Generation Scheduling to Limit PM2.5Emissions and Dispersion: A Study on the Seasonal Management System of South Korea

Air pollution is considered one of the greatest environmental health threats, and the exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a critical public health issue in many regions of the world, especially East Asia. A primary source of particulate matter is the operation of coal-fired power plants. Therefore, in South Korea, a fine dust seasonal management system (SMS) has been implemented to reduce PM
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emissions. The system uses intuitive measures that temporarily shut down a set of coal units or reduce their maximum power outputs. However, the effectiveness of these measures in controlling PM
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concentrations is unclear. That is, although these measures can reduce the total PM
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emissions, the ground-level air pollutant concentration (GLAPC) at specific locations may still exceed prescribed PM
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standards. In this paper, we analyze the effectiveness of the SMS and also construct a power generation scheduling model to explicitly limit PM
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concentrations at load centers. Case studies demonstrate that the effectiveness of the SMS is highly case-dependent and that the scheduling model is more effective at limiting the G LAPC and provides a better trade-off between cost and emissions control.