William H. Zimmer Power Station
Encyclopedia
The William H. Zimmer Power Station, located near Moscow, Ohio
, is a coal-fired
power plant
. It was originally intended to be a boiling water reactor
type of nuclear power plant
. Although once estimated to be 97% complete, poor construction and quality assurance
(QA) led to the plant being converted to coal-fired generation. Today, the plant generates 1400 gross MWe and 1300 net MWe. Zimmer Power Station is the largest single-unit power facility in the United States and is majority-owned by Duke Energy
. During the construction of the plant, the Little Indian Creek was routed through the plant to protect fish populations. The plant now has several unique Environmental Protection features to keep the creek at its natural state.
fined Cincinnati Gas and Electric $200,000 for a faulty quality assurance program. The NRC, under pressure, eventually ordered work on the nuclear reactor to halt in the autumn of 1982.
Cincinnati Gas and Electric, with two other electric utilities (American Electric Power
and Dayton Power and Light), announced the cancellation of the Zimmer nuclear power plant in October 1983. Zimmer's total sunk costs equaled some $1.8 billion; Cincinnati's share amounted to $716 million, which was almost 90 percent of the utility's 1982 net worth.
Originally expected to cost $230 million, when the cost estimate soared to at least $3.4 billion the decision was made in 1984 to convert the plant. (Regulatory delays and high interest rates also contributed to the cost increase.)
The constructor, the Henry J. Kaiser
Company, had never built a nuclear power plant before (or since). And the primary owner, Cincinnati Gas and Electric, did its own procurement, awarding contracts for equipment, e.g., for hundreds of valves, with inadequate specifications or QA requirements. Piping welds were not adequately radiographed.
Sargent & Lundy was the Architect/Engineering firm.
An ex-Navy
admiral was hired to bring the plant on-line, and Bechtel
was retained to nuclear-qualify the plant. However, Bechtel came in with an estimate of over $1.5 billion (to add to $ 1.7 billion already spent) to adequately complete the plant.
The conversion to coal-fired generation cost just over $1 billion, starting in 1987 and completed in 1991. It was the world's first nuclear-to-coal power plant conversion.
The plant was named for William H. Zimmer, who was chairman and president of Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company, 1962-1975.http://www.cincinnatichamber.com/cham_a.aspx?menu_id=144&id=1179
high-pressure/low-pressure turbine was modified and the high-pressure section was removed. The Westinghouse generator was to generate 838 MWe per the original nuclear design. Asea Brown Boveri
was contracted to design the high-pressure turbine, intermediate-pressure/reheat turbine and generator. The HP/IP generator produces 900 MWe and the Westinghouse LP generator produces 497 MWe. The plant's feedwater pump is powered by a turbine, rather than electrical pumps like in many other plants. The feedwater turbine was designed by Asea Brown Boveri
and generates 67,000 horsepower
.
The boiler was designed by Babcock & Wilcox and is a supercritical boiler with a maximum superheater outlet pressure of about 3800 psi and temperature of about 1050 degrees fahrenheit. The reheat section of the boiler operates at about 650 psi and also about 1050 degrees fahrenheit.
The plant also utilizes several environmental controls such as a selective catalytic reduction, electrostatic precipitator to remove fly ash, and a recently upgraded flue gas desulfurization
system which now removes up to 98% of the sulfur dioxide. The gypsum byproduct of the FGD system is sold to make drywall and fertilizer. Many new environmental controls are also tested at this plant.
It is interesting to note that the plant's hyperboloid cooling tower
was designed to handle the cooling for the original nuclear plant. This creates generating efficiency issues during very hot summer days, as the cooling tower must cool much more equipment than it was originally designed for.
Moscow, Ohio
Moscow is a village in Clermont County, Ohio, United States. The population was 244 at the 2000 census.The William H. Zimmer Power Station, nuclear power plant converted to coal-fired generation that creates 1300-megawatts of electricity is partially located within village limits.-Geography:Moscow...
, is a coal-fired
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...
power plant
Fossil fuel power plant
A fossil-fuel power station is a power station that burns fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or petroleum to produce electricity. Central station fossil-fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation...
. It was originally intended to be a boiling water reactor
Boiling water reactor
The boiling water reactor is a type of light water nuclear reactor used for the generation of electrical power. It is the second most common type of electricity-generating nuclear reactor after the pressurized water reactor , also a type of light water nuclear reactor...
type of nuclear power plant
Nuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
. Although once estimated to be 97% complete, poor construction and quality assurance
Quality Assurance
Quality assurance, or QA for short, is the systematic monitoring and evaluation of the various aspects of a project, service or facility to maximize the probability that minimum standards of quality are being attained by the production process...
(QA) led to the plant being converted to coal-fired generation. Today, the plant generates 1400 gross MWe and 1300 net MWe. Zimmer Power Station is the largest single-unit power facility in the United States and is majority-owned by Duke Energy
Duke Energy
Duke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...
. During the construction of the plant, the Little Indian Creek was routed through the plant to protect fish populations. The plant now has several unique Environmental Protection features to keep the creek at its natural state.
History
As a result of two separate probes into defective pipe welds, the Nuclear Regulatory CommissionNuclear Regulatory Commission
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is an independent agency of the United States government that was established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 from the United States Atomic Energy Commission, and was first opened January 19, 1975...
fined Cincinnati Gas and Electric $200,000 for a faulty quality assurance program. The NRC, under pressure, eventually ordered work on the nuclear reactor to halt in the autumn of 1982.
Cincinnati Gas and Electric, with two other electric utilities (American Electric Power
American Electric Power
American Electric Power is a major investor-owner electric utility in various parts of the United States. AEP ranks among the nation's largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S...
and Dayton Power and Light), announced the cancellation of the Zimmer nuclear power plant in October 1983. Zimmer's total sunk costs equaled some $1.8 billion; Cincinnati's share amounted to $716 million, which was almost 90 percent of the utility's 1982 net worth.
Originally expected to cost $230 million, when the cost estimate soared to at least $3.4 billion the decision was made in 1984 to convert the plant. (Regulatory delays and high interest rates also contributed to the cost increase.)
The constructor, the Henry J. Kaiser
Henry J. Kaiser
Henry John Kaiser was an American industrialist who became known as the father of modern American shipbuilding. He established the Kaiser Shipyard which built Liberty ships during World War II, after which he formed Kaiser Aluminum and Kaiser Steel. Kaiser organized Kaiser Permanente health care...
Company, had never built a nuclear power plant before (or since). And the primary owner, Cincinnati Gas and Electric, did its own procurement, awarding contracts for equipment, e.g., for hundreds of valves, with inadequate specifications or QA requirements. Piping welds were not adequately radiographed.
Sargent & Lundy was the Architect/Engineering firm.
An ex-Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
admiral was hired to bring the plant on-line, and Bechtel
Bechtel
Bechtel Corporation is the largest engineering company in the United States, ranking as the 5th-largest privately owned company in the U.S...
was retained to nuclear-qualify the plant. However, Bechtel came in with an estimate of over $1.5 billion (to add to $ 1.7 billion already spent) to adequately complete the plant.
The conversion to coal-fired generation cost just over $1 billion, starting in 1987 and completed in 1991. It was the world's first nuclear-to-coal power plant conversion.
The plant was named for William H. Zimmer, who was chairman and president of Cincinnati Gas & Electric Company, 1962-1975.http://www.cincinnatichamber.com/cham_a.aspx?menu_id=144&id=1179
Equipment
The plant utilizes equipment from the old nuclear plant in conjunction with the coal conversion equipment. The original Westinghouse Electric CompanyWestinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is a nuclear power company, offering a wide range of nuclear products and services to utilities throughout the world, including nuclear fuel, service and maintenance, instrumentation and control and advanced nuclear plant designs...
high-pressure/low-pressure turbine was modified and the high-pressure section was removed. The Westinghouse generator was to generate 838 MWe per the original nuclear design. Asea Brown Boveri
Asea Brown Boveri
ABB is a Swiss-Swedish multinational corporation headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland, and best known for its robotics. ABB operates mainly in the power and automation technology areas. It ranked 143rd in Forbes Ranking ....
was contracted to design the high-pressure turbine, intermediate-pressure/reheat turbine and generator. The HP/IP generator produces 900 MWe and the Westinghouse LP generator produces 497 MWe. The plant's feedwater pump is powered by a turbine, rather than electrical pumps like in many other plants. The feedwater turbine was designed by Asea Brown Boveri
Asea Brown Boveri
ABB is a Swiss-Swedish multinational corporation headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland, and best known for its robotics. ABB operates mainly in the power and automation technology areas. It ranked 143rd in Forbes Ranking ....
and generates 67,000 horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
.
The boiler was designed by Babcock & Wilcox and is a supercritical boiler with a maximum superheater outlet pressure of about 3800 psi and temperature of about 1050 degrees fahrenheit. The reheat section of the boiler operates at about 650 psi and also about 1050 degrees fahrenheit.
The plant also utilizes several environmental controls such as a selective catalytic reduction, electrostatic precipitator to remove fly ash, and a recently upgraded 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 which now removes up to 98% of the sulfur dioxide. The gypsum byproduct of the FGD system is sold to make drywall and fertilizer. Many new environmental controls are also tested at this plant.
It is interesting to note that the plant's hyperboloid 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...
was designed to handle the cooling for the original nuclear plant. This creates generating efficiency issues during very hot summer days, as the cooling tower must cool much more equipment than it was originally designed for.
See also
- Duke EnergyDuke EnergyDuke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...
- Nuclear powerNuclear powerNuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
- Nuclear safetyNuclear safetyNuclear safety covers the actions taken to prevent nuclear and radiation accidents or to limit their consequences. This covers nuclear power plants as well as all other nuclear facilities, the transportation of nuclear materials, and the use and storage of nuclear materials for medical, power,...
- List of canceled nuclear plants in the United States