Conemaugh Generating Station
Encyclopedia
The Conemaugh Generating Station is a 1,711 MW
baseload
coal
-powered plant located on 1750 acres (7.1 km²), across the Conemaugh River
from New Florence
in Western Pennsylvania
.
The station generates enough electricity to light 17 million 100-watt bulbs. The facility consists of two steam turbine
s, which began commercial operation in 1970 and 1971, and two cooling tower
s.
The main turbines run on steam
produced by twin year-around 850 MWe
boiler
s, each as tall as a 14-story building. The plant uses more than 4 million tons of coal each year. Conemaugh has two hyperbolic
natural draft cooling towers which provide recirculating water to cool and condense the steam and to limit the amount of water needed from the river.
The plant employs about 200 people and is one of the largest employers in Indiana County
. It is a subsidiary of GenOn Energy Inc. The plant is one of several in the area, situated near Pennsylvania deep mines and is basically a twin of the Keystone Generating Station, partially owned by PSEG Power.
To control emissions, the plant is equipped with electrostatic precipitators and low-NOx burners. A wet limestone
flue gas desulfurization
system was installed in the mid 1990s. The plant donated a particularly scenic portion of the site, known locally as Buttermilk Falls, to Indiana County for use as a wildlife refuge.
In March 2011, PennEnvironment and the Sierra Club won a favorable court ruling finding that the plant had committed 8,684 violations of the Clean Water Act by discharging waste directly into the Conemaugh River. On June 6, 2011 GenOn agreed to a $5 million settlement with $3.75 million going toward the restoration of the river.
Key Facts:
Location: New Florence, PA
MW: Baseload Coal – 1700, Peaking Oil – 11
Fuel: Coal, Oil
Technology: Steam
Commercial Operation: Unit 1: 1970, Unit 2: 1971
Ownership: 22.5% PSEG Fossil
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
baseload
Base load power plant
Baseload is the minimum amount of power that a utility or distribution company must make available to its customers, or the amount of power required to meet minimum demands based on reasonable expectations of customer requirements...
coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
-powered plant located on 1750 acres (7.1 km²), across the Conemaugh River
Conemaugh River
The Conemaugh River is a long tributary of the Kiskiminetas River in Westmoreland, Indiana, and Cambria counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.- Course :...
from New Florence
New Florence, Pennsylvania
New Florence is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 784 at the 2000 census.-Geography:New Florence is located at ....
in Western Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
The station generates enough electricity to light 17 million 100-watt bulbs. The facility consists of two steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s, which began commercial operation in 1970 and 1971, and two cooling tower
Cooling tower
Cooling towers are heat removal devices used to transfer process waste heat to the atmosphere. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove process heat and cool the working fluid to near the wet-bulb air temperature or in the case of closed circuit dry cooling towers rely...
s.
The main turbines run on steam
Steam
Steam is the technical term for water vapor, the gaseous phase of water, which is formed when water boils. In common language it is often used to refer to the visible mist of water droplets formed as this water vapor condenses in the presence of cooler air...
produced by twin year-around 850 MWe
MWE
MWE may refer to:*Manufacturer's Weight Empty*McDermott Will & Emery*Midwest Express, an airline*Merowe Airport - IATA code*Multiword expressionMWe may refer to:*Megawatt electrical...
boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
s, each as tall as a 14-story building. The plant uses more than 4 million tons of coal each year. Conemaugh has two hyperbolic
Hyperbola
In mathematics a hyperbola is a curve, specifically a smooth curve that lies in a plane, which can be defined either by its geometric properties or by the kinds of equations for which it is the solution set. A hyperbola has two pieces, called connected components or branches, which are mirror...
natural draft cooling towers which provide recirculating water to cool and condense the steam and to limit the amount of water needed from the river.
The plant employs about 200 people and is one of the largest employers in Indiana County
Indiana County, Pennsylvania
-Government and politics:As of November 2008, there are 58,077 registered voters in Indiana County .* Democratic: 26,653 * Republican: 24,159 * Other Parties: 7,265 -County commissioners:*Rodney Ruddock, Chairman, Republican...
. It is a subsidiary of GenOn Energy Inc. The plant is one of several in the area, situated near Pennsylvania deep mines and is basically a twin of the Keystone Generating Station, partially owned by PSEG Power.
To control emissions, the plant is equipped with electrostatic precipitators and low-NOx burners. A wet limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
flue gas desulfurization
Flue gas desulfurization
Sulfur dioxide is one of the elements forming acid rain. Tall flue-gas stacks disperse emissions by diluting the pollutants in ambient air and transporting them to other regions....
system was installed in the mid 1990s. The plant donated a particularly scenic portion of the site, known locally as Buttermilk Falls, to Indiana County for use as a wildlife refuge.
In March 2011, PennEnvironment and the Sierra Club won a favorable court ruling finding that the plant had committed 8,684 violations of the Clean Water Act by discharging waste directly into the Conemaugh River. On June 6, 2011 GenOn agreed to a $5 million settlement with $3.75 million going toward the restoration of the river.
Key Facts:
Location: New Florence, PA
MW: Baseload Coal – 1700, Peaking Oil – 11
Fuel: Coal, Oil
Technology: Steam
Commercial Operation: Unit 1: 1970, Unit 2: 1971
Ownership: 22.5% PSEG Fossil
External links
- http://www.skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?b5010
- PSEG Fossil
- Photo of the plant