INNOVATION July-August 2014

Burns Lake Wet Electrostatic Precipitator (WESP)

Pinnacle Renewable Energy retained Scheuch to design, supply and install a Wet Electrostatic Precipitator (WESP) at their Burns Lake Plant in Burnaby, BC. WESP technology is recognized by the Ministry of Environment as the best available process for exhaust gas after-treatment. The system uses a high-voltage DC electrical charge to ionize the exhaust gas, causing particles of dust to become negatively charged and stick to the grounded internal shell of the unit, from where they are periodically flushed and then removed from the recycled flush water by flocculation and filtering. The cleaned exhaust gas is emitted from the stack free from any visible dust or smoke. The project is anticipated to protect the sensitive Bulkley Valley Airshed while facilitating many years’ production of renewable wood pellets which are exported from BC and burned in power plants worldwide to offset coal usage. Professionals involved: Gary Dean, P.Eng.; Shiloh Carlson, P.Eng.; Nathan Droogendyk, P.Eng.; Wei Chen, P.Eng.

Port Mann/Highway 1 Improvement Project – Onshore Works As a key element of the Gateway Program, the Port Mann/Highway 1 Improvement (PMH1) Project enhances access to and travel along Trans-Canada Highway 1 between Langley and Vancouver—BC’s busiest transportation corridor.

Hatch Mott MacDonald and MMM Group’s design joint venture, H5M, led the design of the PMH1 project’s $1.6-billion onshore works over an aggressive, five-year, design-and- construction period. Thirteen other local consultants contributed to designs that improved 37 km of highway and rehabilitated or built 45 structures and 14 interchanges, including the completely reconfigured Cape Horn Interchange. The team also enriched local habitats with compensation areas and wetlands, providing nearly 200,000 m 2 of aquatic and 512,000 m 2 of riparian habitat. New refuge areas were designed to protect fish from high flows, and 30 new culverts mimicked natural channels underneath Highway 1. These design measures were essential to return of salmon spawning in Still Creek for the first time in 80 years.

Weyerhaeuser Drayton Valley Sawmill – Continuous Dry Kiln Conversion A lumber dry kiln was converted from a conventional batch kiln to a continuous dry kiln (CDK). In the CDK process, stacks of lumber advance through the kiln in opposite directions at variable push rates determined by the moisture content of the wood. At both ends of the kiln, energy recovery sections were added to act as energy exchange sections—a preheat area for the entering cold load, and an equalizing/conditioning area for the exiting hot load. This was the first CDK to be installed in a northern climate, and it significantly exceeded performance guarantees throughout one of the coldest winters in recent memory. Lumber throughput has increased by more than 50%, lumber quality improved considerably and an energy

savings of approximately 10% per board foot was realized. Owner: Weyerhaeuser Canada (project manager: Gord Smid, P.Eng.). Design and manufacturing: Wellons Canada (project managers: Leanne Roxas, P.Eng., and Paul Rossi).

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