PA's PFBC Carbon Capture Technology Set For Showcase In Copenhagen

As international leaders gather for the United Nations climate change summit in Copenhagen, one southwestern Pennsylvania clean energy company, PFBC Environmental Energy Technology, will be among those represented at a two-day technology exposition to showcase cutting-edge solutions to the global climate challenge.

PFBC is working to capture a minimum of 95 percent of the carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, from coal-fired power plants.

A state Department of Community and Economic Development representative traveling to Denmark will showcase PFBC’s technology, among others, at the Bright Green Expo held in conjunction with the U.N. conference.

More than 160 companies from around the world will display their innovative designs at the exposition.

“This is our opportunity to show an international audience all of the work we’re doing to build the world’s cleanest power plant in Allegheny County,” PFBC President Doug Farnham said. “As the nations work to address climate change issues, the advanced technology we’re developing here in southwestern Pennsylvania will be essential in ensuring world economies can meet bold energy and environmental goals.”

PFBC launched its project in September in partnership with CONSOL Energy Inc. and Sargas Inc. The one-megawatt coal-fired test plant, which recently received $1 million in financing from the state Department of Environmental Protection, is located at CONSOL Energy’s Research and Development Division south of Pittsburgh.

The project combines an advanced form of power generation --- pressurized fluidized bed combined cycle technology --- already operating routinely in Europe and Asia with a carbon dioxide separator. The system is designed to reduce CO2 emissions by as much as 95 percent, produce energy more efficiently and virtually eliminate sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and particulate emissions.

The first phase of the project focuses on capturing carbon dioxide. Some of the captured carbon could be injected and stored in deep geological strata, or used for enhanced oil recovery by injecting it into existing wells, forcing more oil to the surface. The next phase of the project will feed captured CO2 into a photobioreactor to produce algae that can enrich the soil --- essentially creating a power plant with a negative carbon footprint.

The system can run efficiently on a variety of fuels, including waste coal, which enables the preservation of precious resources while enabling the cleanup of old mine sites that dot southwestern Pennsylvania. The waste coal can be obtained from current coal processing plants or can be mined from older, abandoned waste piles, thereby capturing the carbon in those piles and then reclaiming these old sites to a more acceptable state.

The technology also can support renewable energy, providing the base load needed to back up wind and solar power. Traditional power plants can’t easily cycle up or down with the intermittent production from renewable energy sources. PFBC technology can.

When deployed in a full-scale 400-megawatt commercial plant, the project is expected to generate 2,978,400,000 kilowatt hours per year of electricity --- enough to power approximately 270,000 homes, while saving 651,437 tons of coal per year.

At full implementation, it is expected to create 150 permanent, full-time jobs, 50 permanent, part-time jobs, 1,000 temporary, full-time jobs, and 90 temporary, part-time jobs.