Finland-headed forest industry and energy technology major Valmet Oyj has announced that it will supply flue gas condensing and asphaltene combustion systems to Finnish energy company Turun Seudun Energiantuotanto Oy (TSE). The systems will be installed at the NA4 power plant unit in Naantali, western Finland.
According to a statement, the new flue gas condensing system will enable Turun Seudun Energiantuotanto (TSE) to increase their district-heat production capacity and improve efficiency at the NA4 unit. The heat is produced by condensing the moisture in the flue gas, which has risen due to TSE increasing the share of biomass in the plant’s fuel portfolio.
The flue gas condensing system comprises a flue gas scrubber, heat recovery equipment, and condensate treatment equipment. The heat recovery from the flue gas to district heat is 60 MW.
Once treated, the condensate can be used to reduce the amount of freshwater consumed in the production of boiler plant make-up water. On an annual basis, the amount of energy recovered through condensing is about 250-300 GWh.
The asphaltene combustion system comprises storage and feeding equipment as well as necessary modification work to the boiler plant. It will enable TSE to replace coal with an oil refinery by-product.
Asphaltene produces lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions than coal, and experience from other asphaltene-fired plants delivered by Valmet has proven that it is an ideal replacement in circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boilers.
The investment in the flue gas condensing system is a significant step for the Naantali power plant in terms of energy efficiency. With the combination of the flue gas condensing and asphaltene combustion systems we are taking another step towards coal-free energy production, said Maija Henell, Managing Director, Turun Seudun Energiantuotanto.
The new processes at the NA4 unit will be controlled by the existing Valmet DNA automation system, which will be expanded to cover the new systems.
The deliveries are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2019. Although the value of the orders has not been disclosed, an order with this scope of supply is according to Valmet, usually valued in the range of EUR 10-20 million.
