Babcock & Wilcox 1

Paul S. Nolan
Babcock & Wilcox
Barberton, Ohio, U.S.A.
Published for:
International Electric Power for China
Fall 1998
Flue Gas Desulfurization Technology for China
BR-1662
Introduction
The extraordinary rate of development of the power indus-
try in the Peoples Republic of China over the past decade brings
with it an increasing concern for environmental protection.
Between 1990 and 1995, new, coal-fired, thermal power plant
capacity grew by approximately 40,000 MW. A projection of
this installed capacity reaching 227,000 MW by 2010 is expected
to result in coal use for electric power generation alone that is
about four times greater than it was in 1990. With this greater
utilization of coal, the need for emissions control has been rec-
ognized as an important part of developing an industry that will
contribute to the further modernization of China in a way that
minimizes the impact both on the health of the population and
on the environment.
From an emissions standpoint, coal combustion results pri-
marily in the formation of flyash, nitrogen oxides (NO
x
), and
sulfur dioxide (SO
2
). The flyash can be readily controlled at 99
percent efficiency or more by the use of either electrostatic pre-
cipitators or fabric filters. Low NO
x
burners minimize NO
x
pro-
duction, and further chemical reduction technologies are avail-
able for very high levels of control.
There are a variety of technologies for control of SO
2
emis-
sions that vary significantly in process technology, suitability
for specific applications, and capital and operating costs. The
technologies available are usually differentiated according to:
1. whether the acidic SO
2
reacts with a chemical base in
solution, slurry, or solid form; and
2. whether or not the reactor product is sent to disposal or
converted into a usable by-product.
The various flue gas desulfurization (FGD) technologies were
first applied to coal-fired power plants in England in the 1930s,
but were not widely used until the United States Congress passed
the Clean Air Act in 1970. Between then and now, the process
technologies have steadily progressed through a period of grow-
ing maturity as the various research and development activi-
ties, demonstrations, and commercial systems have led to the
installation of more than 235,000 MW of commercial FGD sys-
tems worldwide.
Because both China and the United States have several types
of coals that can vary significantly in sulfur, ash, moisture con-
tent, and heating value, the selection and application of FGD
technology capable of controlling SO
2
emissions over a vary-
ing range of inlet conditions is normally based upon a site-spe-
cific control system designed to minimize capital and operating
costs in accordance with the individual utilitys specifications.
Wet Flue Gas Desulfurization
The most prominent technology is the process that uses an
aqueous slurry of lime, Ca(OH)
2
, or limestone, CaCO
3
, for con-
trol of SO
2
. The systems of the 1970s and early 1980s typically
operated at 90 percent SO
2
capture at a calcium/absorbed sulfur
molar ratio of about 1.1 Ca/S. While most of these scrubbers
did produce the desired result, uncontrolled, natural oxidation
of the sulfite species produced a slurry containing a mixture of
CaSO
3

1
/
2
H
2
O platelets and blocky crystals of CaSO
4
2H
2
O
(gypsum) that was difficult to dewater. Moreover, in many units,
lack of control of the relative supersaturation of the latter re-
sulted in the formation of scales and deposits that contributed
to high levels of maintenance and/or a high degree of redun-
dancy in process equipment. Once suppliers developed an un-
derstanding of this particular aspect of the chemistry, system
designs soon incorporated the ability to avoid these problems
either by forcing oxidation of the sulfite (SO
3
-2
) species to sul-
fate (SO
4
-2
) or by inhibiting natural oxidation through the addi-
tion of elemental sulfur to the slurry. In either case, the result-
ant control of the oxidation and subsequent crystallization pro-
cesses made the slurry easier to dewater and virtually elimi-
nated the scaling and plugging problems that occurred in early
system designs.
2 Babcock & Wilcox
Over the same period of time, utilities experience in the
operation and maintenance of the FGD systems developed into
more regular patterns. Without the unusual costs associated with
the high level of maintenance found in some of the earliest de-
signs, confidence grew. Individual users began to develop da-
tabases regarding the reliability of various system components,
materials of construction, and operating and maintenance costs.
Confidence not only grew, but grew quickly, as vendors and
industrial and governmental research organizations shared their
experience at international symposia, particularly those spon-
sored by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE), and the U.S. Environmental Pro-
tection Agency (EPA).
With more predictable, controllable performance, system
designs of the late 1980s and early 1990s increasingly reflected
features which contributed to improved reliability. The need for
a high degree of expensive spare equipment absorbers, pumps,
and dewatering equipment began to disappear. As a result,
larger, more cost effective designs began to be offered and pur-
chased. For example, of the first nineteen lime/limestone FGD
systems representing 11,417 MW of capacity designed by
Babcock and Wilcox (B&W), all but six were specified by the
customers to include a spare absorber module. In these early
systems, the largest absorber module treated flue gas equiva-
lent to about 250 MW of capacity. However, beginning with the
single absorber designed in 1992 to treat the total flue gas from
New Brunswick Powers Dalhousie Units 1 and 2 (315 MW to-
tal), twenty-seven systems representing 12,720 MW of capac-
ity have been designed with no spare modules. Although mod-
ules as large as 1,000 MW are now being ordered, absorber sizes
are typically in the 500-600 MW range, and recently designed
absorber module sizes for Taiwan Powers Taichung (4 x 550
MW), Korea Electric Powers Taean (4 x 500 MW) and Hadong
(6 x 500 MW), Consolidated Electric Power of Asias (PT CEPA
Indonesia) Tanjung Jati B (2 x 660 MW), and Electricity Gen-
erating Authority of Thailands (EGAT) Hinkrut (2 x 700 MW)
stations are all of sizes near the typical 600 MW boiler size
being installed in China today.
While the maximum size of the individual absorber is tend-
ing to grow larger in order to take advantage of the economy of
scale, designs based on recent research and development at
higher gas velocities
[1]
permit proportionately more flue gas
treatment per unit of tower volume, thus lowering the contribu-
tion of tower steel to overall cost.
While tower size is one of the larger elements of system cost,
there are a number of other features now being incorporated
into designs that serve to make wet FGD designs more cost ef-
fective. Prominent among these is the reduction of overall tower
height due to closer placement of spray headers in tower de-
signs and the use of interspatial spray headers.
[1,2]
The combi-
nation of these two features was incorporated in the systems
provided for Korea Electric Powers Taean (2,000 MW) and
Hadong (3,000 MW) power plants. All ten absorbers provide
for two sets of interspatial headers. This reduces the tower height
by approximately 4 m, which translates not only into lower
material and installation costs, but also reduced operating power
cost due to lower pumping head requirements.
One other feature of the Tanjung Jati B FGD system that
will be pertinent to Chinas coastal installations is the use of
seawater for make-up. Unlike some of the pure seawater sys-
tems where the neutralization and discharge of large quantities
of spent water must be addressed, this system is designed to
operate at high total dissolved solids concentration with mate-
rials selected to withstand the corrosive environment associ-
ated with the high chloride concentration.
Semi-Dry Flue Gas Desulfurization
Chinas installation of a large number of power plants is span-
ning a range of coal sulfur content similar to what is found in
the United States. From a global perspective, FGD experience
accumulated over the past 30 years suggests that wet limestone-
based, forced oxidation systems described in the preceding sec-
tion will, in most cases, be the most cost-effective means over
the life of the plant for new units burning higher sulfur coals.
Lower capital costs are realized as a result of the ability to plan
in advance for the best means of configuring the plant layout
for installation of the environmental control system. Further-
more, operating costs over the life of the plant are minimal as a
result of low reagent and disposal costs associated with lime or
limestone utilization factors very close to 100 percent. In con-
trast, lower capital cost, semi-dry slurry spray drying technolo-
gies may operate with a somewhat lower reagent utilization that
can depend on a number of factors, the most important of which
are the approach to the adiabatic saturation temperature of the
flue gas, the solids residence time, and whether a baghouse or
electrostatic precipitator is used to collect the product and flyash.
The application of semi-dry systems as new or retrofit installa-
tions may be preferable for some units burning low sulfur coal.
This was the case for a number of coal-fired units in the United
States, where the low sulfur coal and other site-specific factors
influenced the selection of this type of technology.
Semi-dry flue gas desulfurization systems are of three basic
designs characterized by the means used to effect contact of the
Ca(OH)
2
slurry with the flue gas. Systems utilizing very fine
droplets (on the order of 50-75 m) are available in two basic
configurations, differentiated by whether a dual-fluid nozzle,
typically using air atomization, or a rapidly spinning rotary at-
omizer is employed. B&W supplied the dual fluid atomizer de-
sign in the late 1970s for two large power plants operating on
low sulfur coal, and today is in the process of supplying a ro-
tary atomizer-based system for the Hayden Station of Public
Service of Colorado as a result of acquiring Joy Environmental
Technologies who had licensed the Niro rotary design for North
America. For both types of designs, the importance of assuring
proper control of the evaporation process is critical to avoid
deposit formation in the spray drying absorber vessel. Beyond
this, the technologies both rely on hardened wear parts in the
atomizer for reliable operation.
The third type of semi-dry system involves an absorber that
operates in many respects as a circulating fluid bed. Not as well
established as the spray dryer-based technologies, the system
relies on much longer solids residence time and a higher gas-
side pressure drop as a trade-off against the power required for
the more finely atomized systems.
Sorbent Injection Technologies
Sorbent injection technologies can provide low capital cost
options where low-to-moderate levels of SO
2
removal are re-
quired. The technologies described here are grouped to include
injection into the furnace, convection pass, or ductwork further
downstream, as well as injection of the sorbent either in dry or
in slurry form. They are worth consideration for smaller, older
Babcock & Wilcox 3
plants where the remaining useful life of the boiler does not
justify a high capital expenditure. They may also be generally
useful for applications with low sulfur coal or as a means of
achieving additional removal to supplement a more efficient
plant operating just slightly out of compliance. Their primary
disadvantage is a relatively low reagent utilization, typically in
the 25-50 percent range, though higher levels can be possible,
usually at the expense of increased capital and/or operating cost.
Furnace Sorbent Injection
Furnace sorbent injection technology was first used in En-
gland in the 1930s and was tested in the United States in the
1960s in anticipation of the Clean Air Act of 1970. Because
higher levels of SO
2
control were desired, efforts were quickly
directed toward the higher efficiency obtainable with the wet
FGD technologies. It was not until the mid-1980s that the pos-
sibility of low capital cost technology for older, smaller plants
renewed interest in the United States. At that time, moderate
levels of removal were seen as offering an acceptable cost/ben-
efit ratio. Research and development studies pushed perfor-
mance to 50-70 percent removal, well beyond the goals set for
the process. American utilities did not employ the technology,
however, because the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 even-
tually placed an even higher value on low SO
2
emissions attain-
able with wet FGD system technology or low sulfur coal. Nev-
ertheless, participation in the 105 MW Clean Coal Technology
Program demonstration supported by the State of Ohio Coal
Development Office and the U.S. DOE and EPA helped B&W
develop the expertise to provide a furnace limestone injection
system as an integral part of the 300 MW boiler designed for
the Saskatchewan (Canada) Power Shand Station.
[3,4]
As is true for all of the sorbent injection technologies, op-
eration is characterized by the need to achieve uniform distri-
bution of the sorbent within the flue gas stream at the appropri-
ate temperature. Failure to do so will result in significantly lower
removal and possible lay-down of the sorbent on surfaces that
would otherwise be exposed. When this occurs on heat ex-
changer surfaces, the ash/sorbent mixture will act as an effec-
tive insulating layer and decrease boiler efficiency significantly.
The use of well-placed sootblowers is essential.
The combination of furnace sorbent injection of limestone
with semi-dry scrubbing, a B&W technology patented in the
U.S. as Enhanced Limestone Injection Dry Scrubbing (E-
LIDS
TM
), may be particularly applicable for some units in China.
Because the furnace sorbent injection is relatively low cost, it
could be installed first to achieve low levels of removal. Using
the furnace as a calciner to form CaO from CaCO
3
, one would
then add a semi-dry scrubber to increase removal from perhaps
20-30 percent to 70-80 percent.
[5]
Convection Pass and Duct Sorbent Injection
Injection of Ca(OH)
2
, either as a dry powder or as a slurry,
has received less attention than any of the other FGD technolo-
gies as the sorbent utilization and the cost effectiveness tends
to be lower. The largest scale effort, the 105 MW Coolside dem-
onstration
[4]
conducted over a three-month period at Ohio
Edisons Edgewater Station as part of the Clean Coal Technol-
ogy Program, showed that up to 70 percent SO
2
capture was
feasible at a Ca/S molar ratio of 2.0. The technology has the
disadvantage, however, of requiring a high relative humidity of
the flue gas in order to achieve high SO
2
removal efficiency.
As a result, evaporation of water in the flue gas is an important
design consideration. Water, either alone or as part of the in-
jected slurry, must evaporate sufficiently to avoid formation of
deposits in the duct. This generally requires long, straight runs
to avoid impaction on walls and turning vanes, or the need for
relatively high power consumption for fine droplet formation.
Application of the technology will therefore be highly site-spe-
cific.
Summary
The application of emission control technology in China is
becoming increasingly important as more and more coal-fired
plants come on-line. Building on the experience of other indus-
trialized nations, the control of particulate and acid gas emis-
sions is not only possible, but can be addressed most cost effec-
tively as part of the overall development of the power industry.
In the process, the application of technologies based on site-
specific needs and requirements can be incorporated into plant
designs at an early stage. This will produce far-reaching ben-
efits that minimize the impact of such emissions on both the
people and the environment.
1. W.F. Gohara, T.W. Strock, and W.H. Hall, New Perspec-
tive of Wet Scrubber Fluid Mechanics in an Advanced Tower
Design, Paper presented at the EPRI-DOE-EPA Combined Util-
ity Air Pollutant Control Symposium, Washington, DC, August
1997.
2. T.W. Strock and W.F. Gohara, Use of Hydraulic Models
to Identify and Resolve Design Issues in FGD Systems, Paper
presented at the EPRI-DOE-EPA SO
2
Control Symposium, Mi-
ami, Florida, March 1995.
3. P.S. Nolan, T.W. Becker, P.O. Rodemeyer, and E.J.
Prodesky, Demonstration of Sorbent Injection Technology on
a Wall-fired Utility Boiler (Edgewater LIMB Demonstration),
Final report to the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA-
600/R-92-115 (NTIS PB92-201136) June 1992.
4. T.R. Goots, M.J. DePero, and P.S. Nolan, LIMB Dem-
onstration Project Extension and Coolside Demonstration, Fi-
nal report on Cooperative Agreement DE-FC22-87PC79798 with
the U.S. Department of Energy, DOE/PC/79798-T27 (NTIS
DE93005979) November 1992.
5. G.T. Amrhein, P.V. Smith, S.J. Vecci, and R.J. Batyko,
Pilot-Scale Demonstration of the LIDS System for SO
2
Con-
trol of High-Sulfur Coal, Presented at the 17th International
Conference on Coal Utilization and Slurry Technologies,
Clearwater, Florida, April 1992.
References