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68-647: Longannet power station / l ɒ ŋ ˈ æ n ɪ t / was a large coal-fired power station in Fife , and the last coal-fired power station in Scotland. It was capable of co-firing biomass , natural gas and sludge . The station stood on the north bank of the Firth of Forth , near Kincardine on Forth . Its generating capacity of 2,400 megawatts was the highest of any power station in Scotland. The station began generating electricity in 1970, and when it became fully operational it

136-460: A greenhouse gas which is a major contributor to global warming . The results of a recent study show that the net income available to shareholders of large companies could see a significant reduction from the greenhouse gas emissions liability related to only natural disasters in the United States from a single coal-fired power plant. However, as of 2015, no such cases have awarded damages in

204-630: A cooler cooling system. However, it may be used in cogeneration plants to heat buildings, produce hot water, or to heat materials on an industrial scale, such as in some oil refineries , plants, and chemical synthesis plants. Typical thermal efficiency for utility-scale electrical generators is around 37% for coal and oil-fired plants, and 56 – 60% (LEV) for combined-cycle gas-fired plants. Plants designed to achieve peak efficiency while operating at capacity will be less efficient when operating off-design (i.e. temperatures too low.) Practical fossil fuels stations operating as heat engines cannot exceed

272-404: A cooler medium must be equal or larger than the ratio of absolute temperatures of the cooling system (environment) and the heat source (combustion furnace). Raising the furnace temperature improves the efficiency but complicates the design, primarily by the selection of alloys used for construction, making the furnace more expensive. The waste heat cannot be converted into mechanical energy without

340-503: A factory or data center, or may also be operated in parallel with the local utility system to reduce peak power demand charge from the utility. Diesel engines can produce strong torque at relatively low rotational speeds, which is generally desirable when driving an alternator , but diesel fuel in long-term storage can be subject to problems resulting from water accumulation and chemical decomposition . Rarely used generator sets may correspondingly be installed as natural gas or LPG to minimize

408-487: A fine filter that collects the ash particles, electrostatic precipitators use an electric field to trap ash particles on high-voltage plates, and cyclone collectors use centrifugal force to trap particles to the walls. A recent study indicates that sulfur emissions from fossil fueled power stations in China may have caused a 10-year lull in global warming (1998-2008). Fossil-fuel power stations, particularly coal-fired plants, are

476-478: A fossil fuel power plant the chemical energy stored in fossil fuels such as coal , fuel oil , natural gas or oil shale and oxygen of the air is converted successively into thermal energy , mechanical energy and, finally, electrical energy . Each fossil fuel power plant is a complex, custom-designed system. Multiple generating units may be built at a single site for more efficient use of land , natural resources and labor . Most thermal power stations in

544-636: A major source of industrial wastewater . Wastewater streams include flue-gas desulfurization, fly ash, bottom ash and flue gas mercury control. Plants with air pollution controls such as wet scrubbers typically transfer the captured pollutants to the wastewater stream. Ash ponds , a type of surface impoundment, are a widely used treatment technology at coal-fired plants. These ponds use gravity to settle out large particulates (measured as total suspended solids ) from power plant wastewater. This technology does not treat dissolved pollutants. Power stations use additional technologies to control pollutants, depending on

612-408: A particular fuel. As an example, a new 1500 MW supercritical lignite-fueled power station running on average at half its capacity might have annual CO 2 emissions estimated as: = 1500MW x 0.5 x 100/40 x 101000 kg/TJ x 1year = 1500MJ/s x 0.5 x 2.5 x 0.101 kg/MJ x 365x24x60x60s = 1.5x10 x 5x10 x 2.5 x 1.01 x 3.1536x10 kg = 59.7 x10 kg = 5.97 Mt Thus the example power station

680-420: A pressure of 168 bars (16,800 kPa) and a temperature of 568 °C (1,054 °F) to two 300 MW General Electric Company turbo generators . The thermal efficiency of the plant was around 37%. Coal was originally supplied directly by conveyor belt from the neighbouring Longannet Colliery , until it closed in 2002 after a flood. Around half of the coal used was Scottish, and the rest had to be imported,

748-447: A reciprocating gas engine . All plants use the energy extracted from the expansion of a hot gas, either steam or combustion gases. Although different energy conversion methods exist, all thermal power station conversion methods have their efficiency limited by the Carnot efficiency and therefore produce waste heat . Fossil fuel power stations provide most of the electrical energy used in

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816-433: A serious impact on public health. Power plants remove particulate from the flue gas with the use of a bag house or electrostatic precipitator . Several newer plants that burn coal use a different process, Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle in which synthesis gas is made out of a reaction between coal and water. The synthesis gas is processed to remove most pollutants and then used initially to power gas turbines. Then

884-537: A similar calorific value to low-quality brown coal . In 2005, a judge ruled the burning of sludge as illegal, but the SEPA continued to allow Scottish Power to burn the sludge illegally as part of an agreement which originally required Scottish Power to construct, and have in operation, a biomass plant in 2010. All burning of biomass at Longannet – including waste-derived fuel and sawdust pellets – ceased in April 2012. In 2007,

952-532: A slogan onto the chimney that read "Make Coal History". The explosives were triggered by the First Minister of Scotland , Nicola Sturgeon . Longannet had an installed capacity of 2,400 MW and a declared net capacity of 2,304 MW due to plant overheads. The station produced 9,525 GWh of electricity in 2012, an increase on the 9,139 GWh produced in 2011. The station consumed up to 4,500,000 tonnes (4,400,000 long tons; 5,000,000 short tons) of coal each year. Coal

1020-475: Is a deceiving baseline for comparison: just the Chernobyl nuclear disaster released, in iodine-131 alone, an estimated 1.76 EBq. of radioactivity, a value one order of magnitude above this value for total emissions from all coal burned within a century, while the iodine-131, the major radioactive substance which comes out in accident situations, has a half life of just 8 days. Foster Wheeler Foster Wheeler

1088-424: Is a relatively cheap fuel. Coal is an impure fuel and produces more greenhouse gas and pollution than an equivalent amount of petroleum or natural gas. For instance, the operation of a 1000-MWe coal-fired power plant results in a nuclear radiation dose of 490 person-rem/year, compared to 136 person-rem/year for an equivalent nuclear power plant, including uranium mining, reactor operation and waste disposal. Coal

1156-419: Is burned that significant amounts of these substances are released. A 1,000 MW coal-burning power plant could have an uncontrolled release of as much as 5.2 metric tons per year of uranium (containing 74 pounds (34 kg) of uranium-235 ) and 12.8 metric tons per year of thorium. In comparison, a 1,000 MW nuclear plant will generate about 30 metric tons of high-level radioactive solid packed waste per year. It

1224-550: Is caused by the emission of nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide . These gases may be only mildly acidic themselves, yet when they react with the atmosphere, they create acidic compounds such as sulfurous acid , nitric acid and sulfuric acid which fall as rain, hence the term acid rain. In Europe and the US, stricter emission laws and decline in heavy industries have reduced the environmental hazards associated with this problem, leading to lower emissions after their peak in 1960s. In 2008,

1292-428: Is converted to steam in the boiler; additional heating stages may be included to superheat the steam. The hot steam is sent through controlling valves to a turbine. As the steam expands and cools, its energy is transferred to the turbine blades which turn a generator. The spent steam has very low pressure and energy content; this water vapor is fed through a condenser, which removes heat from the steam. The condensed water

1360-403: Is delivered by highway truck , rail , barge , collier ship or coal slurry pipeline . Generating stations adjacent to a mine may receive coal by conveyor belt or massive diesel-electric -drive trucks . Coal is usually prepared for use by crushing the rough coal to pieces less than 2 inches (5 cm) in size. Gas is a very common fuel and has mostly replaced coal in countries where gas

1428-499: Is estimated that during 1982, US coal burning released 155 times as much uncontrolled radioactivity into the atmosphere as the Three Mile Island incident . The collective radioactivity resulting from all coal burning worldwide between 1937 and 2040 is estimated to be 2,700,000 curies or 0.101 EBq. During normal operation, the effective dose equivalent from coal plants is 100 times that from nuclear plants. Normal operation however,

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1496-421: Is estimated to emit about 6 megatonnes of carbon dioxide each year. The results of similar estimations are mapped by organisations such as Global Energy Monitor , Carbon Tracker and ElectricityMap. Alternatively it may be possible to measure CO 2 emissions (perhaps indirectly via another gas) from satellite observations. Another problem related to coal combustion is the emission of particulates that have

1564-646: Is referred to as a combined cycle power plant because it combines the Brayton cycle of the gas turbine with the Rankine cycle of the HRSG. The turbines are fueled either with natural gas or fuel oil. Diesel engine generator sets are often used for prime power in communities not connected to a widespread power grid. Emergency (standby) power systems may use reciprocating internal combustion engines operated by fuel oil or natural gas. Standby generators may serve as emergency power for

1632-464: Is still important as the fuel source for diesel engine power plants used especially in isolated communities not interconnected to a grid. Liquid fuels may also be used by gas turbine power plants, especially for peaking or emergency service. Of the three fossil fuel sources, oil has the advantages of easier transportation and handling than solid coal, and easier on-site storage than natural gas. Combined heat and power (CHP), also known as cogeneration ,

1700-502: Is still unknown as to which kinds of particulate matter pose the most harm, which makes it difficult to come up with adequate legislation for regulating particulate matter. There are several methods of helping to reduce the particulate matter emissions from coal-fired plants. Roughly 80% of the ash falls into an ash hopper, but the rest of the ash then gets carried into the atmosphere to become coal-fly ash. Methods of reducing these emissions of particulate matter include: The baghouse has

1768-459: Is the " nameplate capacity " or the maximum allowed output of the plant, " capacity factor " or "load factor" is a measure of the amount of power that a plant produces compared with the amount it would produce if operated at its rated capacity nonstop, heat rate is thermal energy in/electrical energy out, emission intensity (also called emission factor ) is the CO 2 emitted per unit of heat generated for

1836-536: Is the use of a thermal power station to provide both electric power and heat (the latter being used, for example, for district heating purposes). This technology is practiced not only for domestic heating (low temperature) but also for industrial process heat, which is often high temperature heat. Calculations show that Combined Heat and Power District Heating (CHPDH) is the cheapest method in reducing (but not eliminating) carbon emissions, if conventional fossil fuels remain to be burned. Thermal power plants are one of

1904-433: Is then pumped into the boiler to repeat the cycle. Emissions from the boiler include carbon dioxide, oxides of sulfur, and in the case of coal fly ash from non-combustible substances in the fuel. Waste heat from the condenser is transferred either to the air, or sometimes to a cooling pond, lake or river. One type of fossil fuel power plant uses a gas turbine in conjunction with a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG). It

1972-465: Is what remains after the coal has been combusted, so it consists of the incombustible materials that are found in the coal. The size and chemical composition of these particles affects the impacts on human health. Currently coarse (diameter greater than 2.5 μm) and fine (diameter between 0.1 μm and 2.5 μm) particles are regulated, but ultrafine particles (diameter less than 0.1 μm) are currently unregulated, yet they pose many dangers. Unfortunately much

2040-462: The Carnot cycle limit for conversion of heat energy into useful work. Fuel cells do not have the same thermodynamic limits as they are not heat engines. The efficiency of a fossil fuel plant may be expressed as its heat rate , expressed in BTU/kilowatthour or megajoules/kilowatthour. In a steam turbine power plant, fuel is burned in a furnace and the hot gasses flow through a boiler. Water

2108-810: The European Environment Agency (EEA) documented fuel-dependent emission factors based on actual emissions from power plants in the European Union . Electricity generation using carbon-based fuels is responsible for a large fraction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions worldwide and for 34% of U.S. man-made carbon dioxide emissions in 2010. In the U.S. 70% of electricity is generated by combustion of fossil fuels. Coal contains more carbon than oil or natural gas fossil fuels, resulting in greater volumes of carbon dioxide emissions per unit of electricity generated. In 2010, coal contributed about 81% of CO 2 emissions from generation and contributed about 45% of

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2176-673: The WWF named Europe's 30 most climate polluting power stations in absolute terms; of these, Longannet was the most polluting in the UK (relative to power output). It was the 21st most polluting power station in Europe. According to a Greenpeace -commissioned report by Stuttgart University on the health impacts of the biggest coal-burning power plants in Europe, Longannet was responsible for 4,210 lost 'life years' in 2010. Fossil fuel power plant 2021 world electricity generation by source. Total generation

2244-544: The electricity industry in the UK was privatised . After that it was operated by Scottish Power , a subsidiary of Iberdrola . It paid £40M per year in connection charges to National Grid due to its distance from South England. The plant opted in to the UK Transitional National Plan, placing limits on its sulphur dioxide, nitrous oxides and particulates emissions. The plant tested additional technologies that could have permitted it to operate beyond 2020 under

2312-460: The fossil fuels contains carbon dioxide and water vapor, as well as pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NO x ), sulfur oxides (SO x ), and, for coal-fired plants, mercury , traces of other metals, and fly ash . Usually all of the carbon dioxide and some of the other pollution is discharged to the air. Solid waste ash from coal-fired boilers must also be removed. Fossil fueled power stations are major emitters of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ),

2380-436: The greenhouse gas carbon dioxide within the atmosphere will "very likely" lead to higher average temperatures on a global scale ( global warming ). Concerns regarding the potential for such warming to change the global climate prompted IPCC recommendations calling for large cuts to CO 2 emissions worldwide. Emissions can be reduced with higher combustion temperatures, yielding more efficient production of electricity within

2448-584: The upstream oil and gas, LNG and gas-to-liquids, refining, chemicals & petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology & healthcare, environmental and power industries. They owned technology in delayed coking , solvent de-asphalting , and hydrogen production processes. They also provided international environmental remediation services with related technical, engineering, design and regulatory services. The Global Power Group built, owned and operated cogeneration , independent power production, and waste-to-energy facilities as well as facilities for

2516-561: The EU Industrial Emissions Directive . The station closed on 24 March 2016. Demolition at the site commenced in November 2018 with the 'blow down' of the coal stock towers. The eastern boiler annexe was demolished on 11 April 2019. The boiler house, turbine hall and control room were all demolished on 4 February 2021. On 9 December 2021, the chimney stack was demolished. Three days before this, Scottish Power had illuminated

2584-518: The United States. Per unit of electric energy, brown coal emits nearly twice as much CO 2 as natural gas, and black coal emits somewhat less than brown. As of 2019 , carbon capture and storage of emissions is not economically viable for fossil fuel power stations, and keeping global warming below 1.5 °C is still possible but only if no more fossil fuel power plants are built and some existing fossil fuel power plants are shut down early, together with other measures such as reforestation . In

2652-542: The allowed level of particulate emissions. This was beneficial as SO 3 is hazardous. In 1994, the station was awarded funding from the European Commission under the THERMIE Demonstration Programme. With this money, Unit 2 at the station was retrofitted with gas-reburn equipment. This was the largest scale application of this technology in the world. In this process, natural gas is injected into

2720-401: The boiler. This cut NOx emissions from Unit 2 by 50%, as well as giving a reduction in CO 2 and SO 2 emissions. In 1996, all the station's boilers were fitted with Low NOx burners . This reduced the station's NOx emissions by 40%. The blend of coal fed to each unit was intended to minimise emissions of sulphur. The UK's first carbon capture and storage (CCS) unit was commissioned at

2788-423: The cycle. As of 2019 the price of emitting CO 2 to the atmosphere is much lower than the cost of adding carbon capture and storage (CCS) to fossil fuel power stations, so owners have not done so. The CO 2 emissions from a fossil fuel power station can be estimated with the following formula: CO 2 emissions = capacity x capacity factor x heat rate x emission intensity x time where "capacity"

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2856-510: The electricity generated in the United States. In 2000, the carbon intensity (CO 2 emissions) of U.S. coal thermal combustion was 2249 lbs/MWh (1,029 kg/MWh) while the carbon intensity of U.S. oil thermal generation was 1672 lb/MWh (758 kg/MWh or 211 kg/ GJ ) and the carbon intensity of U.S. natural gas thermal production was 1135 lb/MWh (515 kg/MWh or 143 kg/GJ). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) reports that increased quantities of

2924-596: The existing Kincardine power station . The station was constructed on 30 hectares (74 acres) of land reclaimed from the Firth of Forth using ash from the Kincardine station. It began generating electricity in 1970, with a design lifetime of 30 years, and was in full operation by 1973. At the time of its completion, the station was the largest in Europe. The facility was operated by the South of Scotland Electricity Board until 1990 when

2992-431: The first central stations used reciprocating steam engines to drive generators. As the size of the electrical load to be served grew, reciprocating units became too large and cumbersome to install economically. The steam turbine rapidly displaced all reciprocating engines in central station service. Coal is the most abundant fossil fuel on the planet, and widely used as the source of energy in thermal power stations and

3060-568: The fuel system maintenance requirements. Spark-ignition internal combustion engines operating on gasoline (petrol), propane , or LPG are commonly used as portable temporary power sources for construction work, emergency power, or recreational uses. Reciprocating external combustion engines such as the Stirling engine can be run on a variety of fossil fuels, as well as renewable fuels or industrial waste heat. Installations of Stirling engines for power production are relatively uncommon. Historically,

3128-460: The hot exhaust gases from the gas turbines are used to generate steam to power a steam turbine. The pollution levels of such plants are drastically lower than those of "classic" coal power plants. Particulate matter from coal-fired plants can be harmful and have negative health impacts. Studies have shown that exposure to particulate matter is related to an increase of respiratory and cardiac mortality. Particulate matter can irritate small airways in

3196-428: The lungs, which can lead to increased problems with asthma, chronic bronchitis, airway obstruction, and gas exchange. There are different types of particulate matter, depending on the chemical composition and size. The dominant form of particulate matter from coal-fired plants is coal fly ash , but secondary sulfate and nitrate also comprise a major portion of the particulate matter from coal-fired plants. Coal fly ash

3264-476: The main artificial sources of producing toxic gases and particulate matter . Fossil fuel power plants cause the emission of pollutants such as NO x , SO x , CO 2 , CO, PM, organic gases and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. World organizations and international agencies, like the IEA, are concerned about the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels , and coal in particular. The combustion of coal contributes

3332-589: The majority via the former British Steel plc ore loading facility at Hunterston Terminal in Ayrshire . Onward transport was by rail and the level of traffic required to supply Longannet's fuel demand caused congestion on the Scottish rail network. An alternative route, the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine rail link , at the mouth of the river Forth was reopened in 2008, and was also used to deliver coal. The chimney

3400-488: The most to acid rain and air pollution , and has been connected with global warming . Due to the chemical composition of coal there are difficulties in removing impurities from the solid fuel prior to its combustion. Modern day coal power plants pollute less than older designs due to new " scrubber " technologies that filter the exhaust air in smoke stacks. However, emission levels of various pollutants are still on average several times greater than natural gas power plants and

3468-607: The particular wastestream in the plant. These include dry ash handling, closed-loop ash recycling, chemical precipitation, biological treatment (such as an activated sludge process), membrane systems, and evaporation-crystallization systems. In 2015 EPA published a regulation pursuant to the Clean Water Act that requires US power plants to use one or more of these technologies. Technological advancements in ion exchange membranes and electrodialysis systems has enabled high efficiency treatment of flue-gas desulfurization wastewater to meet

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3536-530: The scrubbers transfer the captured pollutants to wastewater, which still requires treatment in order to avoid pollution of receiving water bodies. In these modern designs, pollution from coal-fired power plants comes from the emission of gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides , and sulfur dioxide into the air, as well a significant volume of wastewater which may contain lead , mercury , cadmium and chromium , as well as arsenic , selenium and nitrogen compounds ( nitrates and nitrites ). Acid rain

3604-519: The station in 2009. It closed in 2011 after it became clear that it was not financially viable. Plans for a UK Government funded project to convert Longannet to CCS were abandoned in 2011 and no further plans for CCS at Longannet were announced. In 2003, Longannet was named as Scotland's biggest polluter in a report by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). The station produced up to 4,350 tonnes of ash per day. This

3672-494: The station's particulate emissions. In the late 1980s, the station's units were fitted with sulphur trioxide (SO 3 ) conditioning equipment to lower the fly ash 's electrical resistivity. This was to ensure the station maintained allowable particulate emissions. Between 1989 and 1994, the station's ESPs were given a major refurbishment. This meant that the SO 3 conditioning equipment did not need to be operated as frequently to maintain

3740-579: The updated EPA discharge limits. Coal is a sedimentary rock formed primarily from accumulated plant matter, and it includes many inorganic minerals and elements which were deposited along with organic material during its formation. As the rest of the Earth's crust , coal also contains low levels of uranium , thorium , and other naturally occurring radioactive isotopes whose release into the environment leads to radioactive contamination . While these substances are present as very small trace impurities, enough coal

3808-438: The world use fossil fuel, outnumbering nuclear , geothermal , biomass , or concentrated solar power plants. The second law of thermodynamics states that any closed-loop cycle can only convert a fraction of the heat produced during combustion into mechanical work . The rest of the heat, called waste heat , must be released into a cooler environment during the return portion of the cycle. The fraction of heat released into

3876-484: The world. Some fossil-fired power stations are designed for continuous operation as baseload power plants , while others are used as peaker plants . However, starting from the 2010s, in many countries plants designed for baseload supply are being operated as dispatchable generation to balance increasing generation by variable renewable energy . By-products of fossil fuel power plant operation must be considered in their design and operation. Flue gas from combustion of

3944-400: Was 183 metres (600 ft) tall; the station did not have cooling towers , instead using water drawn from the Firth of Forth at a rate of 327,000 cubic metres (11,500,000 cu ft) per hour for the station's cooling condensers . The water was passed through coarse screens and then circulated by four electrically driven pumps. Once circulated through the station's condensers, the water

4012-423: Was 28 petawatt-hours . A fossil fuel power station is a thermal power station which burns a fossil fuel , such as coal , oil , or natural gas , to produce electricity . Fossil fuel power stations have machinery to convert the heat energy of combustion into mechanical energy , which then operates an electrical generator . The prime mover may be a steam turbine , a gas turbine or, in small plants,

4080-679: Was a regional landmark, dominating the Forth skyline with its 183 m (600 ft) chimney stack. Longannet lacked cooling towers , having instead used water from the River Forth for cooling. On 4 February 2021, the boiler house, turbine hall and control room were demolished in a controlled explosion. On 9 December 2021, the chimney stack was demolished. The station was designed by Scottish architects Robert Matthew, Johnson Marshall & Partners . Consulting Engineers were Merz and McLellan . Construction began in 1964, 4 km (2.5 mi) downstream of

4148-487: Was bought by and merged into Wood Group in October 2017. The company was focused on engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPC) contracting and power equipment supply. It comprised two business groups: a Global Engineering and Construction (E&C) Group and a Global Power Group. The Global E&C Group designed, engineered and constructed leading-edge processing facilities and related infrastructure for

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4216-617: Was delivered either by road or rail to the station's coal store, which had the capacity to hold up to 2,000,000 tonnes. It was then fed from the coal store to the boiler house by a conveyor belt capable of carrying 3,500 tonnes of coal per hour. Each of the four boilers was serviced by eight pulverising units, each capable of processing 40 tonnes of coal an hour. The front-wall-fired Foster Wheeler boilers could each burn around 250 tonnes of coal an hour at full load. There were two forced draft and two induced draft fans on each boiler. Each boiler provided around 1,800 tonnes per hour of steam at

4284-408: Was discharged into a mile long cooling channel, where heat was dissipated before the water reached a wide part of the Forth. Water used by the boilers was on a different cycle, and had to be deionised . Losses from this supply were made up by a plant capable of treating 218 cubic metres (7,700 cu ft) of water per hour. The station was fitted with electrostatic precipitators (ESP) to reduce

4352-769: Was formed in 1927 from a merger of the Power Specialty Company (which replaced American Water Works Supply Company, created by Pell and Ernest Foster in 1884) and the Wheeler Condenser & Engineering Company, which was created by Frederick Merriam Wheeler in 1891. It was originally based in New York City but later moved to Livingston, New Jersey and stayed there for nearly a quarter century before relocating to Clinton, New Jersey in 1987. In 2000, Foster Wheeler moved its incorporation to Bermuda ; in 2008, it moved its incorporation to Switzerland . The company

4420-455: Was found in the late 20th century or early 21st century, such as the US and UK. Sometimes coal-fired steam plants are refitted to use natural gas to reduce net carbon dioxide emissions. Oil-fuelled plants may be converted to natural gas to lower operating cost. Heavy fuel oil was once a significant source of energy for electric power generation. After oil price increases of the 1970s, oil was displaced by coal and later natural gas. Distillate oil

4488-500: Was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1929. On 26 February 2008 Foster Wheeler Announced it had acquired Biokinetics. Foster Wheeler was acquired by AMEC plc in the second half of 2014 to form Amec Foster Wheeler . The acquisition coincided with a downturn in the price of crude oil which depressed the market for services to the energy industry and left the merged company with substantial debt. Amec Foster Wheeler

4556-468: Was piped to ash lagoons surrounding the nearby Preston Island . This was then landscaped and used to claim land from the Firth of Forth. To improve environmental emissions, Longannet was fitted with 'Low-NOx' burners to limit the formation of oxides of nitrogen and a 'gas reburn system' that used natural gas to convert NOx into nitrogen and water vapour . Longannet used to burn up to 65,000 tonnes of treated and dried sewage sludge per year, which has

4624-541: Was the largest coal-fired station in Europe. At the time of closure it was the third largest, after Bełchatów in Poland and Drax in England, and the 21st most polluting. Longannet was operated by the South of Scotland Electricity Board until 1990, when its operation was handed over to Scottish Power following privatisation. After failing to win a contract from National Grid , the station closed on 24 March 2016. The station

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