Representing an enhanced CHP economic model, VOCGEN technology is capable of pushing small-scale combined heat and power (CHP) to its full potential by replacing tens of thousands of existing industrial air pollution control systems worldwide exclusive of the need for government economic incentives.
In the United States alone, the EPA and the States have issued thousands of Part 70 permits (Title V of the Clean Air Act) to facilities classified as major sources of volatile organics (VOC) and that deploy pollution controls to cut regulated air emissions. The VOCGEN CHP niche market in the U.S. is represented by many discrete industrial categories subject to these regulations.
The starting point for on site CHP investment is a review of market related variables or risks including technical, economic and regulatory factors. Key factors include energy prices that represent a “spark spread” sufficient to forecast the financial success of a CHP project. Large scale combined heat and power/distributed energy (CHP/DE) projects are often handicapped because they are subject to far-reaching project development criteria and permitting. Small and scalable VOCGEN CHP are however, capable of flexible modes of operation including quick start and stop functionality, representing a logical alternative technology for the replacement of existing thermal oxidizers and that can comply with existing permit conditions and requirements; power utility demand response programs; significantly reduce carbon emissions; operating with or without switch gear and grid interconnection.
Shale gas discoveries represent a tremendous potential supply of low-cost natural gas for many years to come and it seems that increasing pollution control regulations by the EPA will greatly influence the coal-fired generation industry and increase the cost of electricity. The CHP/DE market outlook is therefore improving and may perhaps be resurrected sometime in the near future due to an improved spark spread and regulatory favorability at key deregulated States. However, simple payback and operational cost savings for proposed CHP projects are at this time not entirely compelling except in areas of the country where electrical prices are quite high.
VOCGEN CHP enhances the traditional economic and social benefits of CHP for industry by additionally eliminating the life-cycle costs of traditional air pollution controls. Bottom line results are based on feasibility studies recently completed with Fortune 500 companies revealing $400K to >$500K annual cost of operations savings for each 560kWe generator set deployed in 20-year projects; ≤2 year simple payback vs. 5 to 8 years for conventional CHP; >50% carbon emissions reduction; and >50% internal rate of return (IRR).
A recent technology comparison and economic feasibility assessment for a polyethylene laminate process produced a customer plan of action at the corporate level as follows:
YEAR ONE
- Complete a third-party EPA VOC destruct performance test certification at the Environment & Power Systems International demonstration facility
- Install one (1) VOCGEN CHP genset and quantify and qualify all required performance targets
YEAR TWO
- Replace three (3) existing thermal oxidizers at a single facility with ten (10) 560kW gensets
- VOC-laden air flow – 60,000 cfm
- 52 lbs per hour VOC loading rate – 6:00am to 5:00pm Monday – Friday
- VOC destruction at >98% destruct and removal efficiency (DRE)
- Operational cost savings for the 20-year project >$84,000,000 (USD) (calculated in today’s dollars)
2011 Copyright Environment & Power Systems International
