Efficiency comparison of various design schemes for copper-chlorine (Cu-Cl) hydrogen production processes using Aspen Plus software

In this study, simulation models are developed to analyze, design and optimize the Cu-Cl cycles using the Aspen Plus (TM) chemical process simulation package. Energy, exergy and yield effectiveness of the process, based on three, four and five-step cycles, is examined. The thermal efficiency of the five-step thermochemical process is calculated as 44%, of the four-step process is 43% and of the three-step process is 41%, based on the lower heating value of hydrogen. Sensitivity analyses are performed to study the effects of various operating parameters on the efficiency and yield. A parametric study is conducted and possible efficiency improvements are discussed. Furthermore, new system configurations for the Cu-Cl cycle are developed for performance improvement in this study. Various design schemes, based on three, four and five-step Cu-Cl cycles, are analyzed and compared. Also, recommendations for implementation of these new design schemes are presented in detail. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.