NETL 2009 Accomplishments Report

8/6/2019 NETL 2009 Accomplishments Report

1/90

2009 NETL Accomplishments


2/90

2 Mission

Advancing energy

options to fuel

our economy,

strengthen our

security, and

improve our

environment.


3/90

Message from the Director

NETL: The First 100 Years

4

6

Contents

Advanced Power SystemsGasifcationSwitching to Switchgrass: Using Biomassto Reduce Greenhouse Gas EmissionsHydrogen

Fuel CellsTurbines

Advanced CombustionMaterialsMeeting the Challenge: NETLs Materials Capabilities

Clean EnergyCarbon CaptureCarbon StorageCarbon Sequestration PartnershipsDemand-Side Eciency

Air, Water, LandComputational Sciences: I ts a Virtual World

Reliable SupplyEnergy InrastructureMethane HydratesNatural Gas and Oil ProductionRocking at the Extreme Drilling Laboratory

Science & Technology LeadershipTechnology Transer

Noteworthy PublicationsInternational CooperationEducational OutreachAwards and RecognitionNETLs Thie Process Steals the Show

101214

18

2024263034

3638424446

4854

5658626468

7072

7678808084

Our Vision for the Future86

Cover pageDr. William J. Kroll experiments with an early zirconium reactor at the

Albany Research Center circa 1948. In 2009, Albanys Marisa Arnold conducts materials

research using a scanning electron microscope.


4/90

4 Our History Powers Americas Future

It is my pleasure to present the National EnergyTechnology Laboratorys (NETLs) 2009 accomplishments

report. The report describes the results o our work

during the calendar year and showcases the triumphswe have achieved during our 100-year history oinnovative energy research.

Each accomplishment demonstrates NETLscommitment to uphold Americas trust through wise

investment o U.S. taxpayer dollars. Our unding isprovided through the U.S. Department o Energys

Oce o Fossil Energy, as well as other Departmentoces and ederal agencies. Our achievements ulfll

our long-standing promise to the American peopleto perorm cutting-edge research and support thedevelopment o advanced technologies, which

contribute to the clean production and use o ournations domestic energy resources.

NETLs reputation as an innovator reaches back to the1910 creation o the Pittsburgh Experiment Station.

Since that time, our methods, technologies, and

processes have answered each decades pressingenergy issues. Our evolution has paralleled the

transormation o the U.S. energy inrastructure roma system run almost entirely on ossil uels to an

expanding energy portolio that includes new andsustainable energy resources.

NETLs major ocus continues to be the developmento clean ossil-based systems integrated with carbon

capture and storage. Our scientists, engineers,and analysts are also working to develop new and

exciting domestic resources, such as methanehydrates, and enhancing the eciency, reliability,

and economics o renewable wind-, solar-, andbiomass-based systems.


5/90

Anthony V. Cugini, DirectorNational Energy Technology Laboratory

The successes NETL achieved in 2009 are theresult o extensive onsite and contracted research,

as well as collaboration with our ellow national

laboratories, other government agencies,industry, academia, and international research

organizations. As NETL supports the Departmento Energy in its mission to advance the national,

economic, and energy security o the UnitedStates, it has implemented a broad spectrum

o complementary energy and environmentalresearch and development programs to satisy theenergy needs o today and those o generations

to come.

I invite you to read through these pages and seeNETLs diverse contributions to our energy past,

present, and uture. We believe NETL can helpmake our nations next 100 years our fnest.


6/90

1910

Coal researchbegins at the

PittsburghExperiment

Station underthe U.S. Bureau

of Mines (USBM)

1918

Petroleumresearch beginsat the Bartles-

ville PetroleumExperimentStation inOklahoma

under USBM

1943

Materialsresearch beg

at the Nortwest ElectrodevelopmeLaboratoryAlbany, OR

under USB

1946

Synthesisresearch beat the Mor

town Expment Statio

West Virgunder US

YEARS OF INNOVATION

6

For 100 years, innovation, dedication, and collaboration

have enabled NETL to address the monumental energychallenges that ace our nation. Though we have worn

many hats during the last century, our main missionremains unchanged: to provide sae, reliable, and

aordable energy to the American people.

At NETL, science inspires us to embrace newperspectives and consider the impossible as we seekunique solutions or specifc problems. Our organization

has evolved to meet national energy needsromenergy conservation eorts in the Great Depression,

through urgent World War II research into aviation uelsand nuclear materials, to todays discovery o next-

generation technologies that capture and store carbonemissions.

NETLs historic accomplishments began in the early

20th century, ater a series o catastrophic explosionsin 1907 spotlighted dangerous and wasteul mining

practices. On May 16, 1910, the U.S. Bureau o Mines(USBM) was created in the Department o the Interior toocus on saety issues within the coal industry. The new

organization established its main feld oce and frstlaboratory in Pittsburgh, PA, the heart o the rich Central

Appalachian coal region.

The Bureaus frst director, Joseph Austin Holmes, andhis sta propelled disaster prevention through thedevelopment o coal dust controls, cooler-burning

explosives, and equipment that minimized sparks and

ame. Their eorts saved thousands o lives and madethe Pittsburgh station a center o expertise on coal, toxicgases, and the phenomena o ignition, explosion, and

combustion.



7/90

1983

BETC splits into DOEsBartlesville Project

Oce (BPO) and thegovernment-

owned/contractor-operated National

Institute for Petroleum& Energy Research

(NIPER)

1989

DOEscontract with

NIPERconcludes

1996

METC and PETCmerge to form

the FederalEnergy

TechnologyCenter (FETC)

1997

BPO closes,National

PetroleumTechnologyOce (NPTO)established in

Tulsa, OK

1999

U.S. Secretary of Energyelevates FETC to

national laboratorystatus, renaming it the

National Energy Technology Laboratory,

or NETL

2001

NETL opensArctic Energy

Office inFairbanks, AK

2005

AlbanyResearch Center

joins NETL

2009

Tulsa ocemoves to Sugar

Land, TX

2000

NPTO joinsNETL

1975

Bartlesville, Morgantown,and Pittsburgh stationsenamed Energy Technol-

ogy Centers (BETC, METC,PETC); move, with theAlbany lab, to the U.S.

nergy Research Develop-ment Administration

1977

ETC, METC, PETC jointhe new U.S. Depart-

ment of Energy (DOE);Albany remains withUSBM, renamed the

Albany ResearchCenter

In the decades ollowing, USBM expanded its research

inquiries, creating a nationwide network o regionallyocused laboratories to investigate petroleum and

natural gas production, the mining and refning orare metals, and the conversion o coal into gas andliquid uels. The Bartlesville, OK, station pioneered

enhanced oil recovery eorts by developing water-ooding techniques and chemical solutions that

reed oil trapped within rocks underground. In Albany,

OR, researchers developed advanced materials thatcould withstand a range o harsh environments. Andin Morgantown, WV, engineers improved eciencies,

removed impurities, and reduced the cost ooperating coal-based power systems.

YEARS OF INNOVATION

Joseph Austin Holmes became the frst director o the U.S. Bureau o Mines when

it was ounded by Congress on May 16, 1910. Its mandate: develop technologiesand processes to protect coal mine workers. Holmes enthusiastically led Bureau

eorts by proving the explosive nature o coal dust and driving the discovery oother practices to make coal mining saer.


8/90

8

The multiple threads o these programs came togetherbetween 1996 and 2005. In 1996, the Pittsburgh and

Morgantown centers merged to orm the FederalEnergy Technology Center. Three years later, this

organization was elevated to national laboratory statuswithin the Department o Energy (DOE) and given its

current designation, NETL. The National PetroleumTechnology Oce, successor to the Bartlesville, OK,station was incorporated into NETL in 2000, and in 2001,

our Arctic Energy Oce was established in Fairbanks,Alaska. Finally, the Albany Research Centerwhich had

remained with USBM until the agency closed in 1996rejoined its ormer partners at NETL in 2005, making our

Laboratory complete.

Our past successes include producing the zirconiumthat powered the frst nuclear submarine, clariying the

composition and cause o smog, and being one o aselect group to study lunar rock samples brought back

rom Apollo missions to the moon. NETLs leading rolein coalbed methane and gas shale research in the 1970s

and 80s has ulflled its promise, as coalbed methanenow makes up almost 10 percent o our nations naturalgas, and gas shale is an emerging resource.

Todays accomplishments are equally signifcant, as we

transer our technologies rom bench-scale investigationto commercial demonstration. NETL is making strides in

carbon management by developing the inrastructureneeded to capture and permanently store carbon



9/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

dioxide (CO2) emissions. Our groundbreaking workin the computational sciences enables us to conduct

research in simulated environments so we canrealize tangible results at reduced cost and risk. We

are maximizing our nations natural gas resourcesthrough cutting-edge drilling techniques. We arealso enhancing our nations energy delivery system

through projects that pursue smart power gridtechnologies and next-generation lighting that burns

brighter and longer with less power consumption.

For 100 years, NETL and its predecessor organizationshave helped our nation navigate the diverse

challenges associated with energy production anduse. Our accomplishments demonstrate real and

measurable progress toward national energy security,a cleaner environment, and a robust Americaneconomy. NETL will continue to explore the energy

rontier and develop exciting technologies thatensure a sustainable and promising energy uture or

the United States and the world.

A planned coal-mine explosion at the Bureau o Mines frstresearch site in Pittsburgh, PA, proved beyond doubt thehighly explosive nature o coal dust, which had been widely

considered inert and harmless. The Bureaus eorts to improvecoal mine saety saved countless lives, as researchers went on

to develop coal-dust controls, cooler-burning explosives, andtechniques or minimizing spark and ame.


10/90

10 Low-Impact, Cost-Eective Energy

Advanced Power Systems


11/90

NETLs advancedpower systemsinnovations are

securing environmentallysound, aordable energyor the 21st century. Ourresearchers are developingossil-uel systems withgreater e iciencies andadvancing next-generationtechnologies, such ashydrogen-based energy,coal gasiication with CO

2

capture, and uel cells

that run on coal-derivedsynthesis gas. The researcheort NETL is making todaywill help our nation realizeadvanced energy systemsor tomorrow.

Facing pageUnder DOEs Clean Coal Technology Demonstration Program, the Morgantown and Pittsburgh Energy

Technology Centers promoted integrated gasifcation combined cycleor IGCCpower plants, which combined

three o the technology centers research specialties: coal gasifcation, gas purifcation, and advanced turbine engines.Under this program, the Wabash River Power Station in Indiana and Tampa Electric Companys Polk Power Station in

Florida, pictured here, came online. Today, they are still two o the worlds cleanest coal-fred power plants.


12/90

The USBM gasifcation research program, begun at

the Bureaus Morgantown Experiment Station in 1946,

was the frst o its kind in the United States. Its mission:

improve synthesis gas production. The stations earliest

specialties became coal gasifcation and the removal

o harmul impurities rom manuactured gas. In the

new millennium, NETLs Advanced Power Program is

developing gasifcation technologies and turbines that

produce clean electrical energy while yielding an easilycaptured CO

2stream. Computational uid dynamics

models aid researchers in developing gasifcation

technologies that will operate at lower cost and higher

thermal eciency, making them reliable and able to

operate economically on coal and petroleum coke.

NETL Researchers Identify Possible Cause of

Low Gasier AvailabilityDeposits o minerals indownstream coolers, known as ouling, can adversely

aect the reliability and availability o commercial coalgasifers. NETL researchers have ound that during

gasifcation a small amount o large, pyrite-containingcoal particles may convert into iron in the presence

o partially gasifed coal. The iron does not dissolve inslag, but rather pools on the surace o the slag and

becomes a potential ouling agent i reintroduced intothe gas stream. The fndings will aid gasifer eciencyby helping operators to optimize the perormance o

mineral preparation processessuch as coal grindingand slurry processesand decrease ouling agents.

NETL Assesses Current and Future Power Plant

Technologies with Carbon CaptureA new NETLreport analyzes a variety o process confgurations

or producing electric power rom bituminous coal.Representing the second o a two-volume study, thereport considers pre-combustion carbon capture

scenarios whereas the frst volume ocused on non-capture scenarios. Each volume adds a series o process

modifcations representing advanced technologieswithin DOEs research and development portolio.Assessing the impacts that each technology can

make on the cost and perormance o uture powersystems allows its contribution to DOE programmatic

goals to be measured and prioritized. With successul

commercialization o the technologies, the study

estimates that a 78 percentage-point eciencyimprovement over conventional gasifcationtechnology is possible. With uel cell technology,

even greater process eciency improvements(24 percentage points) are potentially achievable.

Moreover, successul deployment o the advancedtechnologies evaluated would result in capital costs

and cost o electricity more than 30 percent below thato conventional integrated gasifcation combined cycle(IGCC) technology with carbon capture and storage.

NETL Model Selected for Designing High-

Temperature Desulfurization Process PlantResultsproduced by a computational uid dynamic (CFD)

model developed by NETL agreed avorably with actualdata obtained rom a high-temperature desulurizationprocess (HTDP) pilot plant at the Eastman Chemical

Company acility in Kingsport, TN, and developedand constructed by Research Triangle Institute (RTI).

The NETL model determined the absorption andregeneration o a porous zinc-based sorbent or various

operating conditions. The model, which could also be

applied to any sorbent-based CO2 capture process,accounts or mass transer resistance through the

product layer and inside the porous pellet. Validatedagainst lab-scale NETL experiments, literature data, and

pilot plant data, the NETL desulurization model willbe utilized to design and optimize RTIs 50 megawatt

HTDP demonstration unit to be slipstream-tested at theTampa Electric Companys Polk Power Station.

Integrated Gasication Fuel Cell Performance and

Cost AssessmentAs part o an overall eort to

compare the economics o uel cell-based systems incentral station and distributed generation applications,

an NETL team analyzed the projected cost o electricityproduced by two integrated coal gasifcation-uel cell(IGFC) power plants that use planar solid oxide uel cell

(SOFC) technology to convert synthesis gas (syngas) toelectricity. Results show that while the uel cell system

is more expensive than a conventional combustionturbine, that expense is counterbalanced by the

decrease in the unit cost o upstream equipment dueto the higher IGFC system eciency. Moreover, as anatural part o operation, the uel cell platorm oers

the opportunity or nearly 100 percent CO2

capture.



Gasification


13/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

New Advanced Process Engineering Co-simulator

ReleasedVersion 2.0 o NETLs R&D 100 Award-

winning Advanced Process Co-Simulator (APECS) isnow available. APECS version 2.0 provides solutions on

both ends o the perormance spectrum, includingparallel execution o multiple computational uid

dynamics (CFD) models on high-perormancecomputers and the use o ast reduced-order modelsbased on CFD results. The new version reduces the

computational time required or equipmentsimulations based on high-fdelity CFD models (versus

simplifed engineering models), especially or cases inwhich one or more CFD models are embedded in

large-scale energy system co-simulations.

In the early 1930s, Bureau o Mines researchersmastered the basic technique o deriving

synthetic crude oil rom coals. Crude oil romPittsburghs pilot plant yielded gasoline that

ueled the stations motor pool, includingthis truck photographed in 1941. Pittsburghsearly work on synthetic uels determined that

carbon-rich coals, though harder to workwith, tended to be the best oil sources. These

results indicated that most o the countrysvast coal reserves qualifed as usable raw

material or synthetic liquid uel production.


14/90

Switching to Switchgrass: Using Biomass To Reduce

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Coal + Biomass

& 90% CCS

Coal Only

LifeCycleGHGFootprint[lbGHG/MWh]

2000

1500

1000

500

-500

-1000

0

0%CCS

25%

CCS

50%

CCS

65%

CCS

90%

CCS

90%

CCS

+10%

Bio

90%

CCS

+18%

Bio

90%

CCS

+30%

Bio

90%

CCS

+61%

Bio

Reducing GHG Footprint with Carbon Capture and Biomass




15/90

NETLs Oce o Systems, Analyses, and Planning

(OSAP) has a mission: guide research anddevelopment toward balanced energy solutions

in areas such as economic sustainability, supplysecurity, and mitigation o global climate change.

With this in mind, OSAP took a careul look atfring biomass along with coal (called co-fring)in integrated gasifcation combined cycle (IGCC)

power plants to see how this approach could play apart in low-carbon power generation.

Coal-fred power plants account or approximately

50 percent o U.S. electric power generation andapproximately 80 percent o greenhouse gas (GHG)emissions rom power generation. With continuing

concerns about climate change, it is critical orus to fnd ways to reduce these emissions while

continuing to generate secure and sustainableelectric power. Lowering GHG emissions rom

power generation becomes even more importantwhen we consider reducing transportation-related

emissions via plug-in hybrid vehicles. Althoughplug-in hybrids individually produce less GHG

emissions than standard vehicles, their widespreaduse will increase our nations overall need or electricpower.

Biomass is a nearly carbon-neutral uel, meaning

that during growth, the plants remove carbon romthe air through photosynthesis and release it againduring combustion. However, with the addition

o carbon capture and storage (CCS), biomasscombustion becomes carbon negativeactually

removing CO2

rom the atmosphere. Carbon ispulled rom the air during photosynthesis, released

during combustion, and then captured and

permanently stored underground.

So ar, commercial tests at Tampa Electrics PolkPower Station in Florida and NUON Powers

Buggenum Plant in the Netherlands havedemonstrated that up to 30 percent biomass

by weight can be co-fred with coal. The chieconstraint has been delivering an adequate supplyo biomass to the power plant. The OSAP study

chose switchgrass or the biomass because it is nota ood crop, it is robust and ast growing, and it does

not compete or agricultural land.

OSAP analyzed the perormance o the coal-

biomass combination in terms o energy eciency,CO

2capture, and cost. Additionally, they looked

at the impacts that regulated pricing could

have on GHG emissions. The study consideredtwo scenarios: one at sea level using Illinois #6

bituminous coal, and the second at 3,400 eetelevation with Powder River Basin subbituminous

coal to better understand the eects that higherelevations might have.

OSAPs fndings show that adding biomassgenerally decreases plant eciency because it is a

lower-quality uel than coal. However, when usedas a GHG mitigation strategy, biomass reduces

the need to use conventional CO2

capture andcompression, both o which require substantialauxiliary loads. As a result, when targeting a certain

GHG emission level, plant eciency actuallyincreases as the proportion o biomass increases.

These eciency trends are similar or both coaltypes and elevations examined in this study.

Furthermore, in terms o GHG emissions, adding

biomass to coal along with CCS can achieve net-zero lie-cycle emissions because CO

2released rom

the switchgrass is captured and stored permanentlyaway rom the atmosphere.

One drawback the study revealed is that despite the

higher eciencies in CCS systems achieved withbiomass, producing biomass is more expensive

than producing coal, so using it as a uel raisesthe cost o electricity. However, because o OSAPsstudy we know that with a regulated price on GHG

emissions, the coal-biomass combination or IGCCpower plants may become economically as well as

environmentally desirable in the uture.

Through complex analytical studies like this,OSAP helps NETL, DOE, and the United Satesmake inormed, thoughtul, objective decisions

about new ideas and methods or producingand consuming energy. OSAPs goal in these

studies is to help researchers identiy and developtechnologies that make the most sense in terms o

the environment, economics, and the availability odierent uels to meet our energy needsnow andin the uture.


16/90

Tracer Technique Evaluates Mixing Process

The gasifcation eectiveness o a transportreactor depends on its ability to mix adequatelythe incoming ows o reactants: uel, sorbent, and

air. These reactants must be dispersed across thereactors cross-sectional area by the dierent mixing

mechanisms. A gas tracer method applied by NETLscientists has led to a better understanding o gas

and solids mixing behavior in the dense regiono a transport reactor, where a signifcant portiono the reaction takes place. Gas tracers injected

in the midst o the circulating solids showed thatboth gas velocity and solids circulation rate were

instrumental in achieving good radial distribution inthis region. A good description o the ow behavior

is essential to develop and validate predictablereactor models and to develop crucial gas and solidsmixing relationships that can be incorporated and

validated or CFD codes, such as Multiphase Flowwith Interphase eXchanges (MFIX).

Integrated Gasication Fuel Cell Combined Cycle

(IGFC) System AssessedUsing todays state-o-

the-art uel cell design, NETL analysts determined auel cell-based power plant has the potential to

capture greater than 90 percent o CO2

emissions andstill be more ecient than a conventional IGCC plant

without carbon capture. The plant uses coalgasifcation to produce syngas, which serves as the

eedstock or a planar SOFC with separate anode andcathode outlet streams. This unique eature results inan euent rich in uel-cell reaction products that does

not suer rom dilution by nitrogen present in air.Cooling the euent to condense water produces

near-pipeline-purity CO2. A stack gas undiluted by

nitrogen represents an advantage over pulverized

coal or IGCC plants. Continued research anddevelopment could improve system eciency toapproximately 56 percent, including carbon capture

and sequestration.

Plant-Wide Dynamic Simulation Studies

Advanced Power PlantsResearchers with the

NETL Institute or Advanced Energy Solutions havedeveloped a simulation to study the operability andcontrol o coal-fred IGCC power plants with CO

2

capture. The 640 megawatt-electric IGCC reerenceplant eatures an entrained down-ow gasifer

with radiant syngas cooler, a two-stage water-gas-

shit conversion process with interstage cooling, adual-stage Selexol process or acid-gas removal and

CO2

separation, two advanced F class combustionturbines partially integrated with an elevated-pressure air separation unit, and a subcritical steam

cycle or heat recovery steam generation. Developedusing commercial Aspen Plus Dynamics sotware,

the dynamic simulation has been used to evaluatetransient perormance o the IGCC system under

various control scenarios involving uctuations incoal eed.

Simulation Technology Optimizes Pressure Swing

Adsorption Systems for Pre- and Postcombustion

CO2

CaptureDeveloped under an NETL Instituteor Advanced Energy Solutions project, this new

simulation technology yields maximum hydrogenrecovery when applied to a two-bed our-step

pressure swing adsorption process or separatinghydrogen rom methane. Described in the March14, 2009, issue o the American Chemical Society

journal, Industry & Engineering Chemistry Research,

the technique is particularly useul or evaluating thesuitability o dierent adsorbents, eedstocks, andoperating strategies or pressure swing adsorption

used in pre- and postcombustion CO2

capture.

NETL Computational Fluid Dynamics Code

Simulates Polydisperse SystemsAided byNETL optical imaging technology, collaborators at

Colorado University, Iowa State University, PrincetonUniversity, and Particle Science Research Institute

have ormulated a new polydispersity equationset to add to the NETL MFIX code. When appliedto the ow o uids through transparent, artifcial

media, NETLs optical imaging technology providesdata to validate and veriy multiphase ow codes

that describe particle-scale phenomena. The newcapability will allow the team to model the ow o

polydisperse systems, such as powders consistingo grains with dierent size, density, or chemicalcomposition, that are ound in coal combustion or

gasifcation. Additionally, by enhancing the MFIXcode to handle a distribution o particle sizes rather

than a single particle size, researchers have improvedthe accuracy o model predictions.




17/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

In the 1940s, the Bureau o Mines determined

that lignite coal had value or manuacturingindustrial organic chemicals, including

synthesis gas, also called water gas. Using itsReyerson-Gernes generator, the Grand Forksplant turned 381 tons o lignite into 16 million

cubic eet o water gas in one years timeand demonstrated the easibility o gasiying

lignite on a commercial scale. Here, an interiorview o the retort building at the Grand Forks

gasifcation plant shows the hopper andcharging valves that ed lignite into the top othe Reyerson-Gernes water-gas generator.


18/90



NETL Study Reveals Atomic Structure of Fischer-

Tropsch CatalystsUsing advanced suraceanalysis techniques, NETL scientists have obtained

detailed images o the atomic structure o iron

oxide catalysts similar to those used or convertinggasifed coal into liquids that can be used ashydrogen carriers or uels. The study investigated

the production o model iron and iron oxidecatalyst particles on an inert gold growth substrate,reproducing the size, shape, deects, and other

important structural eatures o real-world iron-based catalysts used or the Fischer-Tropsch process.

The fndings are important or understandingthe reactivity o Fischer-Tropsch catalysts and the

mechanisms involved in activating the iron-oxidesinto iron-carbide phases. The work is described in theJune 2009 issue o the peer-reviewed publication,

Journal o Physical Chemistry C.

NETL Helps Establish First Hydrogen Fueling

Station

Acting through the West Virginia Hydrogen Working

Group, NETL unded and coordinated the constructiono West Virginias frst hydrogen ueling station as part

o a planned hydrogen corridor that will eventuallyreuel hydrogen-powered vehicles rom Charleston,

WV, to Morgantown, WV.

The new acility is designed to uel vehicles andother equipment while serving as a place orhydrogen research, development, and evaluation.

It was dedicated at a ribbon-cutting ceremony onAugust 17, 2009, as part o the 5th Annual Hydrogen

Implementation Conerence organized by theMountain States Hydrogen Business Council.

Located at Charlestons Yeager Airport, the ueling

station produces hydrogen by electrolysis rom watersupplied by Yeager. It is operated by its primaryuser, Yeager Airport, where it currently uels the

airports hydrogen-powered pickup truck, a standardheavy-duty 2004 model reftted to run on hydrogen.

Hydrogen also powers an Air National Guard ork lit atthe Guard unit stationed at Yeager.

Hydrogen

With water as its only by-product, hydrogen is the

ultimate in clean energy. Its value as a uel has long

been recognized, but economically producing hydrogen

remains a challenge. NETLs history o uels separation

rom coal hydrogenation studies beginning in the

1920s to the more recent successes with sulur oxide

(SOx)- and mercury-removal technologiesis inorming

the research pathway toward cost-eective production

o pure hydrogen rom coal-derived gases. Since 2003,NETLs hydrogen research has ocused on pioneering

eorts to develop hydrogen gasseparation membranes.

Our research is exploring ways to centrally produce great

volumes o ultra-pure hydrogen, which would ultimately

enable a hydrogen-energy economy based on abundant

domestic coal.


19/90

1

H

1.008

1s1

hydrog

Unique Catalyst Designed To Improve

Methane ReformingWorking in cooperationwith NETL, researchers at Iowa State University

developed and patented a new material thatcatalyzes the reactions o steam with methaneor carbon monoxide to produce hydrogen while

simultaneously separating the CO2

by-product.The core-in-shell pellet material is prepared in

the laboratory and consists o calcium oxidecores surrounded by alumina-based shells that

support a nickel catalyst. The core absorbs CO2

as it is produced, thereby eliminating that gass

reaction-inhibiting eects and simultaneouslyproviding a means or its recovery in useul orm.The innovative approach would vastly simpliy

the current industrial practice or steam reormingmethane and allow the product o a coal gasifer

to be converted into nearly pure hydrogen in asingle step. This project was conducted under the

Oce o Fossil Energys University Coal ResearchProgram.

Prototype Membrane Reactor Exceeds

Hydrogen Production ExpectationWorkingin cooperation with NETL, researchers at WesternResearch Institute successully completed the

100-hour testing o an integrated device thatremoves hydrogen concurrently with theconversion o synthesis gas through the water-gas-

shit reaction. Fabricated by hydrogen equipmentmanuacturer REB Research & Consulting, Oak Park,

MI, the device operated in a coal-derived syngasenvironment that contained signifcant amounts

o carbon monoxide (20 percent) and hydrogensulfde (125 parts per million), and it exceeded theprojects hydrogen production goal o 10,000 liters

per day.


20/90



NETLs uel cell research ocuses on technologies suitable

or coal-ueled central generation. In the 1980s, the

Morgantown Energy Technology Center initiated

uel cell investigations to develop power systems that

avoided burning coal directly. In 2000, the Solid State

Energy Conversion Alliance (SECA) was ormed. SECA,

an NETL-managed collaboration o industry, university,

and national laboratory research acilities, develops

low-cost, ecient, and clean solid oxide uel cell (SOFC)technology that will enable the use o the nations

coal resources in an environmentally benign manner.

SOFCs are modular and uel-exible, and SOFC-based

integrated gasifcation uel cell systems are capable o

60 percent eciency and 99 percent CO2

capture.

Fuel Cells

Liquid Tin Anode-Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Voltage

Reaches Theoretical LimitA new liquid tin anode

SOFC test cell designed by NETL produced opencircuit voltages equivalent to theoretical values o

1.1 volts at 900 C under hydrogen. The new cell

design eatures a closed-end, tubular electrolyteonto which a cathode is painted, with extra sensorsor more precise and reproducible measuremento the movement o oxygen into, through, and out

o the liquid tin layer. Ongoing research is directedat identiying the reactions causing the greatest

losses in anode perormance, thus guiding thedevelopment o an ideal anode composition and

support structure or optimal cell perormance.Molten metal anodes are o interest because o theirability to produce electricity directly rom solid uel

sources, such as biomass and coal dust, without theneed or gasifcation. Such direct consumption o

coal would greatly increase system eciency andreduce total system cost. Liquid tin anodes are also

more resistant to coal contaminants that poisonconventional nickel-based anodes.


21/90

NETL Creates Multi-cell Array To Test Fuel Cells

Operating on Coal Synthesis Gas

A skid-mounted array o 12 SOFCs completed

continuous testing during gasifer operationat DOEs National Carbon Capture Center in

Wilsonville, AL. The results will be used to designa cleanup system or SOFCs operating on coal-

derived synthesis gas (syngas).

Using syngas or powering uel cells can help

secure our energy independence by extendingthe useul lietime o our most abundant energy

resource, coal. Since SOFCs operate very eciently,they can produce more energy rom coal than can

coal-fred power plants.

NETL researchers designed the array to obtain

data on the eects o trace syngas materials onSOFC perormance over a range o electric load

conditions and or extended periods o operation.Contaminants such as arsenic, phosphorous,

selenium, and mercury can oul SOFCs and

limit their perormance. By understanding whathappensand howresearchers can devise ways

to overcome these limitations.

Approximately 4,500 cell-hours o test data,together with post-operational microscopy, are

providing insight on degradation mechanisms,including unwanted deposition o trace material.

The mobile uel cell test platorm is also availableto support SOFC perormance testing at other coal

gasifcation sites.

SECA Core Technology Program Overcomes

Technical ChallengesFuel cell scale-up is part othe SECA manuacturing strategy or achieving thelowest possible SOFC system cost. Higher-power

density and a larger active area combine to reduce thenumber o cells, cell interaces, and raw materials

required or a system o given power output. SECAaims to develop large uel cell power blocks (greater

than 100 megawatts) that will produce power withgreater than 50 percent overall eciency or $700 perkilowatt o electricity or less. The SECA industry teams

are assisted by participants in the NETL-supportedSECA Core Technology Program, who develop the

science and technologies or overcoming specifctechnical challenges and barriers to meeting SOFC

system cost reduction and perormanceimprovement goals. The core teams realized theollowing accomplishments in 2009:

In collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University,researchers working at Argonne NationalLaboratorys Advanced Photon Source have usedsynchrotron x-rays to examine the atomic and

chemical structure o model SOFC cathodes overa range o conditions. Studies have shown thesurace chemistry and structure o strontium-containing cathodes to be the same underroom-temperature laboratory conditions as underthe high temperatures typical o SOFCs. Theunexpected fnding suggests that SOFC cathodematerials may be studied using analyticaltechniques under room-temperature, ultrahighvacuum conditions, enabling a detaileddescription o their electronic structures. The datawill be collected and subsequently interpreted toguide SOFC developers toward cathode

architectures with improved stability and activity.

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley NationalLaboratory have developed a low-cost techniqueor applying a continuous coating o nanocatalystinto porous SOFC electrodes. With this technique,catalyst application occurs ater high-temperatureSOFC treatments, allowing or expanded designexibility and increased nanocatalyst diversity.Development o alternative nanocatalystormulations aorded by this technique can yieldincreased SOFC perormance, which willcontribute to lower cell and stack costs.


22/90



SECA Industry Teams Reach Milestone for

Central Plant Fuel CellTwo industry teamsparticipating in SECA have completed initialtesting o SOFC stacks designed as building blocks

or modules that can produce up to 1 megawatto electricity o power. The test stacks were each

produced with commercial manuacturingprocesses that result in high-volume stack costs

under $290. Test results in both cases wereconsistent with those obtained at smaller scale.

Versa Power Systems, Inc., Littleton, CO, (frst-tier subcontractor or the team led by FuelCellEnergy, Inc., o Danbury, CT) has providedSOFC stacks that are 50 percent larger thanthe previous design and which producedapproximately20 kilowatts o electricity or more than5,000 continuous hours o operation at anaverage temperature o 705 C and 61.5percent uel use with simulated coal syngas.

Delphi Automotive LLP, Troy, MI, (frst-tier

subcontractor or the team led by UTCPower Corporation, South Windsor, CT) hasdeveloped a new Gen4 cell that represents anincrease in active area by a actor o our overthat o the previous design.


23/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

Initiated in the all o 1999, the SolidState Energy Conversion Alliance

(SECA) unites government, industry,and the scientifc community in the

common mission o advancing solidoxide uel cell technology. NETLindependently tests and verifes the

concepts and products the SECAteams devise and renews unding

to projects only as long as theycontinue to best stringent technical

perormance expectations. In 2007,

the Oce o Management andBudget lauded SECAs approach:

This novel incentive structure hasgenerated a high level o competition

between the teams and an impressivearray o technical approaches.

In 2007, Phipps Conservatory and

Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, PA,became the frst conservatory in theworld to take advantage o uel cell

technology. Under an NETL buildingeciency project, a 5-kilowatt solid

oxide uel cell system poweredthe 12,000-square-oot, 60-oot-tall

Tropical Forest exhibit and providedenergy or heating water. The primaryby-products o the uel cell were heat,

water, and CO2, which were used in

adjacent production greenhouses.

The project added modern greeneciency to the Victorian glasshouse

originally built in 1893.


24/90



Diluting with Nitrogen Reduces Nitrous Oxides

(NOx) EmissionsNETL scientists demonstrated

reduced NOx

emissions rom a high-hydrogendiusion ame gas turbine combustor by diluting the

uel stream with nitrogen rather than air, as currentlypracticed industrially. Results obtained in NETLs

Fundamental Combustion Laboratory show that or alllean-diusion-ame combustor types, including swirl-

stabilized combustors, ame temperatures are alwaysminimized by diluting the uel stream, leading tolower NO

xemissions. For non-swirl combustor types,

such as lean direct injection combustors, uel-sidedilution (versus airside dilution) reduces NO

xormation

times, which also has important implications or thedesign o high-hydrogen combustors.

IGCC Catalyst Scalable for Commercial

ApplicatonCommercial-sized catalyst samples

or the novel selective catalytic reduction process

developed at Siemens Energy, Inc., NY, haveundergone perormance verifcation within asimulated integrated gasifcation combined cycle

(IGCC) gas turbine exhaust using third-party testresults. This accomplishment demonstrates that the

Siemens novel selective catalytic reduction processcan lower NO

xemissions rom the high-temperature

gas turbine in an IGCC application to a level that

meets program goals while high-fring temperaturesand exhaust temperatures are maintained, both o

which contribute signifcantly to the eciency othe IGCC power block. The milestone verifed the

NETLs turbine research began in the early 1960s, when

Morgantown researchers converted a railroad turbine

engine to a coal-based turbine energy system capable

o powering a stationary plant. Today, NETL researchers

and our partners continue to advance the science and

technology behind turbines, which are the heart o

nearly all the worlds electric generating systems. NETL

manages a research, development, and demonstration

project portolio designed to develop high-perormance,low-emission gas turbine technologies. With the use

o unique laboratory acilities and equipment, NETL

is evaluating new concepts in combustion, turbine

materials, aerodynamics, and heat transer designs.

Turbinesperormance o the novel selective catalytic reduction

catalyst or simulated IGCC gas turbine exhaust, andthe commercial size o the sample demonstratedthat the technology can be readily scaled to ull-sized

application. This project is unded by the AdvancedTurbine Program and managed by NETLs Power

Systems Division.

Holes in Theory Hold Up to DemonstrationIn collaboration with NETL, researchers at VirginiaPolytechnic Institute and State University investigating

synthesis gas-ash deposition dynamics demonstratedthat a three-row scheme o cooling holes located in

the leading edge o a turbine blade provided eectiveprotection to the blade surace by blowing away ash

particles and cooling the ash below its depositiontemperature. The study also showed that because lowmelting-point polyvinyl chloride and Teon particles

at low temperature mimic the behavior o ashparticles at high temperature, deposition at engine

conditions could be studied through low-temperatureexperimentation.

Hole Geometry Cools Film, Protects TurbinesIn cooperation with NETL, engineers at the GE Energy,

Inc., Steam Turbine Technology Laboratory inSchenectady, NY, completed fnal perormance

validation o an improved flm-cooling hole geometryFilm cooling extends the service lietime o turbines

operating in high-temperature environments, andflm-cooling geometry determines the eectivenesso the flm cooling. With high-speed test data,

researchers quantitatively measured improvements inthe flm-cooling eectiveness o components that use

novel cooling hole concepts developed under theOce o Fossil Energys Advanced IGCC/Hydrogen

Turbine Development Program. The improved designwill contribute to increased turbine plant eciency. Aspart o the same project, researchers also obtained

inormation on mechanical response or the initialdesign concept o the largest bucket blade to be used

in the last-stage expansion annulus o an advancedhydrogen gas turbine, which meets DOE turbine

perormance goals or IGCC- and FutureGen-typeapplications. Larger-than-usual buckets are required tomeet desired power and perormance levels because

low-Btu uel and diluents are expected in thoseapplications.


25/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

Angle Makes a Dierence in Blade Life

University o Pittsburgh investigators participatingin the NETL-supported University Turbine SystemResearch Program compared three surace eatures

or thermal barrier coatings that would improve thedistribution and eectiveness o flms o cooling air,

which pass over a turbine blade and protect it romthermal degradation. Results obtained rom both

experimental measurement and computationaluid dynamics simulation suggest that downstream

perormance may be improved by ramps with aninclined angle o 2025 degrees located upstream

o the flm holes through which air emerges romthe blade.

Essential to the U.S. Governments wartimepreparation was ensuring Americas energy

security. Boilers were a key component in thisstrategy, because boiler outages could snarlcritical industries and hinder military operations.

To deal with the problem o embrittlement,in which waterborne caustic minerals trigger

cracks in steel boiler components, engineersat the Pittsburgh and College Park experiment

stations developed an embrittlement detectorthat gave advance warning o hazardous mineralconcentrations. In 1943, the Bureau o Mines

received a patent or this device, displayed here byproject lead Wilburn C. Schroeder.

In 1959, a gas turbine designed or locomotives

was installed at the Morgantown ExperimentStation or study. Engineers transormed the

coal-based railroad engine into a stationarypower plant or generating electricity;

they developed new, longer-lasting bladesand revamped the combustor to run onsynthesis gasa solution to the problem

o coal dust and ash. In 1967, a new gasifercame online at Morgantown that could turn

low-rank coal into synthesis gas, oering anexcellent, inexpensive uel source. By 1970,the Morgantown Station was en route to

integrating its coal gasifcation, dust removal,and turbine technologies.


26/90



NETL Scientists Determine Drag Coecient for

Range of Powders at Key Transport Velocities

The single most signifcant parameter defning the

uid dynamic behavior o particles in a gas owstream is the drag that gas exerts on the particle.Current methods to establish a baseline or thedrag o a specifc granular material use the drag at

extreme conditions or single particles and denseuidizationconditions unrepresentative o the

particle-dominated transport ow behavior ound incirculating and transport uidized beds. NETL scientists

have now developed a transient method to defneow regime transitions. Researchers have applied themethod to various granular materials over a variety o

transport ow regimes and ound that the resultingdrag coecient was constant or all granular materials

examined near the regime transitions. This fndingwill allow CFD modelers to develop a better baseline

or the drag law as applied to particular powders atwell-defned conditions nearer to those or circulatinguidized beds.

NETL Research Shows Feasibility of Direct Coal

Chemical-Looping CombustionResults othermogravimetric analysis and bench-scale fxed-bed

ow reactor studies by NETL indicate it is easible todevelop chemical-looping combustion directly withcoal using metal oxides as oxygen carriers. Among

Among NETLs major historic accomplishments is

the development o groundbreaking environmental

solutions or combustion technologies. During the

1980s and 1990s, PETC and METC partnered with

the coal and electric-utility industries to showcase

creative engineering solutions or mitigating acid

rain. One solution: replace conventional burners with

uidized-bed burners. The development o advanced

combustion technologies or ossil-uel power plantsis still paramount or producing power with negligible

environmental impact. NETLs advanced combustion

research now ocuses on technologies such as

chemical looping and oxy-uel combustion, reducing

NOx

emissions, and improving the eciency o the

combustion process while producing a sequestration-

ready CO2

stream.

Advanced Combustionvarious metal oxides evaluated by NETL, copper oxide

perormed the best. Chemical-looping combustion is anovel, ameless combustion technology that employsa reusable metal oxide as an oxygen carrier to deliver

oxygen rom the air to the uel. By carrying oxygenrom combustion air to the uel without involving

other air constituents, chemical-looping combustionproduces sequestration-ready CO

2streams, while

avoiding a signifcant energy penalty. The combustionproducts ormed during the chemical-loopingcombustion reaction o the coal-metal oxide mixture

were CO2

and water with no carbon monoxideobserved. Results o the study appear in the July 8,

2009, issue o the American Chemical Society journal,Energy & Fuels.

Innovative Technique Dramatically Reduces

Computational Time in Multiphase Flow

Three-Dimensional SimulationWorking incooperation with NETL, researchers at Princeton

University have discovered a method to relatecorresponding computational uid dynamics

parameters (e.g., drag coecient) in fne-grid and

coarse-grid simulations. The accurate simulation ofne-grid phenomena with a coarse-grid model can

reduce the model size by more than 1,000 times,thereby reducing the time required to obtain a

solution. When ully implemented, the technique willacilitate in little more than 2 hours the solution to

a problem that now takes 3 months to solve. Fastercomputation times will allow numerous real systemconfgurations to be analyzed or the best alternative.

Novel Moving-Bed Heat Exchanger Operational in

Field TestAs part o an extended-duration feld test,a novel heat exchanger designed to cool the solids

stream o a circulating moving-bed combustionsystem while heating a working uid, such as steam orcompressed air, has achieved target ow rates.

Researchers tested the moving-bed heat exchangerunit at the American Bituminous Power Partners acility

in Grant Town, WV, where the unit recovered heat romrecycled y ash rom the boiler. In cooperation with

NETL, major energy equipment supplier ALSTOMPower is testing the moving-bed heat exchanger tosupport development o other technologies, including

an oxygen-fred circulating uid bed, chemical loopingand an ultra-supercritical circulating moving bed.


27/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

Test Evaluates Oxy-combustion Retrot

Technology for Tangentially Fired Coal BoilersIn cooperation with NETL, engineers at ALSTOMPower completed the frst in a series o test

campaigns designed to evaluate oxy-combustion intangentially fred boilers. Testing took place in a

15-megawatt thermal tangentially fred boilersimulation acility and a 15-megawatt thermal

industrial-scale burner acility located in Windsor, CT,using Powder River Basin coal rom the BlackThunder mine. Test results confrmed predictions

that Powder River Basin coal is highly reactive underboth air and oxy-combustion conditions, producing

low concentrations o carbon monoxide and littleunburned carbon in the ash. By controlling the

amount and location o oxygen added, operatorswere able to achieve similar heat transer rates orboth air and oxy-fred operations. The results

indicate that the oxy-combustion mode ooperation may produce equivalent power with

smaller boiler designs. Tangentially fred boilersrepresent 41 percent o the U.S. installed base and

44 percent worldwide. The research is providing key

data or commercialization o oxy-combustionprocesses, which could prevent emissions o criteria

pollutants while providing a highly concentratedstream o CO

2or sequestration or enhanced oil

recovery without costly gas separation.

The Clean Air Act o 1970 put strict air-pollution regulations into eect. In response,Morgantown researchers built and operated

the frst U.S. industrial-size uidized-bed

boiler at Monongahela Power CompanysRivesville, WV, power plant. Fluidized-bedcombustion proved to be a lower-cost,

higher-eciency, and cleaner way to burncoal. In the early 1990s, POWER Magazinecalled the development o uidized bed coal

combustors the commercial success storyo the last decade in the power generation

business. Today, uidized bed boilers aregenerating electricity throughout the world.


28/90


29/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

J. W. Ambrose, who headed theBureau o Mines rom 1920 to 1921,

began the strategy o modeling sothat oil feld operators could see the

lay o the land beore dri lling. Thesethree-dimensional (3-D) peg modelsrepresented ground contours and

underground geologic structureswith cross-sectional layerssuch

as the sand layer known to containoilhelping speculators determine

drilling and shot depths.

Computer modeling shows

temperature variations inside a coalcombustor. Engineers in Morgantown,WV, adapted the ASPEN modeling

system developed at the MassachusettsInstitute o Technology or use in

ossil-uel research during the early1980s. Today, NETLs award-winning

Computational Sciences Divisioncreates computer models o everythingrom individual technologies to power

plants to geologic ormations orcarbon storage.


30/90



Ceramic Materials Help Preserve Oxidation

Resistance of Ultra-supercritical Boiler

MaterialsTests conducted by the Electric PowerResearch Institute, Palo Alto, CA, in cooperation withNETL, determined that nitrides o titanium and

aluminum applied between a steel substrate andnanostructured oxidation-resistant top coatings orm

eective barriers to aluminum diusion. Corrosionmay cause unscheduled outages in conventional

coal-fred plants and is anticipated to be even moresevere or advanced boilers operating at ultra-

supercritical steam conditions, as well as or oxy-uelcombustion systems. Nanostructured coatings mayprovide excellent corrosion resistance or the

high-temperature materials required in advancedcoal-fred plants, but the loss o aluminum through

diusion limits the lietime o these coatings. Usingtitanium and aluminum nitrides to prevent

aluminum diusion may help ensure the reliabilityand availability o ultra-supercritical ossil-uel boilersand advanced combustion systems.

Materials

NETLs world-class materials research dates back to the

establishment o the Northwest Electrodevelopment

Station in 1944 in Albany, OR. Albany researchers

actualized technologies or coal and minerals use,

piloted catalyst systems or synthetic uels, launched

the frst production o ductile zirconium, and helmed

the successul processing o titanium and its alloys.

Today, NETL scientists and engineers are using

advanced experiential and computational approachesto develop materials that will perorm eectively in

harsh environments and enable systems to operate at

extreme temperatures and pressuresadvances that

will increase eciencies and reduce the environmental

impact o producing power with ossil uels.

Electroplated Interconnects Improve Solid Oxide

Fuel Cell Performance

An electroplating technique developed by NETL

researchers in collaboration with West VirginiaUniversity holds great promise or improving solid

oxide uel cell perormance. Testing by NETL showedthat inexpensive erritic stainless steel interconnectscoated with manganese cobalt oxide degraded by

less than 1.5 percent ater 600 hours, whereas cellperormance with uncoated interconnects degraded

approximately 20 percent during the same testperiod. Longer-term testing at Pacifc Northwest

National Laboratory with similar material achievedexcellent perormance and stability in terms o bothoxidation resistance and electrical conductivity. The

NETL interconnects were coated using anenvironmentally riendly process based on

electroplating, which is cheaper and easier toemploy than other coating methods.


31/90

Cold Spray Oxidation-Resistant Coating

Strongly Adheres to Metal SubstratesAs parto an NETL-administered Phase I Small BusinessInnovation Research project, researchers have

successully applied a cold-spray oxidation-resistant coating on iron alloys using a low-

temperature process called Kinetic Metallizationdeveloped by Inovati, Santa Barbara, CA. Because

Kinetic Metallization is perormed at temperaturessignifcantly below the melting point o thesubstrate materials, the coating can be applied

without compromising the mechanical strength othe base material. Kinetic Metallization produces

adhesion strengths comparable to those othermal spray coatings, and oxidation testing

demonstrated stable oxidation perormance o thecoated materials. These results confrm thepotential o the environmentally innocuous Kinetic

Metallization method to provide superioroxidation and hot corrosion protection or

ultra-supercritical boiler structures at a cost lowerthan that o competing processes.

New Thermal Barrier Coating Improves TurbineEciencyAn advanced thermal barrier coating

developed by Solar Turbines, Inc., San Diego, CA, incooperation with NETL, is now a standard material

or use in all advanced, backside-cooledcombustor liners manuactured by Solar Turbines.

A ully integrated Mercury 50 combustion system,modifed with the advanced materials technology,operated successully or 4,000 hours at a host site.

Combustors outftted with the new thermal barriercoating will operate more eciently between

regular overhauls. NETL managed the project orthe Oce o Electricity Delivery and Energy

Reliability.

Ceramic Matrix Composite Combustor

DemonstratedAs part o an interagency

agreement between DOE and the Oce o NavalResearch, United Technologies Corporation

(Hartord, CT) successully demonstrated a ceramicmatrix composite combustor. Ceramic matrix

composites are avorable or their high-temperature stability and high-corrosion-

resistance properties. The combustordemonstrated a 4050 percent reduction intemperature distribution and a 30 percent

reduction in NOx

levels at maximum powerconditions. Results were determined by abricating

ceramic matrix composites into complex shapes,applying environmental barrier coatings to engine

hardware, testing a ceramic matrix composite-combustor in a Pratt and Whitney Aircrat enginetest rig, and validating perormance benefts

against a metal baseline. NETL managed thisproject in support o DOEs Oce o Electricity

Delivery and Energy Reliability.

Novel Brazing Process Could Seal Ceramic

Membranes to High-Temperature MetalsWorking in cooperation with NETL, product

developers at Aegis Technology, Inc., Santa Ana,CA, have successully joined various ceramic

membrane materials and stainless steels with fllermaterial that exhibited high bending strength at

both room and elevated temperatures.Researchers used a novel, cost-eective methodcalled reactive air brazing, which provides stronger,

more reliable joints than conventional approaches.This technical achievement is a signifcant

milestone in the development o a method orhermetically joining ceramic membranes to

underlying metallic support structures in high-temperature gas separation devicesan enablingtechnology essential or high-eciency, low-

emission ossil energy systems.


32/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION



Using the zirconium castingprocess developed by William

Kroll, Albany supplied 85percent o the zirconium raw

material or the frst nuclearsubmarine USS Nautilus. As

zirconium production was

in progress, Admiral HymanRickover made several hurried

trips to Albany to inspect theequipment and discuss the

results. On January 17, 1955,the Nautilus was launched,

marking the beginning othe era o naval nuclearpropulsion.

Famed metallurgist Dr. William Krollspearheaded the development ozirconium casting in the 1940s at the

Northwest Electrodevelopment Laboratory

in Albany, OR. Later, in 1959, the Labssuccessul casting o molybdenumcaused stocks in light metals to rise

sharply. Zirconium proved to be thekey or powering nuclear applications,while molybdenums stability at high

temperatures made it an ideal candidateor critical assemblies in extreme

environments, such as the exhaust pipe oa rocket or missile.


33/90

In 1953, scientists at Bartlesville, OK, and

the University o Lund, Sweden, invented

the worlds frst rotating bomb calorimeterto obtain precise measurements othermodynamic properties. Applied to crude

petroleum, such knowledge optimizedthe refning process and allowed chemiststo make reliable predictions about the

properties o other compounds. A bombcalorimeter comprises two containersan

outer container flled with water and an innercontainer that houses chemical reactions.

The thermodynamic heat o these reactionsis determined rom the temperature increase

o the surrounding water. Chemical reactionswithin the calorimeters inner container arenearly explosive, hence

the name bomb.


34/90

NETLs accomplished materials research groups tackle the toughest o challenges daily as they investigate thetheoretical and undamental makeup o ossil energy and renewable energy systems. Addressing undamentalmechanisms and processes, the materials labs are capable o melting, casting, and abricating up to one ton

o materials; completely characterizing the physical properties o materials; and addressing the waste andby-product issues o materials processes.

Meeting the Challenge: NETLs Materials Capabilities



Unused gasifer reractory

NETL-developed gasifer

reractory ater 237 dayso commercial use

Conventional gasiferreractory ater 237 days o

commercial use


35/90

NETL scientists and engineers also work closely with

industrial partners to identiy material issues such asthe required perormance characteristics or specifcapplications. They then engineer improved materials,

develop methods to produce those materials at anaordable cost, and evaluate material perormance,

both in the laboratory and in the feld. For more thanhal a century, the NETL materials labs have been

recognized or expertise and capabilities in wearand corrosion, melting and casting, and in materialsdevelopment.

As an example, NETL recently developed an advanced

reractory brick to be used in the severe serviceenvironment o gasifcation.

Gasifcation is a clean and ecient way to produceenergy using available carbon sources such as coal,

petcoke, or biomass. Gasifcation also has enormouspotential or aiding capture and storage o the

greenhouse gas CO2, which makes gasifcation one o

the most promising technologies or energy plants o

the uture. Coal gasifcation is an advantageous way

to use our most abundant energy resource, coal, in anenvironmentally responsible manner.

One drawback o gasifcation, however, is that it

operates at such a high temperature and under suchharsh internal conditions that the reractory brick

protecting the reaction chamber where gasifcationoccurs can ail in as little as 3 months, at which time

the whole system must be shut down while theexpensive reractory is replaced. The lack o reliable andlong-lasting reractory linings has caused limitations

to a widespread acceptance and use o this otherwisevery desirable technology. It is or this reason that

gasifer users have identifed improved reractory asone o the top research needs or gasifers.

To meet these challenges, scientists at NETL developedan improved reractory material, worked with

industry to commercially produce the material andevaluate its perormance in industrial gasifers, and

then licensed the technology to the private sector.This NETL-developed reractory is now commercially

available to the gasifer industry as AUREX 95P, andit is becoming the reractory o choice or advanced,high-temperature plants.

The success o AUREX 95P represents the most

signifcant improvement in gasifer reractories in over25 years. It reduces or eliminates the structural spallingthat has been one o the major wear problems in

existing reractory material. The new reractory lastsover 50 percent longer, and its commercial availability

paves the way or an increase in the use o gasifcationas a clean and ecient means o producing electrical

power and other products.

In addition, the new reractory helps DOE meet

several o its goals or its gasifcation technologyresearch and development, including

To achieve between 45 and 50 percent electrical

eciency at a capital cost o $1,600 per kilowatt (inconstant 2007 dollars) or less or a coal-based plant.

To be able to sequester 90 percent o the CO2

romcoal with minimal impact to the cost o electricity.

In other areas, the materials research groups at NETL

are also addressing the challenges associated with

minimizing the carbon ootprint o ossil uel use. Thisincludes developing materials or CO

2capture and

sequestration, improving the perormance o solidoxide uel cell systems, and designing the materials

that will enable the development and constructiono next-generation gas turbines associated with coal-

gasifcation systems producing synthetic gas.

Other recent contributions by NETL include newprotection strategies or the nations bridges(inrastructure); new protection strategies or

thermocouples used in gasifers; CO2

sequestration bymineral carbonation; micro-reactors or reorming and

continuous reorming and separation o hydrogenor uel cells; and alloys or uel cells, gasifers, and

supercritical and ultra-supercritical power plants.

From the atomic-level design o new materials to

the development o pilot-scale processes, NETLsmaterials scientists and engineers provide answers

as they engage in basic research and partner withindustry, academia, and other government agencies

to research and resolve vital materials issues.


36/90

36 The Science of Sustainability

Clean Energy


37/90

Environmentally saeenergy productionbecame an important

ocus or NETL in 1926when automobile exhaustin heavy traic areas was a

noted atmospheric pollutant.The Pittsburgh ExperimentStation sampled the air indowntown Pit tsburgh anddiscovered that excessiveexposure to pollutants andsmog could harm humans. In2010, we are creating cleaneruels and enabling moreeicient production anduse by reducing emissionsand reusing waste products.Abundant, aordable ossiluels will remain a key part oour nations energy economy,and NETL has set the stage ortheir continued use throughgroundbreaking researchon capture o greenhousegases, lighting and vehicletechnologies, and carbonstorage.

Facing pageIn the 1980s, acid rain was identifed as causing damage to orests, aquatic lie, and historicbuildings. By the early 1990s, new technologies were being developed to remove SO

xand NO

xemissions rom

coal-ueled power plants, helping eliminate this threat. Sorbents injected into the gas stream at these powerplants were one o the earliest NETL successes in reducing pollutants released without decreasing electricity

production or increasing cost to consumers.


38/90


Clean Energy

NETL Develops Regenerable Sorbent Suitable for

Coal Gasication ApplicationsNETL scientistsdeveloped and patented a warm-gas-temperature

sorbent or CO2

capture at temperatures o200315 C, oten encountered in coal gasifcation.

This unique magnesium hydroxide sorbent exhibitsa high CO

2capture capacity, is unaected by

steam, and can be regenerated at 375 C and high

pressure. High-pressure regeneration incurs lowercompression costs when preparing captured CO

2or

geologic sequestration. A multi-cycle test conductedin a high-pressure, fxed-bed ow reactor at 200 C

with 28 percent CO2

showed stable reactivity andincreasing capture capacity with increasing pressure.The study is described in the American Chemical

Society publication Industrial & Engineering Chemistry

Research.

NETLs gas separation research began with SOx

capture

in the 1960s, expanding to include NOx

and mercury

capture in the 1980s and early 1990s. CO2

capture

was added to the NETL research portolio in the

late 90s. Managing CO2

at its source using solvents,

sorbents, membranes, and other technologies

will help prevent atmospheric CO2

accumulation,

which contributes to global climate change. NETL

works toward cost reduction, improved capturetechnology eciency, and more eective methods to

prepare CO2

or storage or conversion or other uses.

Promoting the development o cost-eective CO2

reduction technologies underpins NETLs eorts to

achieve 90-percent carbon capture systems ready or

commercial deployment beginning in 2020.

Carbon Capture

NETL Creates National Carbon Capture Center

In May 2009, the frst National Carbon Capture Center

(NCCC) opened its doors. NETL, along with Southern

Company Service, Inc., and other industrial participants

have established the NCCC to urther national eorts in

reducing greenhouse gas emissions, such as CO2, thatare thought to contribute to global climate change.

Test equipment or precombustion CO2

capture

includes an existing transport reactor, a hot-gas flter

using candle-type flter elements, syngas cooling,

and high-pressure solids-handling systems. Multiple

slipstreams containing CO2

are available or testing

capture technologies on coal-derived synthesis gas

(syngas) in an industrial setting. Further, a exible post

combustion test acility is being built close by. The postcombustion acility is designed to support multiple,

parallel test bays to investigate candidate processes at

scale.


39/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

NETL Completes Costs Analysis of Retrotting

U.S. Coal-Fired Power Plants with CO2

CaptureAn NETL analysis shows that approximately142 gigawatts o pulverized-coal power plant

capacity could be retroftted with carbon capturetechnology or $61 or less per metric ton o CO

2. The

candidate power plants had a combined unitgeneration capacity greater than 100 megawatts, an

average heat rate below 12,500 Btu per kilowatt hour,

For projects that have been successully tested at

bench scale, the NCCC will provide a 1,000 pounds-

per-hour ue gas slipstream or screening tests.

And or technologies that have been successully

tested at screening scale, the NCCC will provide aue gas stream or pilot-scale testing. Construction

has already begun on the pilot-scale unit, planned

as a versatile pilot solvent test unit and designed

or a 5,000 pound-per-hour ue gas slipstream or

testing advanced solvents. The pilot-scale unit will

be equivalent to a 0.5-megawatt power plant.

and were located within 25 miles o a potentialcarbon sequestration site. Analysts completed the

study using the Carbon Capture Model, whichcomprises programmatically linked databases, reportspreadsheets, and geographic inormation system

map documents. The model considers spaceconstraints in calculating capital expense, operating

expense, and parasitic load associated withretroftted carbon capture technology.

Clean coal research began in the 1950s, with researchersremoving sulur-containing pyrite rom coal, as shown here,

to prevent the sulur rom causing extensive equipmentdamage and interering with chemical reactions during powerproduction. In the 1980s and 90s, investigators turned their

attention to separating SOx

, NOx

, mercury, ash, water, andparticulate matter rom the power production waste stream. This

work has positioned NETL to develop the technologies neededto separate and capture CO

2emissions rom power plants and

other industrial acilities.


40/90


Clean Energy

Thick Hydrogen Separation Membrane Exceeds Performance Target

NETL and Eltron Research & Development, Inc., o Boulder, CO, have developed areestanding hydrogen transport membrane (HTM) that has exceeded the DOE hydrogen

ux target or 2010. The new HTM, which is 131 microns thick, operated more than 300 hourswithout ailure or loss o perormance.

System studies show that the new HTM, integrated with warm gas cleaning at an integrated

gasifcation combined cycle (IGCC) plant, improves eciency by 6.2 percent compared to atwo-stage gas cleanup process with CO

2capture using conventional solvents. It achieves

99 percent CO2

capture and reduces the cost o electricity by 9.5 percent.

Thick hydrogen transport membranes have the advantages o being robust, easily shaped

with conventional techniques, and resistant to ailure during thermal and pressure cycling.Further, they are less complex than substrate-supported thin membranes. HTMs are

important because they make a high degree o CO2

capture possible, thus minimizing CO2

emissions into the atmosphere.


41/90

Novel Solvent Improves Precombustion CO2

CaptureNETL collaborators at the University

o Pittsburgh have demonstrated a new classo solvents particularly suited to capturing CO

2

produced in IGCCs. The materials, which aresolid under normal conditions, melt under thehigh pressures encountered in synthesis gas

production, orming a liquid phase containingas much as 50 weight percent o CO

2captured

rom the syngas. The liquid may then be decantedand the solid recovered by a slight reduction

in pressure, releasing purifed CO2

at a pressurehigher than conventional approaches. Productionat higher pressure reduces the penalty associated

with compressing the CO2

or purposes such asgeologic sequestration.

Second-Generation Ionic Liquids Synthesized

for CO2

CaptureIn NETL-sponsored testing,University o Notre Dame researchers synthesizedamine-unctionalized ionic liquids that have

potentially higher CO2-carrying capacities than

conventional amine-based solvents. Synthesis

eorts were based on molecular modeling studies,which revealed that the strategic attachment o

the amine group to the ionic liquid can lead to anincreased CO

2capacity. This increase in capacity is

an important step in the development o a novel

solvent aimed at enabling more cost-eectivepost combustion CO

2capture rom power plant

emissions.

NETL Sorbents Exhibit Exceptional

Performance for CO2

CaptureIn cooperationwith NETL, investigators at ADA-ES, Inc., oLittleton, CO, evaluated the laboratory-scale

CO2

capture perormance o solid sorbents in atemperature-swing adsorption process. These

were collected rom over 15 developers in7 dierent countries. Using simulated and actual

ue gas, more than 100 sorbents were tested ina fxed-bed system through multiple adsorptionand regeneration cycles or comparison to the

benchmark aqueous monoethanolamine solvent.The superior perormance o NETL-patented

sorbents during the evaluation has made themleading candidates or use in solid sorbent-based

CO2

capture technology development.


42/90


Clean Energy

Because CO2

is closely linked to global climate change,

methods must be ound to stabilize atmospheric

levels o this greenhouse gas. Since 1997, NETLs

Sequestration Program has explored many acets o

carbon sequestration, including direct and indirect

storage options and monitoring storage sites. We lead

the nations innovation o technologies or permanently

sequestering CO2

in deep underground geologic

ormations and terrestrial sinks. We also pursue

coupling CO2

storage with enhanced oil recovery.

Numerous successes over the years have paved the

way or extending the lie o depleted oil felds while

developing productive ways to sequester CO2.

Carbon Storage

NETL Report Estimates CO2

Storage Potential

Beneath Federal LandA newly completed NETL

report estimates potential storage or 126375 billionmetric tons o CO

2lies beneath 400 million acres o

leasable ederal lands. O that estimate, 68 percent

can be ound in Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota,and South Dakota. The report also summarizes

relevant laws, regulations, and ederal and statelegislation, and locates wells on and near ederal

land, pipeline rights-o-way, and point sourcesthat might utilize ederal lands or CO

2storage.

Complementing DOEs Carbon Sequestration Atlas othe United States and Canada, the report Storage oCaptured Carbon Dioxide Beneath Federal Lands is

based on inormation obtained rom the NationalCarbon Sequestration Database and Geographic

Inormation System and can be accessed at

http://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/Fed%20Land_403.01.02_050809.pdf

Balloons, Bees, and Pollen Make a Novel

Approach to CO2

Monitoring

NETL researchers feld-tested the use o balloons,bees, and pollen to veriy that CO

2

is permanently

stored in sequestration sites.

At the Center or Zero Emissions Research andTechnology, researchers and bee experts rom

Montana State University placed hives around aknown CO

2source marked with peruorocarbon

tracers to determine i the bees or the pollen they

collected would carry measurable quantities otracer. In parallel, Apogee Scientifc used balloons

to test or atmospheric variations in tracer content.Apogee elevated carousels containing sealed

sorbent tubes above the feld using platorms

tethered to large helium-flled balloons.

NETL will continue to pursue tracer research usingballoons, towers, and groundwater chemistry.
http://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/Fed%20Land_403.01.02_050809.pdfhttp://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/Fed%20Land_403.01.02_050809.pdfhttp://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/Fed%20Land_403.01.02_050809.pdfhttp://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/Fed%20Land_403.01.02_050809.pdf


43/90

YEARS OF INNOVATION

Field Data Validate NETL Simulations of CO2

Sequestration Field ProjectAn advancedmodel developed by NETL to account or coalshrinkage and swelling eects encountered when

coalbed methane production is enhanced by CO2

injection has been validated with feld data rom

the Allison Field in northern New Mexicosite othe frst commercial enhanced coalbed-methane

production project. Simulation results agreed withthe feld data, yielding values or several geophysicaland geochemical parameters. A paper describing

the coal shrinkage and swelling model and theinterpretation o the Allison Field data appears in

the Elsevier publication, International Journal o CoalGeology(2009).

NETL Assists in Reducing the Carbon Footprint

of Iron ProductionNETLs unique capabilities in

ore processing are helping to reduce the amounto CO

2produced during iron smelting by the

Cardero Iron Ore Company, Ltd., a subsidiary o theCardero Resources Corporation. Natural processes

o erosion and deposition have created a deposit o

fnely divided particles that do not require grindingbeore urther processing, avoiding the energy cost

o size reductionup to about 30 kilowatt hoursper ton o ore. In initial series tests, NETL researchers

briquetted 500 pounds o a magnetic concentrateprovided by Cardero Iron, and then perormed

direct smelting tests on the unsintered briquettes inan electric arc urnace. Eliminating sintering, whichoxidizes the magnetite to hematite, reduces the

production o CO2

during the smelting operation byapproximately 11 percent.

Long-Term Test Successful for Large-Scale

Bioxation of CO2A successul 32-day period ocontinuous, automated operation demonstrated

that a scalable prototype algae cultivator couldgrow nannochloropsisa green algaeduring

the winter months in Phoenix, AZ, by providingaggressive mixing and ecient CO

2distribution

throughout the units growth area. In cooperationwith NETL, Arizona Public Service (APS) is evaluatingthe techno-economic easibility o capturing and

benefcially using CO2

rom the power plant tocultivate algal biomass as a component o hydro-

gasifcation uel or the coproduction o substitutenatural gas and electric power rom western coals.

APS will eventually supply a slipstream o uegas to a cluster o eight prototype 6-meter radiusbioreactors at the Red Hawk power plant near

Phoenix.

Developed by NETL and its partners in 2007, SEQURETMtechnology uses magnetic and methane sensors to quickly

locate abandoned and leaking wells. This R&D 100 Award-winning technology can be attached to helicopters to

cover large areas to determine i possible sequestrationsites will retain injected CO

2.


44/90

Image courtesy oImage courtesy o Haiang Wen


Clean Energy

Completed Injection Uses Methane Recovery Oset

CostsApproximately 1,000 tons o CO2

have beeninjected into unmineable coal seams in Russell County,VA, under SECARB leadership. The project site represents

an area that could store 1.3 billion tons o CO2

whileproducing up to 2.5 trillion cubic eet o natural gas. Prio

to the injection, the seams were ractured hydraulicallyto increase the number and size o CO

2pathways into

the coal, doubling the initial estimated injection rate to40 tons o CO

2per day. Underlying saline ormations

could store additional CO2

when the storage capacity o

the coal seams is reached. The project is designed todemonstrate the cost-eectiveness o utilizing the

immediate commercial benefts o methane recovery tooset inrastructure development costs or the sae and

permanent storage o larger volumes o CO2.

Sequestration Project Shows Promise for

Maintaining Injected CO2MRCSP partners have

successully injected 1,000 metric tons o CO2

into the

Mount Simon Sandstone, a deep saline ormationwidespread across much o the Midwest. Preliminary

results indicate the ormation has good potential or

serving as a repository or CO2 emissions captured romstationary sources in the region. Liquefed CO2

was

injected at Duke Energys East Bend Generating Stationlocated along the Ohio River near the town o Rabbit

Hash, KY. Formation properties in this area, such asdepth, thickness, porosity, and permeability, are

considered conducive to CO2

storage. Overlain by layerso low-permeability rock, the ormation is expected tokeep the CO

2saely and permanently confned.

Additional Injection of CO2

Completed in Michigan

BasinBuilding on an initial injection o 10,000 metrictons o CO

2, MRCSP partners injected an additional

50,000 metric tons into the deep saline Silurian-age BassIsland dolomite ormation in the Michigan Basin nearGaylord, MI. This ormation may be capable o storing

hundreds o years worth o CO2. MRCSP injected the CO

in the summer o 2009.

First Injection of CO2

into Lignite Coals Initiated

The Plains CO2

Partn

NETL 2009 Accomplishments Report

Documents

Transcript of NETL 2009 Accomplishments Report