1 research outputs found
Behavior of Mercury Emissions from a Commercial Coal-Fired Power Plant: The Relationship between Stack Speciation and Near-Field Plume Measurements
The
reduction of divalent gaseous mercury (Hg<sup>II</sup>) to
elemental gaseous mercury (Hg<sup>0</sup>) in a commercial coal-fired
power plant (CFPP) exhaust plume was investigated by simultaneous
measurement in-stack and in-plume as part of a collaborative study
among the U.S. EPA, EPRI, EERC, and Southern Company. In-stack continuous
emission monitoring data were used to establish the CFPP’s
real-time mercury speciation and plume dilution tracer species (SO<sub>2</sub>, NO<sub>X</sub>) emission rates, and an airship was utilized
as an airborne sampling platform to maintain static position with
respect to the exhaust plume centerline for semicontinuous measurement
of target species. Varying levels of Hg<sup>II</sup> concentration
(2.39–3.90 μg m<sup>–3</sup>) and percent abundance
(∼87–99%) in flue gas and in-plume reduction were observed.
The existence and magnitude of Hg<sup>II</sup> reduction to Hg<sup>0</sup> (0–55%) observed varied with respect to the types
and relative amounts of coals combusted, suggesting that exhaust plume
reduction occurring downwind of the CFPP is influenced by coal chemical
composition and characteristics