Powdered activated carbon (PAC) injections for the removal of mercury (Hg) from combustion emissions can be costly and have adverse effects on other aspects of the combustion system – primarily exit gas stream opacity out of the stack.

It is preferable to inject only the minimum necessary amount of PAC to lower mercury below limits while not wasting PAC material and inflating opacity measurements. Common PAC injection control systems operate very slowly due to the nature of the adsorption process and the extremely low concentrations of mercury; however, the effects of injection can rapidly raise opacity, often beyond acceptable limits, requiring manual corrective actions. This often creates a cycle of control movements that culminate in the entire process performing inefficiently.

However, there exists an opportunity to intelligently balance priorities and optimize PAC injection rates to remove mercury while controlling opacity and minimizing PAC usage.

Advanced AI & No-Code Implementation for Rapid Results

The Griffin Open Systems’ Hg PAC Optimization application prioritizes multiple objectives in real-time to achieve optimal performance of your system while staying within all process limits. Through an advanced method of prioritization, long- and short-term objectives of multiple parameters are considered and respected, leading to overall improved performance.

The Griffin Open Systems’ Hg PAC Optimization application can be implemented in an agile manner. Requiring minimal I/O and leveraging its user-friendly no-code interface, operators and engineers don’t need to change code in any systems allowing the application to be implemented in as quickly as one week.

What to Expect from the Griffin Hg PAC Optimization Application

As the application can be implemented in an agile manner, engineers and operators can expect to see as high as a 15% – 20% reduction in PAC injection while lowering the amount of high opacity events and maintaining or improving mercury emission rates.

We at Griffin Open Systems look forward to aiding you in achieving optimal performance of your cooling towers as well as all systems within your process. Please contact us to learn more about our many solutions today!

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The highly complex and sensitive nature of combustion processes makes it one of the most challenging systems to control in a coal-fired power plant. Behaving almost as its own living entity with each process having its own individual characteristics and behavior, managing, and controlling such systems is a difficult task.

Griffin’s Combustion Optimization System (COS) uses many advanced AI methods available within the Griffin AI Toolkit to develop highly specialized and accurate models of each unique system to reduce emissions, improve heat rate, and achieve other process objectives.

Custom Combustion Optimization

There is no “one-size-fits-all” method to gaining real and repeatable improvements from combustion optimization systems. Griffin’s COS application approach has been developed and refined over more than 50 years of experience providing combustion optimization solutions. Building upon the proven Griffin COS template of reliable and robust control, each COS application is tailor-made to address the unique characteristics of the subject system.

Advanced AI modeling and optimization methods are used to represent process complexities and take advantage of each and every existing opportunity; from subtle damper adjustments to shifting whole operating conditions within acceptable ranges, all prospective improvements are leveraged to provide maximum performance benefits.

Agile No-Code Implementation

Existing site-knowledge from those who know your system best – your engineers and your operators, often spanning decades of operation – is then formalized and rapidly implemented within the Griffin no-code platform to further complement the advanced AI components in place within the COS.

This process results in a highly customized and fully relevant optimization system capable of providing control benefits to the system in as little as 1 – 2 weeks. As the AI components continue to learn and adjust from observing real-time operation, observed benefits continue to improve automatically over time.

What to Expect From The Griffin Combustion Optimization System

The Griffin COS applications are flexible and purpose-built so that they can be configured to realize any number of performance objectives. Common benefits include:

• Reduction of NOx emissions
• Heat rate improvements
• Mitigation of unplanned outages
• Enhanced alarm condition management & resolution
• Consistent unit controls across all operating crews and conditions

A Griffin COS is a valuable addition to any combustion process with a proven record of improving multiple aspects of process performance. Regardless of system complexity or existing limitations, benefits can be obtained through this powerful application. Please contact us today to learn more about your options!

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