The Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center of the US Department of Energy (DOE) has contracted with Combustion Engineering, Inc. (ABB CE) to perform work on the Engineering Development of Advanced Coal-Fired Low-Emission Boiler Systems'' Project and has authorized ABB CE to complete Phase I on a cost-reimbursable basis. The overall objective of the Project is the expedited commercialization of advanced coal-fired low-emission boiler systems. The specified primary objectives are: (1) NOx emissions not greater than one-third NSPS. (2) SOx emissions not greater than one-third NSPS. (3) Particulate emissions not greater than one-half NSPS. The specific secondary objectives are: (1) Improved ash disposability and reduced waste generation. (2) Reduced air toxics emissions. (3) Increased generating efficiency. The final deliverables are a design data base that will allow future coal-fired power plants to meet the stated objectives and a preliminary design of a commercial generation unit.

Fully dense, nanocrystalline ceramic articles were prepared by the new nanofabrication process. The process consists of two steps: synthesis of ceramic nanoparticles and fabrication of dense, nanocrystalline ceramic parts. The synthesis step produced 10-nanometer-diameter crystallites, and is capable of being scaled up to kilogram/hour production rates. The fabrication step produced dense parts at significantly reduced sintering temperatures and times -- representing a factor of 10--100 reduction in process energy requirements. The process was demonstrated by producing ultrafine-grained yttria-stabilized ZrO[sub 2], an important material with a variety of energy-related applications (solid electrolytes, oxygen sensors, electrode materials, thermal barrier coatings, etc.). Results from this period clearly illustrate the capabilities of this energy-efficient and directly commercializable process for producing dense, nanocrystalline, multicomponent oxide ceramics.

A weekly publication, the Texas Register serves as the journal of state agency rulemaking for Texas. Information published in the Texas Register includes proposed, adopted, withdrawn and emergency rule actions, notices of state agency review of agency rules, governor's appointments, attorney general opinions, and miscellaneous documents such as requests for proposals. After adoption, these rulemaking actions are codified into the Texas Administrative Code.

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Dan Morales, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification; Whether article 6252-9b, section 7A(a), V.T.C.S., prohibits a former member of the Polygraph Examniers Board from appearing before the board in connection with sponsoring a polygraph intern (RQ-362)

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Dan Morales, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification; Whether the Harris County Bail Bond Board is authorized to issue more than one bail bond license to a corporate surety, and related questions (RQ-463)

The Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center of the US Department of Energy (DOE) has contracted with Combustion Engineering, Inc. (ABB CE) to perform work on the ``Engineering Development of Advanced Coal-Fired Low-Emission Boiler Systems`` Project and has authorized ABB CE to complete Phase I on a cost-reimbursable basis. The overall objective of the Project is the expedited commercialization of advanced coal-fired low-emission boiler systems. The specified primary objectives are: (1) NOx emissions not greater than one-third NSPS. (2) SOx emissions not greater than one-third NSPS. (3) Particulate emissions not greater than one-half NSPS. The specific secondary objectives are: (1) Improved ash disposability and reduced waste generation. (2) Reduced air toxics emissions. (3) Increased generating efficiency. The final deliverables are a design data base that will allow future coal-fired power plants to meet the stated objectives and a preliminary design of a commercial generation unit.

The objectives of this project are to study the effect of pretreatment methods on the two-stage liquefaction process. In particular the effects of dispersed catalysts and carbon monoxide atmospheres on a coal liquefaction process. The project is divided into three technical tasks. Task 1 and 2 deal with the analyses and liquefaction experiments, respectively, whereas Task 3 deals with the economic impact of utilizing the pretreatment methods. This quarter concentrated on Tasks 1 and 2. which are summarized below. The fractionated products from the coal liquefaction experiments conducted in Task 2 exhibited a very low H/C ratio, most likely due to the low H/C ratio of the Black Thunder recycle vehicle used in these liquefaction experiments. Wilsonville has reported the recycle vehicle as approximately 20% distillable material (1100{degree}F at one atmosphere), 20% insoluble material (CI) and 40% resid. We are now in the process of fractionating this material in order to determine its contribution to our liquefaction results. We also analyzed some of the sulfated iron catalysts for surface areas, finding that the calcined catalyst had surface areas of 76 m{sup 2}/g, compared to 6 m{sup 2}/g for the iron oxide used by Wilsonville. We also synthesized two more catalysts, …

Fully dense, nanocrystalline ceramic articles were prepared by the new nanofabrication process. The process consists of two steps: synthesis of ceramic nanoparticles and fabrication of dense, nanocrystalline ceramic parts. The synthesis step produced 10-nanometer-diameter crystallites, and is capable of being scaled up to kilogram/hour production rates. The fabrication step produced dense parts at significantly reduced sintering temperatures and times -- representing a factor of 10--100 reduction in process energy requirements. The process was demonstrated by producing ultrafine-grained yttria-stabilized ZrO{sub 2}, an important material with a variety of energy-related applications (solid electrolytes, oxygen sensors, electrode materials, thermal barrier coatings, etc.). Results from this period clearly illustrate the capabilities of this energy-efficient and directly commercializable process for producing dense, nanocrystalline, multicomponent oxide ceramics.

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