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Boundary Dam "Clean Coal"


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So SaskPower is spending a billion dollars to turn a 150 MW Coal fired power unit into a 100MW unit that will still burn the same amount of coal since it uses 50 MW to run the carbon capture system. Does this actually sound like a good idea to anybody?

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So SaskPower is spending a billion dollars to turn a 150 MW Coal fired power unit into a 100MW unit that will still burn the same amount of coal since it uses 50 MW to run the carbon capture system. Does this actually sound like a good idea to anybody?
It is incredibly stupid. But that is the price that has to be paid by politicians that want to pander to the raving eco-nuts. Edited by TimG
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So SaskPower is spending a billion dollars to turn a 150 MW Coal fired power unit into a 100MW unit that will still burn the same amount of coal since it uses 50 MW to run the carbon capture system. Does this actually sound like a good idea to anybody?

Well, a 1/3 cut in efficiency does sound pretty terrible. That being said, the main reason we care about efficiency in the first place with coal power plants is because we want to burn less coal to produce the same amount of power. Why do we want to burn less coal? Mainly, to reduce emissions. Not only CO2, but harmful pollutants of all kinds. Coal is dirt cheap and endlessly plentiful. I don't know the details of this plan or how well the proposed carbon capture system is supposed to work, but if a 30-35% efficiency penalty can turn coal plants into zero-emission energy sources, that essentially solves the emissions issue when it comes to power generation. And efficiency of such systems would improve quickly if they started to be more widely used, until it became a much smaller penalty. On the other hand, if it's only a partial reduction in emissions that is provided by this system, then it's definitely not worth it.

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I don't know the details of this plan or how well the proposed carbon capture system is supposed to work, but if a 30-35% efficiency penalty can turn coal plants into zero-emission energy sources, that essentially solves the emissions issue when it comes to power generation.
GIven all of the other nasty stuff released when coal is burned I would say it is definately not worth it. Why create more real pollution like black carbon in order to capture CO2? It makes no sense.
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GIven all of the other nasty stuff released when coal is burned I would say it is definately not worth it. Why create more real pollution like black carbon in order to capture CO2? It makes no sense.

I don't know enough about carbon capture technologies. Are the other pollutants also sequestered along with the CO2?

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I don't know enough about carbon capture technologies. Are the other pollutants also sequestered along with the CO2?
"Clean coal" captures all of the emissions as solid waste that has to be disposed. This waste is much more damaging than CO2 ever will be so it is rediculous to generate more of this waste in order to sequester CO2. Edited by TimG
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"Clean coal" captures all of the emissions as solid waste that has to be disposed. This waste is much more damaging than CO2 ever will be so it is rediculous to generate more of this waste in order to sequester CO2.

Right but this waste gets stored in a solid form underground rather than being released into the atmosphere/environment.

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From what I read in the link on the other thread, oil companies are currently importing CO2 from the US which they use in the oil extraction process. If this could be replaced with our own captured CO2, it sounds like it could be good for the economy AND the environment.

Does anyone know the market rate for CO2? How much can they sell the captured CO2 to oil companies for?

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'Clean coal' is a marketing term thought up by some well paid PR campaigns, it has no basis in reality, sure sounds warm and fuzzy though, whatever PR firm thought this up deserves a bonus seeing as most of us believe it.

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From what I read in the link on the other thread, oil companies are currently importing CO2 from the US which they use in the oil extraction process. If this could be replaced with our own captured CO2, it sounds like it could be good for the economy AND the environment.

Purified industrial grade CO2 is not what comes out of the chimney's of coal plants, unfortunately. And even if it was, the quantities of CO2 used in industry are tiny compared to the quantities emitted.

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