Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D53/00—Separation of gases or vapours; Recovering vapours of volatile solvents from gases; Chemical or biological purification of waste gases, e.g. engine exhaust gases, smoke, fumes, flue gases, aerosols
  • B01D53/34—Chemical or biological purification of waste gases
  • B01D53/346—Controlling the process
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D53/00—Separation of gases or vapours; Recovering vapours of volatile solvents from gases; Chemical or biological purification of waste gases, e.g. engine exhaust gases, smoke, fumes, flue gases, aerosols
  • B01D53/34—Chemical or biological purification of waste gases
  • B01D53/46—Removing components of defined structure
  • B01D53/48—Sulfur compounds
  • B01D53/50—Sulfur oxides
  • B01D53/501—Sulfur oxides by treating the gases with a solution or a suspension of an alkali or earth-alkali or ammonium compound
  • B01D53/502—Sulfur oxides by treating the gases with a solution or a suspension of an alkali or earth-alkali or ammonium compound characterised by a specific solution or suspension
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D53/00—Separation of gases or vapours; Recovering vapours of volatile solvents from gases; Chemical or biological purification of waste gases, e.g. engine exhaust gases, smoke, fumes, flue gases, aerosols
  • B01D53/34—Chemical or biological purification of waste gases
  • B01D53/46—Removing components of defined structure
  • B01D53/64—Heavy metals or compounds thereof, e.g. mercury
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D53/00—Separation of gases or vapours; Recovering vapours of volatile solvents from gases; Chemical or biological purification of waste gases, e.g. engine exhaust gases, smoke, fumes, flue gases, aerosols
  • B01D53/34—Chemical or biological purification of waste gases
  • B01D53/74—General processes for purification of waste gases; Apparatus or devices specially adapted therefor
  • B01D53/77—Liquid phase processes
  • B01D53/79—Injecting reactants
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F23—COMBUSTION APPARATUS; COMBUSTION PROCESSES
  • F23J—REMOVAL OR TREATMENT OF COMBUSTION PRODUCTS OR COMBUSTION RESIDUES; FLUES 
  • F23J15/00—Arrangements of devices for treating smoke or fumes
  • F23J15/02—Arrangements of devices for treating smoke or fumes of purifiers, e.g. for removing noxious material
  • F23J15/04—Arrangements of devices for treating smoke or fumes of purifiers, e.g. for removing noxious material using washing fluids
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D2251/00—Reactants
  • B01D2251/60—Inorganic bases or salts
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D2251/00—Reactants
  • B01D2251/80—Organic bases or salts
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01D—SEPARATION
  • B01D2258/00—Sources of waste gases
  • B01D2258/02—Other waste gases
  • B01D2258/0283—Flue gases
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F23—COMBUSTION APPARATUS; COMBUSTION PROCESSES
  • F23J—REMOVAL OR TREATMENT OF COMBUSTION PRODUCTS OR COMBUSTION RESIDUES; FLUES 
  • F23J2215/00—Preventing emissions
  • F23J2215/60—Heavy metals; Compounds thereof

Definitions

• the present disclosure relates generally to methods for controlling mercury emissions, and more particularly, to methods for controlling mercury re- emissions from wet flue gas desulfurizers.
• wFGD liquor The aqueous alkaline solution is commonly referred to as "wFGD liquor” or "scrubber liquor.”
• oxygen may be introduced into the wFGD liquor to oxidize sulfite to sulfate. In many cases, this forms gypsum (calcium sulfate), as the final byproduct of scrubbing.
• Other systems may utilize inhibited or natural oxidation scrubbing which results in sulfite salts or mixed sulfite/sulfate salts as byproduct.
• Combustion gases exiting the boiler may contain mercury in three forms: particulate, oxidized, and elemental.
• Particulate mercury can be captured by particulate control devices such as electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) and fabric filters (FF).
• ESPs electrostatic precipitators
• FF fabric filters
• Oxidized mercury is water-soluble and as such wFGDs can absorb the oxidized mercury from the combustion gas into the liquid phase. Elemental mercury, which is insoluble in water, is difficult to capture using existing air quality control devices.
• wFGDs are theoretically capable of capturing nearly 100% of the oxidized mercury in a combustion gas.
• DOE Department of Energy
• the lower efficiencies are the result of reduction of oxidized mercury to elemental mercury (e.g., Hg 2+ to Hg°) within the wFGD scrubber liquor.
• one reduction reaction involves the oxidation of sulfite by ionic mercury in the wFGD to provide sulfate and elemental mercury.
• the result is an increase across the wFGD of elemental mercury content in the scrubbed combustion gas, and thus a decrease in total mercury capture as measured from fossil fuel to stack.
• the method may include measuring either ionic mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), and/or sulfide ion concentration within a scrubber liquor of a wet flue gas desulpherizer (wFGD); correlating the mercury concentration, ORP, and/or sulfide concentration with an amount of mercury re-emission additive required in the scrubber liquor to reduce and/or prevent mercury re-emission to a selected level; and adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive into the scrubber liquor to attain the selected level of mercury re-emission (e.g., a desired level of mercury re-emission to meet MATS limits).
• ORP oxidation-reduction potential
• wFGD wet flue gas desulpherizer
• ionic mercury concentration is measured, oxidation-reduction potential is measured, or sulfide ion concentration is measured. In certain embodiments, a combination of ionic mercury concentration, oxidation- reduction potential, and sulfide ion concentration are measured.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor ionic mercury
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor ionic mercury concentration to less than 200 ppt and the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor to 10% or less.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor mercury concentration to less than 100 ppt and the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor to 1% or less.
• the ORP value is measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential by up to 100 mV. In certain embodiments, the ORP value is measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential by up to 300 mV. In certain embodiments, the ORP value is measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to reduce the scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential by up to 400 mV.
• the oxidation-reduction potential of the scrubber liquor is measured prior to adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive to provide a baseline ORP, wherein the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is thereafter increased to reduce the scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential by 50-400 mV.
• the reduction of scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential by 50-400 mV reduces mercury re- emission to 20% mercury re-emission or less, 10% mercury re-emission or less, or 1% mercury re-emission or less.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to increase the scrubber liquor sulfide ion concentration to greater than 20 ppm, greater than 50 ppm, or greater than 70 ppm. In certain embodiments, the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is adjusted to increase the scrubber liquor sulfide ion concentration to a range of about 20 ppm to about 100 ppm, or about 30 ppm to about 70 ppm.
• the mercury re-emission control additive is a polydithiocarbamic compound.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be an ethylene dichloride ammonia polymer having a molecular weight of from 500 to 10,000, and containing from 5 to 55 mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be a composition comprising a polymer derived from at least two monomers: acrylic-x and an alkylamine, wherein said acrylic-x has the following formula:
• X OR, OH and salts thereof, or NHR 2 and wherein R 1 and R2 is H or an alkyl or aryl group, wherein R is an alkyl or aryl group, wherein the molecular weight of said polymer is between 500 to 200,000, and wherein said polymer is modified to contain a functional group capable of scavenging one or more compositions containing one or more metals.
• the functional group may be a sulfur containing functional group.
• measurement of mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, and/or sulfide concentration is automated. In certain embodiments, adjustment of the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is automated. In certain embodiments, measurement of mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, and/or sulfide concentration is automated, and adjustment of the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive is automated. In certain embodiments, at least one of mercury
• Figure la depicts a percent mercury re-emission controlled by measuring mercury concentration and adjusting addition rate of a mercury re-emission control additive.
• Figure lb shows the correlation between mercury re-emission (flue gas mercury emissions) and mercury concentration in the scrubber liquor.
• Figure 2a depicts a percent mercury re-emission controlled by measuring scrubber liquor oxidation-reduction potential and adjusting addition rate of a mercury re-emission control additive.
• Figure 2b depicts the relationship between the change in oxidation- reduction potential (i.e., delta scrubber liquor ORP), and resulting mercury re- emission.
• Figure 2c depicts data showing a correlation between ORP and percent mercury re-emission with a correlation coefficient of 0.999.
• Figure 3 depicts electrode responses of oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) electrode (diamonds) and sulfide ion-selective electrode (ISE, squares) as a function of increasing wFGD additive in a 0.1 M Na 2 SO 4 electrolyte solution.
• ORP oxidation-reduction potential
• ISE sulfide ion-selective electrode
• Figure 4 depicts data collected in the field in real-time during a wFGD additive demonstration to control mercury re-emission across a wFGD scrubber.
• the solid line data on the lower portion of the graph represents the feed rate of the wFGD additive and corresponds to the secondary y-axis.
• the data points shown in squares on the top portion of the graph correspond to the primary y-axis and represent the sulfide concentration in the wFGD scrubber liquor as measured by an in-line sulfide ISE.
• ORP oxidation-reduction potential
• wFGD wet flue gas desulpherizer
• the methods disclosed herein provide process efficiency and economic advantages over conventional methods of reducing mercury re-emission.
• the methods disclosed herein also provide continuous, in-line monitoring of mercury re-emissions and allow for automatic adjustment of the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive to compensate for changes in fuel composition and/or scrubber liquor composition.
• the measurement of ionic mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, and/or sulfide ion concentration may be automated, and the resulting measurement(s) used to automatically and in real-time adjust the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive.
• the methods disclosed herein therefore reduce the incidence of over- and underfeeding of additive to the scrubber liquor.
• percent mercury re-emission refers to:
• outlet refers to EGU stack gas mercury measurement
• inlet refers to gas concentrations at the inlet to the wFGD
• 0 refers to the concentration of elemental mercury in the gas
• T refers to the total concentration of mercury in the gas.
• the “outlet” measurement may refer to mercury gas measurements made at any location after the gas has exited the wFGD.
• percent mercury oxidation refers to:
• percent mercury capture refers to:
• oxidation-reduction potential refers to the summation of all the oxidation and reduction potentials in a given solution or scrubber liquor. As such, the oxidation-reduction potential varies depending on a liquor composition.
• the methods disclosed relate to controlling the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additives to wet flue gas desulpherizers.
• the rate of addition may be adjusted based on either ionic mercury concentration in the wFGD scrubber liquor, changes in the wFGD scrubber liquor oxidative reduction potential, and/or sulfide ion concentration in the wFGD scrubber liquor.
• the ionic mercury concentration in a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive increased to reduce the ionic mercury concentration, thereby reducing the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor.
• the ionic mercury concentration of a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive decreased while maintaining an ionic mercury concentration, thereby maintaining the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor without using excess mercury re-emission control additive.
• the oxidation-reduction potential of a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive increased to reduce the ORP, thereby reducing the percent mercury re- emission from the scrubber liquor.
• the oxidation-reduction potential of a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive decreased to increase the ORP to an acceptable level to maintain the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor without using excess mercury re-emission control additive.
• the sulfide ion concentration in a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive increased to increase the sulfide concentration, thereby reducing the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor.
• the sulfide concentration of a scrubber liquor may be measured, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive decreased to decrease the sulfide concentration while maintaining a percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor without using excess mercury re-emission control additive.
• any combination of ionic mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, and sulfide ion concentration may be used to monitor the scrubber liquor and guide adjustment of the addition rate of mercury re-emission control additive.
• all of ionic mercury concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, and sulfide ion concentration are monitored and used together to guide adjustment of the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive.
• monitoring of the scrubber liquor composition and subsequent adjustment of the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be automated.
• the ionic mercury concentration, the oxidation-reduction potential, and/or the sulfide ion concentration may be monitored by an automated process, and depending on the measured value(s), the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be automatically adjusted in real time to compensate for changes in the fuel, plant load, and/or scrubber liquor composition, thereby continuously maintaining a desired mercury re-emission level without over- or under feeding the wFGD with mercury re-emission control additive.
• Mercury concentration in a scrubber liquor can be used to monitor wFGD operations, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive can be adjusted accordingly to adjust mercury capture.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive can be increased to compensate for higher concentrations of ionic mercury in the scrubber liquor, thereby reducing mercury re-emission.
• the rate of addition of mercury re- emission control additive can be decreased to compensate for lower concentrations of ionic mercury in the scrubber liquor, thereby reducing excessive use of re- emission control additive.
• the addition rate of the mercury re-emission additive may be selected based on the measured concentration of ionic mercury in the scrubber liquor.
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor ionic mercury concentration is reduced to 1000 parts per trillion (ppt) or less, 900 ppt or less, 800 ppt or less, 700 ppt or less, 600 ppt or less, 500 ppt or less, 400 ppt or less, 300 ppt or less, 250 ppt or less, 200 ppt or less, 150 ppt or less, 100 ppt or less, or 50 ppt or less.
• ppt parts per trillion
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor ionic mercury concentration ranges from about 0 ppt to about 1000 ppt, from about 5 ppt to about 900 ppt, from about 10 to about 800 ppt, from about 15 ppt to about 700 ppt, from about 20 ppt to about 600 ppt, from about 25 ppt to about 500 ppt, from about 30 ppt to about 400 ppt, from about 35 ppt to about 300 ppt, from about 40 ppt to about 250 ppt, from about 45 ppt to about 200 ppt, or from about 50 ppt to about 150 ppt.
• the percent mercury re-emission may be reduced to 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• mercury re- emission may be reduced to zero or near zero.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 1000 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 900 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 800 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 700 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 600 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 500 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 400 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 300 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 250 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 200 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 150 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 100 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• an ionic mercury scrubber liquor concentration of 50 ppt or less may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• the addition rate of the mercury re-emission additive may be adjusted based on targeting a scrubber liquor ionic mercury concentration of 1000 ppt or less, 900 ppt or less, 800 ppt or less, 700 ppt or less, 600 ppt or less, 500 ppt or less, 400 ppt or less, 300 ppt or less, 250 ppt or less, 200 ppt or less, 150 ppt or less, 100 ppt or less, or 50 ppt or less.
• the feed of the scrubber additive may then be controlled to maintain a selected level of mercury scrubber liquor concentration during process variations, such as load and coal changes. Hence, active control can be set to follow plant load, changes in flue gas mercury content due to fuel changes, and scrubber liquor changes.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive to a scrubber liquor may provide an additive concentration from about 0.0001 ppm to about 50,000 ppm, or from about 0.01 ppm to about 5,000 ppm.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be adjusted to target a selected scrubber liquor ionic mercury concentration, and in turn a desired mercury re-emissions level.
• Factors that affect addition rate besides concentration include coal composition which includes but is not limited to mercury and sulfur concentration of the coal; halogen content of the coal; the type of fuel (e.g., anthracite, lignite, bituminous or subbituminous); the megawatt size of the plant (e.g., 100 to 1000 MW), or capacity of the plant; the presence of other air quality control devices ahead of the scrubber such as fabric filters or electrostatic precipitators; the application of other flue gas mercury reduction technologies such as activated carbon or inorganic sorbents prior to the scrubber; the design type of the scrubber, (e.g., spray tower, chiota also known as a jet bubbler, or horizontal type); the scrubber liquor volume; blow down rate (i.e., the rate at which spent liquor is removed from the scrubber); liquid to gas ratio used in the scrubber; the presences of trays or liquor dispersion techniques such as trays or baffles; the particle size and concentration of lime or limestone being added to the scrubber to
• Oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) of a scrubber liquor can be monitored as related to mercury capture, and the rate of addition of mercury re- emission control additive can be adjusted accordingly.
• ORP Oxidation-reduction potential
• mercury re- emissions can be reduced, optionally to zero, and controlled directly based on the ORP of the treated wFGD liquor.
• the scrubber liquor baseline ORP may vary widely due to variations in composition. Such variations are influenced by, for example, EGU operations, fuel composition, boiler additives, supplemental oxidants, and scrubber additives used to enhance sulfur capture efficiency.
• the starting ORP of the scrubber liquor may vary from, for example, oxidative at +400 mV to slightly oxidative at +90 mV.
• the mercury re-emission control additives used with the methods of the invention decrease the liquor ORP, leading to reduction in mercury re-emissions.
• the addition rate of mercury re-emission control additive may be selected based on the measured concentration ORP of the scrubber liquor or a targeted ORP value of the scrubber liquor relative to baseline.
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor ORP is reduced by a value of 500 mV or less, 400 mV or less, 300 mV or less, 250 mV or less, 200 mV or less, 150 mV or less, 100 mV or less, or 50 mV or less.
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor ORP reduction ranges from about 50 mV to about 500 mV, about 100 mV to about 300 mV, or about 150 mV to about 250 mV.
• the value of ORP change may be greater than 50 mV, greater than 100 mV, greater than 150 mV, greater than 200 mV, greater than 250 mV, greater than 300 mV, greater than 350 mV, greater than 400 mV, greater than 450 mV, or greater than 500 mV.
• the percent mercury re-emission may be reduced to 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 50 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 100 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 150 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 200 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 250 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 300 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 350 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 400 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 450 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a reduction in ORP of 500 mV or greater may correspond to a percent mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• the scrubber liquor ORP may be continuously monitored or monitored at intervals, wherein if the measured ORP increases by 50 mV or more, 100 mV or more, 150 mV or more, 200 mV or more, 250 mV or more, 300 mV or more, 400 mV or more, or 500 mV or more over a desired ORP, the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be increased to reduce the scrubber liquor ORP by 50 mV or more, 100 mV or more, 150 mV or more, 200 mV or more, 250 mV or more, 300 mV or more, or 400 mV or more.
• the reduction in scrubber liquor ORP may result in a percent mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• the scrubber liquor ORP may be continuously monitored or monitored at intervals, wherein if the measured ORP decreases by 50 mV or more, 100 mV or more, 150 mV or more, 200 mV or more, 250 mV or more, 300 mV or more, 400 mV or more, or 500 mV or more below the desired ORP, the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be decreased to increase scrubber liquor ORP by 50 mV or more, 100 mV or more, 150 mV or more, 200 mV or more, 250 mV or more, 300 mV or more, 400 mV or more, or 500 mV or more.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive to a scrubber liquor may provide an additive concentration from about 0.0001 ppm to about 50,000 ppm, or from about 0.01 ppm to about 5,000 ppm.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be adjusted to target a selected change in oxidation-reduction potential, and in turn a desired mercury re-emissions level.
• Factors that affect addition rate besides concentration include coal composition which includes but is not limited to mercury and sulfur concentration of the coal; halogen content of the coal; the type of fuel (e.g., anthracite, lignite, bituminous or subbituminous); the megawatt size of the plant (e.g., 100 to 1000 MW), or capacity of the plant; the presence of other air quality control devices ahead of the scrubber such as fabric filters or electrostatic precipitators; the application of other flue gas mercury reduction technologies such as activated carbon or inorganic sorbents prior to the scrubber; the design type of the scrubber, (e.g., spray tower, chiota also known as a jet bubbler, or horizontal type); the scrubber liquor volume; blow down rate (i.e., the rate at which spent liquor is removed from the scrubber); liquid to gas ratio used in the scrubber; the presences of trays or liquor dispersion techniques such as trays or baffles; the particle size and concentration of lime or limestone being added to the scrubber to
• Sulfide concentration in a scrubber liquor can be used to monitor wFGD operations, and the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive can be adjusted accordingly to adjust mercury capture.
• Using sulfide concentration to monitor wFGD operations provides an in-line, continuous, and direct means of measuring the re-emission control additive used to control mercury re-emission across the wFGD scrubber.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive can be increased to compensate for lower
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive can be decreased to compensate for higher concentrations of sulfide in the scrubber liquor, thereby reducing excessive use of re-emission control additive.
• a sulfide ion- selective electrode can be used to monitor sulfide concentration.
• the sulfide ion-selective electrode may be designed for the detection of sulfide ions (S ⁇ ) in aqueous solutions, and may be suitable for use in both field and laboratory applications.
• the sulfide ion-selective electrode may have a solid-state crystal membrane. Where the mercury re-emission control additive contains sulfide ions, the sulfide ion-selective electrode can be used to monitor and control the additive feed rate and dosage to a wFGD.
• the addition rate of the mercury re-emission control additive may be selected based on the measured concentration of sulfide in the scrubber liquor.
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor sulfide concentration is increased to 20 ppm or greater, 30 ppm or greater, 40 ppm or greater, 50 ppm or greater, 60 ppm or greater, 70 ppm or greater, 80 ppm or greater, 90 ppm or greater, or 100 ppm or greater.
• the percent mercury re-emission from the scrubber liquor can be reduced by adjusting the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive such that the scrubber liquor sulfide concentration ranges from about 100 ppm or less, 90 ppm or less, 80 ppm or less, 70 ppm or less, 60 ppm or less, 50 ppm or less, 40 ppm or less, 30 ppm or less, or 20 ppm or less.
• the sulfide concentration may be determined using a sulfide ion- selective electrode and correlating the measured electrode response to sulfide concentration.
• the percent mercury re-emission may be reduced to 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• mercury re-emission may be reduced to zero or near zero.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 20 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 30 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 40 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 50 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 60 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 70 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 80 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 90 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re- emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• a sulfide scrubber liquor concentration of 100 ppm or greater may correspond to a mercury re-emission of 20% or less, 19% or less, 18% or less, 17% or less, 16% or less, 15% or less, 14% or less, 13% or less, 12% or less, 11% or less, 10% or less, 9% or less, 8% or less, 7% or less, 6% or less, 5% or less, 4% or less, 3% or less, 2% or less, 1% or less, or 0%.
• the addition rate of the mercury re-emission additive may be adjusted based on targeting a scrubber liquor sulfide concentration of about 20 ppm to about 100 ppm, or about 30 ppm to about 70 ppm.
• the feed of the scrubber additive may then be controlled to maintain the selected level of sulfide concentration during process variations, such as load and coal changes.
• active control can be set to follow plant load, changes in flue gas mercury content due to fuel changes, and scrubber liquor changes.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive to a scrubber liquor may provide an additive concentration from about 0.0001 ppm to about 50,000 ppm, or from about 0.01 ppm to about 5,000 ppm.
• the rate of addition of mercury re-emission control additive may be adjusted to target a selected scrubber liquor sulfide ion concentration, and in turn a desired mercury re-emissions level.
• Factors that affect addition rate besides concentration include coal composition which includes but is not limited to mercury and sulfur concentration of the coal; halogen content of the coal; the type of fuel (e.g., anthracite, lignite, bituminous or subbituminous); the megawatt size of the plant (e.g., 100 to 1000 MW), or capacity of the plant; the presence of other air quality control devices ahead of the scrubber such as fabric filters or electrostatic precipitators; the application of other flue gas mercury reduction technologies such as activated carbon or inorganic sorbents prior to the scrubber; the design type of the scrubber, (e.g., spray tower, chiota also known as a jet bubbler, or horizontal type); the scrubber liquor volume; blow down rate (i.e., the rate at which spent liquor is removed from the scrubber); liquid to gas ratio used in the scrubber; the presences of trays or liquor dispersion techniques such as trays or baffles; the particle size and concentration of lime or limestone being added to the scrubber to
• Mercury re-emission control additives that can be used with the methods of the invention include any additive suitable to reduce and/or prevent mercury re- emission from combustion processes, and in particular, scrubber liquors.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be a poly-dithiocarbamic compound (e.g., MerControl 8034, also referred to herein as "poly-DTC"), or another sulfur-containing additive such as sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosulfide, sodium bisulfide, or a poly-sulfide.
• poly-DTC poly-dithiocarbamic compound
• sulfur-containing additive such as sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosulfide, sodium bisulfide, or a poly-sulfide.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be diethyldithiocarbamate or a sodium salt thereof. In certain embodiments, the mercury re-emission control additive may be dimethyldithiocarbamate or a sodium salt thereof.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be an inorganic poly-sulfide or blend, such as PRAVO, a product from Vosteen.
• the mercury re-emission additive may be a sodium or calcium salt of l,3,5-triazine-2,4,6(lH,3H,5H)-trithione (also referred to as trimercapto-S-triazine), such as TMT-15, a product from Degussa.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be an activated carbon, such as disclosed in US Patent 7,727,307 B2.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be a dithiol, a dithiolane, or a thiol having a single thiol group and either an oxygen or a hydroxyl group.
• Suitable dithiols include, but are not limited to, 2,3- dimercaptopropanol, dimercaptosuccinic acid, and 1,8-octanedithiol.
• Suitable dithiolanes include, but are not limited to, l,2-dithiolane-3-valeric acid and 2-methyl 1,3-dithiolane.
• Suitable thiols include, but are not limited to, mercaptoacetic acid and sodium salts thereof.
• a combination of mercury re-emission controlled additives may be used.
• the mercury re-emission control additive comprises a poly-dithiocarbamic compound.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be a water-soluble ethylene dichloride ammonia polymer having a molecular weight of from 500 to 10,000, and containing from 5 to 55 mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups to prevent re-emission of mercury across a wFGD.
• the polymer may be prepared by the reaction of ethylene dichloride and ammonia to provide a polyamine or polyimine.
• the polyamine or polyimine may have a molecular weight range of 500-100,000. In a preferred embodiment, the molecular weight may be 1,500 to 10,000, with the most preferred molecular weight range being 1,500 to 5,000.
• the dithiocarbamate groups of the polymers may be introduced by the reaction of the polyamines or polyimines with carbon disulfide to produce polydithiocarbamic acid or their salts. Such reaction is preferably carried out in a solvent such as water or alcohol at a temperature of from 30 °C and 100 °C for periods of time ranging between 1 and 10 hours. Good conversion may be obtained at temperatures between 40 0 and 70 °C for 2 to 5 hours.
• the mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups in the finished polymer may be within the range of 5 to 55%, 20 to 40 mole %, or 25 to 30 mole %.
• the salts include, but are not limited to, alkaline and alkali earth such as sodium, lithium, potassium or calcium.
• the finished polymer may be applied to a combustion process at a ratio of 1 : 1 to 2000: 1 weight copolymer to weight of mercury being captured.
• One preferred ratio may be from 5: 1 to 1000: 1 more preferably from 5: 1 to 500: 1.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be a composition comprising a polymer derived from at least two monomers: acrylic-x and an alkylamine, wherein said acrylic-x has the following formula:
• X OR, OH and salts thereof, or NHR 2 and wherein R 1 and R2 is H or an alkyl or aryl group, wherein R is an alkyl or aryl group, wherein the molecular weight of said polymer is between 500 to 200,000, and wherein said polymer is modified to contain a functional group capable of scavenging one or more compositions containing one or more metals.
• the metals can include zero valent, monovalent, and multivalent metals.
• the metals may or may not be ligated by organic or inorganic compounds.
• the metals can be radioactive and nonradioactive. Examples include, but are not limited to, transition metals and heavy metals. Specific metals can include, but are not limited to: copper, nickel, zinc, lead, mercury, cadmium, silver, iron, manganese, palladium, platinum, strontium, selenium, arsenic, cobalt and gold.
• the molecular weight of the polymers can vary.
• the target species/application for the polymers can be one consideration.
• Another factor can be monomer selection.
• Molecular weight can be calculated by various means known to those of ordinary skill in the art. For example, size exclusion
• the molecular weight of the unmodified polymer otherwise referred to as the polymer backbone.
• the functional groups that are added to the backbone are not part of the calculation.
• the molecular weight of the polymer with the functional groups can far exceed the molecular weight range.
• the molecular weight of the polymer is from 1,000 to 16,000. In another embodiment, the molecular weight of said polymer is from 1,500 to 8,000.
• Various functional groups can be utilized for metal scavenging.
• the following phraseology would be well understood by one of ordinary skill in the art: wherein said polymer is modified to contain a functional group capable of scavenging one or more compositions containing one or more metals. More specifically, the polymer is modified to contain a functional group that can bind metals.
• the functional group contains a sulfide containing chemistry. In another embodiment, the functional group is a dithiocarbamate salt group.
• the functional groups are at least one of the following: alkylene phosphate groups, alkylene carboxylic acids and salts thereof, oxime groups, amidooxime groups, dithiocarbamic acids and salts thereof, hydroxamic acids, and nitrogen oxides.
• the molar amounts of the functional group relative to the total amines contained in the unmodified polymer can vary as well.
• the reaction of 3.0 molar equivalents of carbon disulfide to a 1.0: 1.0 mole ratio acrylic acid / TEPA copolymer, which contains 4 molar equivalents of amines per repeat unit after polymerization will result in a polymer that is modified to contain 75 mole % dithiocarbamate salt group.
• 75 % of the total amines in the unmodified polymer have been converted to dithiocarbamate salt groups.
• the polymer may have between 5 to 100 mole % of the dithiocarbamate salt group. In a further embodiment, the polymer has from 25 to 90 mole % of the dithiocarbamate salt group. In yet a further embodiment, the polymer has from 55 to 80 mole % of the dithiocarbamate salt group.
• the alkylamine is at least one of the following: an ethyleneamine, a polyethylenepolyamine, ethylenediamine (EDA), diethylenetriamine (DETA), triethylenetetraamine (TETA) and tetraethylenepetamine (TEPA) and
• the acrylic-x is at least one of the following: methyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, ethyl acrylate, and ethyl methacrylate, propyl acrylate, and propyl methacrylate.
• the acrylic-x is at least one of the following: acrylic acid and salts thereof, methacrylic acid and salts thereof, acrylamide, and methacrylamide.
• the molar ratio between monomers that make up the polymer, especially acrylic-x and alkylamine can vary and depend upon the resultant polymer product that is desired.
• the molar ratio used is defined as the moles of acrylic-x divided by the moles of alkylamine. In one embodiment, the molar ratio between acrylic-x and alkylamine is from 0.85 to 1.5. In another embodiment, the molar ratio between acrylic-x and alkylamine is from 1.0 to 1.2.
• Various combinations of acrylic-x and alkylamines are encompassed by this invention as well as associated molecular weight of the polymers.
• the acrylic-x is an acrylic ester and the alkylamine is PEHA or TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the molar ratio between acrylic-x and alkylamine is from 0.85 to 1.5.
• the molecular weight can encompass ranges: 500 to 200,000, 1,000 to 16,000, or 1,500 to 8,000.
• the acrylic ester can be at least one of the following: methyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, ethyl acrylate, and ethyl methacrylate, propyl acrylate, and propyl methacrylate, which is combined with at least one of the alklyamines, which includes PEHA or TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the resulting polymer is modified to contain the following ranges of dithiocarbamate salt groups: 5 to 100 mole , 25 to 90 mole %, or 55 to 80 mole %.
• the acrylic-x is an acrylic amide and the alkylamine is TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the molar ratio between acrylic-x and alkylamine is from 0.85 to 1.5.
• the molecular weight can encompass ranges: 500 to 200,000, 1,000 to 16,000, or 1,500 to 8,000.
• the acrylic amide can be at least one or a combination of acrylamide and methacrylamide, which is combined with at least one of the alklyamines, which includes PEHA or TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the resulting polymer is modified to contain the following ranges of dithiocarbamate salt groups: 5 to 100 mole , 25 to 90 mole %, or 55 to 80 mole %.
• the acrylic-x is an acrylic acid and salts thereof and the alkylamine is PEHA or TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the molar ratio between acrylic-x and alkylamine is from 0.85 to 1.5.
• the molecular weight can encompass ranges: 500 to 200,000, 1,000 to 16,000, or 1,500 to 8,000.
• the acrylic acid can be at least one or a combination of acrylic acid or salts thereof and methacrylic acid or salts thereof, which is combined with at least one of the alklyamines, which includes TEPA or DETA or TETA or EDA.
• the resulting polymer is modified to contain the following ranges of dithiocarbamate salt groups: 5 to 100 mole , 25 to 90 mole , or 55 to 80 mole %.
• Additional monomers can be integrated into the polymer backbone made up of constituent monomers acrylic-x and alkylamine.
• a condensation polymer reaction scheme can be utilized to make the basic polymer backbone chain.
• Various other synthesis methods can be utilized to functionalize the polymer with, for example, dithiocarbamate and/or other non-metal scavenging functional groups.
• One of ordinary skill in the art can functionalize the polymer without undue experimentation .
• the composition can be formulated with other polymers such as those disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,164,095, herein incorporated by reference, specifically, a water soluble ethylene dichloride ammonia polymer having a molecular weight of from 500 to 100,000 which contains from 5 to 55 mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups.
• the molecular weight of the polymer is from 1,500 to 10,000 and contains 15 to 50 mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups.
• the molecular weight of the polymer is from 1,500 to 5,000 and contains 30 to 55 mole % of dithiocarbamate salt groups.
• the composition can be formulated with other small molecule sulfide precipitants such as sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosulfide, TMT-15® (sodium or calcium salts of trimercapto-S-triazine),
• dimethyldithiocarbamate dimethyldithiocarbamate, and/or diethyldithiocarbamate.
• the dosage of the disclosed mercury re-emission control additives may vary as necessitated to reduce or prevent mercury re-emission.
• the dosage amounts can be selected based on a desired ionic mercury concentration, change in ORP, and/or sulfide concentration in the scrubber liquor, which correspond to a percent mercury re-emission.
• Process medium quality and extent of process medium treatment are a couple of factors that can be considered by one of ordinary skill in the art in selecting dosage amount.
• a jar test analysis is a typical example of what is utilized as a basis for determining the amount of dosage required to achieve effective metals removal in the context of a process water medium, e.g. wastewater.
• the amount of mercury re-emission control additive for effectively removing metals from contaminated waters may be within the range of 0.2 to 2 moles of dithiocarbamate per mole of metal, or 1 to 2 moles of dithiocarbamate per mole of metal contained in the water.
• the dosage of metal removal polymer required to chelate and precipitate 100 ml of 18 ppm soluble copper to about 1 ppm or less was 0.011 gm (11.0 mg) of polymer. The metal polymer complexes formed are self-flocculating and quickly settle. These flocculants are easily separated from the treated water.
• the polymer in the context of applying the polymer to a gas system, such as a flue gas, the polymer can be dosed incrementally and capture rates for a particular metal, e.g. such as mercury, can be calculated by known techniques in the art.
• a mercury re-emission control additive such as a water-soluble ethylene dichloride ammonia polymer with dithiocarbamate salt groups, may be applied to a scrubber liquor at a ratio of 1: 1 to 2000: 1 weight of polymer to weight of mercury being captured.
• One preferred dosage ratio is from 5: 1 to 1000: 1, more preferably from 5: 1 to 500: 1.
• Methods of the present invention can be used in any process in which it is desirable to remove mercury from a flue gas.
• the methods of the present invention can be used in waste incineration plants (e.g., domestic waste, hazardous waste, or sewage sludge incineration plants), power stations (e.g., bituminous coal-fired, or lignite-fired power stations), other plants for high- temperature processes (e.g., cement burning), and high-temperature plants co-fired with waste or combined (multistage) high-temperature plants (e.g., power stations or cement rotary kilns having an upstream waste pyrrolysis or waste gasification).
• the sulfide ion-selective electrode may be used in wastewater treatment for dosage control of metals scavenging polymers.
• Methods of the present invention can be used in processes of any dimension.
• the methods can be used in processes having a flue gas volumetric flow rate of 15x10 3 m 3 S.T.P. db/h, for example for sewage sludge incineration, or of 50x103 m 3 S.T.P. db/h, for example in hazardous waste incineration plants, or of
• the mercury re-emission control additives may be added to scrubbers currently used in the industry, including spray towers, jet bubblers, and co-current packed towers. These types of particulate control devices are provided as examples and are not meant to represent or suggest any limitation.
• the mercury re- emission control additives may be introduced into a scrubber and thereby into the scrubber liquor via several routes.
• a mercury re-emission control additive may be added to a virgin limestone or lime slurry prior to addition to a scrubber, to the recirculation loop of a scrubber liquor, or to a "low solids" return to a scrubber from the scrubber purge stream.
• a mercury re-emission control additive such as a polydithiocarbamic acid compound
• a polydithiocarbamic acid compound can be made in any suitable location in a scrubber process, wholly or fractionally (i.e. a single feed point or multiple feed points), including but not limited to the make-up water for the lime or limestone slurry or the scrubber liquor.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be added to a wet scrubber via a "low solids" liquor return.
• a portion of the liquor is usually continuously removed from the scrubber for the purpose of separating reaction byproducts from unused lime or limestone.
• One means of separation that is currently used is centrifugation.
• the scrubber liquor is separated into a "high solids” and “low solids” stream.
• the high solids stream is diverted to wastewater processing.
• the low solids fraction returns to the wet scrubber and can be considered “reclaimed” dilute liquor.
• the mercury re-emission control additives such as polydithiocarbamic acid compounds, can conveniently be added to the reclaimed low solids stream prior to returning to the scrubber.
• the mercury re-emission control additive may be added to the wet scrubber via a "virgin liquor.”
• Virgin liquor is the water-based dispersion of either lime or limestone prior to exposure to flue gas and is used to add fresh lime or limestone while maintaining the scrubber liquor level and efficiency of the wet FGD. This is prepared by dispersing the lime or limestone in water.
• the mercury re-emission control additive such as a polydithiocarbamic acid compound, can be added either to the dispersion water or the virgin liquor directly.
• the mercury re-emission control additive such as a polydithiocarbamic compound, may be added to scrubber liquor injected directly into the flue gas prior to the scrubber for the purpose of controlling relative humidity of the flue gas or its temperature.
• the scrubber liquors referred to herein may be water-based dispersions of calcium carbonate (limestone) or calcium oxide (lime) used in a wet Flue Gas Scrubber to capture SOx emissions.
• the liquor may also contain other additives such as magnesium and low-molecular weight organic acids, which function to improve the sulfur capture.
• additives such as magnesium and low-molecular weight organic acids, which function to improve the sulfur capture.
• DBA dibasic acid
• DBA consists of a blend of adipic, succinic, and glutaric acids. Each of these organic acids can also be used individually.
• another low-molecular weight organic acid that can be used to improve sulfur capture in a wet scrubber is formic acid.
• the scrubber liquor may also contain byproducts of the interaction between the lime or limestone and sulfur species, which leads to the presence of various amounts of calcium sulfite or calcium sulfate.
• the scrubber liquor may include the make-up liquor, return liquor, the reclaimed liquor, virgin liquor, and/or liquor injected directly into flue gasses.
• Mercury determination is based on reducing all aqueous ionic mercury to elemental mercury followed by its quantitative release into air being swept through the sample. The resulting gas-phase elemental mercury is quantified indirectly by atomic absorption spectroscopy. Finally, the gas-phase elemental mercury is captured on an activated carbon packed filter.
• Mercury quantification may be accomplished using a RA-915+ Mercury Analyzer, manufactured by Ohio Lumex.
• the RA-915+ is a portable atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) with a 10-meter (m) multipath optical cell and Zeeman background correction. The operation of the RA-915+ is based on the principle of differential Zeeman AAS combined with high-frequency modulation of polarized light.
• the combination of RA-915+ features leads to the direct detection of mercury without preliminary accumulation on a gold trap.
• the RA-915+ includes a built in test cell for field performance verification.
• RA-915+ was used with the optional RP-91C.
• the RP-91C consists of a gas-phase pump, flow meter and gas/liquid impingers.
• AAS uses the absorption of light to measure the concentration of gas-phase mercury.
• the mercury absorbs at 254 nm and makes a transition to higher electron energy state.
• the gas-phase mercury concentration is determined from the amount of absorption. Concentration measurements are determined from a working curve after calibrating the instrument with standards of known mercury concentration.
• Site requirements include: a temperature range of 5 to 40 °C, relative humidity of up to 98%, and atmospheric pressure of 84 to 106.7 kilopascals. Sensitivity of the instrument is reportedly not affected by up to 95% background absorption caused by interfering components (e.g., dust, moisture, organic and inorganic gases).
• interfering components e.g., dust, moisture, organic and inorganic gases.
• the laboratory unit is setup sequentially similar to the impingers used in conditionally flue gas samples for continuous mercury monitors. Two impingers are assembled in series. The second impinger is dry and used as a liquid catch prior to the detector.
• the first impinger of the Ohio Lumex is filled with about 10 mL of deionized water and 2 mL of 2% stannous chloride in 10% hydrochloric acid solution.
• Stannous chloride, di-hydrate is used to prepare the solution.
• Analytical grade hydrochloric acid is used to prepare the solutions to insure non-detectable mercury content.
• the stannous chloride, di-hydrate and concentrated hydrochloric acid are obtained from VWR.
• Air is pulled through the two impingers to the detector and through the activated carbon filter at a constant rate of 2 mL per hour.
• an appropriate sample volume is quickly added.
• the sample's absorption is then converted to mercury concentration using a constructed mercury standard curve.
• a standard calibration curve is constructed by use of secondary standards.
• the normal dynamic analytical range is from 1 - 100 ⁇ g/kg by direct determination without dilution.
• the standard solutions are prepared in 2% hydrochloric acid solution from Mercury Stock Solution, 1.00 mg/mL mercury in 2% hydrochloric acid, Teledyne Leeman Labs.
• a standard curve is constructed each day.
• the secondary standard solution contains 218 ppt mercury as determined by Naperville Analytical laboratory.
• the overall average slope during the demonstration is 4.74 X 10-5 with R2-values typically around 0.998.
• the percent relative standard deviation, RSD, of the slopes is 3%.
• Samples were prepared by filtering scrubber samples through a 0.45 ⁇ filter. The filtrate was diluted 1 g to 50 g with deionized water and then digesting with 1 mL of BrCl reagent (available from Leeman) at ambient temperature for at least 18 hours. Excess BrCl was quenched with 0.075 mL of 12% hydroxylamine hydrochloride before analysis.
• BrCl reagent available from Leeman
• Example 1 The information of Example 1 was collected at a commercial energy generation unit (EGU) consisting of two boilers burning high chlorine bituminous coal and equipped with SCR (selective catalytic reduction) catalysts.
• EGU commercial energy generation unit
• the combustion gases are combined into a cold-side ESP (electrostatic precipitator) and then through a LSFO wFGD (limestone forced oxidation wet flue gas desulfurizer) before being released to the atmosphere.
• the chlorine content in the coal is 1200 ppm on an as received basis.
• the units were monitored using continuous mercury monitors at the inlet of the wFGD and at the stack. Method 30B carbon traps were used to verify the results.
• Table 1 The findings are provided in Table 1 below.
• poly-dithiocarbamate (poly-DTC) was added to the wFGD basin to effect reduction of the mercury levels from about 10,000 ppt to less than 100 ppt. It is clear from this example that as the concentration in the basin is reduced, mercury re-emissions is reduced. Subsequently, the addition of poly-DTC was terminated. As can be seen, the mercury levels in the basin returned to near baseline, i.e. 17,000 ppt and re-emissions increased to 100%. This demonstrates a correlation between wFGD liquor concentration and mercury re-emission.
• the EGU had only 38% mercury capture due to re- emissions of nearly 56%.
• the baseline wFGD basin liquor concentration was 51,000 ppt.
• the wFGD mercury levels decreased to less than 200 ppt. When this occurred the mercury re- emissions decreased to zero and the total capture of mercury increased to 70%.
• the wFGD mercury levels increased to 28,000 ppt with a similar increase in mercury re-emission to 63%. This example shows the link between wFGD mercury concentration and re-emission which serves as the control strategy.
• Table 4 [00110] As can be seen Table 4, the addition of poly-DTC to complex mercury eliminates mercury re-emission while the ORP of the solution becomes more negative or changes in the direction of a reducing potential.
• the information was collected at a commercial energy generation unit (EGU) consisting of two boilers burning high chlorine bituminous coal and equipped with SCR (selective catalytic reduction) catalysts.
• EGU commercial energy generation unit
• the combustion gases are combined into a cold-side ESP (electrostatic precipitator) and then through a LSFO wFGD (limestone forced oxidation wet flue gas desulfurizer) before being released to the atmosphere.
• the chlorine content in the coal is 1200 ppm on an as received basis.
• the units were monitored using continuous mercury monitors at the inlet of the wFGD and at the stack. Method 30B carbon traps were used to verify the results. The results are provided in Table 5 below.
• Desulfurization (wFGD) scrubbers for SOx removal.
• the wFGD scrubbers use sodium-based solutions to capture SOx.
• a halogen-based boiler additive such as hypochlorite was introduced. The results provided in Table 7 below.
• FIGS la and lb demonstrate that controlling mercury concentration in a scrubber liquor is an effective method of controlling mercury re-emission.
• One method of controlling mercury re-emission includes adding sufficient mercury re-emission control additive to reduce the soluble mercury level in a basin liquor to or below 500 ppt, preferably below 200 ppt.
• An upper limit may be set to 1000 ppt as a starting point.
• a maintenance dose may be included that is based on the incoming total mercury in the flue gas or coal source.
• the maintenance dose may vary depending on the scrubber retention time or the negative of the blow down rate.
• the control ratio may be between 2000 to 1, 1500 to 1, 900 to 1, 500 to 1, 100 to 1, or 50 to 1 weight to weight ratio of active to mercury total at the inlet.
• Figures 2a and 2b demonstrate that ORP is an effective, indirect, measure of mercury re-emission in a wet forced oxidation scrubber.
• Dose of poly- dithiocarbamic compound e.g., MerControl 8034
• the maintenance feed rate can be started based on the incoming mercury concentration found in the fuel (e.g., coal).
• the ORP value may be different for each scrubber type, amount of forced oxidation, scrubber efficiency and so on. The higher the delta value (i.e., change in ORP), the more reducing the liquor may become.
• FIG. 2c shows data collected from a commercial 500+ MW coal-fired electricity generating unit (EGU).
• the boiler was fired with eastern bituminous coal.
• the EGU was equipped with a selective catalytic reduction device (SCR) and a wet flue gas desulfurizer (wFGD) employing limestone in a forced oxidation operation.
• Flue gas mercury concentration and speciation were determined using continuous mercury monitors (CMMs) located at the inlet and exit of the wFGD. All measurements were made at full load of the unit and confirmed periodically with Method 30B carbon traps.
• CCMs continuous mercury monitors
• the ORP oxidation-reduction potential
• Percent mercury re-emission was calculated using the following equation:
• FIG. 3 shows data collected in the laboratory in which the mercury re-emission control additive was added in aliquots to an electrolyte solution (0.1 M sodium sulfate, Na 2 S0 4 , in deionized water). The responses of an oxidation- reduction potential (ORP) electrode and a sulfide selective ion- selective electrode (ISE) were compared. It can be seen that both react to the addition of the mercury re-emission control additive in a similar manner.
• ORP oxidation- reduction potential
• ISE sulfide selective ion- selective electrode
• Figure 4 shows data collected in the field in real-time during a wFGD additive demonstration to control mercury re-emission across the wFGD scrubber.
• the solid line data on the lower portion of the graph represents the feed rate of the wFGD additive and corresponds to the secondary y-axis.
• the data points shown in squares on the top portion of the graph correspond to the primary y-axis and represent the sulfide concentration in the wFGD scrubber liquor as measured by the in-line sulfide ion-selective electrode. It can be seen that increases of the mercury re-emission control additive feed lead to increases in sulfide concentration.

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