About

Peter Vierboom is a senior process engineer with Stark Engineering Consulting.  With over 30 years practice in design and development, Peter loves an engineering challenge.

 

Peter began his career as an electrical trades apprentice before moving on to completing his engineering degree. Most of his early working life was devoted to work around power station boilers, and in particular the development of plasma ignition technology. The development of this technology presented many challenges and resulted in the creation of new electrical supplies, plasma torch designs and pneumatic handling systems that could deliver accurate flows of powdered fuel over significant distances.  

 

Peter's innovations in plasma torch design earned him a Master's Degree in Engineering (Research) from Sydney University. While this technology was not pursued in Australia, Peter's work was enthusiastically carried forward in China, where this technology is now installed on a significant percentage of new coal fired power stations. In 2008, he was employed by the US Government (DOE) to advise on the suitability of this technology to American power stations.

 

Peter's experience in pneumatic handling systems led him to work in more taxing areas of materials handling, in particular ash handling systems. He has designed all types of ash handling systems, from lean-phase pneumatic vacuum systems to high-concentration hydraulic slurry systems. He has also designed pneumatic handling systems for a wide variety of products, from breakfast cereal to alumina.

 

At Stark Engineering Consulting, Peter applies his talents to detailed engineering. His broad experience in a variety of engineering disciplines allows a complete appreciation of project requirements.

 

Prior to working for Stark Engineering Consulting, Peter had a succesful career of 17 years at WorleyParsons. He joined WorleyParsons (then John Thompson Asustralia) after 19 years with Pacific Power, where he started out as an electrical apprentice.

 

Expertise
Peter's expertise spans a variety of engineering areas and disciplines:

• Design of pneumatic handling systems for bulk soilds

• Design of pneumatic, mechanical and hydraulic ash handling systems

• Design of compressed gas systems

• Design of pumping systems for water and slurry

• Design of coal-fired boiler ignition systems

• Design of plasma torches, DC power supplies and pf burners

• Commissioning of large scale engineering projects

• Management of developmental projects and Intellectual property

• Innovation, particularly in materials handling-based applications

• Design and trouble-shooting on Dry Gas Scrubbing and filtration systems

 

Publications
Peter has co-authored a number of published US patents, related to plasma ignition systems and pulverised coal burners:

 

US5296668: Gas cooled cathode for an arc torch
US5399957: DC switched arc torch power supply
US8555795: Pulverised coal concentrator and pulverised coal burner including the concentrator