TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 Distribution Characteristics in the Thermal Power Plants in Korea

Abstract

In this study, the emission characteristics and heavy metal contents of TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 pollutants from three thermal power plants in Korea were investigated and compared to the electric production capacity, type of fuel and sort of air-pollution-control device. For the measurement and analysis, Korean standard test method US EPA method were used. The average concentration of TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 emitted from Plant A were 7.39, 6.16, 4.83 mg/Sm3, Plant B was 5.82, 4.87, 2.35 mg/Sm3 and Plant C was 1.54, 1.40, 10.02 mg/Sm3, respectively. Plant A that uses heavy oil as the main fuel showed higher TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 than Plant B that uses mostly anthracite coal, and plant B showed higher TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 than Plant C that mainly uses bituminous coal. The concentration of fine particles decreased as electricity-production capacity increased. The fractions of PM10 and PM2.5 in TSP were relatively high in tested plants; this result means that more fine particles than coarse particles were emitted from all stacks. The distribution of heavy metals by particle size showed similar trends in all plants. The concentration of Zn and Mn in TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 showed higher than the others in all plants. These results confirm that the content of heavy metals in the particulate matter is influenced by the fuel that the plant uses.