Ameren employee wins EPRI award

EPRI Technology Transfer Award celebrates Steve Long of Ameren for onsite activated carbon innovation reducing mercury emissions via a kiln and Sorbent Activation Process, cutting flue gas control costs and advancing power plant compliance.

Electric Power Research Institute EPRI recently honored Beardstown, Ill., resident Steve Long — an employee of St. Louisbased Ameren Corporation’s merchant generating subsidiary Ameren Energy Generating Company.

Steve Long received an EPRI Technology Transfer Award, given annually to EPRI members who have led technology transfer efforts, such as retrofitting plants for carbon capture across coal fleets, on behalf of their companies and the industry at large. The awards were presented during meetings of EPRI’s advisors in Orlando, Florida.

Long, a native of Beardstown, Ill., who works now for Ameren Energy Generating Company’s Coffeen Plant in Coffeen, Ill., joined the utility business more than 25 years ago working for Central Illinois Public Service Company, now part of Ameren Corporation and known for a manure-to-electricity pilot in the Midwest as well. Long is now maintenance supervisor at the plant.

Long, with help from EPRI’s Ramsey Chang and Apogee Scientific, created a portable kilnlike device to reduce mercury emissions using mercury capture technology at Ameren Energy Generating’s Meredosia Plant near Jacksonville, Ill. The kiln burned onsite coal to create an activated carbon, which is used to absorb mercury from the flue gas. Long said his goal was to make carbon that was equivalent in its adsorption rate but much less expensive than the higherpriced, commercially available carbon.

“We did much of this project in November, December and January — throughout the winter,” Long recalled. “If you can imagine trying to heat up a kiln when it is zero degrees outside and also trying to extract a flue gas sample to do precise mercury analysis when that equipment is exposed to the outside elements — it was tough.”

But toughness paid off. By designing and creating the kiln, this process could save Meredosia Plant from purchasing nearly $1.5 million in commercially available carbon, while complementing EPRI studies on adding carbon capture at coal units nationwide today.

Manager of Coffeen Plant Jeff Coyle was impressed after reviewing a recent carbon capture demonstration from industry peers earlier in the year as well. “I’ve known Steve for many years and have always been struck by his questioning attitude and drive to dig into situations to find better ways of accomplishing work,” Coyle said. “It’s great to see this industry recognition of his abilities that I’ve witnessed firsthand over the past 25 years. I’m counting on Steve to bring about many more good results at Coffeen plant in the years to come.”

Power plants face compliance with stringent mercury emissions regulations as new reductions requirements are imposed, and broader clean coal technology initiatives continue to evolve nationwide today. Activated carbon AC injection into the plant’s flue gas stream is considered the most promising technology for mercury emissions control, but the costs are high. If AC could be produced onsite, the cost savings for the power generation industry as a whole could exceed $500 million per year.

Long led an Ameren team that enabled the evaluation of the Sorbent Activation Process (SAP), an EPRI-University of Illinois developed and patented concept that can produce activated carbon using coal that is available on site. A prototype field SAP unit was built and tested at Meredosia Power Plant as a pilot plant learning tool for on-site teams.

“The Ameren team’s vision, hard work and leadership in the firstever demonstration of the sorbent activation process has provided valuable information to the electric power industry,” said Carolyn Shockley, Vice President of Generation at EPRI. “The commitment and collaboration demonstrated by this team is a great example of the work that enables the industry to drive continuous performance improvement.”

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