Experimental programme in CIUDEN's CO2 capture technology development plant for power generation

Energy projections made by the World Energy Council, the International Energy Agency (LEA) and the US Energy Information Administration give similar pictures of the dominant role of fossil fuel in the future primary energy global demand and the necessity of incorporating CCS Technologies as part of the portfolio of solutions to reach the target world emission reduction in the coming years. Without CCS, CO2 emission levels by 2050 are expected to increase by 70%. One of the most relevant initiatives for the deployment of CCS technologies is promoted by the Spanish Government through the institution Fundacion Ciudad de la Energia (CIUDEN). CIUDEN is developing a complete programme focusing on the development of CCT and CCS technologies in Europe. CIUDEN's CO2 capture programme includes the construction and operation of a Technology Development Plant (TDP) in NW Spain (El Bierzo). The construction of the installation started in November 2008 and incorporates the following technologies: fuel preparation system, pulverised coal boiler (20 MWth), circulating fluidized bed boiler (30 MWth), biomass gasifier (3 MWth), flue gas cleaning train for NOx dust and SOx, and CO2 processing unit. This paper describes CIUDEN's TDP for CO2 capture, focusing on the particularities of the installation and design, and especially on the PC unit and equipment required for its operation. The experimental programme currently under way is also described. Results are expected to be an extraordinary advance in the development and strengthening of CCT and CCS technologies, particularly oxycombustion. (C) 2010 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.