Engineering Site Visit Report for 

First Energy Generation Corp. 

 Bruce Mansfield Power Plant 

Shippingport, PA 

Prepared by:

 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

 Engineering and Analysis Division

Office of Water 

 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue 

 Washington, DC 20004 

August 21, 2008 
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Page 

1.0 Site Visited and Date......................................................................................................... 1 

2.0 Attendees ........................................................................................................................... 1 

3.0 Background and Objectives............................................................................................... 1 

4.0 Plant Description ............................................................................................................... 2 

4.1 Overview of Plant Operations.................................................................................. 2 

4.2 Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) System................................................................. 3 

4.3 Forced Oxidation Gypsum (FOG) Plant.................................................................. 5 

4.4 Waste Disposal Area (WDA) .................................................................................. 6 

4.5 Little Blue Run (LBR) Impoundment...................................................................... 7 

5.0 References ....................................................................................................................... 11 

Appendix A LIST OF ATTENDEES 
ii

LIST OF FIGURES 

Page 

Figure 4-1. Flow Diagram for Unit 1 and 2 Scrubbers.................................................................. 8 

Figure 4-2. Flow Diagram for Unit 3 Scrubber ............................................................................. 9 

Figure 4-3. Flow Diagram for FOG Plant.................................................................................... 10 
1

1.0 SITE VISITED AND DATE

FirstEnergy Generation Corp. Bruce Mansfield Power Plant 

128 Ferry Hill Road 

Shippingport, PA 15077 

October 19, 2007 

2.0 ATTENDEES

Appendix A lists the attendees. 

3.0 BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

 Section 304(m) of the Clean Water Act (CWA) requires EPA to develop and 

publish a biennial plan that establishes a schedule for the annual review and revision of national 

effluent limitations guidelines and standards (ELGs) required by CWA section 304(b). During 

EPA’s 2005/2006 review of ELGs, EPA determined that the Steam Electric Power Generating 

Point Source Category (40 CFR Part 423) is the second-largest discharger of toxic-weighted 

pollutants. EPA’s analyses indicated that the toxic-weighted loadings are predominantly driven 

by metals present in wastewater discharges, and that the waste streams contributing the majority 

of the metals are associated with air pollution controls. Other potential sources of metals include 

coal pile runoff, metal/chemical cleaning wastes, coal washing, and certain low volume wastes. 

 

 In presenting the findings of the 2005/2006 study, EPA noted certain data 

limitations affect the Agency’s estimate of the potential hazard posed by discharges from this 

category and, therefore, EPA determined that further review of these discharges during the 

2007/2008 ELG planning cycle is warranted. Due to the limited resources and time available for 

conducting this study, EPA is concentrating its efforts for the 2007/2008 study on better 

characterizing pollutant sources and available pollution control technologies/practices for the 

pollutants responsible for the majority of the toxic-weighted pollutant loadings from steam 

electric facilities. This will focus the review on wastewater discharges from coal-fired power 

plants. 
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 EPA intends to review overall plant operations and better understand the various 

wastewater sources present at steam electric plants. This review is expected to largely focus on 

ash handling wastes, wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) wastes, coal pile runoff, and final 

effluent. 

 EPA conducted a site visit to the FirstEnergy Generation Corp. Bruce Mansfield 

Power Plant (Bruce Mansfield) on October 19, 2007. The purpose of the visit was to gather 

information about the plant’s operations, the wastewater discharges from the plant, and the 

wastewater management practices used to control the discharges. 

4.0 PLANT DESCRIPTION

4.1 Overview of Plant Operations

 Bruce Mansfield began operation in 1976, when Unit 1 came on line. Unit 2 

began operation in 1977 and Unit 3 began operating in 1980. Each unit has a capacity of 824 

megawatts (MW), for a plant total generating capacity of 2,472 MW. The Bruce Mansfield plant 

is located in Shippingport, PA along the Ohio River. 

 All three generating units at Bruce Mansfield have coal-fired boilers. The plant 

burns more than 24,000 tons of bituminous coal daily when operating at full capacity. The coal 

is delivered to the plant by barge and rail from mines in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. 

The plant receives both high and low sulfur coal, which it then blends to achieve the desired 

sulfur level of 2.8-3.2 percent sulfur. 

 All three units have selective catalytic reduction (SCR) for NOx control and add 

sodium bisulfite downstream of the SCR for SO3 control. For units 1 and 2, the flue gas from the 

boilers first passes through the SCR, after which sodium bisulfite is added. The flue gas then 

passes through the air preheater and then enters the scrubbers. The plant refers to the processes 

from the SCR through scrubbers as the Air Quality Control System, or AQCS. For unit 3, the 

flue gas from the boiler passes through the SCR (and sodium bisulfite addition), then the air 

preheater, followed by the ESP and then the scrubber. The SCRs are currently operated only 
3

during ozone season (April through September), but will start operating year-round in January 

2009. Flue gases from units 1 and 2 are emitted through four separate flues (two per unit) 

through a single 950-foot chimney. Unit 3 flue gases are emitted through a separate 600-foot 

chimney. 

 All units operate inhibited-oxidation, magnesium-enhanced lime wet flue gas 

desulfurization (FGD) systems. The calcium sulfite produced in the scrubbers is converted to 

gypsum in a separate process, which occurs at what the plant refers to as the Forced Oxidation 

Gypsum (FOG) Plant. The first phase of the FOG Plant was started in 1999; the second phase 

began operation in 2006. 

 Fly ash is removed from unit 3 by a cold side electrostatic precipitator (ESP). The 

fly ash is transferred pneumatically from the hoppers to an ash silo, and then wet sluiced to the 

Waste Disposal Area (WDA) where it is combined with other wastes. No ESPs are installed on 

units 1 and 2, so fly ash from these units is captured in the scrubbers. The fly ash from units 1 

and 2 is subsequently removed in a process downstream from the scrubbers and transferred to the 

WDA where it combines with other wastes. At the WDA, wet fly ash from all units is 

commingled with fines thickener underflow from the FOG process. These wastes are mixed 

with lime and a stabilizing agent, and then disposed of in the Little Blue Run (LBR) 

impoundment. 

 The plant operates three 410-foot natural draft cooling towers. The towers each 

process cooling water at a rate of approximately 310,000 gpm. The total annual water 

withdrawal for the three cooling towers in 2007 was 21,331 million gallons. 

4.2 Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) System

 All three generating units operate inhibited-oxidation, magnesium-enhanced lime 

wet FGD systems to control the emission of sulfur dioxide from the plant. The scrubbers on 

units 1 and 2 are venturi scrubbers manufactured by Chemico and achieve approximately 97-99 

percent SO2 removals. These scrubbers each have 6 absorber modules. The unit 3 scrubber is a 
4

horizontal spray design manufactured by Pullman-Kellogg; it has 5 parallel absorber modules 

and achieves approximately the same level of SO2 removal. The unit 3 scrubber was shutdown 

for a maintenance outage during the site visit and is being modified to increase its SO2 removal 

capacity. Slaked lime (calcium hydroxide) is used as the FGD sorbent in all three scrubbers. 

The magnesium present in the lime is present naturally (not added by special processing); the 

plant purchases lime meeting certain specifications that include magnesium content. Makeup 

water for the scrubbers is either water recycled from the thickener overflow, or water from the 

Low Dissolved Solids Pond. For a general description of the FGD process and the chemical 

reactions involved, see Section 3.2.1.6 of the Interim Detailed Study Report for the Steam 

Electric Power Generating Point Source Category. 

 Calcium sulfite produced in scrubbers is oxidized to gypsum in a separate 

process, which occurs at the FOG plants. All calcium sulfite from the scrubber blowdowns is 

sent to the FOG plants for processing, unless the FOG plants are shutdown or in an upset 

condition. Calcium sulfite not processed by the FOG plants is sent to the WDA for treatment, 

then pumped to the LBR impoundment. According to company literature, at full capacity each 

scrubber can produce up to 4 mgd of calcium sulfite slurry (blowdown) daily. 

 Unit 1 and 2 scrubbers

 Unit 1 and 2 scrubbers use the same process operations in parallel. There is no 

ESP on units 1 and 2, so fly ash from these units is captured in the scrubber. The scrubbers 

operate with continuous blowdown of a mixture of calcium sulfite and fly ash. The blowdown 

rate is controlled to maintain the desired solids concentration in the scrubbers. Plant personnel 

stated that 4-6 percent solids is the ideal scrubber concentration, although the scrubbers typically 

operate at 6-8 percent solids. Scrubber blowdown flowrate is not monitored by the plant. 

 The scrubber blowdown is sent to a thickener for solids removal. Thickener 

overflow is returned to the scrubber as makeup water or used as wash water for the mist 

eliminators. Thickener underflow (calcium sulfite and fly ash) is sent to a holding tank, then 

pumped to hydroclones to separate fly ash from the calcium sulfite. Fly ash is removed in the 

hydroclone underflow as a concentrated slurry (approximately 30 percent solids) and sent to the 
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WDA at 500-900 gpm where it combines with fly ash from the other units and fines thickener 

underflow from the FOG plant. The hydroclone overflow (mostly calcium sulfite) is sent to the 

FOG plant at 500-900 gpm, where it is converted to gypsum. See Figure 4-1 for a flow diagram 

of the unit 1 and 2 scrubbers. 

 Unit 3 scrubber

 Unit 3 has a cold side ESP (CS-ESP) upstream of the scrubber which removes 

most fly ash prior to the flue gases entering the scrubber. The fly ash is pneumatically 

transferred from the ESP hoppers to a silo; the fly ash is then sluiced from the silo to the WDA 

using water from the FOG waste sumps. Unit 3 thickener underflow can be used as a source of 

fly ash sluice water through the premix system when the FOG is not in service. 

 The unit 3 scrubber blowdown solids concentration is similar to Unit 1 and 2 

scrubbers; the blowdown is sent to a thickener. Thickener overflow is returned to the scrubber as 

makeup water or used as wash water for the mist eliminators. Thickener underflow (calcium 

sulfite) is sent (23-24 percent solids at 500-700 gpm) to the FOG plant where it is converted to 

gypsum. See Figure 4-2 for a flow diagram of the unit 3 scrubber.

4.3 Forced Oxidation Gypsum (FOG) Plant

 Calcium sulfite produced in the scrubbers is oxidized to gypsum in an additional 

process, which occurs at the FOG Plants. The first FOG plant initially began operating in 1999 

and had a capacity to process calcium sulfite from Unit 3 scrubber, as well as a portion of the 

calcium sulfite from Units 1 and 2. In 2006, FOG plant #2 began operating and the plant now 

has the capacity to process all calcium sulfite generated in the plant’s scrubbers. The primary 

reason for installing and expanding the FOG plants was to reduce the volume of wastes being 

sent to the Little Blue Run impoundment, thus extending the operating life of the impoundment. 

Plant personnel estimate that the capacity of Little Blue Run impoundment would have been 

exhausted within 7 years if the FOG plant had not been expanded. 
6

 Calcium sulfite slurry from units 1, 2 and 3 is combined in a mix tank, along with 

recycle streams from the hydroseparator underflow. Slurry from the mix tank is sent to a series 

of oxidation reactors. The slurry enters the top of the reactor vessel and air is introduced at the 

bottom of the reactor. Sulfuric acid is added to the reactor to dissolve the calcium sulfite and, in a 

rapid reaction, the forced oxidation process forms calcium sulfate crystals which drop to the 

bottom of the reactor where they are removed. 

 The calcium sulfate removed from the reactors is sent to hydroseparators to wash 

residual fly ash from the gypsum. The hydroseparator underflow (gypsum) is sent to belt filter 

presses where it is dried to approximately 10 percent moisture, then transferred by conveyor to 

an adjacent National Gypsum Company plant where it is made into wallboard. The 

hydroseparator overflow is sent to a fines thickener. 

 Underflow from the fines thickener is sent to the WDA mix tank where it 

combines with fly ash and FOG plant wastewaters. Most of the fines thickener overflow (less 

than 1 percent solids) is recycled within the process for use as wash water in the hydroseparators. 

Excess volumes of fines thickener overflow not used as hydroseparator wash water (referred to 

as the “clear water stream” or dilution water) are pumped to twin storage tanks before being 

pumped to the Little Blue Run impoundment at an average rate of 400-600 gpm. See Figure 4-3 

for a flow diagram of the FOG Plant. 

4.4 Waste Disposal Area (WDA)

 Wet fly ash from all units is commingled with wastewater from the FOG process, 

as well as any calcium sulfite not converted to gypsum, in a mix tank. Lime and a stabilizing 

agent (formerly referred to by the trade name of Calcilox) are added to the wastes in the mix 

tank. The resulting mixture is then pumped through 7 miles of underground piping to the Little 

Blue Run impoundment for disposal. The typical wastewater flowrate from the WDA to the 

LBR impoundment is 3,000 gpm. The stabilizing agent is a byproduct generated by steel mill 

operations. Other wastes sent to the WDA include settled material from the Low Dissolved 

Solids Pond (actually two ponds). 
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4.5 Little Blue Run (LBR) Impoundment

 The LBR impoundment is an 1,100-acre unlined impoundment, which is formed 

by a 485-foot dam and described in company literature as the largest earth and rockfill 

embankment dam in the eastern U.S. The LBR impoundment receives wet fly ash and FGD 

wastes (via the FOG plant) from units 1, 2 and 3. Other sources to the LBR impoundment are 

stormwater runoff and certain impoundment seepages that are pumped back into the 

impoundment. Discharges from the LBR impoundment first pass through the Stilling Basin, 

where pH is adjusted if necessary prior to discharge to the Ohio River. 

 
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Figure 4-1. Flow Diagram for Unit 1 and 2 Scrubbers 
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Figure 4-2. Flow Diagram for Unit 3 Scrubber 
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Figure 4-3. Flow Diagram for FOG Plant 
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5.0 REFERENCES

1. U.S. EPA. 2006. Interim Detailed Study Report for the Steam Electric Power 

Generating Point Source Category. EPA-821-R-01-015. Washington, DC. 

November. DCN 01923. 
Appendix A 

LIST OF ATTENDEES 
A-1 

Table A-1. List of Attendees 

Name Organization (Representing) Telephone E-Rick Sprecker FirstEnergy Generation – Bruce Mansfield Plant (724)643-2212 spreckerr@firsteRobert Kish FirstEnergy Generation – Bruce Mansfield Plant (724) 643-6852 kishr@firstenergDave Brunberg FirstEnergy Generation – Bruce Mansfield Plant (724)682-6907 dbrunberg@firsScott Brown FirstEnergy Generation (330)384-4643 browns@firstenJosh Hall EPA/Office of Water (202) 566-1002 hall.josh@epa.gRon Jordan EPA/Office of Water (202) 566-1003 jordan.ronald@eEphraim King EPA/Office of Water (202) 566-0430 king.ephraim@eKareen Milcic Pennsylvania DEP (412) 442-4033 kmilcic@state.pJeffrey Jones Pennsylvania DEP (724) 847-5279 jefjones@state.pDonna Hill Southern Company (205) 257-5234 dbhill@southern