How coal is cleaning up its act (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

gritting teeth... Well, we're not going to get away from coal soon, so know thine enemy, I guess. Here's a reasonably informative article with some actual estimated numbers(!) regarding latest technologies.

How coal is cleaning up its act
By Mark Kinver
BBC News science and nature reporter

***
Growing demand

The latest figures from the International Energy Agency (IEA) project coal use to steadily increase each year until 2030, when annual demand will reach nearly 7.3 billion tonnes - almost one billion tonnes more than present levels.
***
"If you are in China or India where you have huge resources of coal and you have elements of the population that do not have access to electricity then your driver is to build and operate power stations as quickly and as effectively as possible."
***
The term {CCT} is widely used to describe a complete process in which the coal is gasified (i.e. turned into a gas as opposed to the conventional method of burning the coal itself in a combustion boiler), burnt to power a turbine, and the carbon dioxide and other emissions captured for storage away from the atmosphere.

Improving efficiency

Current systems, called advanced supercritical boilers, have an efficiency level of around 42%. By replacing an old-style boiler, operating at about 30% efficiency with one of the new systems can cut CO2 emissions by 23%, says Mr Farley.
***


more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4466040.stm

The article includes consideration of the huge role of China in the issue--China is building more new coal-fired plants than any other country, and will probably be the world's biggest user of coal for decades to come. Also comments from environmentalists, biofuel advocates, etc. etc.

[mom cat]

1. Check out this remarkable idea: CO2 eating Algae that make oil too!

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Christian Science Monitor science and tech news
Other news from CSM










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Algae — like a breath mint for smokestacks
By Mark Clayton, The Christian Science Monitor
BOSTON — Isaac Berzin is a big fan of algae. The tiny, single-celled plant, he says, could transform the world's energy needs and cut global warming.

snip


If he could find the right strain of algae, he figured he could turn the nation's greenhouse-gas-belching power plants into clean-green generators with an attached algae farm next door.

snip

Fed a generous helping of CO2-laden emissions, courtesy of the power plant's exhaust stack, the algae grow quickly even in the wan rays of a New England sun. The cleansed exhaust bubbles skyward, but with 40% less CO2 (a larger cut than the Kyoto treaty mandates) and another bonus: 86% less nitrous oxide.

After the CO2 is soaked up like a sponge, the algae is harvested daily. From that harvest, a combustible vegetable oil is squeezed out: biodiesel for automobiles. Berzin hands a visitor two vials — one with algal biodiesel, a clear, slightly yellowish liquid, the other with the dried green flakes that remained. Even that dried remnant can be further reprocessed to create ethanol, also used for transportation.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2006-01-10-algae-powerplants_x.htm

[Odin2005]

2. Don't Let the PO Doomers see that...

...thier heads might explode. :evilgrin:

[mom cat]

3. That would be quite messy. I will try to ratchet hown the hope stuff.

:rofl: