Thermal power plants, powered by fuels such as coal, have traditionally been a major culprit in the world of industrial emissions. However, as the world becomes more conscious of its environmental impact, efforts are being realized to clean up these powerhouses are gaining steam.
In case you already didn’t know, coal happens to be the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel out there. This carbon-releasing fuel, however, is also responsible for over a third of global electricity generation, which is fascinating.
Having said that, what on earth do you exactly do about this thermal power plant problem? Get rid of most, if not all, thermal power plants in the world? Impossible.
As of July this year, globally, there are over 2,400 operational coal power plants. You can’t get rid of them all, right, so why not make them somewhat more eco-friendly?
Now, thermal plants might never be the poster child for renewable energy. That being said, there are ways to make them more environmentally conscious. Here’s how.
Carbon capture. Sounds like a fancy superhero name, right? Captures carbon for the sake of the world. The reality, well, isn’t vastly different. Although not a human with superpowers or an extraterrestrial being like Superman, carbon capture tech does work like a superhero.
Thermal power plants generate electricity by burning fossil fuels, which releases carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. This CO2 then becomes a major contributor to global warming, and, well, we all know how that story ends.
Now, what if, instead of letting all that CO2 run wild, we could trap it? According to Atoco, this technology works by capturing and separating CO2 from the flue gas and preventing it from being released into the atmosphere. It’s as if you were giving the power plant a fancy air filter, one that catches the bad stuff before it causes trouble.
Once captured, the CO2 can either be stored underground or reused in various industries. Sounds neat, right? These carbon capture solutions are a critical step toward reducing the harmful industrial emissions from thermal plants.
Carbon capture technology can significantly reduce their carbon emissions, making thermal power plants a less villainous player in the fight against global warming.
It’s no secret that the type of fuel thermal power plants use is one of the biggest factors contributing to their environmental impact. Traditionally, these plants run on coal, oil, or natural gas.
None of these are in the race to win any eco-friendly awards. However, what if we could swap out those dirty fuels for something a little cleaner?
You might be surprised to know that some power plants are doing just that. Instead of sticking with the old-school lineup of fossil fuels, many thermal plants are experimenting with alternative fuels like biomass, which is organic.
By using biomass or other cleaner fuels, thermal power plants can cut down on the emissions they release. This, thus, helps to reduce their impact on air quality and the overall environment.
If there’s one thing we know, it’s that these plants are all about converting energy from fuel into electricity. Sadly, a huge portion of that energy gets lost as heat during the electricity generation process. As a matter of fact, many will argue that the majority of the energy going into a thermal power plant results in heat waste.
This, as you can imagine, is not exactly ideal for thermal power plants.
The good news? There are ways to minimize this waste at thermal power plants, mostly through advanced turbine technology. This turbine tech can thus help thermal power plants extract more energy from the same amount of fuel with minimum energy lost as heat.
By making the plant’s turbines more efficient, we can reduce the overall amount of fuel needed to generate electricity. That, in turn, means fewer emissions and a smaller environmental footprint, that too from a thermal power plant.
Some thermal power plants are exploring the use of combined heat and power (CHP) systems. These systems capture and use the excess heat that would otherwise go to waste.
At the end of the day, we cannot expect to turn thermal power plants into eco-friendly heroes overnight. However, we can certainly make these power plants less harmful to the environment.
While we keep pushing for more renewable energy and sustainable solutions, thermal power plants don’t have to be the bad guys. With the right changes and technologies, they can at least start walking on the path toward a greener future.
