An environmental control construction project at Appalachian Power’s John E. Amos Plant will reach a major milestone next week when the plant’s Unit 3 scrubber begins operation. AEP is investing more than $1 billion to install scrubbers on all three generating units at the Amos Plant. The scrubbers, also known as flue gas desulfurization units, will reduce sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by as much as 98 percent.
 
When the scrubber is operating, a billowy white plume will rise from the unit’s new stack. The cloudlike plume consists of water vapor, formed when water used in the scrubber process is vaporized by heat from unit’s exhaust gases. The scrubber plume will appear as a rolling, billowy plume, and may appear denser than the familiar plume that rises from the plant’s three cooling towers. The plume may only appear intermittently during the first days of startup.
 
The new Unit 3 scrubber captures SO2 by spraying a limestone and water mix into the unit’s flue gas stream. The limestone neutralizes the SO2, forming gypsum. The harmless gypsum, a material commonly used to make wallboard, is then stored dry in a nearby landfill.
 
Several hundred workers remain involved in the construction effort, which is still under way for the plant’s Units 1 and 2. Additionally, nearly 100 permanent workers have been hired to operate and maintain the scrubbers.
 
Appalachian Power provides electricity to 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power). It is a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765 kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined.