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Techno-economic Performance, Opportunities, and Challenges

1 December 2021
Capture
Costs of CCUS

The aim of this study is to provide a transparent framework to evaluate the potential (in terms of sequestered and displaced carbon), and economics (in terms of cost of carbon avoided and removed) of a non-exhaustive selection of NETs pathways. Ecosystem and socio-economic impacts associated with their deployment is also quantified. The study sets out to help the carbon capture and storage (CCS) community in trying to gain a better understanding of the costs and value of NETs. It also helps the modelling community in being able to better model the role of NETs; and policy/decision makers in having more information on costs, value and scalability of NETs.

Technical Report

Global Assessment of Direct Air Capture Costs

1 December 2021
Capture
Costs of CCUS

This study aims to improve the current DACCS cost-performance evidence base by synthesising data from the recent literature and technology developers to explore the economic feasibility of different DACCS technologies (both liquid and solid based systems) across timescales, capacities, configurations, and numerous global siting factors. It also provides recommendations for the integrated assessment modelling (IAM) community and policymakers to inform next steps for DACCS implementation and deployment.

Technical Report

Biorefineries with CCS

1 March 2021
Capture
Costs of CCUS

The aim of this study is to provide a techno-economic assessment of biorefinery concepts with and without carbon capture and storage (CCS) as well as a comparative assessment of 1st generation and 2nd generation biorefineries. The results of this study will be of interest to developers of biorefinery and CCS projects and policy makers.

Technical Report

CCS on Waste to Energy

1 December 2020
Capture

It is estimated that, by 2050, 3.75 billion tons of waste will be produced annually and 11.1% of it will be incinerated (The World Bank). Globally, it is estimated that 1.76 billion tons1 of CO₂ were generated from solid waste treatment and disposal in 2016, representing 5% of the total global CO₂ emissions (The World Bank). In waste-to-energy (WtE) facilities, the waste incineration of 1 ton of municipal solid waste (MSW) is associated with the release of about 0.7-1.7 tons1 of CO₂. (Zero Waste Europe, 2019). The CO₂ content in the flue gas emitted from WtE facilities is approximately 6-12%, depending on the feedstock and treatment process (Zehenhoven R. and Kilpinen P). IEAGHG identified the need to explore the implementation of CCUS (Carbon Capture & Utilization/Storage) as a CO₂ emissions mitigation pathway in the WtE sector under different regional scenarios. This report is divided into 5 sections: overview of WtE frameworks and WtE with CCS projects; review of regulations for WtE plants; overview of strategies to cut down CO₂ emissions from WtE plants; review of challenges on the integration of CO₂ capture systems on WtE plants; and assessment of the market potential of the WtE-CCU/CCS integration.

Technical Report

IEAGHG High Temperature Solid Looping Cycles Network – Combined meeting report

16 October 2020
Capture
Event Proceedings

The 6th HTSLCN Meeting took place from 1st to 2nd September 2015 at the Department of Energy, Politecnico di Milano, in Italy. 72 attendees from 19 countries enjoyed a two-day programme with 45 presentations, site visits to research facilities at Politecnico di Milano and a stunning dinner at Lake Como. Two keynotes covered the progress made in calcium and chemical looping technologies respectively in the last decade. The technical sessions provided the latest advances in calcium and chemical looping pilot plant testing, solid carrier fundamentals, system modelling, process and heat integration, and sorption enhanced reforming technologies. Other topics were utilisation of biomass as a fuel, techno-economics of a large-scale packed bed reactor for chemical looping and the application of calcium looping in cement plants. The meeting formally closed with a discussion forum that summarised the main conclusions from the earlier presentations and the most burning issues for the future. The 7th HTSLCN Meeting will take place from 4th to 5th September 2017 at Swerea MEFOS in Luleå, Sweden.

Technical Report

Beyond LCOE: Value of technologies in different generation and grid scenarios

29 September 2020
Capture
Costs of CCUS

Since its introduction, the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) has become ubiquitous in the evaluation and comparison of power generation technologies. While it is a readily accessible metric, it focuses exclusively on the cost of electricity produced from an asset and neglects to address the provision of ancillary services that are vital for the reliable operation of an electricity grid. This simplification was entirely appropriate for the electricity system of the 20th century, dominated at it was by fossil fuels and nuclear technologies, but it falls well short as a metric to compare technologies in a system to provide net-zero emissions by the mid-21st century. The objective of this study was to evaluate the various concepts that have been proposed as alternatives to LCOE and to explore the potential for a concept that balances completeness and ease of use. As an alternative to LCOE, this study proposes the modified screening curve concept, which shows that, while intermittent renewables have significant value by providing energy/fuel savings, a low-carbon dispatchable technology such as CCUS has critical value by supplying the flexible capacity to deliver security of supply.

Technical Report

Understanding the cost of reducing water usage

1 September 2020
Capture
Costs of CCUS

Previous IEAGHG studies (IEAGHG 2010/05, IEAGHG 2012/12, and IEAGHG 2018/04) have identified key factors that affect the Energy-Water-CCS Nexus: location; the dependency of the costs and water consumption on the cooling system; and the post-combustion CO₂ capture (PCC) system. Additionally, extracting water from a CO₂ storage site can significantly increase the available volumetric space for CO₂ storage which could benefit PCC in the power sector. The conclusions drawn from these studies identified the need to assess the technical and economic impact of water consumption in power plants with and without CO₂ capture systems in different locations. Further investigation also needs to encompass the impact of local regulations, ambient conditions, specific region-based power plants configurations, and water availability. This current study was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 developed a hypothetical base case scenario of power plants with and without a PCC system in The Netherlands, assuming both on and offshore storage, and with and without treatment of the water extracted from the storage site for its reuse in the power plant. Phase 2 was based on four hypothetical PCC systems in South Africa, Australia, China and India.

Technical Report

Future role of CCS technologies in the power sector

1 August 2020
Capture

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies are essential for meeting global temperature targets at least cost. They have the ability to decarbonise several sectors, including power. Low-carbon, dispatchable, power generation plants with CCS can operate at baseload and also flexibly. Importantly, their ability to operate flexibly not only allows them to complement output from intermittent renewables but also to facilitate increased capacity of intermittent renewables on the grid. For a number of reasons, however, the commercial deployment of power CCS has been slow and must accelerate if the technology is to achieve its potential and contribute effectively to mitigating climate change. Using Australia, China, the United Kingdom and the United Sates as case studies, this study demonstrates the viability of a set of power CCS technologies to cost-effectively decarbonise baseload, mid-merit and peaking generation in distinct power markets. To realise this potential, however, general, technology-specific and country-specific CCS challenges must be addressed urgently with policy and regulatory actions.

Technical Report

Update techno-economic benchmarks for fossil fuel-fired power plants with CO₂ capture

1 July 2020
Capture
Costs of CCUS

IEAGHG updates its techno-economic studies periodically to examine the impact of developments and improvements made to core components, of changes made to system design, or when the fiscal environment may have materially altered. In the present case, benchmarks were updated for both coal-fired and natural gas-fired power plants with CCS, primarily to: Investigate the techno-economic impact of markedly increasing the capture rates to achieve near-zero CO₂ emissions; And then, in addition, to: Explore the technological and economic benefits of recent improvements that may have been made to ultra-supercritical pulverised coal (USC PC) and natural-gas combined cycle (NGCC) technologies; and Examine the benefits of flue gas recirculation in the natural gas-fired cases, and the trade-offs between efficiency and flexibility in the coal-fired cases. Benchmarks were updated against a study published in 20181, where prices were based on 3Q2016. The update study used 3Q2018 prices. </li></ul>

Technical Report

The Clean Refinery and the Role of Electricity Generation

1 May 2020
Capture

The oil refinery sector faces significant challenges in response to the Paris Agreement’s 2050 projections for carbon emission reductions. Moreover, there is a global trend to process significant amounts of heavy, sour crude to produce high value products, such as ultra-low-sulphur diesel and gasoline, to achieve better refinery margins as well as meeting stringent environmental standards including green-house gas emission reductions. The option of CO₂ emission free electricity generation within refineries can help to meet these goals. The primary aim of this study was to explore the role of the ‘clean refinery’ concept and how it could contribute to the Paris Agreement’s long-term objective to curb peak global greenhouse gas emissions. Various options for refineries are available depending, not only on the complexity and degree of integration, but also on whether a refinery already exists or is still at the planning stage. In addition to these general considerations, the regional location, crude mix and local markets for refined products and electricity all influence the design, complexity and economic viability of ‘clean refineries’. p>

Technical Review

Agenda Workshop on Hydrogen Production with CCS

21 February 2020
Capture
Event Proceedings

Hydrogen is a key raw material to other energy intensive industries. Globally, nearly 90% of the hydrogen produced industrially is consumed by the ammonia, methanol and oil refining industries. Moreover, hydrogen could soon play a significant role in the decarbonisation of power, space heating (i.e. industrial, commercial, building and residential heating) and transport fuel (i.e. use of fuel cell vehicles). Although the steam methane reformer route (SMR) is the leading technology for H2 production from natural gas or light hydrocarbons, there are other mature and emerging alternatives. Similarly, while increasing the process efficiency has shown a CO₂ emissions reduction of nearly 10%, CCS has been identified as a key strategy to cut down CO₂ emissions from hydrogen production. Against this background the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) decided to map activities on hydrogen production with CCS in member states and elsewhere. One conclusion of that exercise was to hold workshop with other organisations. A steering committee was formed to organise this workshop, held on November 6th 2019, and hosted by EDF and Club CO₂. This workshop was held for one day, devoted to a plenary session addressing three general topics, and including 90 attendees from 19 countries. Each session included several invited presentations, followed by a discussion among the workshop attendees. This document presents brief summaries of the three plenary sessions topics and one break-out session where all attendees were able to contribute.

Technical Review

CO₂stCap (Cutting Cost of CO₂ Capture in Process Industry)

1 November 2019
Capture
Costs of CCUS

The CO₂StCap project (Cutting Cost of CO₂ Capture in Process Industry), led by SINTEF, was a research initiative (2015-2019) funded by the Norwegian CLIMIT-Demo programme via Gassnova and the Swedish Energy Agency. The CO₂StCap research partners were SINTEF, the University of South-Eastern Norway, Chalmers University of Technology, RISE, and Swerim AB. The industries involved were SSAB, Elkem AS, Norcem Brevik AS, and AGA Gas AB. IEAGHG and GCCSI supported the project. The CO₂StCap project investigated CO₂ partial capture configurations for cement, pulp and paper, steel, and silicon for solar cells industries. The CO₂ capture technology investigated in this project was a MEA-based chemical absorption system, which includes an optimized rich-solvent splitting and absorber inter-stage cooling. The capture rates considered are dependent on the inputs of the specific cases, such as plant characteristics, CO<sub>2</sub> stacks, CO<sub>2</sub> concentration in the flue-gas to be treated, and supply of heat/energy. The CO₂StCap project contained a transparent cost assessment, which includes the capital and operational expenditures (CAPEX and OPEX) for retrofitting cases. The main cost metric used in this study is the CO₂ capture cost (€/tonne of CO₂ captured) and the main elements are described in detail. Steam generation for the CO₂ capture system was identified as a key cost element. The steam sources investigated were: steam produced from the excess heat; from a new boiler; and from a low-pressure bleed from existing steam cycles. Other key cost elements identified in this study are the plant lifetime and rate of return. The CO₂StCap project also investigated the use of biomass in different sectors and hydrogen in the steel industry.

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