DOE to fund $64M for R&D on coal plants of the future

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will provide about $64 million in federal funding for research and development projects on innovative coal plants.

The funding opportunity is called Critical Components for Coal FIRST Power Plants of the Future. The DOE’s Coal FIRST initiative – which stands for Flexible, Innovative, Resilient, Small, Transformative – seeks to develop the coal plant of the future.

“Coal is a critical resource for grid stability that will be used in developing countries around the world well into the future as they build their economies,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette said. “Investing in R&D for cleaner coal technologies will allow us to develop the next generation of coal plants for countries to use this valuable natural resource in an environmentally responsible manner.”

The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) will manage the projects.

“The evolving U.S. energy mix requires cleaner, more reliable, and highly efficient plants,” Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy Steven Winberg said. “Technologies developed for the Coal FIRST initiative will lead to just that—reliable, highly efficient plants with zero or near-zero emissions.”

The DOE will provide funding in seven areas of interest:

• Pressurized Fluidized Bed Combustor with Supercritical Steam Cycle Power Plant System;

• Indirect Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Plant System;

• Direct-Fired Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Plant System;

• Gasification-Based Poly-Generation;

• Coal-Fired Direct Injection Combustion Engine & Gas Turbine Compound Reheat Combined Cycle Power Plant System;

• Modular Staged Pressurized Oxy-Combustion Power Plant System; and

• Flameless Pressurized Oxy-Combustion Power Plant System.

DOE expects to select up to 14 projects under this funding opportunity.