| Abstract Title: | Universal tool for mercury determination in combustion plants |
| Session Choice: | Monitoring Techniques: Trace species |
| Presenter Name: | Dr Nikolay Mashyanov |
| Co-authors: | Dr Joseph Siperstein Dr Sergey Sholupov Dr Reinhold Moseler Mr Sergey Belov |
| Company/Organisation: | Lumex Marketing |
| Country: | Russian Federation |
Abstract Information :
Mercury measurement in coal combustion and co-combustion plants is generally regarded as a difficult and costly exercise. In most cases, the laboratory is faced with a large range of different sample types, often quite heterogeneous, from solid fuels to waste water and flue gas. Also, there is a significant variation in mercury concentrations, sometimes spreading over 8 orders of magnitude. And last but not least, there are ionic and elemental mercury species present, which behave quite differently in the flue gas cleaning process.
Nevertheless, to control emissions effectively, quantitative information about the input of mercury into the combustion process and tracing of the element along the different flue gas cleaning units is necessary. Also, plant emissions to ambient air and aquatic environments have to be monitored.
A new method and device are presented that allow mercury determinations in virtually all samples encountered in a combustion plant without elaborate and expensive sample conditioning. By direct analysis of combustion gases produced from sample pyrolysis at high temperatures in a Zeeman atomic absorption spectrometer, precise analytical results can be obtained just in a few minutes. Moreover, the operation of the instrument is so straightforward and simple that even unskilled personnel can perform analyses after a short training. For stack gas analysis, accumulated field experience on continuous monitoring at very low levels using sorbent trap technology will be presented.
It is noteworthy that majority of the US based coal fired power plants are using this method for regulatory compliance with the US EPA requirements.
