MHPS and KBR sign agreement for sale of SDA pitch-fired power plants

• 4 years ago (2020-02-14)
• David Flin

North America 1021 Oil 19

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Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) and US-based KBR have signed an agreement to work together to increase sales of SDA pitch-fired power plants. These plants use as fuel the insoluble matter (SDA pitch) remaining from heavy oil fractions.

MHPS and KBR aim to provide new solutions for the petroleum industry with the world’s first method to effectively utilise the SDA pitch, from which energy recovery has been difficult up to now, as a fuel for power generation.

KBR possesses technologies for mixing heavy oil with solvents to separate the heavy oil into light oil and SDA pitch. KBR licenses its SDA process, known as ROSE, to enhance the extraction ratio of the light oil faction. KBR wanted to work with a company with the technologies that allow for the effective utilisation of the SDA pitch.

MHPS has developed SDA pitch-fired boilers that incorporate burners that allow the heated high viscosity SDA pitch to be combusted as liquid without installation of an additional system. The boilers have high-temperature corrosion counter-measures, mainly in the combustion area, to prevent corrosion caused by the high concentrations of sulphur and heavy metals. In addition, MHPS uses its Air Quality Control Systems (AQCS) in the flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) system to remove NOx, SOx, and particulate matter from the exhaust gas.