Montauk Energy worked with Caterpillar Financial Services
Corporation to develop and commission a $60 million, 113,000-square-foot,
state-of-the-art renewable energy power plant to generate electrical power by
capturing and conditioning the landfill gas.
As a sprawling 725-acre operation, the F.R. Bowerman
Landfill is one of the largest landfills in the United States. The landfill,
located in Orange County, California, contains an estimated 31 million tons of
waste.
When solid waste in a landfill decomposes, a natural
by-product with high amounts of methane is released. This potent greenhouse gas
can potentially affect global warming, climate change, ozone depletion and sea
level rise, as well as having a negative impact on biodiversity. In order to
better manage and reuse this onsite waste, Montauk Energy worked with
Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation to develop and commission a $60
million, 113,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art renewable energy power plant to
generate electrical power by capturing and conditioning the landfill gas.
"We've had successful gas energy landfill projects in
Texas and Oklahoma, but this project was unique not only for its immense size
but also for the strict emission requirements in place in California,"
said Dave Herrman, CEO and President of Montauk Energy.
The Bowerman project is subject to regular inspections from
the California Integrated Waste Management Board and the Board's local
enforcement agency, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, in
addition to the South Coast Air Quality Management District to ensure
compliance with those regulations.
"With every new project, we look to leverage technology
and innovation to increase efficiency and productivity with less impact on the
environment and help our customers do the same," added Patrick Barrett, a
territory manager with Caterpillar.
In order to convert the waste into a renewable resource,
Montauk Energy required generator sets with gas cleanup and emissions reduction
technology to meet stringent standards.
Seven Cat CG260 generator sets consume landfill gas and
deliver power to the residences, schools and businesses of Orange County,
California. Credit: Caterpillar.
Montauk Energy worked with Cat dealer Cleveland Brothers to
develop a sustainable solution for converting waste from the anaerobic
digestion process into renewable energy. Seven Cat CG260 generator sets with
reciprocating engines were supplied for a total of 22 MW of electricity
capacity.
"By law, the landfill gas must be flared because it
can't be put directly into the atmosphere as methane however now it becomes
wasted energy. We were approached to capture it and generate electric power for
the residences, schools and businesses of Orange County, California," said
Kurt Hertzler of Cleveland Brothers.
Due to the strict emission standards in California, the
supplied generator sets feature technology designed to help the operation meet
all local, state and federal air quality requirements. A fuel cleanup system
treats the landfill gas to ensure it stays within acceptable limits of the
engines, while selective catalytic reduction (SCR) and oxidation catalyst units
are installed on each engine exhaust system to specifically reduce NOx, CO, and
VOC emissions.
"Beyond this essential balance-of-plant equipment, the
generator sets were also built with drop-over enclosures to dampen noise. This
was important to lessen the noise impact on nearby residential neighborhoods,"
added Hertzler. "The enclosures also allowed us to create a very compact
site, which helped because although the landfill is vast the space for
equipment is actually quite limited."
By selecting the large-scale CG260 generator sets, Montauk
Energy ultimately required fewer units thus lowering installation and
maintenance costs.
As the largest gas-fueled reciprocating engine project in
California, Montauk Energy is committed to helping the people of Orange County
discover new ways to process and more efficiently use landfill gas.
The seven Cat CG260 generator sets add 160,000 megawatt-hours
annually into the grid, which is enough energy to power 26,000 homes. In
addition, the generator sets and associated emissions controls prevent
approximately 53,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually.
"This is the largest project of its kind utilizing
landfill gas that combines gas cleanup, large-scale Cat reciprocating
engine-generators and selective catalytic reduction technology to meet strict
emission requirements," Herrman stated. "The result is efficient
operations with high online availability, coupled with ample and steady gas
supply from the landfill, to ensure reliable production of renewable energy and
all its benefits 24 hours a day, 365 days a year."
Montauk Energy relied on Cleveland Brothers to develop,
deliver and commission the project while Quinn Company will provide service for
the plant under a 20-year long term service agreement to ensure the plant is
operating at peak levels for years to come.
"While the emission requirements were a considerable
factor in this project, it was much more than simply meeting those obligations.
A close collaboration between Montauk Energy, Cleveland Brothers and Quinn
Company delivered the first successful gas-to-energy facility with
sophisticated clean-up systems and SCR + oxidation catalysts to the market,"
added Barrett.
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