Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The newly built BoA 2/3 Neurath power plant on the edge of the city of Grevenbroich
in Germany uses optimized technology and is an example of the effi ciency that can
be reached in a power plant. The 2.2 billion euro plant with effi ciency of over 43%
will be replacing some older power plants in 2010, thereby saving around 6 million
tons of carbon dioxide per year. The main problem, however, is that the power plant
will continue to emit around 14 million tons of carbon dioxide every year. As an
example, this is far higher than the total carbon dioxide emissions caused by the 35
million people in Kenya. With an average lifetime of 40 years, even a large, effi cient
power plant quickly develops into an obstacle to progress when it comes to effective
climate protection. By the time the Neurath power plant is supposed to be discon-
nected from the grid in 2050, industrialized countries like Germany should have
achieved an 80% savings in carbon dioxide emissions overall. This is a level that
not even the most effi cient power plants can achieve. As with nuclear power plants,
it is even possible that fossil power plants will be taken out of service earlier than
planned to enable targets for climate protection to be met.
Another problem with coal-fi red power plants is that they are relatively diffi cult to
regulate. Brown coal - fi red plants are usually designed for a base load. This means
they work optimally when they are providing constant output for long periods of
time. However, due to the increased use of wind power and solar energy plants,
fl uctuations in power are increasing in the grid. Building new coal plants does not
make a great deal of sense for this reason alone.
4.1.2 Carbon Dioxide Sequestering - Away with
Carbon Dioxide
As even a medium-term increase in effi ciency in fossil power plants does not offer
an alternative to the supply of climate-compatible energy, supporters of fossil energy
plants have looked for arguments and ways to avoid coming under even more fi re
because of the damage caused to the climate.
Carbon dioxide sequestration is suggested as a way out of the dilemma. The idea
behind it is simple and at fi rst glance also appears highly plausible. The idea is that
power plants of the future will no longer emit the carbon dioxide that occurs with
the burning of coal and natural gas into the atmosphere but instead capture and store
it in a safe place (Figure 4.3).
The following options are promising for the safe disposal of carbon dioxide:
■
Manufacture of carbon-based building materials by the construction material
industry.
■
End-storage underground in depleted fossil deposits, in aquifers and in
salt beds.
■
Compression or dissolution in the ocean.
■
Bonding through special algae in the ocean.
However, a critical examination of the options available produces some doubts that
put a question mark on the disposal of carbon dioxide in general. The technology
for sequestration and storage is still at the research stage. It will be several years
