Full Title: Retrofitting of Coal-Fired Power Plants for CO2 Emissions Reductions
Author(s): n/a
Publisher(s): Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MITei)
Publication Date: March 1, 2009
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Description (excerpt):
The MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) sponsored a symposium on the retrofitting of coal-fired power plants to capture CO2 emissions. This report summarizes the views of symposium participants and identifies many key issues, opportunities, and possible “next steps” associated with retrofitting coal-fired power plants for carbon capture.
Participants represented the range of stakeholders with expertise, equities, and interests in the topic and included 54 representatives of utilities, academia, government, public interest groups, and industry. This invitation-only event was designed specifically to elicit different perspectives and identify areas in which research, policy development, and analysis are needed to address this critical environmental concern.
The focus of the symposium was the retrofitting of existing pulverized coal plants, either through add-ons to existing plants, the rebuilding and upgrading of existing boilers to facilitate carbon capture, or increasing the thermal efficiency of existing boilers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions per unit of power output. Participants, however, also discussed a range of additional technology options, including the repowering of existing boilers with alternative fuels such as biomass or natural gas, rebuilding existing plants with more efficient coal technologies such as IGCC or oxy-combustion, and co-firing with low-carbon fuels.