How to Make Thermal Power Plants Somewhat Environmentally Friendly

4 min read

Before anything else, we want to present some data to you.

40 percent: That’s how much energy-related CO2 emissions are resulting from the burning of fossil fuels, courtesy of, mostly, thermal power plants.
99 percent: In 2023, thermal power plants accounted for 99 percent of the associated CO2 emissions in the US.

So, thermal power plants. They don’t sound environmentally friendly, do they? After all, these are not the numbers you want to be associated with, especially if you want the “environmentally friendly” tag, right?

Of course, never say never, because we can, to some extent, make thermal power plants somewhat environmentally friendly. We’ll tell you how.

Tackling Carbon Emissions Through Carbon Capture Technologies

Energy-related CO2 emissions are constantly on the rise, and we can’t really do anything. Or can we?

Running thermal power plants means releasing CO2 into the atmosphere, it’s a given. But what if, by some means, we could trap that CO2 before it reaches the atmosphere? Yes, we can. How? With carbon capture technology utilizing reticular materials as sorbents.

As Atoco points out, carbon capture tech captures carbon dioxide directly from the plant’s flue gas. The technology utilizes reticular chemistry-based modules of adsorbents to optimize the kinetics of carbon adsorption. At the same time, this minimizes the energy consumption of the overall process.

Then you have solid-state carbon capture systems. Unlike older methods that relied on liquids or chemical solvents, these systems use solid materials to absorb CO2, making the process more sustainable.

Switching to Cleaner Fuels

Looking for a less complicated way to make thermal power plants somewhat greener? Just go ahead and change what they are burning.

Traditional coal plants, for instance, are some of the worst offenders in the world when it comes to pollution. But switch to natural gas, and you can significantly reduce emissions. How? Simple: Natural gas burns cleaner than coal. So you still have fossil fuel, but you’re releasing fewer harmful particulates and, let’s say, about half the CO2.

Or, even better, experiment with co-firing biomass alongside coal. Biomass, such as wood pellets or agricultural waste, is considered renewable because it comes from organic materials that can be regrown.

Are cleaner fuels a perfect solution? Absolutely not. But, burning clean means you still get to lower overall emissions.

Improving Efficiency

Thermal power plants waste a lot of energy during the combustion process – around 60 percent – with much of it lost as heat. It’s like these power plants are allergic to the idea of efficiency. But, had they been a bit more efficient, thermal plants would’ve been less harmful to the environment.

Thus, if we are looking to make thermal power plants a bit more environmentally friendly, we need to make them more efficient first. There are a few ways to make these thermal plants efficient:

For starters, combined-cycle gas plants can replace our traditional ones. They recover heat, meaning the waste heat from gas turbines are used to produce additional electricity.
Then we can ensure proper maintenance for these thermal plants. Keep the equipment at these plants in top condition through regular maintenance, and you can ensure more efficiency from thermal plants.
Finally, why not upgrade the outdated technology used in traditional thermal plants? Upgrades can help minimize downtime, meaning we get cleaner and more efficient plant operations.

Why We Still Need Alternatives

The idea of making thermal power plants more environmentally friendly is a wild one. Of course, it is practical. Let’s rewind a bit and point out what we’ve learned about “greenifying” thermal power plants so far:

Carbon capture technology can take care of plant emissions to a decent extent.
Cleaner fuels? Yes; we need those in thermal plants as well.
Regular maintenance of and upgrades at thermal power plants: this is a must as well.
A combination of all three? Will probably work wonders for making thermal power plants more environmentally friendly.

All these things sound good, but a question must be asked: will making thermal power plants more eco-friendly actually be a feasible idea?

The ideas we talked about earlier can make thermal power plants less environmentally destructive, sure. But, these are not really long-term solutions.

The reality is that even with the best possible measures in place, these thermal plants will never be entirely green. Their operation still relies on finite resources, and their emissions, even when reduced, contribute to the broader problem of climate change.

So, do we have no hope at all for this planet of ours? Of course, we do, and our ultimate goal should be a full transition to renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydropower.

Yes, with the right strategies, thermal plants can be a bit greener, but it won’t do us any good in the long term. Alternatives are the future of our energy sectors; they aren’t just cleaner but also more sustainable in the long run. Thermal power plants may serve as a necessary bridge during this transition, but we shouldn’t let short-term fixes distract us from the bigger picture.