Techno-Economic Potential of Plasma-Based CO2 Splitting in Power-to-Liquid Plants

Abstract

Mitigating climate change requires the development of technologies that combine energy and transport sectors. One of them is the production of sustainable fuels from electricity and carbon dioxide (CO2) via power-to-liquid (PtL) plants. As one option for splitting CO2, plasma-based processes promise a high potential due to their flexibility, scalability, and theoretically high efficiencies. This work includes a modeling and techno-economic analysis. A crucial element is the process of the joint project PlasmaFuel, in which two plasma technologies are included in a PtL plant to produce synthetically sulfur-free marine diesel. The results are divided into three scenarios, which differ in the use of different boundary conditions and thus represent different degrees of technology development. The evaluation results in process efficiencies from 16.5% for scenario 2018/20 to 27.5% for scenario 2050, and net production costs between EUR 8.5/L and EUR 3.5/L. Furthermore, the techno-economic potential is mapped in order to open up development steps in the direction of costs below EUR 2.0/L. The present work allows statements regarding system integration and the industrial use of the plasma-based process.; moreover, conclusions can be drawn towards the most important levers in terms of process optimization.

Upscaling Plasma-Based CO2 Conversion: Case Study of a Multi-Reactor Gliding Arc Plasmatron

“…As previously discussed, the upscaling principle used by D-CRBN for the MRGAP prototype is based on parallelization with a limited window of power and flow rate supply per reactor, in order to maintain the “warm” plasma regime. This is also closely related to the reactor dimensions, as demonstrated in other works . On the economic side, this makes a significant difference to the way in which a project can be scaled up.…”

“…Our previous works on CO 2 plasmolysis with GAP reactors ( Table 1 , entries 9 and 10) indicate that the absolute conversion and EE are on par with other plasma reactors. While the performance is not chart-topping, 32 they have a relatively simple design and can be driven with low-cost, low-complexity power supply units (PSUs): the price of the plasma setup PSUs has been identified as one of the factors hindering the wide application of APPs. 30 While classical gliding arc plasmas typically reach 5–6% of absolute conversion, 5 the more advanced reverse-vortex designs can reach ca.…”

“…This is also closely related to the reactor dimensions, as demonstrated in other works. 32 On the economic side, this makes a significant difference to the way in which a project can be scaled up.…”

Editorial for a Special Issue on Plasma Technology and Its Applications

“…A total of 15 research papers are published in this Special Issue, covering various aspects of plasma technology, including disinfection, agriculture, CO 2 conversion, dusty plasma, and plasma diagnostics. Samuel Jaro Kaufmann et al studied the techno-economic potential of plasma-based CO 2 splitting in power-to-liquid plants [1]. Ao Xiao et al developed plasma-activated tap water and used it in atomization disinfection [2].…”

Non-Thermal Plasma Pyrolysis of Fuel Oil in the Liquid Phase

“…Plasma-chemical pyrolysis makes it possible to produce turquoise hydrogen together with olefins and carbon materials [36][37][38]. Plasma-chemical technologies are also being developed for waste recycling [39][40][41] and for the decomposition of CO 2 [42,43].…”