| Abstract |
Geothermal power plants use heated geothermal fluid (aka brine) from wells thousands of feet deep as their heat source to generate electricity. If the brine has enough enthalpy, it can be flashed off to create steam, which is used to drive a turbine and spin a generator. This brine fluid in many areas of the world can contain significant levels of hydrogen sulfide, or H2S (from 20 ppm up to 60 ppm), which is liberated into the steam during the flashing process. The steam is then condensed back to water and about half the H2S is re-solubilized. The remaining H2S is removed from the condenser via the air removal section along with other non-condensable gases (NCGs). This condensate from the condenser is then used as make-up water to the cooling tower. The NCGs are normally routed to bio-reactors or fluidized bed reactors to remove the H2S prior to releasing them directly to the atmosphere. Keywords: hydrogen sulfide abatement, non-condensable gases SITUATION Hydrogen sulfide exists as a |