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Cumberland Fossil Plant

Coordinates: 36°23′29″N 87°39′17″W / 36.39139°N 87.65472°W / 36.39139; -87.65472
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Cumberland Fossil Plant
Map
CountryUnited States
LocationCumberland City, Tennessee
Coordinates36°23′29″N 87°39′17″W / 36.39139°N 87.65472°W / 36.39139; -87.65472
StatusOperational
Commission date1973
Decommission dateUnit 1: 2026 (planned)
Unit 2: 2028 (planned)
OwnerTennessee Valley Authority
Thermal power station
Primary fuelBituminous coal (pulverized)
Power generation
Nameplate capacity2,470 MW
External links
CommonsRelated media on Commons
View of the power plant

Cumberland Fossil Plant is a pulverized coal-fired power station located west of Cumberland City, Tennessee, US, on the south bank of Lake Barkley on the Cumberland River. Owned and operated by Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), it has a gross capacity of 2,470 MW,[1] and is the most powerful power station in Tennessee.[2]

Description

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Commissioned in 1968, the Cumberland Fossil Plant contains two identical units, rated at 1.235 GWe gross each, Units 1 and 2 were launched into service in March and November 1973, respectively.[3] In 2004, the two units accounted for almost 12% of TVA's total electricity generation.[2] As of the mid 2010s, however, TVA's Sequoyah Nuclear Plant near Soddy Daisy, Tennessee, with a slightly lower capacity, was generating more power.[4]

The Cumberland Fossil Plant has two of the tallest chimneys in the world at 1,001 feet (305 m), built in 1970. These chimneys are no longer in use, having been replaced with smaller chimneys connected to the scrubbers.

Bituminous coal is delivered by barges along the Cumberland River waterway. The plant consumes about 20,000 tons of coal a day.[2] All of the waste heat is dumped into Cumberland River water.

On January 10, 2023, TVA announced plans to retire the first unit by the end of 2026 and the second by the end of 2028. The plant is tentatively planned to be replaced with a 1,450 MW combined-cycle natural gas generation plant, which has drawn criticism from environmental groups.[5][6]

Pollution and releases into environment

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Toxic release inventory from Cumberland power plant for 2005.[7] All quantities are in pounds.
Pollutant Air Water Land Offsite disposal Total
Antimony compounds 39 178 8,947 0 9,164
Arsenic compounds 182 119 46,096 0 46,397
Barium compounds 142 0 279,200 25 279,367
Beryllium compounds 10 0 9,952 1 9,963
Cadmium compounds
Chromium compounds 368 142 87,420 7 87,937
Cobalt compounds 63 89 19,887 1 20,040
Copper compounds 286 6,798 64,120 3 71,207
Lead compounds 253 0 59,122 3 59,378
Manganese compounds 558 33,864 177,130 18 211,570
Mercury compounds 240 0 346 0 586
Nickel compounds 516 2,504 98,180 6 101,206
Selenium compounds 2,501 2,075 6,573 0 11,149
Silver compounds
Thallium compounds 36 0 30,200 2 30,239
Vanadium compounds 290 0 191,560 13 191,864
Zinc compounds 2,006 2,447 248,070 12 252,534
Hydrochloric acid (aerosol) 340,006 0 0 0 340,006
Hydrogen fluoride 72,006 0 0 0 72,006
Sulfuric acid (aerosol) 8,793,606 0 0 0 8,793,606
Benzo[ghi]perylene 0.21 0 0.65 0 0.87
Dioxins 0.008 0 0 0 0.008
Polycyclic aromatic compounds 49.8 0 59.2 0.0 109.0
Naphthalene 100 0 0 0 100
Ammonia 3,640 316 0 0 3,956
Nitrate compounds 0 128,879 0 0 132,407

Environmental protection measures

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To reduce sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions, both units at Cumberland use wet limestone scrubbers. To reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx), the units use low-NOx burners as well as selective catalytic reduction systems, which were completed in 2004.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "TVA - Cumberland Fossil Plant". Archived from the original on 2016-07-12.
  2. ^ a b c d "Cumberland Fossil Plant". Tennessee Valley Authority. Archived from the original on 2008-09-16. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  3. ^ "Existing Electric Generating Units in the United States, 2006" (Excel). Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy. 2006. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
  4. ^ "Tennessee - State Energy Profile". eia.gov. U.S. Energy Information Administration. May 17, 2018. Retrieved 2018-11-02.
  5. ^ Foster, Jake (January 13, 2023). "TVA will replace coal-fired Cumberland Fossil Plant with gas-fueled turbine, environmental groups object". Clarksville Now. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  6. ^ Keefe, Josh; Yoganathan, Anila (January 10, 2023). "TVA finalizes plan to transition Cumberland coal plant to natural gas". The Tennessean. Nashville. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  7. ^ "Cumberland Fossil Plant, Emissions". Tennessee Valley Authority. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
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