Power From Coal Without Emissions

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Robust Strategies for Sustainable Energy
Supply Klaus S. Lackner Columbia
University November 2005
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The Central Role of Energy
Environment
Minerals
Water
Food
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Not about limiting access to energy

• low cost, plentiful, and clean energy for all

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Energy, Wealth, Economic Growth
EIA Data 2002
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Big Uncertainty

• Robust strategies for uncertain development paths
• Scope of world-wide industrialization
• Will oil and gas run out? Coal as backstop
• Will nuclear energy play a role? More
  electricity
• Will solar energy get cheap? Hydrogen,
  electricity
• Will energy efficiency play out? Potential
  surprise
• Decentralization vs. Concentration Greenhouse
  gases
• The role of the smaller sources?

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IPCC Model Simulations of CO2 Emissions
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Closing the gap
With population growth
1 energy intensity reduction
Constant growth
1.5 energy intensity reduction
2.0 energy intensity reduction
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Todays Energy Infrastructure

• All fossil energy
• plus a little hydro and nuclear energy
• plus a very little renewable energy

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Energy is not running out

• Plenty of fossil carbon
• Plenty of nuclear energy
• Plenty of solar energy
• Other options are niche player

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Resource Estimates
H.H. Rogner, 1997
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Carbon as Low Cost Energy
Lifting Cost
Rogner 1997
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Fossil Fuels

• 5000 Gigatons of cheap fuel
• Ubiquitous, current consumption is 6Gt/yr
• 85 of all commercial energy
• Coal, oil, gas, tar etc. are fungible
• SASOL gasoline from coal at 45/bbl
• Tarsands Synthetic crude at less 20/bbl

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Fungibility of Sources

• All hydrocarbons are interchangeable
• Gasification, Fischer Tropsch Reactions
• Electricity can make all carriers
• But at a price need cheap electricity
• Heat can be turned into electricity
• Low efficiency but routinely done
• Electricity can pump heat
• Efficient but needs cheap electricity

Prediction is difficult
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Fossil Fuels
Energy in 2100 need not be more expensive than
today
Environment Rather Than Resource Limit
Carbon Capture and Storage - Untested Technology
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50,000 Gt ???
Oil, Gas, Tars Shales
Carbon Sources and Sinks
? ? ? ? ? ?
Coal
Methane Hydrates
21st Centurys Emissions ???
Scales of Potential Carbon Sinks
Soil Detritus
Ocean
Atmo-sphere
Plants
?pH lt 0.3
2000
1800
constant
39,000 Gt
Carbon Resources
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50 increase in biomass
180ppm increase in the air
30 of the Ocean acidified
30 increase in Soil Carbon
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CO2 emissions need to stop

• Large Reductions Required
• Independent of CO2 level at stabilization
• Time urgency is high up to 800ppm

At 2 GtC per year, the per capita allowance of 10
billion people will be 3 of actual per capita
emission in the United States
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NON-SOLUTIONS

• Energy efficiency improvements
• Energy reductions
• Growing Trees
• Hydrogen

10 billion people reducing world emission to a
third of todays would have a per capita emission
allowance of 3 of that in the US today
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Todays Technology Fails To Deliver Sufficient
Energy

• for 10 billion at US per capita rates
• Environmental Problems
• Pollution, CO2
• Oil and Gas Shortages
• Concentration in the Middle East

How much time do we have to make the change?
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The hydrogen economy cannot run on electricity

• There are no hydrogen wells

Tar, coal, shale and biomass could support a
hydrogen economy. Wind, photovoltaics and nuclear
energy cannot.
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A Triad of Large Scale Optionsbacked by a
multitude of opportunities

• Solar
• Cost reduction and mass-manufacture
• Nuclear
• Cost, waste, safety and security
• Fossil Energy
• Zero emission, carbon storage and
  interconvertibility

Markets will drive efficiency, conservation and
alternative energy
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Connecting Sources to CarriersCarriers to
Consumers
Carbon
Gasoline
Coal
Nuclear
Heat
Diesel
Shale
Refining
Solar
Jet Fuel
Electricity
Synthesis Gas
Tar
Ethanol
Bio
Oil
Methanol
Chemicals
Wind, Hydro
Natural Gas
DME
Hydrogen
Geo
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Dividing The Fossil Carbon Pie
900 Gt C total
Past
10yr
550 ppm
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Removing the Carbon Constraint
5000 Gt C total
Past
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Net Zero Carbon Economy
Capture of distributed emissions
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Underground Injection
Enhanced Oil Recovery Deep Coal Bed
Methane Saline Aquifers
Storage Time Safety Cost
VOLUME
statoil
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Rockville Quarry
Mg3Si2O5(OH)4 3CO2(g) ? 3MgCO3 2SiO2
2H2O(l) 63kJ/mol CO2
Backstop Lid on Liability
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Magnesium resources that far exceed world fossil
fuel supplies
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Capture at the plant

• Flue Gas Scrubbing (Amine Scrubbers)
• Oxygen Blown Combustion
• Integrated Gasifier Combined Cycle with Carbon
  Capture
• Zero Emission Plants

Expand into steel making, cement production,
boilers
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CO2 N2 H2O SOx, NOx and other
Pollutants
Zero Emission Principle
Air
Power Plant
Carbon
Solid Waste
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Carbon makes a better fuel cell

• C O2 ? CO2
• no change in mole volume
• entropy stays constant
• ?G ?H
• 2H2 O2 ? 2H2O
• large reduction in mole volume
• entropy decreases in reactants
• made up by heat transfer to surroundings
• ?G lt ?H

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The Conventional Power Plant
Carnot Limited
Carbon Fuel
Heat
Heat
Turbine
Electric Power
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The Standard Fuel Cell
Enthalpy Limited
Chemical Conversion with small Heat loss
No heat return
Carbon Fuel
Heat
Electric Power
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The Zero Emission Fuel Cell
Free energy limited
Fuel Cell Conversion
Raise Enthalpy (endothermic gasification)
Heat
Heat Return
Carbon Fuel
Electric Power
Minimize Free Energy Loss
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Gasification Cycles

• C CO2 ? 2CO
• C H2O ? CO H2
• C 2H2 ? CH4
• (CH4 2H2O ? CO2 4H2)
• C O2 ? CO2

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Boudouard Reaction
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Steam Reforming
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Boudouard Reaction
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Hydrogenation
ZECA
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(No Transcript)
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Decarbonizing Energy Fuels

• Hydrogen Economy
• Heating and transportation
• Extraction of CO2 from Air
• Biomass
• Chemical Extraction

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Air Extraction can compensate for CO2 emissions
anywhere
2NaOH CO2 ? Na2CO3
Art Courtesy Stonehaven CCS, Montreal
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How much wind? (6m/sec)
Wind area that carries 10 kW
0.2 m 2 for CO2
80 m 2 for Wind Energy
Wind area that carries 22 tons of CO2 per year
50 cents/ton of CO2 for contacting
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EnviroMissions Tower
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Hydroxylation Reactor
ProcessReactions
CO2
(4)
Fluidized Bed
(1)
(2)
(3)
(6)
Membrane
Capture Device
Trona Process
Limestone Precipitate Dryer
(5)
Depleted Air
Air
Membrane Device
(1) 2NaOH CO2 ? Na2CO3 H2O ?Ho - 171.8
kJ/mol
(2) Na2CO3 Ca(OH)2 ? 2NaOH CaCO3 ?Ho
57.1 kJ/mol
(3) CaCO3 ? CaO CO2 ? Ho 179.2 kJ/mol
(4) CaO H2O ? Ca(OH)2 ? Ho - 64.5 kJ/mol
(5) CH4 2O2 ? CO2 2H2O ? Ho -890.5 kJ/mol
(6) H2O (l) ? H2O (g) ? Ho 41. kJ/mol
Source Frank Zeman
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Hydrogen or Air Extraction
Coal,Gas Fossil Fuel Oil
Hydrogen
Gasoline
Distribution
Distribution
Consumption
Consumption
CO2 Transport
Air Extraction
CO2 Disposal
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Hydrogen or Air Extraction
Coal,Gas Fossil Fuel Oil
Hydrogen
Gasoline
Distribution
Distribution
Cost comparisons
Consumption
Consumption
CO2 Transport
Air Extraction
CO2 Disposal
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Materially Closed Energy Cycles
O2
O2
Energy Source
Energy Consumer
H2O
H2O
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Roles of Different Energy Carriers
Carbon Fuels
Electricity
planes
heating
Hydrogen
Cars
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Public Institutions and Government
guidance
Carbon Board
certification
Permits Credits
Certified Carbon Accounting
certificates