Jera, Japan's biggest power generator, said on Wednesday that it had concluded a three-month trial of co-firing 20% of ammonia with coal at its Hekinan thermal power station with positive results.
The utility, along with heavy machinery maker IHI, started the test at a 1-gigawatt unit on April 1, in what it said was the world's first trial using a large amount of the gas at a major commercial plant.
Jera said results were positive, confirming that nitrogen oxides levels were no higher than when firing coal alone, sulphur oxides were reduced by 20%, and generation of nitrous oxide, which has a strong greenhouse effect, was below the detection threshold.