User:Milton Beychok/Sandbox
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The major air pollutants emitted by coal-fired power plants are sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter, and mercury (Hg).
Coal-fired power plants also emit large quantities of carbon dioxide (CO2) which is not a pollutant in the traditional sense. In fact, it is essential for all plant life on Earth through photosynthesis. However, it is a greenhouse gas considered to have a major role in so-called global warming.
The currently available (2008) technology for flue gas clean-up can remove 99.9% of the fly ash, 99% of the sulfur dioxide and about 90% of the nitrogen dioxides.[1]
- ↑ Dr. James Katzer et al and MIT Coal Energy Study Advisory Committee (2007). The Future of Coal. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ISBN 0-615-14092-0. The Future of Coal