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Preserving coal's share of the U.S. energy mix requires the development and deployment of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technologies. Carbon dioxide emissions reductions contained in the Waxman-Markey energy bill effectively mandate the widespread deployment of CCS technologies by 2015.

In September 2009, the first U.S. project that both captures and sequesters carbon dioxide emissions from a coal-fired power plant will begin operations at American Electric Power's Mountaineer Power Station in West Virginia.

The Mountaineer CCS project will help demonstrate the effectiveness of the chilled ammonia process for carbon capture and will demonstrate the efficacy of sequestration in the local geology. Lessons learned will inform efforts to develop effective carbon capture and storage retrofit technologies and should be used to advise carbon policy development.

Principals from AEP and Alstom will discuss the design, engineering, construction, process, logistical, and operational achievements of the Mountaineer CCS project. The project is a critical industry milestone for electric utilities that need to dramatically reduce their carbon footprint.

Using Alstom's patented chilled ammonia carbon-capture process, the 20 megawatt Mountaineer CCS project will remove an estimated 90% of carbon dioxide emissions from the flue gas stream it processes. The captured CO₂ will be compressed, pipelined, and injected into two different saline reservoirs located approximately 8,000 feet beneath the plant site. An extensive monitoring system will be used to track the extent of the sequestered CO₂ over time.

The Mountaineer project seeks to scale up and validate Alstom's CO₂ capture technology, which was demonstrated at a smaller 1.7 megawatt scale at WE Energies' Pleasant Prarie power plant in Wisconsin. Alstom's chilled ammonia carbon-capture process may impose lower parasitic loads on electric generators compared to other types of CO₂ capture processes, thus lowering the overall costs to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants.

The project is expected to capture and sequester an estimated 100,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually and will remain operational for as long at four or five years. The Mountaineer CCS validation project will cost over $100 million to build and operate.

Who Should Attend

Utility executives, managers, analysts, and specialists with responsibility for:

• Generation Engineering
  
• Environmental Services
  
• Carbon Management
  
• Research & Development
  
• Construction
  
• Fuels
  
• Strategic Planning
  
• Finance and Rates
  
• Regulatory or Legislative Affairs

Learning Outcomes

• Review how a carbon constrained economy will affect coal-burning utilities
  
• Summarize the technological, engineering, and operational challenges that carbon-capture and sequestration poses to electric utilities, equipment vendors, and engineering firms
  
• Explain how Alstom's patented chilled ammonia carbon-capture process works
  
• Describe the challenges associated with the geologic sequestration of CO₂
  
• Implement the lessons learned by Alstom and AEP in your utility's carbon-capture strategy
  
• Evaluate the costs and benefits of the chilled ammonia process to capture carbon dioxide emissions
  
• Discuss the timeline for moving CCS technologies from bench test to pilot stage to validation and finally to commercial deployment
  
• Develop a CCS strategy and timeline to operate effectively operate in a carbon-constrained economy

Instructional Methods

Web based PowerPoint presentation and on-line interactive question/answer session.

Continuing Education Credits:

EUCI is authorized by IACET to offer up to 0.1 CEUs for this program.