INTEGRATED GASIFICATION COMBINED CYCLE (IGCC) PROGRAM In order that potential sources learn more about the Federal Energy Technology Center's (FETC) program emphasis areas, and to afford our customers the opportunity to discuss their capabilities and to allow FETC to ascertain how to assist industry with emerging energy and environmental technologies, a special notice is published here. The Department of Energy's Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle program is responsible for fostering the commercialization of gasification-based processes for the conversion of carbon-based feedstocks to some combination of electricity, steam, fuels, chemicals, and hydrogen. It is envisioned that the program will lead to gasification-based processes that will be more attractive economically, have higher thermal efficiencies, and demonstrate superior environmental performance compared to competing technologies. This will be achieved through the implementation of a strategic time-phased Research, Development, and Demonstration (RD&D) program in partnership with Government laboratories, academia, nonprofit institutions, and private industry. In FY 1999-2000, the IGCC program will focus its efforts in three major categories, i.e., Gasification, Gas Cleaning, and Systems Analysis. In gasification, one area of interest will be high temperature measurement instrumentation to improve process monitoring and control of high temperature gasifiers such as the Texaco and Destec gasifiers. The instrumentation must have improved accuracy and longevity compared to current technology, be easily retrofitted into existing gasifiers, and be cost competitive. A second area will involve the co-feeding of coal and low-cost opportunity feedstocks such as petroleum coke and residua, biomass, municipal solid waste, etc. This activity will focus on the development and testing of technologies for co-feeding coal with alternative feedstocks into high pressure gasifiers. A third will focus on novel gasification concepts that may be more amenable to achieving the high efficiency, low emission goals of the Vision 21 program The second major category will emphasize the development of innovative approaches for cleaning coal-derived synthesis gas to meet the stringent gas quality requirements for use with fuel cells or synthesis gas conversion technologies, i.e, Fischer-Tropsch and methanol synthesis. These concepts should operate above 250 oC and show improved process efficiency and lower capital costs than other approaches while simultaneously achieving the required gas purity. For the third category, the first area of interest is the conduct of feasibility studies focusing on the coproduction of some combination of electricity, steam, fuels, chemicals, and hydrogen. It is anticipated that these feasibility studies and subsequent risk mitigation R&D and detailed engineering analyses will lead to the deployment of the concept in what is referred to as an Early Entrance Coproduction Plant. A second area will focus on the development of process concepts for the Vision 21 program goals. These concepts must demonstrate potential for processing a variety of feedstocks and producing multiple products, lower capital and operating cost, high efficiency operations, near-zero emissions of particulates and sulfur and nitrogen oxides, and CO2 reduction/sequestration. A third area of interest is the optimization of IGCC processes for baseload power, cogeneration, and coproduction applications. Optimization of these gasification-based facilities using advanced process engineering methodologies and market-based costs has potential for significantly reducing capital cost and construction time of these plants. (Contact: Gary J. Stiegel, Product Manager -- IGCC, (412) 892-4499) Posted 03/30/99 (W-SN314062).

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