---
title: Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) Reactor Power Plants
description: "## Summary Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) technology enables the burning of coal refuse to produce electricity while meeting strict air quality standards. CFB combustion is the single greatest tool for removing Pennsylvania's coal refuse piles, and the byproduct ash has…"
url: "https://aml-connect.org/aml-knowledge-base/circulating-fluidized-bed-cfb-reactor-power-plants/"
updated: "2026-03-13"
category: "AML Reclamation & AMD Treatment / AML Reclamation / Land Reclamation"
---

# Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) Reactor Power Plants

## Summary

Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) technology enables the burning of coal refuse to produce electricity while meeting strict air quality standards. CFB combustion is the single greatest tool for removing Pennsylvania's coal refuse piles, and the byproduct ash has proven useful for reclaiming other abandoned mine lands. This page explains how CFB technology works and links to key resources.

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An advanced power producing technology known as Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) Reactors now enables the burning of coal refuse.  This technology is perhaps the single greatest hope of ridding Pennsylvania's landscape of hundreds of small mountains of coal refuse leftover from the environmentally insensitive heyday of coal mining.  Sometimes referred to as cogeneration plants, or simply "cogens", the CFB plants employ advanced pollution control equipment that allow them to meet the strictest air quality emission standards in producing electricity.  Additionally, the byproduct ash produced has been found to be very useful in reclaiming abandoned mine lands that have been polluted with acids and metals (including the very coal refuse sites that fuel the plants).

**[Burning Waste Coal in CFB Power Plants](http://amrclearinghouse.org/Sub/landreclamation/cfb/wpcamr-cfbpower.pdf)** ([PDF](http://amrclearinghouse.org/Sub/landreclamation/cfb/wpcamr-cfbpower.pdf) or [HTML](http://amrclearinghouse.org/Sub/landreclamation/cfb/wpcamr-cfbpower.htm)) brochure by the Western Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation

[Testimony - Waste Coal Incentives](http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=3&q=474575) by PA DEP Secretarty McGinty before the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.

[Coal Refuse Burning Power Plants](http://amrclearinghouse.org/Sub/landreclamation/cfb/CoalRefuseBurningPowerPlants.pdf) (PDF)  Pennsylvania's partner in improving the environment.  [Also in zipped PowerPoint version](http://amrclearinghouse.org/Sub/landreclamation/cfb/CoalRefuseBurningPowerPlants.zip)

[Coal Industry Gets a Makeover with Clean Technology](http://www.utilipoint.com/issuealert/print.asp?id=779) - By Will McNamara

[Clean Power and Industrial Redevelopment](http://www.fwc.com/publications/heat/heat_pdf/story2.pdf)-The Northampton Generating Plant  company literature

[Colver Power Project](http://www.nauticom.net/www/megawatt/power.htm) company literature

[ARIPPA](http://www.arippa.org/) An Association of Independent Power Producers in the Anthracite and Bituminous Regions of Pennsylvania

[Coal Fly Ash Report](http://jcc.legis.state.pa.us/es/reports/Fly%20Ash%20Report%202004.doc) by the [Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee](http://jcc.legis.state.pa.us/index.htm)

[Coal Ash Beneficial Use in Mine Reclamation and Mine Drainage Remediation in Pennsylvania](http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/minres/bmr/beneficial_use/Index.htm) by PA DEP

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## Related Pages

- [Coal Refuse Piles](/docs/coal-refuse-piles) -- The fuel source for CFB plants
- [Project Gob Pile](/docs/project-gob-pile) -- Identifying and prioritizing refuse piles
- [Soil Amendments](/docs/soil-amendments) -- CFB ash as a reclamation material
- [Remining](/docs/remining) -- Alternative approach to refuse removal

## Source and Last Reviewed

Source: AMR Clearinghouse (amrclearinghouse.org). Migrated to AML-Connect. Last Reviewed: 2026-03-13.

**Tags:** amd, practitioner, planning