Microsoft PowerPoint - Carbon Dioxide Capture at Coal-Fired Power Plants.pdfVIP

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Capture at Coal-Fired Power Plants Presented By Brian McNamara bmcnamara@kentlaw.edu What is CO2 Capture? ? A process consisting of separating CO2 from energy-related sources before it enters the atmosphere ? The current goal is to capture approximately 90% of CO2 emissions from these sources ? CO2 capture is most applicable to large, centralized sources like power plants Reasons to Consider CO2 Capture ? Coal is the largest contributor to global CO2 emissions from energy use (41%), and its share is projected to increase ? 50% of the electricity generated in the U.S. is from coal ? In 2006, coal-fired power plants produced approximately 36% of the total U.S. CO2 emissions ? The U.S. produces about 1.5 billion tons per year of CO2 from coal-burning power plants ? In the U.S., electricity demand is expected to nearly double over the next 30 years ? China and India are rapidly expanding their use of coal for energy generation Why is the Future Use of Coal Likely to Increase? ? Coal is cheap ? Coal is abundant ? The United States, Russia, China and India have immense coal reserves ? The economics and security of supply are significant incentives for the continuing use of coal CO2 Separation Technologies CO2 Separation with Sorbents/Solvents ? Separation occurs when CO2-containing gas comes in contact with a sorbent/solvent that is capable of capturing the CO2 ? Regeneration of the sorbent/solvent after being heated, after pressure decrease or other change in condition releases the CO2 ? Recycled and make-up sorbent/solvent is sent back to capture more CO2 CO2 Separation with Membranes ? Membranes are manufactured materials (polymeric, metallic, ceramic) that allow the selective permeation of CO2 through them ? The selective permeation of CO2 is usually driven by a pressure difference across the membrane (high pressure is usually preferred) CO2 Separation by Cryogenic Distillation ? CO2 can be separated from