Innovations are constantly being developed to make coal-fired power plants operate cleaner than ever before. Today’s coal-fueled power plants emit 90 percent fewer emissions than the typical plant from the 1970s. Ongoing advancements in high efficiency, low emission (HELE) coal technologies and carbon capture and storage (CCS) hold even more promise for the future, and CONSOL Energy has been working under a Coal FIRST grant to develop an entire power plant dedicated to efficiency and environmental progress.
CONSOL’s advanced pressurized fluidized bed combustion power plant with carbon capture will use coal mine waste and biomass as its primary fuels. The project aims to capture and permanently sequester 97% of carbon dioxide emissions and will utilize with bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS) to achieve net neutral or negative CO2 emissions via bioenergy. Other features of the plant include zero liquid discharge, near zero emissions of regulated pollutants, and a solid waste byproduct with potential commercial applications. The hope is to have the plant operational by 2028. With DOE programs like Coal FIRST and important initiatives like 45Q tax incentives, the future of coal power plants is being developed today.