Coal-fired Power Industry Research Articles

Emission and distribution characteristics of PCDD/Fs during the co-processing of various solid wastes in coal-fired boilers in China

The advancement of co-processing solid wastes in coal-fired boilers is significant for waste recycling and contributes to the sustainable development of the coal-fired power industry. However, concerns over the emission of dioxins during co-processing have prompted a comprehensive investigation into the dioxin emission properties. In this study, the PCDD/F emission concentrations of seven coal-fired boilers, including three pulverized coal boilers and four circulating fluidized bed boilers were examined. The results indicate that co-processing solid wastes in coal-fired boilers did not lead to an increase in the mass concentration of dioxins in either the flue gas or solid samples, and the international toxic equivalents (I-TEQ) of dioxins in the flue gas complied with prevailing emission standards (0.1 ng I-TEQ/Nm3) in China, proving that coal-fired boilers co-processing would not raise the emission risk of dioxins. The types of waste during co-processing had minimal effect on the I-TEQ of dioxins. A significant proportion of PCDD/Fs was observed in the ash samples, while only 13.0–25.7% and 0.7–6.8% of dioxins were distributed in the boiler slag and the flue gas, respectively. The emission factor of dioxins under the blank conditions ranged from 0.009 to 0.327 ng I-TEQ/kg-coal, while it ranged from 0.015 to 0.129 ng I-TEQ/kg-(coal+waste) under the co-processing conditions. The reduction of emission factor under co-processing condition could be attributed to the significant decrease of dioxins I-TEQ.

The impact of carbon trading mechanism and technology application on carbon emission reduction in China’s coal-fired power industry:Multi-agent simulation based on reinforcement learning

The impact of carbon trading mechanism and technology application on carbon emission reduction in China’s coal-fired power industry:Multi-agent simulation based on reinforcement learning

Analysis of emission evolution and synergistic reduction effect of air pollutants and CO2 from Chinese coal-fired power plants

The coal-fired power industry is the largest coal-consuming sector in China, and it serves as a significant source of air pollutants and carbon emissions. In this study, we investigated the evolution of air pollutants and CO2 emissions originating from coal-fired power plants (CFPPs) from 2013 to 2020 based on a unit-based bottom-up inventory, and then we quantitatively assessed their combined reduction effects from 2013 to 2060. Our findings indicated that air pollutant emissions experienced a rapid decrease from 2013 to 2020, with nearly 46.0%–64.2% of the reduction occurring within the years 2013–2017. However, CO2 emissions displayed a slight increase during the same period. The top five provinces with the most robust synergistic reduction effects for both air pollutants and CO2 were Jiangsu, Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, and Shandong. The primary measures to the reduction in CO2 emissions were energy structure adjustment and energy conservation and consumption reduction. By 2060, emissions of PM2.5, SO2, NOx, Hg, and CO2 had decreased by 57.9–92.1%, 26.0–80.6%, 18.1–69.4%, 26.6–86.3%, and 35.8–76.1% compared to the levels in 2020, respectively. As the emission reduction process advanced, the reduction effect on CO2 became more pronounced within the synergistic process. We believe that our highly detailed emission inventory comprehensively captures the historical evolution of PM2.5, SO2, NOx, Hg, and CO2 emissions from CFPPs. Furthermore, the scenario analysis results we have obtained will be instrumental in supporting policy development aimed at achieving the synergistic reduction of air pollutants and carbon emissions.

Ecological Responses of Soil Bacterial Communities to Heavy Metal Contamination Surrounding a Typical Coal-based Industrial Region

Microbial communities in the soil might be affected by heavy metal contamination caused by anthropogenic activities associated with the coal-based industry. This study analyzed the differences in soil physicochemical properties, heavy metal concentrations, and enzyme activities surrounding different coal-based industrial fields(coal mining industry, coal preparation industry, coal-based chemical industry, and coal-fired power industry) in Shanxi Province, North China. Moreover, soil samples from farmland and parks away from all the industrial plants were collected as references. Based on the 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing, we identified the composition of soil bacterial communities. Spearman correlation and redundancy analyses were used to explore the relationships between soil bacterial communities and environmental factors. The results showed that the concentrations of most heavy metals were greater than the local background values, particularly for As, Pb, and Cd, but they did not exceed the risk screening values of Soil Environment Quality:Risk Control Standard for Soil Contamination of Agriculture Land(GB 15618-2018). There were significant differences in soil cellulase and alkaline phosphatase activities among sampling fields. Actinobacteria was the predominant bacterial phyla, with the highest relative abundance surrounding the coal-based chemical plants, followed by Proteobacteria. The soil bacterial communities were significantly affected by Cd, total carbon, total nitrogen, and alkaline phosphatase activity. This study could provide a foundation for the ecological remediation of the coal-based industrial region in the future.

Impact of adaptive water-saving and phaseout strategies on water withdrawal in China's coal-fired power industry under carbon constraints

Coal-fired power generation occupies a dominant position in China's power sector and is known for its high water requirement. Limited research exists on how water withdrawal for coal-fired power generation responds to policy and technical factors, as well as spatial variations in the future. To address this gap, this study utilizes a geospatial dataset at the coal-fired power unit level and an improved calculation method for water withdrawal to investigate the evolving trend of water withdrawal in coal-fired power generation, considering the influences of carbon emission reduction, adaptive water-saving measures, and phaseout strategies. The results demonstrate that the improved water withdrawal calculation method yields superior simulation outcomes compared to existing approaches. The study reveals substantial variations in coal-fired power generation under different carbon emission reduction scenarios. Despite the business-as-usual (BAU) scenario where coal-fired power generation continues to dominate the power sector, implementing various adaptive water-saving scenarios results in national water withdrawal estimates ranging from 42.9 to 59.4 billion m3 in 2050. In contrast, water withdrawal is reduced by 37.6% to 42.9% under the 2.0℃ target scenario and by 86.5% to 97.5% under the 1.5℃ target scenario. Technological advancements play a crucial role in reducing water withdrawal for coal-fired power generation, particularly in northwest China. The transformation of cooling systems significantly decreases water withdrawal nationwide and in the regions that predominantly relied on once-through cooling. The deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology in coal-fired power plants in the northwest region creates short-term pressure on regional water resources. Under strict carbon emissions constraints, adopting the phaseout strategy with guaranteed lifetime results in relatively higher water withdrawal for coal-fired power generation, and the variations in coal-fired power plants configuration across provinces lead to different responses in water withdrawal changes when facing the same unit retirement strategy.

Optimizing sustainable biomass–coal co-firing power plant location problem under ambiguous supply

Promoting biomass–coal co-firing power generation technology in existing coal-fired power plants is a practical and relatively low-cost short-run choice for the coal-fired power industry to reduce carbon emissions and develop sustainably. However, the uncertainty of biomass supply complicates the location of co-firing power plants among existing coal-fired plants. To address the challenge that only limited historical data of uncertain supply are available, this paper proposes a new ambiguity distribution set to characterize the uncertain supply capacity, supply price, and supply quality (i.e., energy conversion coefficient). Accordingly, a novel bi-objective distributionally robust fuzzy optimization model is developed for the sustainable co-firing power plant location (SCPPL) problem to balance conflicting objectives of minimizing total cost and maximizing carbon emission reduction. Subsequently, the computationally tractable counterpart of the proposed model is derived against the worst-case distribution by reformulating the distributionally robust credibility objective and constraints as their solvable equivalent forms. Furthermore, the Pareto optimal solutions of the proposed bi-objective model are generated using the augmented ϵ-constraint method. Finally, a realistic case study of Heilongjiang Province in China is conducted to verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed optimization method. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed model can hedge against the distributional ambiguity of uncertain parameters and provides a robust co-firing power plant location strategy. By comparison with the nominal distribution model and analysis of the sensitivity of selected parameters, management insights are summarized for decision-makers.

Optimization of the sustainable production pathways under multiple industries and objectives: A study of China's three energy- and emission-intensive industries

Sustainable production pathways are essential for the greening of the industrial sector. To develop the comprehensive optimal pathway, it is important to consider the interactions between multiple industries and objectives. While previous studies have combined several objectives in this field, the simultaneous optimization of multiple industries is still lacking. This study simulates the system of industrial sustainable production measures, including 184 measures in seven types, and proposes the optimization model in China's iron and steel, cement, and coal-fired power industry as cases. To solve this problem with large-scale variables and high-dimensional objectives, this study develops the solution approach including the objective decomposition mechanism and non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm–II–elimination and choice expressing reality (NSGA–II–ELECTRE-III) algorithm, with final decision schemes selected by the Vague-set based approach. Results show that though the energy and emission objectives within an industry are synergic, but the relationships between different industries are almost irrelevant. By 2035, The three industries are estimated to reach energy conservations and emission reductions of 5.2–66.8% compared to 2017. The optimal solutions can exceed the air pollutant emission reduction targets but take risks of reaching energy conservation and CO2 emission reduction ones. The main contribution measures in the three industries are the integration of production equipment structure upgrade and cleaner production technology promotion, production output limitation, and production equipment structure upgrade, respectively, with 57 measures being prior for promotion. In sum, this study provides new solution methods and several policy suggestions for industrial sustainable production management.

Ecological Responses of Soil Microbial Communities to Heavy Metal Stress in a Coal-Based Industrial Region in China.

Soil microorganisms play vital roles in ecosystem functions, and soil microbial communities might be affected by heavy metal contamination caused by the anthropogenic activities associated with the coal-based industry. This study explored the effects of heavy metal contamination on soil bacterial and fungal communities surrounding different coal-based industrial fields (the coal mining industry, coal preparation industry, coal-based chemical industry, and coal-fired power industry) in Shanxi province, North China. Moreover, soil samples from farmland and parks away from all the industrial plants were collected as references. The results showed that the concentrations of most heavy metals were greater than the local background values, particularly for arsenic (As), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg). There were significant differences in soil cellulase and alkaline phosphatase activities among sampling fields. The composition, diversity, and abundance of soil microbial communities among all sampling fields were significantly different, particularly for the fungal community. Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, and Acidobacteria were the predominant bacterial phyla, while Ascomycota, Mortierellomycota, and Basidiomycota dominated the studied fungal community in this coal-based industrially intensive region. A redundancy analysis, variance partitioning analysis, and Spearman correlation analysis revealed that the soil microbial community structure was significantly affected by Cd, total carbon, total nitrogen, and alkaline phosphatase activity. This study profiles the basic features of the soil physicochemical properties, the multiple heavy metal concentrations, and the microbial communities in a coal-based industrial region in North China.

The Risk of Orofacial Cleft Lip/Palate Due to Maternal Ambient Air Pollution Exposure: A Call for Further Research in South Africa.

Despite being underreported, orofacial cleft lip/palate (CLP) remains in the top five of South Africa's most common congenital disorders. Maternal air pollution exposure has been associated with CLP in neonates. South Africa has high air pollution levels due to domestic burning practices, coal-fired power plants, mining, industry, and traffic pollution, among other sources. We investigated air pollutant levels in geographic locations of CLP cases. In a retrospective case series study (2006-2020) from a combined dataset by a Gauteng surgeon and South African Operation Smile, the maternal address at pregnancy was obtained for 2,515 CLP cases. Data from the South African Air Quality Information System was used to calculate annual averages of particulate matter (PM) concentrations of particles < 10 µm (PM10) and < 2.5 µm (PM2.5). Correlation analysis determined the relationship between average PM2.5/PM10 concentrations and CLP birth prevalence. Hotspot analysis was done using the Average Nearest Neighbor tool in ArcGIS. Correlation analysis showed an increasing trend of CLP birth prevalence to PM10 (CC = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.38-0.77, p < 0.001) and PM2.5 (CC = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.42-0.77, p < 0.001). Hot spot analysis revealed that areas with higher concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 had a higher proclivity for maternal residence (z-score = -68.2, p < 0.001). CLP birth prevalence hotspot clusters were identified in district municipalities in the provinces of Gauteng, Limpopo, North-West, Mpumalanga, and Free State. KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape had lower PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations and were cold spot clusters. Maternal exposure to air pollution is known to impact the fetal environment and increase CLP risk. We discovered enough evidence of an effect to warrant further investigation. We advocate for a concerted effort by the government, physicians, researchers, non-government organizations working with CLP patients, and others to collect quality data on all maternal information and pollutant levels in all provinces of South Africa. Collaboration and data sharing for additional research will help us better understand the impact of air pollution on CLP in South Africa.

Coal in energy balance of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

In the article, the role of coal in the energy balance of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) is assessed by factoring in significant coal reserves, including low-quality and local coal in hard-to-reach areas. The research was carried out using system analysis methods. To this end, the retrospective dynamics of production and consumption of fuel and energy resources in retrospect and estimates were considered. The estimates were obtained by analysing reference documents, available resources for coal mining and the calculations performed by the authors. The production and consumption of fuel and energy resources of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) were analysed. It was shown that coal comprises one of the main resources for power and heat generation, along with gas and water resources. Its share in the consumption of primary fuel and energy resources in 2020 amounted to 34.6%. According to the calculation results, the coal production in the Republic in the future may reach 43 million tons, which will lead to the stabilisation of the export supply of coal and the demand for fuel at power plants and boiler houses in the Republic and neighbouring regions. Projects for developing the coal-fired power industry in the Republic rely on the consumption of coal from the South Yakut coal basin. In the optimal forecast balances, the share of coal generally remaining unchanged may range from 37.8 to 38.7% by 2035. It was established that the potential for coal consumption may increase from 3.5 million tons of coil, equivalent in 2020 to 4.1–4.8 million tons of coil equivalent per year. Mining opportunities significantly exceed their demand, both at present and in the future. A system analysis of the obtained results allowed the main factors affecting coal consumption in the long term to be identified. Coal mined in the South Yakut basin comprises a reliable fuel source in the zone of centralised energy supply in the future. In areas of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) having underdeveloped infrastructure and low population density, coal from local deposits becomes an alternative to imported fuel if their development is economically and socially justified.

Research on Decarbonization Pathway of China’s Coal-Fired Power Industry From the Perspective of Conflict Mediation

The transition to a low-carbon energy system is imminent under the constraints of carbon-peaking and carbon-neutral targets. Undoubtedly, coal-related carbon emissions over the past decades have had profound negative impacts on human life and the global climate. However, the main position of coal in the energy system determines that pure coal reduction strategy will inevitably lead to a systemic energy crisis. To this end, we explore the conflict formation mechanism among coal enterprises, downstream coal-fired power plants, and government in the process of strategic energy decarbonization transformation from the perspective of industrial chain, and analyze the feasible conflict states and their NASH, GMR, SMR, and SEQ equilibrium characteristics by constructing a ternary GMCR model. It is found that there are two feasible conflict states s10 and s12 that simultaneously satisfy the conditions of the above four types of equilibria. In this context, the evolution paths of s10 and s12 are further analyzed and conflict mediation strategies are proposed accordingly. Meanwhile, the decarbonization transition of the energy system needs to consider both the stage characteristics and regional differences of energy reform, as well as the important role of green low-carbon technological innovation as a grip for the decarbonization transition of energy.

Transformation and Development of the Coal-Based Energy Industry Under the Goals of Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality

The coal-based energy industry plays a huge role in supporting the development of a national economy. As China pledges to achieve carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals, how to keep a balance between carbon emission reduction and coal consumption has become a serious problem and daunting challenge facing the industrial chain of coal-based energy for a long time. The prospects for the coal mining industry are increasingly limited under carbon constraints. Faced with serious challenges in its positioning and technological development, the coal-fired power industry is suffering the consequences of negative environmental externalities. Therefore, the low-carbon transformation of China’s coal-based energy industry is necessary and urgent. This paper conducts an in-depth analysis of the development status of China’s coal-based energy industry under the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals and the obstacles in the transformation and upgrade of the coal-based energy industry, and comes up with response strategies. The future coal-based energy industry should make full use of emerging low-carbon clean technologies such as carbon capture, utilization, and storage to achieve low-carbon transformation, and upgrade of the entire industrial chain, following the current development trends.

Improve technical efficiency of China's coal-fired power enterprises: Taking a coal-fired-withdrawl context

In the process of energy transition, reference standards are needed to guide the orderly withdrawal of coal-fired power enterprises. This study applies stochastic frontier analysis to measure the technical efficiency, as the reference standard, based on data from all coal-fired power enterprises of a large Chinese power generation group from 2010 to 2015. Meanwhile, in order to make more specific policy recommendations, this paper provides a detailed analysis of the technical efficiency in three aspects: return to scale, operation hours, and regional characteristics. The empirical results show that the average technical efficiency of coal-fired power enterprises is 0.818, which still leaves room for improvement of about 20%; the industry shows slightly decreasing return to scale, which primarily results from enterprises with larger capacity but less operation hours; correlation between efficiency and operation hours varies widely among regions, with South and Northwest China in the greatest need of improving the generation assignment approach; finally, unit coal reduction and equity increase are important ways to improve technical efficiency, and older power enterprises and larger units have greater potential for high-quality power supply. The findings will serve as a reference for policy makers to promote a more effective planning of coal-fired power industry in China.

Is information and communications technology effective for industrial energy conservation and emission reduction? Evidence from three energy-intensive industries in China

Information and communications technology (ICT) can significantly contribute to industrial energy conservation and emission reduction by improving production and management efficiency. However, few studies have analyzed the technical mechanisms nor quantified the effects of ICT in the industrial sector, hence, existing studies cannot fully support the technology promotion strategy. To overcome this research gap, a nationwide industrial ICT system is built for the first time. Taking China's iron and steel, cement, and coal-fired power industry as case study, this paper has adopted bottom-up modeling approaches to simulate the material and energy metabolism of industrial production process, divided ICTs into six types based on their application units, and then quantified their energy conservation and emission reduction potential. In addition, Conservation Supply Curves, Latin Hypercube Sampling, and HSY algorithm methods are used to analyze their technical performance. Results show: (1) The application of ICT has considerable effects, as it can enlarge the industrial energy conservation and emission reduction potential by 10.7–21.7% in the next 15 years; (2) The differences between the technical costs of ICTs are significant, meanwhile more than 70% of this potential is cost-effective; (3) Uncertainty factors will affect technical potential and cost by 4–15%, amongst which technical popularity is the most sensitive factor. These findings reveal the significant effects of ICT and put forward policy suggestions on their promotion strategy in industrial energy conservation and emission reduction.

Modeling health impacts of air pollutant emissions from the coal-fired power industry based on LCA and oriented by WTP: a case study.

Coal-fired power plants are one of the major sources of coal consumption in China; they discharge various air pollutants and cause serious human health damage. There is an urgent need to focus on the associated health effects. Thus, this study aims to advance an integrated life cycle assessment (LCA)-based health damage model to quantify the health burden of air pollutant emissions from coal-fired power generation (CFPG) and to achieve an economic interpretation of health damage. A case study of the Zaozhuang coal-fired power project was conducted to better visualize and mitigate the impacts. The results reveal that willingness to pay (WTP) for health damage caused by the CFPG project in 1year amounted to USD 15.71 million, and the total amount of life lost was 155.81years. During the CFPG process, coal combustion caused the most health damage, respiratory disease was the type of damage with the greatest influence on health, and SO2 was the air pollutant that causes the most serious health damage. The model developed in this study can be broadly applied to assess the potential life loss due to air pollutant emissions from CFPG systems. The identified key points for health damage prevention can also be used as practical solutions for decision-making regarding the prioritization of control sources for environmental management.

Total Factor Energy Efficiency of China’s Thermal Power Industry

Coal-based thermal power generation has long been the main source of power generation in the mainland of China. The efficiency of power generation is an important factor that determines the energy conservation and emission reduction as well as the sustainable development of the power industry in China. By comparing the regional differences of 30 provinces in the mainland from 2013 to 2017, this study uses the Super-DDF model and the TFEE to comprehensively evaluate the energy efficiency of thermal power generation. Empirical results: Overall efficiency: eastern efficiency (1.181) is the highest, followed by western (0.956), central (0.951) and northeastern (0.926). Total factor energy efficiency: eastern efficiency (0.923) is the highest, followed by western (0.754), central (0.742) and northeastern (0.710). The government and power industry managers should fully consider the regional differences in the field of thermal power generation when formulating policies so as to improve the power efficiency and promote the green development of power industry in China. Based on the analysis results, although the coal-fired power industry is more mature than other alternative energy industries, the expansion of thermal power generation cannot be considered if CO2 emissions are to be reduced. Additionally, the market share and competitiveness of the local power industry can be increased based on the different conditions of the resource endowments of each region.

Stackelberg game based co-firing biomass with coal under carbon cap-and-trade regulation

Coal-fired power industry is under enormous pressure to accomplish carbon emission reduction targets. This paper proposes a bi-level multi-objective model for co-firing biomass with coal under carbon cap-and-trade regulation which considers a leader-follower Stackelberg game between the authority and the coal-fired power plants. The upper level regards social welfare maximization and allocation satisfaction maximization as its multiple objectives, while the lower level attempts to maximize the profits of each coal-fired power plant. The inherent uncertainty prompts the motivation for employing fuzzy set theory to characterize the uncertain parameters and determine their exact values. A case study from Shandong Province, China is provided to demonstrate the practicality and efficiency of the optimization model. [Formula: see text]-constraint method and interactive algorithm are used to solve the model, and furthermore the solutions associated with different free carbon emission quota levels and minimal allocation satisfactions have been generated to examine the influences. Based on the analysis and discussion, the methodology can meet the carbon emission reduction goals and transit to a lower-carbon power generation. It also assists the decision makers to develop desired quota allocation strategy in accordance with their attitudes and actual conditions.

Limestone Sorbents Market for Flue Gas Desulphurisation in Coal-Fired Power Plants in the Context of the Transformation of the Power Industry—A Case of Poland

Since the beginning of the 1990s, due to international regulations on air quality, a large number of flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) installations have been constructed in the Polish coal-fired power industry. Thanks to that, SO2 capture in this industry increased to ca. 90%. Since wet lime or fluidized bed boilers were mostly used for FGD purposes, a significant increase in the domestic demand for lime sorbents has been reported. Between 1994 and 2019, it has increased from virtually zero before 1994 to about 3.3–3.4 million tpy (tonnes per year) today. On the basis of official governmental data and completed surveys of the Polish power companies, the paper analyses the process of the implementation of FGD in Poland along with limestone sorbents consumption and FGD gypsum production in the Polish coal-fired power plants. It also presents the current and potential limestone resource base for production of limestone sorbents applied in FGD. Electric energy mix in Poland is expected to be changed radically in the coming 30 years. Share of coal-based electricity is still very high—ca. 80%—and it will remain dominant for at least next decade. With the next coming FGD installations, further moderate increase of limestone sorbents consumption is expected, up to 3.7 million tpy in 2030. After 2030, a significant, quick decrease of share of coal-fired electricity is expected in Poland, down to max. 30% just before 2050. This will result in a gradual decrease in limestone sorbent demand, to max. 1.3 million tpy before 2050 and virtually zero after 2050, which will be followed by collapse of FGD gypsum production.

Carbon emission reduction potential and its influencing factors in China’s coal-fired power industry: a cost optimization and decomposition analysis

Carbon emission reduction potential and its influencing factors in China’s coal-fired power industry: a cost optimization and decomposition analysis

Improving the waste utilisation efficiency of combined heat and power plants by increasing the performance of dry-ash output units

The study aims to improve the efficiency of waste utilisation from the coal-fired power industry based on an analysis of the dry-ash output unit operating at the Novo-Irkutsk Combined Heat and Power Plant, JSC “Irkutskenergo”. The unit was tested under various operating conditions of steam generating blocks following the standard methods adopted at the enterprise. The tests showed that the station steam generating block No. 3 (with a steam load of 409.2 t/h and an electrostatic precipitator efficiency of 90.46%) provided an ash supply efficiency of 7.10 t/h. When the ash is supplied from the steam generating block No. 4, operating at a steam load of 421.8 t/h and an electrostatic precipitator efficiency of 94.72%, the ash supply efficiency amounts to 9.19 t/h. Under the simultaneous operation of the steam generating blocks No. 3 and 4 at a steam load of 397.6 and 380.7 t/h, respectively, and an electrostatic precipitator efficiency of 90.46 and 94.72%, respectively, the unit efficiency was 14.23 t/h. As a result, limitations in the unit operation were identified. Thus, the airspeed in the pneumatic ash pipeline during ash transporting was 8.0-8.5 m/s, which facilitated the operation of the dry-ash output unit in a pulsed cycle. It was, therefore, recommended to increase the airspeed by accelerating the flow rate through the jet pump or by using a smaller diameter pipe. The conducted analysis showed that the efficiency of the dry-ash output unit depends mainly on the steam capacity of steam generating blocks, as well as on the flue gas cleaning efficiency in the steam generator electrostatic precipitators. The obtained results were used to determine the technical state, efficiency and reliability of the dry-ash output unit of the Novo-Irkutsk Combined Heat and Power Plant.