Performance of Biomass and Waste Coal Co-Fired Power Generation

The objective of this study is to evaluate the performance of waste coal and biomass co-fired 100 MW power generation using a commercial software, i.e., STEAM-PRO. The selected feedstocks are anthracite waste coal and loblolly pine biomass. The performance of co-fired plant was analyzed at biomass and coal refuse cofiring ratios such as 0:100, 20:80, 40:60, 60:40, 80:20, and 100:0. The STEAM-PRO model was validated using literature data, and the major parameters were in the range of 5 to 6% while a few parameters were in the range of 11 to 13% which are within the acceptable range. As the biomass to waste coal ratio increased from 0:100 to 100:0, the gross power, net heat rate, auxiliary power, fuel flow rate, and CO₂ emissions are decreased for both with and without carbon capture and storage (CCS) cases. The maximum net plant LHV efficiency of 37.11% was observed at co-firing ratio of 100:0, i.e., 100% biomass case. The addition of CCS has resulted into a significant reduction in net plant LHV efficiency. Although the addition of CCS reduced the net thermal efficiency, CO₂ and SO₂ emissions have been reduced significantly.