{"id":132504,"date":"2023-10-04T07:35:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-04T05:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/?p=132504"},"modified":"2023-09-27T14:04:03","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T12:04:03","slug":"carbon-capture-close-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/carbon-capture-close-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Carbon capture close-up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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In the fight against climate change, the gradual introduction of renewable power, sustainable fuels and energy efficient practices will certainly help, but it won\u2019t do the job alone. Over the near term, capturing CO2<\/sub>\u00a0from point sources for re-use or long-term underground storage will be critical. Carbon capture, in fact, is widely regarded as the single most important short-term solution to reining in CO2\u00a0<\/sub>emissions and getting the world on course to achieving its climate targets.1<\/sup><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carbon capture has been used for decades to upgrade natural gas into saleable fuel or inject recovered CO2<\/sub> into oil fields to enhance oil recovery. But for today\u2019s heavy industrial emitters of CO2<\/sub>, carbon capture is essentially new territory. And while oil & gas companies have always had a clear economic incentive to separate CO2<\/sub> from their product streams, the same cannot be said for a cement or steel producer. In Europe, for example, these industrial emitters face the prospect of having to invest in carbon capture and raise their prices accordingly, while still competing against producers in countries with no CO2<\/sub> legislation in place. And they cannot afford to wait. The demand for climate action \u2013 from regulators, the general public and the planet itself \u2013 is simply too loud and too urgent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short: today\u2019s industrial emitters are in need of a quick, effective and economical way to capture and get rid of their CO2<\/sub>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GEA\u2019s carbon capture mission <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A longtime provider of emissions control solutions, GEA is now focused on helping heavy-emitting industries get started with carbon capture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cTo realize the promise of carbon capture, it will have to become cheaper and easier to implement across multiple industries,\u201d says Dr. Felix Ortloff, Senior Director GEA Carbon Capture Solutions<\/strong>. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Ortloff and his team have focused on five industries in particular \u2013 cement, iron & steel, glass, chemicals and bioenergy \u2013 and designed a set of carbon capture solutions tailored to their specific needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cFirst, many of these companies have to respond to regulatory changes and follow their own net-zero pathways, so they need to get started quite urgently,\u201d says Ortloff<\/strong>. \u201cSecond, without massive subsidies, they most likely want to start on a small to medium scale so they can manage project costs and potentially extend the capacity in a next extension step. Third, they\u2019re looking for a solution with limited complexity; here a single provider helps by reducing battery limits. Finally, they want a solution that can be integrated into their operations without disrupting them.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

To meet these requirements, GEA has developed an end-to-end carbon capture portfolio consisting of four main components:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • XECO Waste-Heat-Recovery \u2013 For maximum economy: heat from a plant\u2019s processes and flue gases are used to provide a large share of the heat required for CO2 <\/sub>separation. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • SETO Gas Pre-Treatment \u2013 For maximum effectiveness and longevity: harmful trace components are removed from the flue gas to maximize the long-term stability of the carbon capture chemistry.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • CEBO Carbon Capturing Plants \u2013 Four different sized amine-based carbon capture plants provide customers with a fit for purpose, economic solution that is easy to install. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • NAVO CO2 <\/sub>Utilization & Sequestration \u2013 Solutions for CO2 <\/sub>purification, liquefaction, conditioning and transport allow customers to get rid of their captured CO2 <\/sub>\u2013 for re-use in industrial production or long-term storage<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    For Ortloff, GEA\u2019s extensive experience in emissions control, waste heat recovery and CO2\u00a0<\/sub>liquefaction and reuse \u2013 along with its core expertise in designing, installing and scaling industrial process lines \u2013 gives it the edge over the competition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cOur decades of experience in off-gas treatment allow us to offer a more standardized, straight-forward design concept using materials that are cost-efficient yet more durable,\u201d he says. \u201cWe also have the financial strength to run larger projects at a very competitive price level compared to some established players in the field. And we guarantee performance, so project risk is very low for our customers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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    \"GEA\u00b4s
    GEA\u00b4s Carbon Capturing Solutions for an optimal and economic CO2 reduction.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

    Cost efficiency through heat recovery <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    The most energy-intensive step of the carbon capture process is the heating of the amine solution in the thermal reboiler to desorb and separate the CO2 <\/sub>gas. GEA\u2019s XECO Waste Heat Recovery solution makes maximum use of the plant\u2019s available waste heat to help power this step in the process and minimize operating costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    “Some of today\u2019s flagship carbon capture projects enjoy generous public funding \u2013 which is necessary to gain experience with a new technology \u2013 but the vast majority of industrial emitters will have to fund carbon capture by themselves. Fueling the carbon capture process with recovered waste heat is a great way to minimize costs.”–\u00a0Dr. Felix Ortloff, Senior Director Carbon Capture Solutions, GEA<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    As Ortloff points out, an effective waste heat recovery system must also be designed according to the specific properties of the plant\u2019s flue gas. Selecting the appropriate heat carrier medium \u2013 whether thermal oil or steam \u2013 is another important factor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cGEA has a long history of utilizing excess heat from industrial processes and flue gases to help customers improve energy efficiency in their plants,\u201d says Ortloff<\/strong>. \u201cOne of the challenges of heat recovery for cement plants, for example, is the high dust loads in the kiln flue gas which can severely effect longevity of the heat recovery unit. Our XECO Waste Heat Recovery system has already proven its ability to run for years under these conditions while maintaining very good heat transfer performance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Glass producers have also relied on GEA\u2019s XECO solution for over ten years to improve energy efficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cBecause glass production generates relatively large amounts of waste heat, our carbon capture solution can help them achieve significant CO2\u00a0<\/sub>removal \u2013 roughly 40-50% \u2013 with little or no added energy input,\u201d says Ortloff.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Gas pre-treatment for long-term performance <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    GEA has provided emission control solutions to the cement, iron & steel, glass, chemicals and bioenergy industries for many years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cEach industry has its own flue gas profile and proper pre-treatment of the off-gas is critical to ensuring optimal carbon capture performance,\u201d says Ortloff<\/strong>. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    This is because typical off-gases in these industries include trace components \u2013 particularly nitric oxides (NOx), sulfuric oxides (SOx), aerosols, and solid particulates, such as dust \u2013 that negatively impact the stability of the amine solution used to capture and remove the CO2<\/sub>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Pre-treatment also involves controlling the humidity of flue gas. \u201cWe need to maintain stable water concentration in the amine solution,\u201d explains Ortloff<\/strong>. \u201cIf the water content of flue gas is too high or too low, this will also harm the performance.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    GEA\u2019s flue gas pre-treatment also lowers the risk of deposits forming in the carbon capture system, which significantly impacts maintenance costs.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Knowing the unique flue-gas profiles of each of these industries helped GEA design its SETO Gas Pre-Treatment solution in a way that allows for individualized configuration of the gas cleaning line. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cOur experience in gas pre-treatment, allow us to seamlessly integrate the CO2\u00a0<\/sub>separation process into each customer\u2019s off-gas line for lower operational costs and more reliable carbon capture performance,\u201d says Ortloff<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Agile carbon capture <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    GEA\u2019s CEBO Carbon Capturing plants rely on state-of-the-art amine-based CO2\u00a0<\/sub>capture. This involves passing the plant\u2019s flue gas through an amine solvent, which removes the CO2\u00a0<\/sub>via absorption; the solvent is then heated to release pure CO2\u00a0<\/sub>for the final re-use or storage phase. While this is long-established practice in the oil & gas industry, the challenge today is to introduce carbon capture to a range of other heavy-emitting industries quickly and affordably. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    \u201cAmine-based carbon capture in the oil & gas industry usually involves huge-scale projects with very large gas throughputs that are very costly to build, install and operate,\u201d says Ortloff<\/strong>. \u201cThis simply does not match the needs of our target industries in cement, iron & steel, glass, chemicals or bioenergy, where you have a range of gas throughputs and budgets. To serve these industries, we need a simplified and more agile approach.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    GEA offers four differently sized carbon capture plants \u2013 ranging from 16 to 200 ktpa of CO2 <\/sub>separation capacity \u2013 based on the average waste heat available in different industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    “For a large cement plant, the waste heat available might allow us to capture 20% of their flue gas CO2\u00a0<\/sub>as a first step; for a glass plant, that figure might be 40-50%.”–\u00a0Dr. Felix Ortloff, Senior Director Carbon Capture Solutions, GEA<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cBioenergy is interesting because we can achieve net negative anthropogenic CO2 <\/sub>emissions if CO2 <\/sub>sequestration is applied. This is because the captured CO2 <\/sub>originally stems from biomass growth \u2013 natural direct air capture, so to speak.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    The design of GEA\u2019s CEBO Carbon Capturing plants is simple and modularized. Standard 40-foot containers, which serve as the \u201cbuilding block\u201d, are pre-assembled for quick installation and feature side doors for easy access and maintenance. CEBO Carbon Capturing plants use corrosion resistant materials, such as thermoplastic or stainless steel. A self-optimizing control system is remote-support-ready, ensuring ease of operation and quick technical support for customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Utilization & sequestration for the good of the climate <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    To achieve a positive impact on a company\u2019s climate balance, the captured CO2 <\/sub>must either be sequestered \u2013 via long-term underground storage, for example \u2013 or used instead of fossil CO2 <\/sub>for producing goods, such as beverages or fuel. Because the market and infrastructure for both the utilization and storage of captured CO2 <\/sub>is relatively new, this can pose an additional challenge for companies getting started with carbon capture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n