| National-level infrastructure and economic effects of switchgrass cofiring with coal in existing power plants for carbon mitigation. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 18546680 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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We update a previously presented Linear Programming (LP) methodology for estimating state level costs for reducing CO2 emissions from existing coal-fired power plants by cofiring switchgrass, a biomass energy crop, and coal. This paper presents national level results of applying the methodology to the entire portion of the United States in which switchgrass could be grown without irrigation. We present incremental switchgrass and coal cofiring carbon cost of mitigation curves along with a presentation of regionally specific cofiring economics and policy issues. The results show that cofiring 189 million dry short tons of switchgrass with coal in the existing U.S. coal-fired electricity generation fleet can mitigate approximately 256 million short tons of carbon-dioxide (CO2) per year, representing a 9% reduction of 2005 electricity sector CO2 emissions. Total marginal costs, including capital, labor, feedstock, and transportation, range from $20 to $86/ton CO2 mitigated,with average costs ranging from $20 to $45/ton. If some existing power plants upgrade to boilers designed for combusting switchgrass, an additional 54 million tons of switchgrass can be cofired. In this case, total marginal costs range from $26 to $100/ton CO2 mitigated, with average costs ranging from $20 to $60/ton. Costs for states east of the Mississippi River are largely unaffected by boiler replacement; Atlantic seaboard states represent the lowest cofiring cost of carbon mitigation. The central plains states west of the Mississippi River are most affected by the boiler replacement option and, in general, go from one of the lowest cofiring cost of carbon mitigation regions to the highest. We explain the variation in transportation expenses and highlight regional cost of mitigation variations as transportation overwhelms other cofiring costs. |
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Authors:
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William R Morrow; W Michael Griffin; H Scott Matthews |
Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Environmental science & technology Volume: 42 ISSN: 0013-936X ISO Abbreviation: Environ. Sci. Technol. Publication Date: 2008 May |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2008-06-12 Completed Date: 2008-11-17 Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 0213155 Medline TA: Environ Sci Technol Country: United States |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 3501-7 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
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Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, USA. bill@ethree.com |
Export Citation:
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APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
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Carbon* Coal* Models, Theoretical Poaceae* Power Plants* |
| Chemical | |
Reg. No./Substance:
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0/Coal; 7440-44-0/Carbon |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
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