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| A $400 million project to significantly reduce sulfur dioxide emissions at the Fayette Power Project is complete. The scrubbed emissions from FPP units 1 and 2 now exit the new scrubber chimney, far left, in the form of water vapor, which looks like steam. In this photo, FPP Unit 3 is hidden behind the scrubber chimney for units 1 and 2. |
The Fayette Power Project (FPP) near La Grange has completed a project to significantly improve air emissions, a step that will help the coal-fired power generation facility maintain its position among the cleaner coal-fired power plants currently operating in Texas.
LCRA and Austin Energy, co-owners of FPP units 1 and 2, this week are celebrating the completion of a five-year construction project to install flue-gas desulfurization equipment known as scrubbers on each unit. The $400 million project is removing more than 95 percent of sulfur dioxide emissions from the two units. The scrubber for Unit 2 became operational March 20 and the scrubber for Unit 1 came on-line the first week of January. The third unit is owned solely by LCRA and already has scrubber equipment in place. LCRA operates all three units, which have a combined net capacity of 1,641 megawatts.
“Completion of the new scrubbers fulfills a commitment we made to our neighbors and communities when we began this project several years ago,” said Tom Mason, LCRA General Manager. “FPP has a long history of helping LCRA’s electric customers provide affordable, reliable and environmentally responsible power to more than 1 million Central Texans. This milestone will help LCRA continue that tradition.”
“Austin Energy is pleased to join LCRA in announcing the completion of the scrubber project at FPP,” said Larry Weis, Austin Energy General Manager. “We are committed to providing clean energy to our customers and this is a significant step in further reducing emissions at a plant that is already recognized as a leader in environmental stewardship for coal-fired facilities in Texas.”
The emission-reduction equipment targets emissions of sulfur-dioxide. The new scrubbers also provide the added benefit of removing about 20 percent of mercury emissions from the two units, and will lead to significant reductions in particulate matter emissions from units 1 and 2. In addition, LCRA is in the process of upgrading the scrubber on Unit 3, which was included when the unit was built in 1988. LCRA expects to complete the upgrade in spring 2012.
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| Two fiberglass flues – one for each generating unit – are located inside the scrubber chimney, far right. The scrubbed emissions from units 1 and 2 exit the new chimney in the form of water vapor, which looks like steam. Unit 3, center, was built with scrubber equipment included in its original design. Photo credit: Thomas Guenther, FPP employee. |
“We are very happy with the overall performance of the new scrubbers,” said Ken Taylor, manager of Power Production at LCRA, who oversaw the scrubber project. “FPP emissions already are below federal and state compliance limits. The scrubbers will further reduce emissions and continue our commitment to operate the power plant responsibly.”
In the scrubber process, limestone is ground and mixed with water. It is then sprayed into the flue-gas stream, where it chemically reacts with the sulfur dioxide and scrubs it from the gases produced in the boiler before they go up the chimney and into the atmosphere. The byproduct is gypsum slurry, which falls to the bottom of the scrubber and is collected and disposed of onsite or recycled. Meanwhile, the remaining flue gas exits the scrubber chimney as a visible water vapor plume, which looks like steam. Two fiberglass flues – one for each generating unit – are located inside the scrubber chimney. The original chimneys for units 1 and 2 will stay in place.
“Residents and passers-by will see plumes of water vapor from the scrubber chimney for units 1 and 2 and the chimney for Unit 3,” said Taylor. “That means the scrubbers are doing their job of removing almost all of the sulfur dioxide emissions from the plant.”
LCRA has a history of operating FPP in an environmentally responsible manner. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has recognized FPP as a statewide environmental leader and accepted the power plant into its Clean Texas program. FPP is the first coal-fired facility in Texas to be accepted at the gold level by TCEQ. In addition, FPP burns low sulfur coal from Wyoming because it produces fewer emissions when it is burned. The plant also has completed improvements to reduce plantwide nitrogen oxide emissions by 65 to 70 percent.
For more information about FPP, visit www.lcra.org/energy/power/facilities/fayette.html.
