To redress the situation of high cost of current carbon capture technologies ($47/tCO2 from coal power plants; $68/tCO2 from natural gas power plants; >$300/tCO2 from the air, and high water consumption), we have theoretically invented a novel low-cost CC technology (NLCCT). It includes the generation of a cold nitrogen refrigerant (CNR) using minimum energy and with good COP in a closed cycle in a refrigerator CNGR. CNGR consists of multistage compressors and intercoolers and a turbo expander, a regulatory valve. The flow rate and temperature (–102 °C to –175 °C) of CNR are controlled. NLCCT uses a novel technique of regenerative cooling and an efficiently-structured pre-cooler (two units) and a final cooler (1 to 2 units) to cool the incoming flue gas(FG) to a temperature T2 = TdsF - ∆ϴ; ∆ϴ = 3 to 6 oC. TdsF = Tds of CO2 remaining in the exit FG after the capture of X% (98 or 99%) of the initial CO2 content in the incoming FG. It uses a minimum amount of the CNR depending on the initial CO2 mole fraction, CMi. The energy of CO2 capture, ECC and hence the cost can be optimized through proper modeling of the (i) dimensions and cost of the NLCCT equipment required to ensure high heat transmission rate (>90%) between the coolants and the FG, (ii) CO2 capture processing parameters, (iii) High heat transmission rate, R (>90%) between the compressed nitrogen of CNR and the water in the intercoolers of the CNGR refrigerator so that the compressed CNR attains a desired temperature, T1s ( 6 to 10 oC above the ambient temperature). Initial simulation shows that we capture CO2 at optimized values of ECC and WC, the cost of which can be less than/equal to $15/tCO2 (excluding O & M costs) for FGs with various CMi (3% and above) and $100/tCO2 from the air. Modelling of the pre-coolers, the final cooler and the CNGR will give us the optimized dimensions of these equipment to capture CO2 from mixtures of CO2 + N2 + O2(the flue gas) at rates of 50 kg/hr-1500 kg/hr. We then proceed to build a prototype of the NLCCT equipment and validate the technology for capture of CO2 at the laboratory scale.
We have the complete design of all the components of the CO2 capture equipment using NLCCT and the CO2 capture processing steps. We are seeking funding to prototype the technology for CO2 capture from industries and the air. Initially we plan to prototype NLCCT for CO2 capture at the rate 20 kg-100 kg CO2/hr from prepared flue gases and from the air at the rate 5 to 20 kg/hr.
This new technology will later enable us produce fairly clean hydrogen at the lowest cost from water-gas shift reactions. Thus this technology will provide clean energy solution and capture CO2 from the industries and the air at the lowest cost. It will be highly profitable when value is added from the sales of captured products.
We are also carrying out theoretical research on thermionic energy conversion of solar energy and natural gas energy with high efficiency.
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