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E n g i n e e r i n g C o n s u l t a n t s G r o u p , I n c . A k r o n , O h


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Coal
Quality
Impacts
Matching Coal Quality
to Load
Demand/Emissions &
Cost Targets with
AccuTrack
James Mooney
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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CONTENTS:

A
Introduction
Applications:
AccuTrack
TM
A 88
AccuTrack
TM
As Fire10
AccuTrack
TM
..12





COAL QUALITY ISSUES BEGIN WHEN THE FUEL
ARRIVES AT THE PLANT
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Abstract:

Putting aside the critical function of the corporate fuel procurement section, plant-site coal
management begins when the fuel arrives at the plant and ends with the combustion in the boiler; the
boiler status then being unrestricted for continued operations. l and thereabouts, most of
coal fired power plants were designed and built to use readily available fuels. Utilities
pass-through fuel costs obviated the economic incentive to manage costs as long as the as-received coal
conformed to the design fuel specifications. 1 brought environmental
considerations and deregulation of the electric utility industry so that fuel and fuel related costs went to
the top of the priority list. With lowest cost production economics came the assortment of coal qualities
that have significant impact to the boiler operations, economic dispatch and emissions. Although the
desirability of enhanced on-site fuel management would seem apparent, the entrenched practices,
limited equipment capabilities and process complexities has made the transition difficult and slow - and
with the consequences still painful.
The need to bring together extensive operating experience with the capabilities of the computer
advances in real-time fuel analysis, fuel flow modeling, and understanding of combustion chemistry and
coal quality consequences has prompted the development of a patented advanced plant site fuel
management tool called AccuTrack. With this AccuTrack tool, available fuel can be received, segregated,
reclaimed, blended (if required) and loaded for delivery to the boiler for optimal time-dependant
considerations of dispatch economics, demand capability and reliability with detailed operator
information regarding controllable real-time and projected fuel/combustion parameters.
Introduction:
In the coal-fired
of the boiler for projected life of 30-40 years. This fuel was generally either locally mined or the delivery
facilitated by transportation access. With the execution of long term contracts for the design fuel, fuel
received at the plant was expected to be relatively unifor
1
. A simplistic fuel
management by the plant consisted of tracking tonnage in receiving, maintaining adequate inventory in
storage (usually a 30-60 day usage) and then delivery to the boiler. Coal quality was often accepted from
the vendor supplied analysis. But circumstances were about to alter the fuel picture.
A driver causing utilities to change their fuel supply in the 1990 was the Clean Air Act tightening of
environmental regulation for emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. Coal fired facilities had to
evaluate alternatives including switching to lower sulfur fuel or installing Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD)
systems. In the case of fuel switching, the implications to boiler operations was not (and often still is
not) fully appreciated.

1
8 ready
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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In the same time period, extensive deregulation of the electric utility industry forced the generation
facilities into the open market of competition. The cost of fuel became very important as it is on the
order of 75-85% of the variable cost of generation. Economic fuel sources were sought and contracts
signed for available fuels including low cost coal, waste oil, biomass, and petcoke to replace some or all
of the design fuels. In the case of the low cost coal, this was often low grade fuel but attractive on a
$/MMBtu measure, hence referred to as High Value fuel. But in the rush to acquire environmental
compliance and economic fuels, insufficient consideration either through ignorance or the absence of
due diligence - was often given to implications for capabilities in fuel processing and boiler operations,
particularly at higher loads.
In fuel selection, it is clear that boilers were designed to burn a specific quality of coal or narrow range
thereof. Any consideration of a change to a different fuel mix requires an adaptive fuel management
review as well as a complete evaluation of appropriate equipment requirements to address the fuel
handling and operational implications. This greater attention is essential if the plant is to consistently
achieve targeted performance metrics for least-cost generation with reliability and availability. If these
goals are to be attained, extensive modifications or upgrade replacements are usually required to the
equipment as well as to the procedures for receiving, stacking, reclaiming, blending and loading of the
coals to each unit. In addition, boiler considerations must address combustion monitoring/tuning,
sootblower requirements and emission consequences.
Having the appropriate fuel mix to meet peak demands is critically important to the company looking to
maximize the contribution of their generating resources through time-dependant economic dispatching.
Matching load with the most economical system resources generates profit to the market dispatched
entities. To the plant, meeting targets for availability, reliability and production costs means
determination and management to assure the correct fuel mix, both physical and economic. Operation
and maintenance must enable the installed process equipment capabilities to match the demand for
product; electric generation.
To meet these demanding production requirements with diverse implications, a sophisticated
adaptation of state-of-the-art equipment, process understanding and extensive data must be
manipulated by the capabilities of the computer to provide usable real-time information as well as
projections for proactive intervention. This objective brought about the development of the AccuTrack
technology, a patented process now available for the day to day implementation in opportunity-driven
progressive generation entities.
AccuTrack technology was developed with many resources including experienced power plant
operators, advanced R&D academia, equipment suppliers and engineers to get it right. Among the
elements of the AccuTrack System are on-line coal analyzers, conveyor scales, level transmitting devices,
belt speed monitoring, coal quality Impact blend expert calculations and silo/bunker stochastic flow
modeling to enable delivery of the right fuel at the right time. The AccuTrack system along with
precursor elements has tracked millions of fuel tons and combustion related reagents (e.g., limestone,
aqua ammonia, and sodium sulfite) to support initiatives for fuel flexibility, opacity control,
environmental emissions, and cost optimization.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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.

Figure 1 Overview of AccuTrack display graphic; flow schematic and status data.


The Day Ahead generation demands for utilities is a projection by the operating company using many
variables such as historical demand, weather, time of day, etc. Figure 2 is from Texas Market Nodal
implementation plan and describes the emerging Day Ahead market forecast. The qualifying generation
suppliers in this zone will bid to pro MW
(generating plants) in the zone. The system Day Ahead demand will vary seasonally and market
participants might take advantage of off-system sales opportunities or lower demand periods to
postpone or expedite planned maintenance activities as appropriate. Power plants project their
generation capabilities to the owners who in turn bid the production into the regional market. The plant
commitment is based on the equipment conditions at the time and the fuel quality/economics that will
be available to operate at the demand loads.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 2 Matching Coal Quality to ERCOT Day Ahead Market Demands
AccuTrack
TM
advises the plant operating staff of the fuel quality available in the As Received System to
manufacture fuel matching targets of the day ahead market peaks, then tracks through the blending
process to assure coal quality will match peak demand. Failure to match coal quality cascades through
the processes at full load as demand places stress first on pulverizers to grind the fuel to the proper size
distribution resulting in larger than desired particle sizing to the furnace, increased air flow required for
combustion, operating above design furnace exit gas temperatures and reheat temperatures, creating
slagging conditions in furnaces and additional sootblowing, increased demand on Limestone to FGD
scrubbers can exceed the design requirements causing an environmental derate of the unit.
Operating the units at full load with a coal quality that is below design is often possible for the short
term, but never desirable because it leads to future outages. Multiple days of high MW operation with
below design fuel may have a deleterious effect over time from high temperature corrosion as metal is
lost from furnace slag and continuous sootblower operation.
Utilities are increasingly looking to real time coal analyzers to identify the coal quality as received;
81u to make the coal acceptable for
full load.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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l 81u
inadequate for the design of the equipment, the plant is charged with a derate. Managers, in order to
meet availability and reliability targets, must manage the fuel to the unit in a manner consistent with
MW
When all of the fuel received by the plant does not meet the requirements either for Emissions or MW
production at full load, it is a plant challenge to match the new fuels to the load and process equipment
demands, by gaining understanding of the coal quality impacts. If the plant has been receiving one
source of coal for its entire existence it is necessary for the staff to gain an understanding of the
potential impacts from the new sources. Often times this entails closer scrutiny, beyond the normally
supplied BTU/Ash/Sulfur/Volatile/Moisture quality usually provided with the original source.
AccuTrack facilitates the matching of the coal quality to demand in two interrelated systems known as
the As Received System, and the As-Fired System, using quality assurance manufacturing techniques to
match Coal Quality to Load Demand.
A fuel source example is Powder River Basin (PRB) coal that is attractive with its lower sulfur content
and easy mining methods (i.e., lower mine-mouth cost) compared with most eastern bituminous
sources. With enhanced rail and barge capabilities in place, PRB and similar plains states coals are widely
used in generation plants across the continental USA. Burning straight PRB, however, can limit unit
capabilities due to the low Btu/lb and consequent increased tonnage that must be processed. Of even
more consequence is the ash chemistry and combustion process that is critical to the slagging/fouling
vulnerability of the boiler. If properties and constituents such as Base-Acid ratios (a property used to
determine slagging tendencies) are not fully understood, forced outages or derates due to slagging, tube
leaks from erosion/ash corrosion, opacity upsets and/or emission constraints are to be expected. The
PRB low sulfur content might be utilized in a tailored fuel blend with a high BTU coal to achieve a full
load fuel/boiler capacity with compliance sulfur criterion. All other blended fuel properties calculated
must be available to the fuel management personnel and unit operator the designed mission
capability of AccuTrack.
Plant management must make routine, prudent decisions as the fuel is being unloaded in the As
Received area of the plant to adjust fuel quality to projected requirements, by blending from
appropriate storage piles if necessary. AccuTrack Unloading Advisory is ready to identify and source
quality blending solutions and loading times commensurate with the identified demand projections and
through continuous monitoring of the performance recommend adjustment through computerized
algorithms to change the blend for equally effective but less costly solutions at lower demand periods.




Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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As-Received System_______________________________________________________________
The plant staff is responsible to operate and maintain all fuel process equipment including fuel
analyzers, stackers/reclaimers, conveyors, scales, crushers, pulverizers, furnaces, instruments, and
environmental control systems. Management of the fuel conversion processes according to optimized
criteria is the key to meeting performance targets.


The AccuTrack unload advisor assists the plant staff from receipt through consumption, or from As-
Received to As Fired. The advisor software maintains segregated fuel storage data within the Yard
handling area by quality and quantity. Fuel being received but not meeting current loading criteria must
either be blended or directed to its appropriate storage area for future use. Fuel matched to current
loading quality characteristics can bypass yard storage and proceed direct to unit silo.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 3 Coal segregated by quality within fuel processing area
The tasks addressed on receipt of the coal with the patented AccuTrack System include:
1. Measuring quality with real-time coal quality analyzers,
2. Directing the fuel to the proper area (storage, blending station or direct to bunker,
3. Tracking fuel analysis and quantity by source and destination,
For the purpose of illustration, figure 3 above depicts three typical categories of fuel qualities:
Performance (higher quality but higher cost), Mid-range and Value Fuel (lower quality but low
$/MMBtu). The Performance fuel is high quality fuel that enables peak capacity from the boiler without
vulnerability to derates (e.g.; slagging). High Value fuel is used to produce low cost megawatts, typically
at lower demand periods to correspond to time dependant economic dispatch. At lower loads, furnaces
might operate at lower temperatures as less demanding boiler conditions making the High Value fuel
the economic imperative. Figure 4 is a typical summary display of the plant fuel inventory.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 4 AccuTrack Inventory Tracking Display.

As Fired System________________________________________________________________________

The As-Fired system is defined as the point where modification to the fuel is essentially no longer
feasible. Fuel loaded to the bunker or silo is committed and must be burn ready. AccuTrack modeling
captures the limited blending that takes place depending on the loading profile within the bunker, the
geometry and the flow rate to the pulverizer as described in the following pages.
Large utility boilers are equipped with fuel bunkers or silos of various capacities and designs. It is critical
to understand the complex coal flows through these short-term storage structures, the storage
capacities typically ranging in from 4 hours to 24 hours. Figure 5 shows individual silos with their
respective projected fuel characteristics based on the current bunker inventory and the programmed
fuel consumption forecast. This intricate model is a critical element of the AccuTrack technology and is a
stochastic flow calculation with several characteristics inputs unique to the fuel geometry and analysis.
Other bunker flow modeling is available but virtually all are severely handicapped by processing time, an
attribute making them useless in a real-time demand scenario.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 5. AccuTrack Bunker Flow modeling with combustion property projections.


Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 5. AccuTrack modeling of Funnel Flow and Plug Flow conditions.
The modeling of fuel flow in silos or bunkers is critical to the time-dependant match of boiler coal quality
delivery to the economic load demand. Managing the flow through the silos as is done in the AccuTrack
technology involves the understanding of many factors including the structure geometry, particle
characteristics, existing content profile and loading/extraction rates.


Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 6 Bunker as seen in Operator As-Fired Advisory screen grid
Calculations are graphically presented to plant operators through Advisory Screen grids within the
AccuTrack Software. Figure 7 displays a bunker feed to four pulverizers that has been loaded
with three different fuels with their respective qualities represented by yellow, green and orange.
Pointing at any area of the grid provides a pop-up screen identifying the coal source, and other relevant
data indicated below:

Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Continuous monitoring through the bunker flow model is available is performed by the AccuTrack
Software as the fuel flow proceeds through the pulverizers and then to the boiler. Details of the
modeling within the coal bunkers is described in previous pages for the fuel loaded at all times up to the
point of delivery to the furnace.
AccuTrack for Performance______________________________________________________________


Figure 7 Operator Advisory Screen alerts
The color coded screen uses a stoplight based formula to advice operators of projected coal and
associated combustion characteristics. Operators can u 1 regarding
appropriate response to advisory or alarm. This unit specific advice is based on field proven calculations
as well as heuristic experience on the units past performance. The NOW column in the table of figure
8 is showing the current fuel exiting the silo and associated combustion properties. Correspondingly, the
past 8 hours in 2 hour intervals is displayed on the left and similar 8- hour projections are on the right.
GREEN indicates a match of coal quality to current load demand, of full load, YELLOW is a caution
indication, and RED is a high risk situation recommended for appropriate operator attention. A sample
of a combustion / slagging reference material incorporated into the AccuTrack software is shown in
figure 9 below.
Engineering Consultants Group, Inc | 1236 Weathervane Lane
Akron, Ohio 44313

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Figure 8 Hensel-Halfinger boiler cleanliness predictor







COAL QUALITY ISSUES END WHEN THE PLANT
ACHIEVES ALL TARGETED PERFORMANCE
GOALS