In February of this year, the Boiler MACT rule was published in the Federal Register, causing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to propose new regulations calling for system upgrades on boilers and auxiliary equipment in many plants. The costs associated with these upgrades can reach up to $35 billion according to the EPA, but because the costs will be specific to each individual plant, no one will know the real costs until the boiler equipment is evaluated to comply with new and future regulations. Boiler operators are hesitant to spend the money due to the uncertainty of regulations, but eventually something will need to be done.
There are resources available, and the U.S. boiler and combustion equipment industry is readily able to meet the demand for these system upgrades. Randy Rawson, President of the American Boiler Manufacturer’s Association (ABMA), said, “We have the workforce resources to meet the needs of our customers, as long as our customers don’t push compliance go the last minute.”
The largest air districts in California have passed rules that require NOx compliance as low as 5 ppm by the year 2015. Few burner manufacturers have been successful with developing new ultra low NOx (ULN) burner technology that easily and safely performs at 9 - 7 ppm NOx. Many users that have tried ULN burners suffer the consequences of high FGR or excess air rates that compromise not only efficiency, but also the operational limits of boiler equipment, resulting in limited turndown capabilities, flame pulsations and unstable operation.
Today, selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology has taken over as the best available control technology for complying with ultra low NOx emission requirements. Nationwide Boiler, having invested in SCR technology for our rental fleet over the last ten years, has both the experience as an user and a supplier of the CataStak™ SCR system. Our SCR systems have met or exceeded emission requirements for over one hundred boilers, steam generators and gas turbines installations.
The Nationwide Boiler CataStak™ SCR system is proven to decrease emissions, increase energy efficiency, reduce fan horsepower and provide greenhouse gas / carbon reductions. Typical users can save significant energy costs by reducing flue gas recirculation which substantially reduces fan horsepower (HP) and when compared with a typical 9 ppm burner, fan HP can be reduced by as much as half.
If you are concerned or have questions about how your facility is planning to comply with local air quality regulations, send am email to info@nationwideboiler.com and together we can come up with a solution that can perform as low as 2.5 ppm NOx and pass any current air regulation with the lowest carbon footprint.
Boiler Blog | Nationwide Boiler Inc.
Complete Nationwide Boiler’s CataStak Quote Request form and join the list of over 100 hundred customers who have reaped the benefits of a CataStak™ SCR system (sales and rentals). Once we receive all relevant information pertaining to your system, we will provide an accurate quote that will aid in your decision process.
Nationwide Boiler’s CataStak SCR system has never failed a third-party source test and is proven to work in applications including boilers, heaters, and natural gas-fired turbines. In addition, ammonia-free solutions are also available.
Contact Nationwide today for a no obligation quote and visit our website for additional product literature and resources.
For almost a decade boiler manufactures and operators have been waiting for the federal government to determine what must be done to meet stricter emission standards for toxic air pollutants. As published recently by Power Engineering, industry officials now say the new standards won’t be unveiled until November to December and the EPA’s revised Boiler MACT rule remains under review by the Office of Budget Management’s regulatory affairs division.
The final rule establishes national emissions standards for hazardous air pollutants (Mercury, PM, hydrogen chloride and carbon monoxide) for industrial, commercial and institutional boilers. It applies to major sources that emit 10 or more tons a year of any single pollutant of 25 tons or more a year of any combination. It will also require annual boiler tune-ups in some instances. In total, the EPA estimates the cost of adding new controls will exceed $5 billion and some sources indicated that it would force power producers to retire about 4.7 GW of coal-fired capacity, due to high compliance costs.
Once the revised rule is finalized, boilers owners and operators will have three years to comply. This is in addition to other existing clean-air rules the industry has to comply with. However, despite the unique challenges the industry may face, boiler manufactures and associated suppliers are ready to tackle future compliance challenges. Overall, the boiler industry has the technology and know-how available to provide immediate solutions.
“We can only hope that OMB is doing more toward achieving compromises and consensus than just sitting on its hands for political purposes,” explains Randy Rawson, ABMA President and CEO.
On December 20, 2012, the EPA finalized the Boiler MACT, a specific set of adjustments to existing Clean Air Act standards, for boilers and certain solid waste incinerators. These adjustments set standards to cut emissions of hazardous air pollutants, such as mercury, dioxin, and lead, from large boilers in a range of industrial facilities and institutions.
The DOE will offer technical assistance to affected sites currently burning coal or oil, highlighting strategies such as natural gas combined heat and power (CHP), and more efficient boilers, to cut harmful pollution and reduce operational costs. DOE will also provide site-specific technical and cost information to the major source facilities currently burning coal or oil through its regional Clean Energy Application Centers (CEACs).
The CEACs will visit these facilities to discuss strategies for compliance, including CHP, as well as provide information on potential funding and financing opportunities available for CHP, controls, boilers and energy efficiency assessments. Facilities that make use of this technical assistance can potentially develop strategies to comply with the regulations while adding to their bottom line.
Contact Nationwide Boiler today to discuss how we can help you come up with a solution that will cut emissions in your facility. Call: 1-800-227-1966.
Information on financial incentives available at the local, state, utility and federal levels to assist facilities with the costs of investing in CHP, boiler tune-ups, controls and/or energy efficiency assessments is available at:
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/manufacturing/states/pdfs/incentives_boiler_mact.pdf
Information about the rule, including links to the regulatory dockets, technical information on how the limits were developed, and impact assessments, is available at:
http://www.epa.gov/airquality/combustion/actions.html