CO2 Utilization: A Process Systems Engineering Vision

Abstract

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/57560 . IntroductionThe development of economies results in increased energy consumptions, as observed in Figure . In the coming decades, the supply of such expanding demand will remain based on fossil fuels technologies. Expanding the share of renewable energy e.g., biofuels in the case of transportation fuels would require massive investments in creating a new infrastructure, which would eventually raise the standards to a new economic order entirely based on renewables in the near future. On the other hand, the current scenario involves the announcement of large proven reserves of non-conventional gas and oil and expansion of installed infrastructure of production and refining. Fossil fuel based energy is recognized as carbon emitter. The challenge of the century is thus to expand energy supply in a carbon-constrained economy. "ccording to the World Economic Forum King, , no truly low-carbon technology will be able to penetrate the mass market in the short term. The use of installed fossil processing infrastructure, with co-processing of biomass and fossil feedstock and capturing and utilization of emitted CO is the escape route for a moderate transition from the present to a long-term sustainable future. In this context, putting a price on carbon will gradually build the road to a greener tomorrow. Meanwhile, bio-based products are a realistic supplement to fossil-based products, but they cannot mitigate the rising demand for fossil fuels."ccording to an IE" Technology Roadmap, the manufacture of only chemicals account for % of the energy demand in the chemical industry and % of its greenhouse gas GHG emissions. The study concludes that, in the short to medium term to , steady progress in implementing incremental improvements and deploying best practice technologies "PT could provide substantial energy savings and emissions reductions compared to business as usual . " step change in the sector s energy consumption and GHG emissions would require the development of game changer technologies, such as sustainable biomass feedstocks and hydrogen from renewable energy sources which have not yet reached commercial maturity. IE", With this prospect, CO utilization in the short term should allow parallel production routes based on "PT, driven by emission-capture-utilization synergies. In this sense, production and conversion of synthesis gas SYNG"S exhibits the highest potential for medium term of commercial success. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that, while the utilization of CO has potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, CO has disadvantages as a chemical reactant due to its relative significant chemical inertness. This inertness is the underlying reason why CO has broad industrial application as solvent supercritical CO , as fire and pest extinguisher, and as a non-toxic amusement additive in the food industry. From the standpoint of building a low-carbon economy, each potential use of CO as reacta...

Metrics for sustainability analysis of post-combustion abatement of CO2 emissions: Microalgae mediated routes and CCS (carbon capture and storage)

“…CCS is not considered an economic application; instead, it constitutes only a destination for the excess carbon, i.e., all CO 2 that has to be discarded because it has no economic use [6]. Urech et al [36] recognize that CCS introduces capital and operating (energy) penalties such that it will only become competitive if future policies limiting greenhouse gas emissions or a tax on CO 2 are established.…”

“…Nevertheless, chemical absorption is the only mature technology for large-scale post-combustion capture of CO 2 , with the main energy penalty occurring in the step of solvent regeneration. For instance, heat consumption of MEA strippers ranges from 167 kJ to 200 kJ/mol of stripped CO 2 [6], driving investigations into more efficient alternatives of solvent regeneration. Finally, it is considered a critical component in the portfolio of carbon mitigation solutions [20].…”

“…However, as noted by Tercero et al [35]; the economic benefits of microalgae cultivation processes has not been clarified, especially for large-scale production, which is the case of the abatement of CO 2 emissions from thermal power plants. In this context, applying mature technologies as biomass gasification has potential competitive advantages against alternative routes, especially due to the many chemical synthesis commercially operating with syngas as raw material [6]. Fig.…”

“…As advantages of CO 2 biofixation by microalgae compared to energy crops, microalgae grow in variable climates on non-arable land with non-potable water, thus not competing with food crop production, and they are able to use direct flue gases as their carbon source [12]. Microalgal biomass is rich in lipids and, hence, it is a high energy density feedstock for fuels and chemicals [6,10].…”

Carbon Capture and Utilization Update

“…Ni, Ni–Co, Ru, Ir, and Rh supported on silica, alumina, and lanthanum oxide have been extensively evaluated in the DRM reaction . Despite significant advances in the development of catalysts with high activity and optimum stability for DRM, finding a suitable catalyst for this reaction still remains a big hurdle, especially at high operation temperatures, as deactivation by coke formation is inevitable at high temperatures (>700 °C) …”