Altresco G.E. Pittsfield Cogeneration

Fluor provided engineering, procurement construction, start-up and performance testing for the 160 MW combined-cycle Altresco cogeneration facility in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The plant features three General Electric Frame 6 gas-turbine generators, one condensing steam-turbine generator, and three heat recovery steam generators that each produces three pressure levels of steam.

Client's Challenge

The facility is on General Electric property and sells steam to the host company. Process steam, which is a controlled extraction from the steam turbine, is exported at a maximum rate of 250,000 pounds per hour.

High pressure steam is used to throttle the steam turbine, and intermediate-pressure steam supplies injection steam to the gas turbines for NOx control. Electricity generated is sold to the New England grid. The new facility replaces aging boilers, which were operated by GE and burned No. 6 fuel oil.

Fluor's Solution

The project's state-of-the-art emissions system eliminates smoke and 90 percent, or some 600 tons per year, of the sulfur emissions that would have otherwise been generated by the old boilers.

The facility also features Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) and the first aqueous ammonia injection system of its size in the country.

Conclusion

Due to the nearby elementary school and surrounding residences, the plant cannot raise the existing ambient noise level to more than 48 dB. To achieve this, Fluor enclosed the plant in six-inch thick, high-density concrete.

The interior surface of the concrete and the roof are lined with sound-insulating fiberglass. When combined with special low-noise equipment designs, the facility is one of the quietest of its type in the country.