In late January, Great River Energy announced the commercialization of DryFining, its world class technology designed to refine or beneficiate the value of lignite coal through a drying and segregation process. As of December 2009, the DryFining system was placed in service and began to supply refined lignite coal – called DryFine^TM – to Coal Creek Station.

Lignite is used to generate electricity at many power plants throughout the world; however, it is considered a low-rank coal, due in part to its high moisture content of 39.5 percent.

Higher concentrations of moisture in coal leads to lower temperatures produced during combustion and reduced plant efficiency. The coal drying component of DryFining reduces the moisture content to about 29.5 percent.

Through the system, the energy content of the lignite is increased from 6,200 to7,100 Btus per pound. This will reduce fuel input into the boilers by about 14 percent by weight. In turn, this will increase overall power plant efficiency by 2 to 4 percent, and also reduce stack emissions – sulfur dioxide and mercury by more than 40 percent, nitrogen oxide by more than 20 percent and carbon dioxide by 4 percent.

Watch for part 2 on DryFining next week!

Energy efficiency tip: Use compact fluorescent light bulbs with the Energy Star® label.

Welcome to Great River Energy’s new blog – Electric Avenue. We are excited to use this space to share all of the great things that are happening at our cooperative. Our goal is to engage our stakeholders (that’s you!) and to build an online community where we can all learn a little something.

Our blog posts will cover a range of topics including: social responsibility, energy efficiency, legislative issues, member cooperatives, industry news and more.

We can’t do this without you. Leave a comment below; tell us what you’d like to know about Great River Energy.

Let’s get started!

Energy efficiency tip: Install a programmable thermostat to keep your house comfortably warm in the winter and comfortably cool in the summer.