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Black to green
Beneath the gargantuan grey boiler towers of Schwarze Pumpe power station which pierce the skies of northern Germany, a Lilliputian puzzle of metal boxes and shining canisters is about to mark a moment of industrial history. This mini power plant is a pilot project for carbon capture and storage (CCS) - the first coal-fired plant in the world ready to capture and store its own CO2 emissions. Next week the pilot - an oxyfuel boiler - will be formally commissioned. A cloud of pure oxygen will be breathed into the boiler. The flame will be lit. Then a cloud of powdered lignite will be injected. The outcome will be heat, water vapour, impurities, nine tonnes of CO2 an hour, and a landmark in clean technology. Because the CO2 will then be separated, squashed to one 500th of its original volume and squeezed into a cylinder ready to be transported to a gas field and forced 1,000m below the surface into porous rock where it should stay until long after mankind has stopped worrying about climate change. This is the technology once lavishly described by the former UK Chief Scientist Sir David King as "the only hope for mankind". The plant operators, Vattenfall, have worked furiously for two years to get the pilot running. "We are very proud - we think this is the future for coal," says Vattenfall's Hubertus Altmann. They funded the 70m-euro project themselves because they wanted to lead a technology they believe solves the conundrum of providing energy security through plentiful coal supplies whilst avoiding the CO2 emissions officially blamed for climate change. 'Too expensive, too late' Green-carpeted marquees are currently being furnished for the guests who will swell the applause at the grand inauguration. But Greenpeace is among the environmental groups expressing reservations. "Our concern is that this technology is used to justify the construction of more coal power plants," says Tobias Munchmeyer. "It's too expensive, it will come too late and it will divert money from the real solutions, renewable energies and energy efficiency." The EU wants to see 10-12 full-scale power plants demonstrating CO2 capture within the next few years. Posted by: Fred 2008-09-05 |
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