Bowen Coal Power Station
11:26 PM
Posted by Energetic
The Bowen Coal Power Station is a coal-fired power station located in Euharlee, United States, approximately 14 km (8.7 mi) west-south-west from Cartersville. At 3,499 megawatts, Plant Bowen has the second largest generating capacity of any coal-fired power plant in North America, and the largest in the United States; only Ontario Power Generation's Nanticoke Generating Station in Canada has more generating capacity. Plant Bowen ranked third in the nation for net generation in 2006 producing over 22,630,000 MWh. The station is connected to the southeastern power grid by numerous 500 KV transmission lines, and is owned and operated by Georgia Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company.
Bowen's four cooling towers are 116 m (381 ft) tall and 97 m (318 ft) in diameter and can cool 1,100,000 litres (290,000 US gal) per minute. Another 26,000 litres (6,900 US gal) of water is lost to evaporation which creates the distinctive white clouds rising from each tower.
Bowen's two smokestacks are 300 m (980 ft) tall. Particulates are removed from the exhaust gases through the use of electrostatic precipitators. The exhaust gases are then closely monitored to comply with air quality regulations. In addition, SCR units have recently been constructed on all four units to meet federal clean air and ozone standards.
In 2006, Bowen was the largest emitter of sulfur dioxide in the United States (at 206,442 short tons (187,281,032 kg)), and ranked 39th worst in the nation in terms of sulfur dioxide emissions per kilowatt-hour of electricity produced. All four units at Bowen are scheduled for scrubber installations. Through these efforts, such emissions will be reduced by as much as 95%. Construction began in 2005 on the first two of four scrubbers and will take three years to complete. The scrubbers at Bowen will be among the largest fiberglass vessels ever to be built in the United States. The facility is the third largest producer of carbon dioxide, after Plant Scherer and James H. Miller Jr. Power Plant, emitting 20,500,000 short tons (1.86×1010 kg) of CO2 in the atmosphere each year.