Clean Power From Coal: Design and Status of East Kentucky Power Cooperative’s E. A. Gilbert Unit

East Kentucky Power Cooperative’s (EKPC) E. A. Gilbert unit promises to be one of the cleanest coal fired units in the US. Employing Circulating Fluid Bed (CFB) technology and innovative gas cleaning equipment from ALSTOM, this 268 MW unit will fire a variety of coals. The E. A. Gilbert unit is located at EKPC’s Spurlock Station alongside a 300 MW and a 500 MW pulverized coal unit that were built more than 20 years ago. Low SO₂ emissions will be achieved by sulfation of limestone sorbent in the CFB and by additional sulfation of unreacted sorbent in the Flash Dryer Absorber^TM (FDA) system located downstream of the CFB. This will permit low SO₂ emissions (0.2 lb/MM BTU, >95% removal). Very low NO_x emissions (0.1 lb/MM BTU) are enabled by the low combustion temperatures of the CFB and by the use of selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR). The latter employs the addition of anhydrous ammonia and extended residence times at low temperature to further reduce NO_x within the boiler. Having broken ground in June of 2002, the unit is scheduled to begin firing coal in the winter of 2004–5, with commercial operation scheduled for spring, 2005. Its’ design features and status are the focus of this paper.