PRB Coal Blending Study for the Meramec Plant

Client
Union Electric Company
1901 Chouteau Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63166

Completion Date
May, 1997

Project Description
Union Electric was considering upgrades and modifications to the 44 year old Meramec Plant. The Link Belt Company constructed the original coal handling system. The conveyors are 42 inch wide with 20-degree troughing idlers. The plant could originally receive coal via barge and rail. Barges are unloaded via a grab bucket unloader. Rail cars were unloaded via a bottom dump hopper. The rail mainline is routed along the east side of the plant, between Meramec’s rail tracks and the Mississippi River. The plant no longer receives rail coal, since the hopper and ladder track arrangement is insufficient and more costly than barge receipts. The rail hopper was abandoned in 1995.

Union Electric engaged Energy Associates to study modifications necessary to utilize Powder River Basin (PRB) coal, which is being considered to reduce fuel cost. Test burns of PRB coal in January 1997 provided encouraging results. The study concluded that the addition of a new stacker and modification of the rail hopper into a reclaiming hopper would provide several benefits and allow the plant to efficiently blend coal. Due to the success of PRB utilization, more extensive modifications were later investigated and constructed. The original coalyard is and one scheme are illustrated in the plot plan below.

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