Fossil Fuel Power Generation Research Articles

Identifying barriers to aboriginal renewable energy deployment in Canada

As one of the largest and wealthiest countries in the world, Canada stands well-positioned to take advantage of ongoing growth in North American demand for primary energy supply by expanding domestic delivery of renewable energy generation to internationally interconnected electric grids across the country. There are myriad benefits of adopting the renewable energy approach to development—as the province of Ontario has acknowledged through the implementation of their 2009 Green Energy Act—including drastic reductions in carbon emissions, the decommissioning of existing fossil fuel power generation that cause serious public health problems, and opportunities for sustainable development at the community level.One group in particular stands poised to shape these debates. In Canada, historically marginalized Aboriginal peoples remain one of the groups with the greatest potential for meeting these enormous renewable energy deployment needs. Aboriginal involvement in renewable energy generation in Canada has been as diverse as Canada's Aboriginal peoples and groups have already adopted a range of different solutions to meet energy supply needs. However, many significant barriers exist that prevent this diverse cultural group from reaching its full potential. The article identifies some of these shortcomings and analyzes their roots.

Energy consumption of subscriber devices in broadband network

The paper provides estimates how deployment of fast fixed broadband may affect consumption of energy by subscriber's electronic devices. New subscribers are expected to buy additional equipment: PCs, laptops, TV sets, game consoles, etc. and more intensively use all devices connected to the net. The effects are independent of access technology, as long as certain key services are supported.Resulting increase of electricity consumption by households will likely require costly investment in new power plants. In case of fossil fuel power generation, negative environmental consequences will be noticeable. However, progress in reducing device power consumption and replacement of desktop PCs with laptops and other portable devices shall considerably mitigate these effects.

Sustainable Energy Challenges for Civil Engineering Management

The history of civil engineering is marked by significant changes in focus and work arrangements. Organized after military engineering, civil engineering initially encompassed all nonmilitary infrastructure work. That neat division would soon become more complicated. As new technologies developed, new infrastructure applications were incorporated into civil engineering, such as railroads, airports, water supply, and wastewater treatment engineering. New social concerns also sparked changes in civil engineering work, such as new regulations for air and water pollution abatement. Engineering itself evolved into numerous distinct disciplines, including engineering specializations in biomedical, chemical, electrical, mechanical, metallurgical, and mining engineering. Civil engineers tended to work on larger spatial and temporal scales than other engineering disciplines. Civil engineers have been increasingly working in teams with multiple professions represented, such as architects, constructors, and other engineers. Computer-aided communications and engineering aids have revolutionized the framework for working in such teams. Civil engineering is also distinguished from other engineering disciplines by the importance of private–public interactions for regulation and ownership. The emerging shift to sustainable, clean, and renewable energy sources represents a major new challenge for our global society generally and for civil engineering in particular. In the past, civil engineering encompassed dams, hydraulic turbines, and transmission systems for energy provision. But this role is now expanding. New technologies will contribute to this shift, particularly for power generation, but there are important needs to make new infrastructure investments and better management decision making. Several factors are motivating a switch to sustainable energy sources (NRC 2009; America’s Energy Future Panel 2009). Many nations, including the United States, are importing a greater fraction of their energy sources, particularly petroleum for liquid fuels, and so energy security is a concern. Overall energy demand is increasing and so new sources of energy are being sought. The longterm availability of sufficient fossil-fuel energy supply is a major concern; for example, petroleum production in the United States already peaked around 1970, and a world peak is expected this century (Wood et al. 2004). Concern for the global climate change and the public health effects of fossil-fuel power generation place a premium on clean energy sources and energy efficiency. Numerous states have enacted requirements for renewable or alternative energy production (Pew Center on Global Climate Change 2010). Even though the switch will undoubtedly be relatively slow and fitful, significant changes are already under way in areas such as wind-power investments, where the worldwide growth rate in installed capacity has been as high as 30% per year (EIA 2010a). The growth of civil engineering coincided with a rapid increase in fossil-fuel extraction and use. Fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and petroleum have high energy density and are relatively inexpensive to extract. Ships switched from clean and renewable wind power to coal, oil and to a limited extent, nuclear power. Railway switched from the renewable wood fuel to coal and diesel. Electricity grids became widely available and facilitated a widespread development of water supply and distribution systems. Energy costs declined in real dollar amounts over the past few centuries. Indeed, inexpensive energy has been a major factor in overall economic development in the past two centuries (Ayres and Ayres 2009). However, the previously noted factors are working to decrease the role of fossil fuels and to increase the real cost of energy in the future. Moreover, the infrastructure that has evolved for this era of inexpensive, primarily fossil fuel energy sources must be altered for a new regime of sustainable energy sources. Sustainable energy is only one aspect of sustainable engineering (Graedel and Allenby 2010). Many other application areas are also important. For example, reducing the spread of toxic materials (including nanoparticles with health impacts) is a continuing concern. Better management of renewable resources such as fisheries, forests, and water is also important. Nevertheless, the pervasive use of energy in modern societies makes sustainable energy a priority. In the next sections, the characteristics of infrastructure for a sustainable energy future are discussed; the importance of a lifecycle perspective for planning, implementing, and managing this new infrastructure is emphasized; and in the concluding section, engineering management priorities for sustainable energy are summarized.

Unique CO2-Injection Experience in the Bati Raman Field May Lead to a Proposal of EOR/Sequestration CO2 Network in the Middle East

Summary Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is one of the most important emission-reduction technologies available for large stationary CO2 sources. Fossil-fueled power generation is the largest source of carbon dioxide (CO2) that could be captured and stored. Depleted oil and gas fields and major CO2 sources nearby are ideal places for large-scale geological storage. Injection of CO2 into a depleted reservoir can enhance the recovery of hydrocarbons. The circumstances, in fact, dictate that the CO2 enhanced-oil-recovery (EOR) industry and power-generation sector should be eager to magnify the mutually beneficial link between CO2 EOR and new industrial sources of CO2. In 1986, the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) started the first large-scale immiscible-CO2-injection project in southeastern Turkey. Approximately 1 million tons/yr of naturally occurring CO2 has been injected into Garzan carbonates in the Bati Raman field. A substantial increase in the production rate and ultimate recovery has been experienced, and this is expected to continue. The Bati Raman immiscible-CO2-injection project has been acknowledged as one of the most unique and successful EOR applications in the history of heavy oil in fractured-limestone reservoirs. There are nearly 50 oil fields in Turkey, and a significant proportion of them would be potentially suitable for EOR. If sufficient volumes of CO2 were economically available, many of these could produce incremental oil for an extended period. It is a fact that sedimentary basins in the Middle East are typically carbonates, and this limits the selection of EOR processes significantly. Having observed CO2 injection as an excellent choice for carbonates through experience with the Bati Raman field, one may extend the CO2 network idea to the whole region. This will not only activate the enormous EOR potential in the mature fields of the Middle East, but also the permanent storage of CO2 through a common effort. The use of captured CO2 for EOR will become feasible if CO2-recovery plants with a higher CO2 content give an attractive CO2 delivery cost and emission rights can be traded in the carbon market, which was introduced by the Kyoto protocol. The major challenges would be formulating a working and acceptable model between petroleum and power sectors and to establish a market mechanism to ensure that this system becomes economically feasible.

Optimal operation of an integrated energy system including fossil fuel power generation, CO 2 capture and wind

This study considers the optimization of operations for an integrated fossil-renewable energy system with CO 2 capture. The system treated consists of a coal-fired power station, a temperature-swing absorption CO 2 capture facility powered by a natural gas combustion turbine, and wind generation. System components are represented in a modular fashion using energy and mass balances. Optimization is applied to determine hourly system dispatch to maximize operating profit given energy prices and wind generation data. A CO 2 emission constraint, modeled after a California law, is enforced. Idealized and realistic scenarios are considered, along with several different system specifications. For a year of operation, simulated using available wind and energy price data, operating profit for optimized operation is shown to be approximately 20% greater than profit using a heuristic procedure. The benefit from optimization is positively correlated with electricity price variability and mean wind generation. The impact of different component specifications and different CO 2 absorption solvents on the optimal operation of the energy system is also assessed. In total, this study demonstrates that the effective operating cost of an integrated energy system operating under a CO 2 emission constraint can be substantially reduced via optimal flexible operation.

Reducing CO 2 with new technologies

While it is forecasted that fossil fuel power generation will remain an important energy supplier in the next 20–30 years, other emerging technologies aim to avoid the production of CO 2 . This article looks at new, CO 2 emission-free energy technologies, such as solar energy and bio-fuels, as well as carbon capture and storage (CCS).

Research and development for steam and gas turbines in low-carbon future

Future energy requirements for the UK will need to be met with reduced CO2 emissions. There is a requirement for 2050 CO2 emissions to be at 20% of 1990 levels. To achieve this there will need to be considerable investment into the research and development, and construction of renewables technologies. Despite this emphasis on renewable power, fossil fuelled power generation technologies, and in particular turbines, will still have a major role to play in the future. However, the way in which the turbines will be used may change significantly. There will therefore need to be research and development investment for turbines at all levels of technology readiness. The arguments for future R&D investment for steam and gas turbines are reviewed and some directions the R&D may need to take examined.

Biogas potential on Long Island, New York: A quantification study

Biogas is the product of anaerobic digestion of waste, whether occurring spontaneously in landfills or under controlled conditions in digesters. Biogas is viewed as an important energy source in current efforts to reduce the use of fossil fuels and dependency on imported resources. Several studies on the assessment of biogas potential have been made at regional, national, and global scales. However, because it is not economically feasible to transport biogas feedstock over long distances, it is more appropriate to consider local waste sources for their potential to produce biogas. An assessment of the biogas potential on Long Island, based on the review of local landfills, wastewater treatment plants, solid waste generation and management, and agricultural waste, found that 234 × 106 m3 of methane (CH4) from biogas might be harvestable, although substantial barriers for complete exploitation exist. This number is equivalent to 2.52 TW-h of electricity, approximately 12% of fossil fuel power generation on Long Island. This work can serve as a template for other areas to rapidly create or approximate biogas potentials, especially for suburban U.S. locations that are not usually thought of as sources of renewable energy

Potentials of GHG reductions from wastewater treatment for the CDM

The study aims to evaluate the potential of GHG (greenhouse gas) reductions by installing an anaerobic digester in a wastewater treatment facility in Southeast Asia. Then the break-even point of additional investment to reduce GHG is obtained by exchanging carbon price as emissions credits. In the project scenario, the wastewater treatment system has the digester, where methane (biogas) is produced and recovered. Compared with the baseline scenario, the biogas has calorific value to produce heat and electricity, and can substitute fossil fuels for power generation. The objective of the study is to define the relationship between CERs (certified emission reductions) and investment costs, and the beak-even point, finding out the dominant parameters in the system. Financial parameters such as capital costs and operating costs are considered to evaluate the investment costs. The result shows that the methane recovery reduces 54% of GHG emissions. Although the substitution of the biogas for the fossil fuels reduces only 6% of the GHG emissions, the electricity output can satisfy the electricity consumption. The results also show that the maximum CER credit is 73000 t-CO2e/a, and the GHG reduction cost is 14 USD/t-CO2e.

On the integration of CO 2 capture with coal-fired power plants: A methodology to assess and optimise solvent-based post-combustion capture systems

Amine and other liquid solvent CO 2 capture systems capture have historically been developed in the oil and gas industry with a different emphasis to that expected for fossil fuel power generation with post-combustion capture. These types of units are now being adapted for combustion flue gas scrubbing for which they need to be designed to operate at lower CO 2 removal rates – around 85–90% and to be integrated with CO 2 compression systems. They also need to be operated as part of a complete power plant with the overall objective of turning fuel into low-carbon electricity. The performance optimisation approach for solvents being considered for post-combustion capture in power generation therefore needs to be updated to take into account integration with the power cycle and the compression train. The most appropriate metric for solvent assessment is the overall penalty on electricity output, rather than simply the thermal energy of regeneration of the solvent used. Methodologies to evaluate solvent performance that have been reported in the literature are first reviewed. The results of the model of a steam power cycle integrated with the compression system focusing on key parameters of the post-combustion capture plant – solvent energy of regeneration, solvent regeneration temperature and desorber pressure – are then presented. The model includes a rigorous thermodynamic integration of the heat available in the capture and compression units into the power cycle for a range of different solvents, and shows that the electricity output penalty of steam extraction has a strong dependence on solvent thermal stability and the temperature available for heat recovery. A method is provided for assessing the overall electricity output penalty (EOP), expressed as total kWh of lost output per tonne of CO 2 captured including ancillary power and compression, for likely combinations of these three key post-combustion process parameters. This correlation provides a more representative method for comparing post-combustion capture technology options than the use of single parameters such as solvent heat of regeneration.

Techno-economic appraisal of fossil-fuelled power generation systems with carbon dioxide capture and storage

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities coupled to power plants provide a climate change mitigation strategy that potentially permits the continued use of fossil fuels whilst reducing the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. This process involves three basic stages: capture and compression of CO2 from power stations, transport of CO2, and storage away from the atmosphere for hundreds to thousands of years. Potential routes for the capture, transport and storage of CO2 from United Kingdom (UK) power plants are examined. Six indicative options are evaluated, based on ‘Pulverised Coal’, ‘Natural Gas Combined Cycle’, and ‘Integrated (coal) Gasification Combined Cycle’ power stations. Chemical and physical CO2 absorption capture techniques are employed with realistic transport possibilities to ‘Enhanced Oil Recovery’ sites or depleted gas fields in the North Sea. The selected options are quantitatively assessed against well-established economic and energy-related criteria. Results show that CO2 capture can reduce emissions by over 90%. However, this will reduce the efficiency of the power plants concerned, incurring energy penalties between 14 and 30% compared to reference plants without capture. Costs of capture, transport and storage are concatenated to show that the whole CCS chain ‘cost of electricity’ (COE) rises by 27–142% depending on the option adopted. This is a significant cost increase, although calculations show that the average ‘cost of CO2 captured’ is £15/tCO2 in 2005 prices [the current base year for official UK producer price indices]. If potential governmental carbon penalties were introduced at this level, then the COE would equate to the same as the reference plant, and make CCS a viable option to help mitigate large-scale climate change.

The promise of carbon capture and storage: evaluating the capture-readiness of new EU fossil fuel power plants

To what degree are recently built and planned power plants in the EU ‘capture-ready’ for carbon capture and storage (CCS)? Survey results show that most recently built fossil fuel power plants have not been designed as capture-ready. For 20 planned coal-fired plants, 13 were said to be capture-ready (65%). For 31 planned gas-fired power plants, only 2 were indicated to be capture-ready (6%). Recently built or planned power plants are expected to cover a large share of fossil fuel capacity by 2030 and thereby have a large impact on the possibility to implement CCS after 2020. It is estimated that around 15–30% of fossil fuel capacity by 2030 can be capture-ready or have CO2 capture implemented from the start. If CCS is implemented at these plants, 14–28% of baseline CO2 emissions from fossil fuel power generation in 2030 could be mitigated, equivalent to 220–410 MtCO2. A key reason indicated by utilities for building a capture-ready plant is (expected) national or EU policies. In addition, financial incentives and expected high CO2 prices are important. The implementation of a long-term regulatory framework for CCS with clear definitions of ‘capture- readiness’ and policy requirements will be important challenges.

Climate change impacts on future photovoltaic and concentrated solar power energy output

Building large solar power plants requires significant long-term investment so understanding impacts from climate change will aid financial planning, technology selection, and energy output projections. In this article we examine how projected changes in temperature and insolation over the 21st century will affect photovoltaic (PV) and concentrated solar power (CSP) output. Projected climate data was obtained from the coupled ocean-atmosphere climate models HadGEM1 and HadCM3 under the IPCC SRES A1B scenario which describes a future world of rapid economic growth with a balanced use of renewable and fossil fuel power generation. Our calculations indicate that under this scenario PV output from 2010 to 2080 is likely to increase by a few percent in Europe and China, see little change in Algeria and Australia, and decrease by a few percent in western USA and Saudi Arabia. CSP output is likely to increase by more than 10% in Europe, increase by several percent in China and a few percent in Algeria and Australia, and decrease by a few percent in western USA and Saudi Arabia. The results are robust to uncertainty in projected temperature change. A qualitative analysis of uncertainty in projected insolation change suggests strongest confidence in the results for Europe and least confidence in the results for western USA. Changes in PV and CSP output are further studied by calculating fractional contributions from changes in temperature and insolation. For PV there is considerable variation in contribution depending on location. For CSP the contribution from changes in insolation is always dominant.

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This paper introduces the outline and future development issues on the technology to reducing carbon dioxide emissions from power generation sector. Main focus of this paper is technology about the fossil-fueled thermal power generation. In this area, efficiency improvement and CO_2 capture technologies are important and being developed intensively.

DEA approach for unified efficiency measurement: Assessment of Japanese fossil fuel power generation

This study discusses a new DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) approach to measure the unified (operational and environmental) efficiency of energy firms. It is widely known that they produce not only desirable (good) outputs (e.g., electricity) but also undesirable (bad) outputs (e.g., CO 2) as a result of their plant operations. The proposed approach incorporates an output separation (desirable and undesirable outputs) for the performance evaluation of energy firms. In addition to the output separation, this study separates inputs into energy and non-energy inputs. Consequently, the proposed approach incorporates not only the output separation but also the input separation within a computational framework of DEA non-radial measurement. This study compares the proposed approach with other previous DEA approaches used for the performance evaluation of energy firms. After the methodological comparison, this study applies the proposed approach for measuring the unified efficiency of Japanese fossil fuel power generation. This empirical study confirms that the implementation of Kyoto Protocol (2005) has not been effective on the unified efficiency of Japanese fossil fuel power generation during the observed period (2004–2008). Although the empirical result is inconsistent with the current Japanese environmental policy under Kyoto Protocol, it contains policy implications for guiding the future direction of Japanese environmental policy on the electric power industry.

Microstructural analysis of creep exposed IN617 alloy

Ni base alloys such as IN617 are one of the preferred choices for steam turbine components used by fossil fuelled power generation plants. IN617 is a solid solution strengthened Ni based superalloy containing ∼23%Cr, 12%Co and 9%Mo with low content of precipitation strengthening elements Al, Ti and Nb. In the 'as received' (solution annealed condition), the microstructure consists of primary carbides (M23C6) and occasional TiN particles dispersed in a single phase austenitic matrix. Owing to high temperature exposure and the creep deformation processes that occur in service, evolution of the microstructure occurs. This results in secondary precipitation and precipitate coarsening, both on grain boundaries and intragranularly in areas of high dislocation density. The influence of creep deformation on the solution treated IN617 alloy at an operating condition of 650 ∼C/574 h, with emphasis on the morphology and distribution of carbide/nitride precipitation is discussed. The applied stress was at an intermediate level.

A long-term view of fossil-fuelled power generation in Europe

The paper presents a view into the long term future of fossil-fuelled power generation in the European Union, based on a number of alternative scenarios for the development of the coal, natural gas and CO 2 markets, and the penetration of renewable and nuclear technologies. The new fossil fuelled capacity needed and the likely technology mix are estimated using a cost optimisation model based on the screening curve method, taking into consideration the rate of retirement of the current power plant fleet, the capacity already planned or under construction and the role of carbon capture and storage technologies. This analysis shows that measures to increase both non-fossil-fuel-based power generation and the price of CO 2 are necessary to drive the composition of the European power generation capacity so that the European policy goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions is achieved. Meeting this goal will however require a high capital investment for the creation of an optimal fossil fuel power plant technology mix.

The vulnerabilities of the power-grid system: Renewable microgrids as an alternative source of energy

The objective of this paper is to analyse the vulnerabilities of current power-grid systems and to propose alternatives to using fossil fuel power generation and infrastructure solutions in the form of microgrids, particularly those from renewable energy sources. One of the key potential benefits of microgrids, apart from their inherent sustainability and ecological advantages, is increased resilience. The analysis is targeted towards the context of business process outsourcing in India. However, much of the research on vulnerabilities has been derived from the USA and as such many of the examples cite vulnerabilities in the USA and other developed economies. Nevertheless, the vulnerabilities noted are to a degree common to all grid systems, and so the analysis may be more broadly applicable.

Underground coal gasification with CCS: a pathway to decarbonising industry

Underground coal gasification (UCG) opens up the prospect of accessing trillions of tonnes of otherwise unmineable coal. When combined with carbon capture and storage (CCS), UCG offers some attractive new low-carbon solutions on a vast scale. This paper has several aims: to review key developments in technologies for UCG, CCS and CO2 storage in coal seam voids; to quantify the scale of the opportunity that these technologies open up; to examine the scope for linking these developments to other more familiar plans for decarbonising the fossil fuel power generation industry and other carbon-intensive industries; to identify the main hurdles to be overcome in taking forward any large-scale UCG–CCS proposition; and to propose a basis on which UCG-CCS can sit at the heart of plans to decarbonise present day industry in a way that dove-tails with longer-term ambitions for an economy based on renewable energy.

Life cycle modelling of fossil fuel power generation with post-combustion CO 2 capture

Due to its compatibility with the current energy infrastructures and the potential to reduce CO 2 emissions significantly, CO 2 capture and geological storage is recognised as one of the main options in the portfolio of greenhouse gas mitigation technologies being developed worldwide. The CO 2 capture technologies offer a number of alternatives, which involve different energy consumption rates and subsequent environmental impacts. While the main objective of this technology is to minimise the atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions, it is also important to ensure that CO 2 capture and storage does not aggravate other environmental concerns. This requires a holistic and system-wide environmental assessment rather than focusing on the greenhouse gases only. Life Cycle Assessment meets this criteria as it not only tracks energy and non-energy-related greenhouse gas releases but also tracks various other environmental releases, such as solid wastes, toxic substances and common air pollutants, as well as the consumption of other resources, such as water, minerals and land use. This paper presents the principles of the CO 2 capture and storage LCA model developed at Imperial College and uses the pulverised coal post-combustion capture example to demonstrate the methodology in detail. At first, the LCA models developed for the coal combustion system and the chemical absorption CO 2 capture system are presented together with examples of relevant model applications. Next, the two models are applied to a plant with post-combustion CO 2 capture, in order to compare the life cycle environmental performance of systems with and without CO 2 capture. The LCA results for the alternative post-combustion CO 2 capture methods (including MEA, K +/PZ, and KS-1) have shown that, compared to plants without capture, the alternative CO 2 capture methods can achieve approximately 80% reduction in global warming potential without a significant increase in other life cycle impact categories. The results have also shown that, of all the solvent options modelled, KS-1 performed the best in most impact categories.