Migration and emission characteristics of trace elements in coal-fired power plant under deep peak load regulation

The trace elements (TEs) have caused great harm to the environment due to the large consumption of coal, and their emission from the coal-fired power plant (CFPP) has become a hot issue. The deep peak load regulation (DPLR) become a trend in the CFPP, which will affect the migration and emission of TEs. To explore the effect of the DLPR on the migration and emission characteristics of typical TEs in a 330 MW CFPP, the TEs field tests were carried out during the regulation period. Results showed that a higher load enhanced the migration of Pb, Mn, and Cr from bottom ash to fly ash, while it had little effect on the other TEs. More importantly, >99 % of TEs (93 % of Se) could be captured by air pollution control devices (APCDs), and the emission risk of Se and Mn increased with the load. Compared with the other TEs, it is particularly noteworthy that Se has a higher gaseous proportion in the flue gas, and the emission factor sharply increased from 165 MW to 297 MW. In addition, part of the particulate selenium transformed into a gaseous state across the ESP. This work contributes to understanding the migration characteristic of TEs during the DPLR process of CFPP and provides guidance for TEs control in the CFPP.