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Energy Products of Idaho was formed in 1973 as a direct response to legislation
which curtailed the use of environmentally unfriendly sawmill waste burners.
The company invented and produced the first commercial fluidized bed combustion
system to be fired on biomass fuel. Several patents on the technology were subsequently
granted. EPI has now produced more than 100 systems which utilize more than 200 different
varieties of solid and liquid fuels in a multitude of industrial markets. In addition to
pioneering biomass fluidized bed technology, EPI continues to lead the industry in
converting waste products into usable energy with it's state-of-the-art combustion
and gasification systems.
EPI is regarded as a market leader in the development of
fluidized bed energy systems including numerous "first-of-a-kind" applications of
its proprietary technology. The history of the company chronicles numerous technological
breakthroughs, some of which are highlighted below:
- 1973 - EPI produced the first biomass fluidized bed combustor in North America.
The system was installed at Idaho Forest Industries at the Atlas Mill in Coeur d'Alene
Idaho.
- 1974 - The first fluidized bed waste heat boiler in North America was provided to
North Cheyenne Pine Company of Ashland, Montana. The system included a 20,000 LB/hr, 150
psi saturated boiler heated with off-gases from EPI's wood waste fired fluidized bed
combustor.
- 1975 - A fluidized bed retrofit of an existing boiler first occurred at a
Weyerhaeuser facility in Raymond, Washington. The EPI project included a bark and paper
sludge fired fluidized bed combustor which provided heat for a 40,000 LB/hr, 250 psi
existing boiler.
- 1977 - EPI combined steam production with direct firing multiple veneer dryers
utilizing a single fluidized bed combustion unit. The system was installed at Boise
Cascade's Emmett, Idaho facility and was the first of many provided for the plywood
industry.
- 1981 - Paunch manure (cattle stomach internals) is used as fuel in EPI's unit at
Iowa Beef Processors, Emporia, Kansas. This former waste product is put to beneficial use
by converting it to usable energy in a fluidized bed combustor with a waste heat boiler
attached.
- 1981- EPI retrofits an existing power boiler and provides in-bed heat transfer
surface for Northern States Power Company in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. The first ever power
boiler retrofit (retrofitting a grate type boiler with a fluidized bed bottom) was also
the first commercial application of in-bed heat transfer surface for steam production in a
fluidized bed. At the time of its construction, the NSP 15 MWe power plant represented the
largest fluidized bed installation in the United States. It was selected in 1983 for the Energy
Conservation Award by Power Magazine. Since that time, EPI has installed systems
that are nearly double the size of NSP while continually improving the in-bed heat
transfer concept. New designs are engineered for extended tube life and optimum boiler
efficiency. Take a video tour of
the facility.
- 1982 - The first commercial fluidized bed biomass gasifier was installed by EPI
for the state of California Central Heating Plant in Sacramento, California. EPI went on
to supply fluidized bed gasification systems for a clay kiln operation in Bloomfield,
Missouri and the first ever 6 MWe fluidized bed gasification power plant in North Powder,
Oregon.
- 1985 - EPI incorporated the first selective noncatalytic reduction for NOx
abatement at the Chinese Camp installation in California. The EPI SNCR system uses
anhydrous ammonia injection into the furnace for nitrogen oxide (NOx) control.
From that initial design, succeeding EPI installations have successfully established lower
BACT (Best Available Control Technology) levels for NOx control utilizing
aqueous ammonia for urea.
- 1988 - EPI received Power Magazine's "Powerplant of the Year" award for
the repowering of a 50 MWe 1930's vintage power plant in Tacoma Washington. Two pulverized
coal fired boilers were retrofit with EPI fluidized bed energy systems fired on refuse
derived fuel (RDF), wood wastes, and coal. The flexibility of EPI's technology, allowing
multiple fuel inputs, was the key in making the repowering of this plant financially
feasible.
- 1988 - A series of agricultural waste fired power plants began with the San Joaquin Valley Energy project in El Nido California. The EPI
fluidized bed combustor/boilers are designed to operate on agricultural waste fuels
ranging from rice straw to olive pomace and dozens of ag-waste products in between. EPI
commissioned a total of about 140 MWe of capacity in the San Joaquin valley between 1988
and 1993.
- 1992 - North America's first 100% paper sludge fired fluidized bed combustion system
was produced by EPI for Inland Empire Paper Company in Spokane,
Washington. Since then EPI has been awarded several contracts to convert paper sludge and
municipal sludge into usable energy.
- 1996 - Paper sludge, coal, wood waste and sewage sludge are used in combination
in an EPI fluidized bed combustor/boiler installed for Visy Paper
in Brisbane, Australia. The unit provides 100% of the steam energy required at the
facility.
- 1996 - Medium density fiberboard (MDF) waste, sander dust and hog fuel are burned
in a unique inbed injection system provided as part of the fluidized bed energy system at MacMillan Bloedel's Clarion county MDF facility. The system also
incorporates SNCR technology to abate NOx. The energy demands from the hot gas
product dryer, the thermal fluid system and the boiler are all supplied from a single
fluidized bed energy system.
- 1997 - Oil tanker sludge at the Techno
Indah, Malaysia Shipyard & Engineering facility is converted to steam
using and EPI fluidized bed energy system. The plant generates 1.5
megawatts of electrical power and disposes of 5000 pounds per hour of tanker
sludge.
- 1999 - Municipal and industrial waste processed by the city of
Ravenna, Italy are received at the A.R.E.A.
facility for conversion to energy in the EPI fluidized bed energy system.
- 2001 - Paper sludge disposal issues convinced Cartiere Burgo the
best solution was to install an EPI fluidized bed energy system at their
Verzuolo, Italy paper mill. This was the second EPI system for
Cartiere Burgo. The first is at their Mantova,
Italy paper mill.
- 2002 - EPI's advanced staged gasification system (two units) is
fired with hog fuel, sander dust and dry, hogged board trim at a
state-of-the-art engineered wood products facility in Ontario, Canada.
- 2003 - 10 MWe refuse derived fuel (RDF) fired power plant is
installed in Massafra, Italy. This installation is EPI's
third RDF-fired power plant in Italy.
- 2004 - Paper company increases sludge disposal capacity and upgrades their
energy system to EPI's advanced staged gasification system. Since
first commissioning their energy system in 1992, Inland Empire Paper Company
has contracted with EPI twice to solve their increasing
steam/energy demands.
- 2006 - EPI commissioned a coal-fired energy for an ethanol production
facility. EPI is proud to partner with ICM, Inc. to provide this advanced clean-coal
fluidized bed system for the Corn, LP ethanol
production facility in Goldfield, Iowa.
- 2008 - EPI commissioned the largest
biomass-fueled ethanol plant in the U.S. The multi-fuel energy
system in Hereford, Texas is designed to convert one billion pounds of
cattle manure a year into usable energy for the ethanol plant.
- 2010 - EPI provided the first fluidized bed advanced staged gasifier
to operate on tired-derived fuel and biomass at a DOE facility in
Savannah River, SC.
- 2010 - EPI was selected, after a worldwide search of best
technologies, to provide an 18 MWe boiler island, fueled with eucalyptus
wood, in Sicily, Italy.
- 2010 - EPI's unique advanced staged gasifier technology is selected
for a 53.5 MWe net renewable energy independent power project in Georgia.
- 2011 - EPI begins work on two large renewable energy (biomass)
projects in Oregon.
As shown in the highlights above, EPI has always been the leader in fluidized bed
development. Our pledge is to continue to bring our aggressive and innovative company
attitude together with our vast renewable energy project knowledge to provide the best and most
cost-effective waste utilization solutions.
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