There is a new development in the burning of coal and the reduction of greenhouse emissions. Recently a pilot project conducted in Pleasant Prarie, Wisconsin tested an advanced chilled ammonia process to see how much carbon dioxide(CO2) could be captured from a coal-fueled plant. The test showed that more than 90 percent of CO2 was indeed captured according to published reports. The test was conducted by We Energies, Alstom, and The Electric Power Research Institute.
As part of the process, this CO2 will be compressed, put in a pipeline and injected in to two saline reservoirs 8,000 beneath the plant site. There are already plans in place for projects based on this research, including retrofitting existing plants such as the 20-megawatt capture system at AEP's 1,300-megawatt Mountaineer Plant, which will remove an estimated 90% of CO2 emissions, resulting in up to 100,000 metric tons per year.
It's too early to say what this means for the future of coal-burning plants. Coal, an abundant resource in this country, has been estimated to give us at least 400 years of independent energy. But it's no secret that coal has taken its toll in terms of greenhouse gases and the effects of mining on the environment not to mention the health hazards to the miners.
Is this new process the answer? Only time will tell. The real promise in this study is that the coal industry is waking up to the fact that the old way of doing business is no longer viable and that it must come up with alternative ways of burning this raw material to stay in business.
Of course we must keep a very skeptical eye on this development. However, at the least, this process could lead to a new way of burning coal that could contribute to discovering technologies leading to a clean and energy-independent future as well as creating new jobs in the green economy. In a word, it's a start. Let's see where it goes from here.
Comments, Pingbacks:
No Comments/Pingbacks for this post yet...
