LOW USE: CONSULTANT TO FINE TUNE SEMO BOILER

Alex Wormser has good reason to want the pollution-reducing, coal-burning boiler at Southeast Missouri State University to run at peak efficiency.

He designed the fluidized bed boiler.

Wormser of Marblehead, Mass., has been hired by the university as a consultant to try to fine tune the high-tech boiler, which has had a history of problems since being put into operation at Southeast 3 years ago.

Even if Wormser succeeds in his task, there is an added problem finding a supply of limestone.

The boiler uses a special type of limestone to reduce the amount of sulfur dioxide emitted from the burning of high-sulfur coal.

For the past year, Southeast has been getting its supply of limestone from a Columbia, Ill., quarry. But that quarry has now closed, said Bill Moon, Southeast's physical plant director.

The university previously did business with another rock quarry, but that one shut down because its operation generated too much dust, and, thus, could not meet environmental regulations.

"We've got an 11-day supply of limestone. That is it," said Moon.

Charles Wild, power plant engineer, said Tuesday that the university had about 140 tons of limestone on hand.

Moon said that if the fluidized bed boiler were operated all the time, the university would use about 6,000 tons of limestone a year.

Prices for limestone, he said, can fluctuate widely, ranging from $5 to $40 a ton.

Still, Moon said he has no doubt that the university can find a supplier. "I'm sure it is out there."

Wormser was on the job Monday, dealing with some computer glitches and inspecting the inside of the boiler. He is expected to be here for several days.

"We've been through the computer program and we have cleaned it up," Moon said Tuesday.

"We've changed out the sensors and put in new sensors," he said.

Wild said the 6-year-old computer system was upgraded last year. The old system, he explained, operated too slowly to properly run the boiler.

Tuesday morning, physical plant personnel began the process of firing up the boiler.

Moon said plans are to keep the boiler running for several days and monitor it to see how well it is operating. He said the test period could last as long as 11 days.

If the fluidized bed boiler can be operated more efficiently, the university could operate it constantly in place of one of the power plant's standard boilers.

The university has been operating the $4.7 million boiler only about 30-40 percent of the time.

Moon said such a boiler may cost more to run than a standard unit, but if it's running properly, it can provide Southeast with a more efficient coal-burning system.

And, he said, it meets federal environmental requirements.

Wormser said the benefit of the boiler is that "it really helps the environment."

The boiler, he said, is an example of the "clean coal technology" that was developed in the 1980s.

The boiler is one of 14 such units worldwide, and one of four built by Wormser's company.

Wormser said the boiler is designed to produce "yellow heat," which reaches a temperature of 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit and "is the best temperature for reducing acid gases."

The boiler, which is designed to produce about 50,000 pounds of steam an hour, has been plagued by problems over the years. Installation of the unit was delayed when the project's contractor experienced financial problems.

It finally went on line in February 1989, but was operated haltingly for the rest of the year as adjustments had to be made to meet emission requirements, including finding the right type of low-moisture limestone.