from a fuel cell system than a gasifier. Thus ash content of the fuel
may need to be reduced by fuel pre-processing prior to its use in a
direct-contact solid-state fuel cell. Although high ash contents are
generally considered detrimental, not all ash constituents have a
negative impact on cell performance: Some impurities contribute
The 59-MW fuel cell park, South Korea, is indicative of the to improvement in cell performance. This was well demonstrated
scale of a direct carbon fuel cell facility (photo courtesy of by Rady et al., who showed that the presence of brown coal ash
FuelCell Energy). led to a 25% increase in power output of the fuel cell.
59
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
Thermal
output
Oxygen
Coal pre- depleted air
treatment & Air
pulverization
CO2 recycle
Material flow sequestration
Gas flow
Thermal flow
60
Exploring the Status of Oxy-fuel
Technology Globally and in China
By Zheng Chuguang institutions and companies advancing oxy-fuel technolo-
Professor, State Key Laboratory of Coal Combustion, gies include the following: Energy & Environmental Research
Huazhong University of Science and Technology Center, Argonne National Labs (ANL), Babcock & Wilcox
Director, Advanced Coal Technology Consortium, (B&W), Air Products, and Jupiter Oxygen in the U.S.; IHI and
Clean Energy Research Center Hitachi in Japan; Canmet in Canada; International Flame
Research Foundation in the Netherlands; BHP Billiton,
Newcastle University, and CS Energy in Australia; CIUDEN
O
xy-fuel technology is characterized by the use of pure in Spain; Alstom in France; Doosan Babcock in the UK; and
oxygen or oxygen-enriched gas mixtures to replace air Vattenfall in Germany. Extensive research, development, and
during combustion of (most often) fossil fuels. After demonstrations are also occurring in China (shown in red in
the fuel is burned, flue gas with a high concentration of CO2 Figure 1), which are discussed in detail in later sections.
is generated, which facilitates the capture of CO2. First pro-
posed by Abraham in 1982, the purpose of the technology
was to produce CO2 for enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR).1 As “Following 30 years of development,
concerns related to climate change have intensified, the need
to control CO2 emissions (as the principal greenhouse gas) oxy-fuel technology has matured
has also gradually increased in prominence. As a technology
option with great potential for reducing CO2 emissions, oxy- and possesses the fundamental
fuel combustion has become a focus of research worldwide.2
characteristics necessary for
THE STATUS OF INTERNATIONAL OXY-
FUEL TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
commercial application.”
61
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
Notes: SCR = selective catalytic reducer; ESP = electrostatic precipitator; FF = fabric filter; FGD = flue gas desulfurization; NG = natural gas
*Post-drying
years, the direction of this project changed. In August 2010, the South Korea is also actively making progress on an oxygen-
U.S. Department of Energy launched FutureGen 2.0, which was enriched coal-fired power station demonstration project—the
based on carbon capture from oxy-fuel coal combustion. US$1 country plans to build a 100-MWe pilot power station by 2015.
billion (the total budget for the project is now $1.3 billion) was
allocated for the construction of a 200-MWe (now adjusted to In China, several large-scale oxy-fuel projects are currently
168-MWe) commercial-scale oxy-fuel power station. The objec- conducting pre-feasibility or feasibility studies, including the
tive is to obtain 90% carbon capture and remove most of the Shenhua Group’s 200-MWe Shenmu power plant, Sunlight
pollutants, including SOx, NOx, Hg, and particulate matter. Coking’s 350-MWe thermoelectric pilot, China Datang
Corporation’s 350-MWe Daqing power plant, and Xinjiang
The UK power company Drax also announced its White Rose Guanghui Energy’s 170-MWe pilot.
commercial-scale 426-MWe oxy-fuel carbon capture dem-
onstration project. The Yorkshire-based project obtained Among the aforementioned industrial-scale installations,
official support from the UK’s Department of Energy & Climate a number of key components necessary for the oxy-fuel
Change in December 2013. A front-end engineering design process have been verified. For instance, major power equip-
(FEED) study is currently being conducted. ment manufacturers such as Alstom, IHI, Doosan Babcock,
62
Hitachi, and B&W have completed evaluation tests on single Program for carbon emissions reduction, and launched a com-
10-MWe oxy-fuel swirl burners that can be used in large-scale prehensive national system for the research, development, and
demonstrations. Alstom has completed verification tests on demonstration of oxy-fuel-based CO2 capture. Table 3 lists the
a 15-MWth oxy-fuel tangential combustion system. Foster major fundamental oxy-fuel combustion research projects sup-
Wheeler has completed semi-industrial verification of a ported by the Chinese government and industry.5
10-MWe oxy-fuel CFB. Gas separation equipment suppliers Air
Products, Linde, and Air Liquide have completed evaluation HUST has already carried out much research and development
tests of compression/purification systems at the 10–30-MWth work on basic oxy-fuel combustion, technology development,
level. The success of these tests has laid the foundation for and pilot projects, which has largely driven oxy-fuel combus-
further large-scale projects. tion technology development in China. Based on progress to
date, HUST has developed a roadmap for oxy-fuel technology
THE CURRENT STATUS OF OXY- development in China (see Figure 2).
FUEL TECHNOLOGY IN CHINA
Laboratory- and Small-Scale Tests
The foundation for Chinese oxy-fuel combustion research
began in the mid-1990s. Huazhong University of Science and Table 4 provides an overview of the oxy-fuel combustion
Technology (HUST) and Southeast University were the first small test systems (>10 kWth) that China has built or plans
institutions to focus on the desulfurization mechanisms and to build. Overall, there are two main approaches to oxy-fuel
combustion properties of oxy-fuel combustion.4 In 2006, HUST coal combustion (pulverized coal combustion and fluidized
obtained the support of the first National High Technology bed combustion). To support the development of the overall
Research and Development Program for carbon emissions re- technology and key components, there has been significant
duction and the first National Key Basic Research Development oxy-fuel-related research activity and platform constructions.2
63
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
200–600 MWe
≥Million tonnes/yr
40 MWth plant
2.5 MWth CFB Commercial-scale
CO2-EOR
Fundamental 50 kWth oxyfuel boiler burner, long-term
study Oxy-CFB pilot In-bed head exchanger operation
In 2006, HUST completed China’s first 300-kWth-test bed for Air Separation Equipment Co., Ltd., and Jiuda (Yingcheng) Salt
oxy-fuel combustion and pollutant removal, achieving the Co., Ltd. The project involved rebuilding a 12-MWe oxy-fuel
objective of enriching high concentrations of CO2 (95%) and boiler in the salt company’s power plant. The system uses a
removing 85% of NOx and 90% of SO2.
swirl combustion system positioned on the front wall and is
equipped with a cryogenic air separation system. The design
In 2011, HUST completed construction of China’s first 3-MWth
oxy-fuel whole process test platform in Wuhan (see Figure 3). of the boiler and system is compatible with oxy-fuel combus-
This platform is currently China’s largest capacity oxy-fuel test tion. Evaluation tests can be conducted on air combustion as
platform, with a heat input of 3 MWth and an annual CO2 cap- well as dry and wet circulation oxy-fuel combustion. After con-
ture capacity of up to 7000 tonnes. This system first separates struction is complete, the pilot is expected to achieve a flue
oxygen from air, then enriches, compresses, and purifies the gas CO2 concentration higher than 80% and a CO2 capture rate
CO2 generated during combustion. Thus the testing platform greater than 90% at a CO2 capture capacity of 100,000 tonnes/
incorporates the comprehensive oxy-fuel combustion process.
year. The captured CO2 can be stored in the mine shafts of the
The system was designed in accordance with industry stan-
disused salt mine. In addition, some of the CO2 can also be
dards, and therefore possesses the capacity for deployment at
increased scale. A number of key technological breakthroughs used in the removal of calcium and magnesium during the salt
were achieved during the design, construction, and commis- manufacturing process. The project and its commissioning are
sioning of the system. expected to be completed by the end of 2014. CO2 capture,
utilization, and storage (CCUS) will be incorporated during the
Integrating the advantages and features of a circulating flu- second phase.
idized bed, Southeast University has conducted systematic
studies of CFB oxy-fuel technology.6,7 A CFB oxy-fuel pilot test
installation (50 kWth) was constructed, which was the first in
China to genuinely achieve flue gas recirculation and the first
internationally to be able to achieve wet flue gas circulation.
The 2.5-MWth circulating fluidized bed oxy-fuel test system that
Southeast University has built in partnership with B&W has
been fully constructed and is currently being commissioned.
Industrial Pilots
64
TABLE 4. Overview of China’s oxy-fuel combustion small test systems (>10 kWth)
65
www.cornerstonemag.net
T E CH N O L O G Y FR ONT IE R S
Xinjiang Guanghui New Energy Co., Ltd. has signed a strategic demonstration projects, technology research and development,
cooperation agreement with the U.S.-based Jupiter Oxygen environmental monitoring, storage uses, policies and regula-
Corporation for a carbon capture, energy conservation, and tions, and international cooperation.
emissions reduction project. Jupiter plans to invest US$200
million in collaborating with Xinjiang Guanghui New Energy REFERENCES
Co., Ltd. to build and develop a carbon capture and boiler
retrofit project. Through this technical cooperation, Xinjiang 1. Abraham, B.M. (1982). Coal-oxygen process provides CO2 for
Guanghui New Energy is expected to be able to reduce CO2 enhanced oil recovery. Oil and Gas Journal, 80(11), 68–75.
emissions by about 2.4 million tonnes yearly at its plant that 2. Buhre, B.J.P., Elliott, L.K., Sheng, C.D., Gupta, R.P., & Wall, T.F.
(2005). Oxy-fuel combustion technology for coal-fired power
produces 1.2 million tonnes of methanol and 800,000 tonnes generation. Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, 31(4),
of dimethyl ether plant each year. 283–307.
3. Wall, T., Stanger, R., & Santos, S. (2011). Demonstrations of coal-
fired oxy-fuel technology for carbon capture and storage and
OUTLOOK issues with commercial deployment. International Journal of
Greenhouse Gas Control, 5(S1), S5–S15.
Following 30 years of development, oxy-fuel technology has 4. Zheng, C., Zhao, Y., & Guo, X. (2014). The research and
matured and possesses the fundamental characteristics neces- development of oxy-fuel technology in China. Proceedings of
sary for commercial application. Importantly, it is suitable for the Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering, 34(23), 3856–
3864. (In Chinese)
existing coal-fired power plants. For China’s coal power-domi-
5. Social Development Science and Technology Division, Ministry
nated energy mix to achieve greenhouse gas emission reduction of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, et
targets, large-scale demonstrations must be launched as soon al. (2011). Technology development report on carbon capture,
as possible, to allow for the greatest likelihood for the com- utilization and storage (CCUS) in China. (In Chinese)
mercialization of oxy-fuel. At present, China has announced a 6. Duan, L.B., Zhao, C.S., Zhou, W., Qu, C.R., & Chen, X.P. (2011).
succession of special CCUS plans. A number of ministries, includ- O2/CO2 coal combustion characteristics in a 50 kW(th) circulating
fluidized bed. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control,
ing the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry
5, 770–776.
of Science and Technology, National Energy Administration, 7. Zhou, W., Zhao, C.S., Duan, L.B., Liu, D.Y., & Chen, X.P. (2011). CFD
Ministry of Environmental Protection, and Ministry of Land modeling of oxy-coal combustion in circulating fluidized bed.
and Resources, are promoting numerous strategies, including International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 5, 1489–1497.
66
GL OBAL NEWS
will change its approach to the resource tax on coal. The coun-
Movers & Shakers
try will now levy a resource tax based not on quantity, but on
price, which will replace the previous quantity-based approach.
Mitsubishi Corporation announced the opening of the The resource tax rate will be 2–10%; the exact amount will be
Caval Ridge Coal Mine in Queensland, Australia. Run by determined by the provincial governments within the given
BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), Caval Ridge is a new range. The statement also noted that the resource tax will be
open-cut mine located in the northern Bowen Basin in Cen- reduced by 30% for coal produced from exhausted coal mines,
tral Queensland that has the capacity to produce 5.5 million and by 50% for coal displaced from filling mining.
tonnes per year of high-quality metallurgical coal for a mine
life of about 60 years.
Europe
The board of the Rio Tinto Group has extended the tenure of
Chief Executive Sam Walsh and Chief Financial Officer Chris The European Council (EC) has adopted several energy targets
Lynch, providing a strong endorsement of their leadership, for 2030: reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% compared
the Group’s strategy, and its focus on driving shareholder with 1990 levels; obtain 27% of its energy from renewable
value. sources; and cut energy consumption by 27% compared with
projected levels. The final text of the agreement includes a
International Outlook flexibility clause stating that the EC will revisit these targets
after the UN climate summit in December 2015. The agree-
ment also includes provisions to compensate nations like
Australia Poland, which relies on coal for around 90% of its energy.
67
www.cornerstonemag.net
GL O B A L N E W S
G
lobally there are numerous conferences and meetings geared toward the coal and energy industries. The table below
highlights a few such events. If you would like your event listed in Cornerstone, please contact the Executive Editor at
cornerstone@wiley.com
There are several Coaltrans conferences globally each year. To learn more, visit www.coaltrans.com/calendar.aspx
68
Recent Select Publications From the WCA
Mercury Control for Coal-Derived Gas Streams Looking Into the Future for Coal
— Wiley-VCH — This newly published textbook covers
technologies for the detection, capture, and regulation of
The World Coal Association (WCA) and Assocarboni jointly
mercury evolved from the combustion or gasification of coal.
held a workshop in Rome on 18 November, bringing
The information in this
together global energy and environment leaders to discuss
textbook is largely based
the future global role of coal, practical action that can be
on the successful U.S.
taken to reduce emissions, and the energy challenges facing
Department of Energy
policymakers in Europe.
Mercury Program and
includes contributions
The workshop “Looking into the Future for Coal” featured
from an internation-
presentations from representatives from the Australian,
ally acclaimed group of
experts, edited by Evan Indonesian, and Italian governments. A keynote speech
J. Granite, Henry W. was given by the UNFCCC COP President Marcin Korolec,
Pennline, and Constance Poland’s State Secretary for the Environment, responsible
Senior. More informa- for Climate Policy.
tion is available at www.
wiley.com/WileyCDA/ The workshop built on the WCA’s Warsaw Communi-
WileyTitle/pro qué, developed with the Polish Ministry of Economy and
ductCd-3527329498. launched alongside COP19 in November 2013. The Commu-
html niqué outlined practical steps that can be taken to tackle
climate change and enable coal to continue to play its vital
World Energy Outlook 2014 — International Energy role as an affordable, abundant, easily accessible source of
Agency — For the first time, the IEA’s WEO will make projec- energy.
tions to 2040 throughout the energy sector. Other specific
topics covered in WEO Presentations and discussions at the workshop made clear
2014 include a look that most people are expecting a deal out of COP21 in Paris
at whether oil output in 2015. There was support for the coal industry being an
from North America active, constructive stakeholder and for the industry to
can reduce fluctuations more fully promote the role of technology in reducing envi-
amid abundance, the ronmental impacts from coal; this includes high-efficiency,
potential effects of low-emissions (HELE) coal technology and carbon capture,
expanding global LNG, utilization, and storage (CCUS). Participants also agreed that
the effect of efficiency the industry should develop a more compelling narrative
on regional energy pri- about coal, so that the broader community better under-
ces, how energy can stands the vital role coal plays globally.
improve life in sub-
Saharan Africa, and Further information is available at www.worldcoal.org
much more. WEO 2014
is available for purchase Divestment and the Future Role of Coal
from www.iea.org/w/
bookshop/477-World_ The World Coal Association has published the latest in its
Energy_Outlook_2014
series of “Coal Matters” fact sheets. Coal Matters - Divest-
ment and the future role of coal looks at divestment
Corrigendum: Volume 2, Issue 3: Page 12: In the figure campaigns and challenges the arguments being made
showing potential uses for gasification “hydrogen for oil against the coal industry.
refining” was listed twice. The lower term should have
been “substitute natural gas”. Page 27: The caption under The fact sheet reviews growing energy demand and projec-
the AP Image read, “Nabaj Sarif”, but should have read tions about the future of coal and looks at the role of coal
“Nawaz Sharif”. in energy and modern infrastructure. The fact sheet also
69
www.cornerstonemag.net
GL O B A L N E W S
shows that markets are already managing any risks associ- discussed the future development of the international coal
ated with fossil fuel investments. industry and other related subjects.
Technology has a huge role to play in reducing environmental Mr. Kenyon-Slaney acknowledged Shenhua Group’s con-
impacts from the use of coal. The fact sheet looks at high- tribution to the WCA through the continued support of
efficiency, low-emissions coal technology, carbon capture, Cornerstone and the Strategic Research Institute. Later, the
utilization, and storage along with actions and investments WCA Chairman visited the Shenhua Science and Technology
taken by the coal industry to reduce CO2 emissions. Research Institute, the Shendong coal mine, and the Zhun-
geer coal mine.
By definition, divestment requires a change in ownership of
assets: Institutes and individuals may sell their shares, but
can only do this if other institutes and individuals buy these
same shares. In other words, divestment does nothing to
affect the demand for or use of fossil fuels.
70
L E TTERS
T
he authors of this article analyzed the contribution increase its greenhouse gas emissions. While not neglecting
of coal to China’s economy based on several metrics. long-run climate concerns, an increased use of new technolo-
Much-needed proof was provided regarding the value gies to utilize the ample and widely available sources of coal
coal can provide. China has become the world’s second larg- would enable Europe to respond to its short-term energy
est economy, continuing to grow at full steam, and is also the security needs while not burdening its economies with exces-
largest coal producer and consumer. The country’s economic sive energy price increases. There are only a limited number
growth and its reliance on coal are not unrelated as coal has of options for energy, and with energy goals that include a
contributed tremendously to China’s development. This arti- reduced reliance on nuclear power and less dependence on
cle provides an understanding as to why developing countries Russian natural gas, the answer to Western Europe’s energy
continue to rely on coal as a leading energy source. Those that problem clearly involves a greater use of coal.
undermine the value of the coal industry may do well to con- John Jelacic
sider the information presented in this article. Independent Energy and Economic Analyst
T
After an analysis of the correlation between historical eco- his article is overly ambitious in its assertions of what is
nomic data and coal production and consumption, the authors possible regarding bringing online coal-fired power plants
calculated a positive correlation coefficient. The core of their that are no longer operating in the EU. One example is
analysis was the coal-dependence index that they defined the statement that some plants currently idled, such as those
using four indices, which ultimately explained the interde- in the UK, could be “brought back online relatively quickly”. In
pendency of coal and China’s GDP. As we know, coal provides many cases such plants are not actually idled, but completely
more than 70% of total primary energy consumption and more shut down. In some cases these plants have even been partly
than 70% of total power output in China. The authors demon- or fully demolished. Even for those plants still standing, they
strated how coal is an irreplaceable energy source that helps could not be simply placed back into service. Their opera-
ensure energy security, maintain social stability, and promote tion would be illegal as many of these plants do not have the
the development of national and local economies. required environmental controls to operate legally today. In
fact, this article does not take into account EU emission regu-
From a global perspective, the relationship between coal and lations, including the Industrial Emissions Directive—this will
economics remains strong. Although the global coal indus- be enforced as of 2016 and will actually result in the closure of
try is facing a downward trend, characterized by lower coal additional plants. Generally, the strategy laid out in this article
prices, I continue to believe that the perspective of the coal cannot realistically be followed under the current regulatory
industry should be based on the fact that coal consumption environment in the UK and greater EU.
will continue to grow, especially in developing countries.
Drawing from the data in this article, I hope that the global Anonymous
coal industry will face the future with optimism and extend its
work to realize the cleaner utilization of coal resources for the Response: The article was based on a dynamic situation
benefit of all. regarding the state of coal-fired power plants in the EU; unfor-
tunately, some plants have been idled or demolished since the
Zhang Songfeng original research was completed. However, the reader brings
Researcher up a valuable point that the longer European leaders wait to
Academy of Macroeconomic Research act, the more difficult it will be to reduce reliance on Russian
National Development and Reform Commission energy supplies. Thus, the door of opportunity is closing and I
suggest there should be an immediate moratorium on demol-
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3 ishing any coal-fired power plants in Europe. For instance, in
the UK, potential power generation sources such as the 1000-
A COAL-BASED STRATEGY TO REDUCE EUROPE’S MW Ferrybridge plant or the 350-MW Uskmouth plant must
DEPENDENCE ON RUSSIAN ENERGY IMPORTS be protected.
W
ith Western Europe facing the apparently intractable The research and the article did take into account the envi-
problem of its dependency on Russian natural gas ronmental upgrades that would be necessary to bring idled
imports, it is refreshing to read a rational analysis coal-fired plants back online. For example, I noted on p. 46,
that reminds us that an increased use of coal could broaden “It may be necessary to add more SO2 and NOx controls, and
71
www.cornerstonemag.net
L E T T E RS
perhaps other environmental upgrades, to the units.” While is commercial and supported by CO2 prices in the EU ETS.
considerable investment may be required, adding environmen-
tal controls for criteria emissions include applying completely Finally, it is important to make clear that the article presented
understood, fully commercial technologies already deployed an ambitious strategy to increase the energy security of the EU.
throughout Europe and the world. There may be some regulations that are not compatible with
the strategy, but it is worth weighing the value of a carbon-
Regarding greenhouse gas emissions, the article showed that neutral strategy that improves energy security. Regulations
CTG with CO2-EOR actually resulted in lower greenhouse gas can be modified more easily than global energy reserves.
emissions compared to continuing to rely on the leaky and
poorly maintained natural gas pipelines from Russia. As well, Roger Bezdek
there may be additional opportunities to reduce greenhouse President
gas emissions with CCUS from coal-fired power plants when it Management Information Services, Inc.
We’d appreciate hearing from you regarding what topics you would like us to cover.
We’re looking for any and all feedback from our readers.
Cornerstone aims to be inclusive to all things related to coal and energy, especially those pieces that are
focused on scientifically derived solutions for the challenges associated with ever increasing energy
demand. Our goal is to include diverse material, such as interviews, letters, op-ed editorials, technical
articles, global news, conference listings, etc. If you are interested in contributing or have suggestions
about what we should cover, please don’t hesitate to contact the editorial team.
72
V O LUME 2 AUTHOR I NDEX
73
www.cornerstonemag.net
V O L U M E 2 A U TH O R IN D E X
74
Coal Classification
Industry Approach to
Hazard Classification
under the Revised
MARPOL Convention
and the IMSBC Code
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) The reports are available free of charge to WCA
has introduced new environmental and health Members.
classification criteria for internationally shipped
solid bulk cargoes under the International Convention The reports are also available to non-WCA Members to
for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) purchase. If you would like information on purchasing
and the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes this package of reports, please email the WCA Team at:
(IMSBC) Code. classification@worldcoal.org
The World Coal Association (WCA), together with You can also get the reports for free if you join the
ARCHE - a specialist environmental toxicology WCA. Join today and you can get instant access to
consultancy - has prepared a package of reports to this package of reports, along with all the other
assist coal companies with complying with the new benefits of membership. If you would like to discuss
environmental and health classification requirements. WCA membership options, please get in touch:
The package consists of three reports and a summary membership@worldcoal.org
document:
www.facebook.com/worldcoalassociation www.youtube.com/worldcoal
GET CONNECTED
There are many ways to be connected with Cornerstone. Did you know you can
opt-in to have the table of contents for each new issue emailed to you; use the
emailed links to access the full issue or specific articles online, free of charge.
Opt-in on our website: www.cornerstonemag.net. Also, join our group on LinkedIn
where we will feature different articles and host discussions.
THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE WORLD COAL INDUSTRY
STAY CONNECTED
Don’t let your name be removed from our distribution list! If you are receiving
Cornerstone, but haven’t opted in yet, please visit our website and opt-in. If you
would prefer to receive a hard copy in Mandarin, please email your address to
the editors at cornerstone@shenhua.cc
CONNECT WITH US
Like what you’re reading? Disagree with an author? Have a correction? Email the
editors at cornerstone@wiley.com (English) or cornerstone@shenhua.cc (Chinese).
www.cornerstonemag.net
In many countries, coal and renewable
energy systems are being deployed at
greater percentages and, thus, there is
increased interest in how to optimally
integrate these systems. In fact, there
are a significant number of opportunities.