Abstract Submission - Scott Evans - Clean Air Engineering
Comparison of CO2 Combustion Emission Factors to CEM Data
A critical component of any greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting program such as The Climate Registry or the Chicago Climate Exchange, is the emission inventory. Most of these programs rely heavily on calculated emission factors to determine GHG emissions rather than actual measurement. A preliminary assessment of these factors indicates that there may be far greater uncertainty in these factors than previously thought. U.S. fossilfuel fired power plants provide an excellent opportunity to compare measured GHG emissions (primarily CO2) with calculated emissions since many of these unit already monitor CO2 continuously for the Acid Rain program. Some preliminary research has shown that there may be large discrepancies between calculated and actual measured emissions. At one plant, the difference was 1.2 million metric tons per year. This paper will examine where GHG combustion emission factors originated, how they were validated, how they are used, and how they compare to actual CEM data for GHG emissions. Implications for emission inventory development and GHG verification will also be examined.
