CAREER: INTEGRATED WATER, ENERGY, AND EMISSIONS DECISION MAKING FOR A LOW CARBON FUTURE WITH COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

1554117 Mauter Cost-effectively reducing the human health and environmental externalities of electricity generation is a defining sustainability challenge of the 21st century. Solutions to this complex problem will necessarily span multiple spatial scales, time scales, and disciplines. Integrated decision models can aid researchers, engineering practitioners, and policy makers in moving away from short-term fixes toward holistic sustainability solutions. The proposed research develops an integrated decision model for coal-fired power plants that investigates the effects of market conditions, regulatory policy, power plant emission control processes, and materials performance on the cost of sustainable electricity generation. The most significant barriers to performing integrated assessment of coal-fired power plants are uncertainties in: 1) the cost and efficacy of wastewater treatment technologies for compliance with proposed effluent limitation guidelines issued by the EPA; 2) the interaction effects between air and water emission control technologies during phased implementation of emission regulations at coal-fired power plants; 3) the viability of alternative wastewater treatment processes that circumvent auxiliary power consumption by using waste heat from coal-fired power plants processes; and, 4) the role that new membrane materials might play in enabling these alternative water treatment processes in the future. The proposed work will fill these fundamental knowledge gaps and integrate the findings into an aqueous emissions control decision model that guides policy, directs compliance pathways, motivates technology development, and enables the reliable prediction of future emissions. The most significant barrier to stakeholders using integrated decision-making tools to inform compliance pathways at coal-fired power plants is that these academically-derived tools rarely evolve with stakeholder needs. The proposed stakeholder engagement process, beginning with a research prioritization workshop, continuing through yearly meetings, and culminating in a simple and adaptive decision tool, will increase the probability that this model is widely adopted. Additional outreach and educational tasks are integrated into the model development process and span the K-12, undergraduate, and doctoral research communities. The principal investigator (PI) will engage high-school students in documenting aqueous emissions from Ohio River Valley coal-fired power plants. The PI will also develop a formal mentorship program for undergraduate researchers and doctoral student mentors in the PI's laboratory that will promote targeted goal setting, improve skill development, and enhance retention of undergraduate researchers in STEM fields.