Mount Storm Power Station, Mount Storm, WV

This 1680 MW coal-fired power plant is Dominion Power’s largest power plant. The mission-critical nature of the work for these projects meant that they had to be completed during brief outages and the schedule was almost as important as the underlying physics. For one effort, a long-span steel stair was analyzed to determine the cause and remedy for harmonic excitation that made the stair oscillate with a swaying motion when used. It was found that the addition of minimal material, in the proper location, would eliminate the harmonic effects and make the stair safe to use. For another project, a large rotating crusher was assessed to determine how the supports could be reinforced to prevent fracture of the welds. Repeated attempts to use larger welds had failed. Ultimately, the base of the crusher was reconfigured and the welds were shot peened to improve fatigue resistance. Yet another project evaluated erosive damage from flue gasses in the precipitator and to design repairs to the damaged steel plates which directed the flow of extremely hot, grit-filled exhaust.

Link to Modern Coal Power Generation: Coal Power Plant