During their July 21, 2017 meeting, The South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Technology Committee unanimously approved to sponsor and partially fund ClearSign’s Duplex™ technology demonstration in a refinery boiler application at Torrance Refining Company. The project, expected to be approved during the upcoming SCAQMD board meeting Sept. 1, 2017, brings together regulators, technology developers and a refiner in a cooperative effort to improve air quality in Southern California.
A critical goal of SCAQMD is to implement new stationary source emission control technologies to meet anticipated tough, ambient-air, quality-control standards. The consortium’s demonstration aims to achieve levels of nitrogen oxide (NOx), a criteria pollutant that is a precursor to photochemical smog, below the current rule and BACT limits of 5 parts per million (ppm) for the period of the test, using SCAQMD-approved source test methods. Particulate matter (PM) and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions will also be monitored.
Duplex technology has proven to reduce NOx to between 2.5 and 4.5 ppm without the use of complex and expensive mitigation methods such as Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), which uses harmful chemicals and reagents like ammonia and urea.
Although the board approval meeting won’t take place until September, ClearSign expects SCAQMD to grant the project based on the benefits and potential impact on air quality. This will be ClearSign’s 6th refinery installation utilizing Duplex technology.