Electric Power Research Institute: Environmental Control Technology Center.

Operations and maintenance continued this month at the Electric Power Research Institute`s (EPRI`s) Environmental Control Technology Center (ECTC). Testing for the month involved the Dry Sorbent Injection (DST) test block with the Carbon Injection System. The 1.0 MW Cold-Side Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) unit, the 0.4 MW Mini-Pilot Wet Scrubber, and the 4.0 MW Pilot Wet Scrubber remained idle this month in a cold-standby mode and were inspected regularly. These units remain available for testing as future project work is identified. The 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments have required that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assess the health risks and environmental effects associated with air toxic emissions (primarily mercury) from fossil-fuel fired utility boilers. EPRI has sponsored research on environmental mercury since 1983 to determine the factors that may influence human health, and to determine the role of electric power generating stations in contributing to those factors. Over the last four years, EPRI`s Environmental Control Technology Center (ECTC) has conducted EPRI and DOE sponsored testing to develop and demonstrate appropriate measurement methods and control technologies for power plant atmospheric mercury emissions. Building upon the experience and expertise of the EPRI ECTC, a test program was initiated at the Center in July to further evaluate dry sorbent-based injection technologies upstream of a cold-side ESP for mercury control, and to determine the effects of such sorbents on ESP performance. The results from this program will be compared to the results from previous DOE/EPRI demonstrations, and to other ongoing programs. The primary objectives of this test program are to: (1) Determine the levels of mercury removal achievable by dry sorbent injection upstream of an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). The process parameters to be investigated include sorbent residence time, sorbent type, sorbent size, sorbent loading, and flue gas temperature. (2) Determine the impact of sorbent injection on ESP performance