Lignite Research, Development, and Marketing Program R&D Update. WDEA Annual Meeting Mike Holmes November 8, 2018

Transcription

1 Lignite Research, Development, and Marketing Program R&D Update WDEA Annual Meeting Mike Holmes November 8,

2 Lignite Energy Council (LEC) Lignite Energy Council Trade association focused on lignite coal opportunities Over 250 members including all major users and miners of lignite in northern half of the United States and Canada Key activity is R&D related to new technology options for clean and efficient use of lignite under the Lignite Research Program of the North Dakota Industrial Commission Work collaboratively with the Renewable Energy Council and the Oil & Gas Research Program Optimum use of regional resources for clean, efficient, low-cost reliable power while reducing the carbon footprint Supply energy to regional residents and industry, while strengthening the economy through creation of jobs and affordable electricity. 2

3 Research & Development Priorities for the LEC Support continued options to enhance performance of the existing fleet Invest in transformational research (Next generation of Lignite conversion systems that integrate CO 2 capture) Focus on Carbon Capture Utilization & Storage (CCUS) Leverage international R&D breakthroughs Renewed Focus Additional value propositions for lignite Polygeneration opportunities 3

4 Historical Successes Thriving with high-sodium coal Optimized operations and cleanability Addressing Hg and trace elements Costs reduced by more than 20X Meeting regulations for primary pollutants Addressing potential future NOx challenges Support of only US coal-to-synfuels plant DGC adding urea to product suite Spiritwood industrial complex Dryfining coal upgrading Lignite mining, use, and reclamation advances through data, instrumentation & controls To highlight a few Basin Electric Antelope Valley Station and DGC Synfuels Plant 4

5 Much of the Recent Focus Has Been on Carbon Management - North Dakota is Ideally Suited North Dakota has an ideal situation for CO₂ management CO₂ emission sources are in close proximity to CO₂ storage targets Between 23 and 78 Gt of storage available within the state between saline formations and oil reservoirs 5

6 North Dakota Carbon Solutions Needs Existing Plant Solutions CO 2 Utilization and Storage Solutions New/Replacement Solutions Project Tundra PCOR and CarbonSAFE EOR Partners Allam Cycle 6

7 North Dakota Integrated Carbon Storage Complex Feasibility Study Led by EERC - Wes Peck with industry partners: ALLETE Clean Energy, BNI Energy, Basin Electric, and Minnkota Power. Outreach Outreach events held at both sites (includes school tours & classroom presentations) Test Wells Drilling Completed at Mercer County (analysis of cores and well logs underway) Drilling Completed at Oliver County (analysis of cores and well logs underway) Modeling Underway for both sites Economic Evaluation Based on Results Continues Management and Reporting Conference calls with project team continue with a primary focus on outreach. Reporting underway to complete various milestones 7 7

8 Project Carbon Led by EERC - Jason Laumb with industry partners: ALLETE Clean Energy., BNI Energy, and Minnkota Power Cooperative. Pilot-scale Amine Testing Planning for amine tests with KS-1 solvent in April. Testing at MRY scheduled for Summer Economics of Carbon Capture Tasks will be in full swing following amine testing. Aerosol Management Procured equipment to support sampling activities. Completed Construction of amine emission reduction unit in support of pilot-scale tests. System shakedown in progress. Management and Reporting Weekly conference calls with MHIA and MHI Japan. Meeting held in Tokyo with MHI and key stakeholders to discuss Project Carbon. 8

9 Allam Cycle / Pathway to Low-Carbon Lignite Utilization Led by EERC Jason Laumb with industry partners: Minnesota Power / ALLETE Clean Energy, BNI Energy, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, and Dakota Gasification Company Corrosion Management Dynamic tests completed, final analysis underway. Several materials performed favorably. Gasifier Selection Three gasifier platforms identified for use with lignite coal. SE (ECUST), BGL, SES (U- Gas) Impurity Management Impurity management tests completed. Final data analysis and reporting to be completed in coming months. Syngas Combustion La Porte facility has received combustor test rig. First natural gas fire expected in April. Pilot-scale Planning Identified two locations of hosting coal Allam Cycle Demonstration. La Porte and DGC. Management & Reporting Draft final report submitted on 12/29/2017. Weekly conference calls with technical team. Additional DOE award ($700K) to expand engineering for demonstration plant; Phase 1 of 3 possible. 9

10 Additional Value Opportunities for Lignite Diverse Product Opportunities Rare Earth Elements from Lignite

11 Coal Gasification for Fuels, Chemicals and Hydrogen Lignite Syngas CO 2 Heat Liquid Fuels and Additives Gasoline Jet Fuel Diesel EOR Nitrogen Fertilizers Direct or Indirect Liquefaction Chemicals Electricity 11

12 Carbon Based Products Activated Carbon Facility in final design stages in Valley City, North Dakota Carbon Black Semi-continuous pilot unit at the EERC, proof-of-concept complete Carbon Fiber Coal-derived pitch has unique properties High value product with growing market Carbon Nanotubes and graphite High value product with growing markets 12

13 High Value Material Extraction Pioneering work by the North Dakota Geologic Survey has led to a number of funded projects investigating recovery of high value materials from coal and byproducts: Characterization study of coal and byproducts across North America Rare earth element extraction from ND lignite Rare earth element extraction from coal combustion byproducts Technology development is needed to optimize and improve economics of processes that extract and concentrate rare earth elements and other high value minerals. 13

14 Leonardite Leonardite is an oxidized form of lignite, rich in humic acid. Existing agricultural uses soil conditioner to improve moisture retention and reduce toxins Animal feed additive, source of trace minerals Growing market in oil field fluids Leonardite is used as an additive in water-based drilling fluids Global humic acid market was $325.6MM in 2014 (Leonardite Production, LLC) 14

15 Resource Recovery from a Coal Fired Power Plant to Enhance Agricultural Production in Open Field and Greenhouse Facilities Plant Integration: Waste heat used for greenhouse heating demands CO 2 & Flue gas used to enhance plant growth Plant water / condensate can supplement irrigation Updates: First planting cycle complete (data analysis ongoing) Low and intermediate concentrations of CO 2 improved plant growth and highest level was antagonistic Second planting cycle to include varied levels of CO 2

16 Coal Beneficiation with Waste Heat Benefits: Reduced coal consumption System efficiency improvement Reduced emissions SO 2 NO x Hg CO 2 Opportunity to utilize plant waste heat 16

17 Advanced Reclamation Strategies 1/17/2017 for North Dakota coal mine lands 11/9/2018

18 Questions?? 18