awma.org24 em march 2015

em • feature

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is suitable for use in a variety of industries, including the power generation, cement, steel, petro-chemical, synfuel, and chemicals manufacturing sec-tors. All of these industries are in large scale production in China. Ultimately, China needs to assess the suitability of various CCS technologies for these sectors. Even for a similar type of manufac-turing sector, there are different technologies available in order to utilize CCS. For example, the installation of CCS at a natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) power plant might be very different to

that of a combined heat and power (CHP) NGCC, owing to different plant operation patterns.

Within the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the introduction of natural gas-based power genera-tion is potentially attractive as a means to alleviate the pressures of low-carbon economic devel-opment and urban environmental protection.

Carbon Capture and Storagein Natural Gas-Based

Heat and Power Plants in China

Recent studies for global emissions scenarios suggest that global carbon dioxide (CO2)

emissions must peak before 2020 if the United Nations’ target of limiting global warming

to no more than 2°C is still to be achieved. This means that emissions of CO2—a green-

house gas and key contributor to global warming potential—will have to decrease quickly.

Carbon capture and storage is seen as an essential way to reduce global CO2 emissions

with relatively low costs compared to alternative technologies. In China, CCS is a crucial

option because of the large amount of fossil fuel use and associated high CO2 emissions.

This article considers the Asian Development Bank–People’s Republic of China joint initia-

tive, Study on Carbon Capture and Storage in Natural Gas-Based Power Plants.1

24_EM0315-FT4-Chen.indd 24 2/24/15 10:58 AM

Copyright 2015 Air & Waste Management Association

march 2015 em 25awma.org

th

ANNIVERSARY

ttth

ANNNNIVERIVERIVERIVERSARY

by Rui Chen

Rui Chen, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Municipal and Environmental Engineering of the School of Civil Engineering at Beijing Jiaotong University in Beijing, China. E-mail: rchen@bjtu.edu.cn.

At the same time, since natural gas is a fossil fuel, albeit with a lower CO2 emission coeffi cient than coal, it is important to determine the applicability of CCS for use in gas-fi red plants. One potential technology for CO2 capture is post-combustion chemical scrubbing. Although this technique has been tested on several coal-fi red units at various scales of operation in the PRC, with very prom-ising results, its use at gas-fi red plants will bring different challenges. Natural gas burning produces fl ue gases with lower concentrations of CO2 (~7%) than fl ue gases from coal burning (~14%). As a result, it is more challenging to remove CO2 from gas-fi red units than from coal-fi red units.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB)–PRC joint initiative, Study on Carbon Capture and Storage in Natural Gas-Based Power Plants,1 has been designed to address such issues. The overall aim is to provide the critical strategic analysis needed to compare various CCS options at this early stage of CCS development for gas-fi red CHP in order to provide options for the feasibility of near-zero CO2 emission gas-based plants in major urban locations within China.

CCS for Natural Gas Development in ChinaIn China, natural gas CHP developed very quickly, as the country’s fast-paced electrical generation capacity increases signifi cantly bolstered the CHP market. However, China’s power capacity growth is slowing, resulting in an essentially fl at CHP mar-ket between 2007 and 2011.

At the same time, due to much stricter regulation on air pollution that has been introduced in China recently, natural gas CHP is expected to increase in the near future. By the end of 2011, discus-sions centered on fi ne particulate matter (PM2.5) brought attention both from public and govern-ment to push strong action on air pollution control.

At the beginning of 2012, Beijing announced that it would be the fi rst city in China to be coal-free and that all coal-fi red power generation and heat supply units would be replaced by natural gas-fi red power plants and heat supply before 2015. NGCC CHP is booming in Beijing, as a dominant option in the process. This trend is expected to continue in other cities in China.

At the beginning

of 2012, Beijing

announced that it

would be the fi rst

city in China to be

coal-free.

24_EM0315-FT4-Chen.indd 25 2/24/15 10:58 AM

Copyright 2015 Air & Waste Management Association

26 em march 2015 awma.org

As middle class incomes increase in China, it is projected that CHP will increase due to a growing need for new buildings with associated require-ments for space heating. The structure for CHP plants will change significantly in the future owing to technology progression and much tighter envi-ronment pollution control standards. High-effi-ciency coal-fired CHP will be utilized in the future in the form of supercritical units and ultra-su-percritical units (see Table 1). Natural gas-fired CHP will develop at a rapid pace, mainly due to urban environment concerns, with corresponding increases in efficiency.

The use of CHP will result in a reduction in CO2 emissions as increased efficiency units are

introduced (see Table 2). At the same time, the potential use of CCS in CHP is very large in China. Even though now it is difficult to predict the dif-fusion rate, a 330-Mt CO2 reduction is possible if CCS is utilized at CHPs in China. After 2030, it is estimated that gas-based CHP with CCS will increase rapidly, and the emission reduction from NGCC CHP with CCS could contribute more than half of the total CO2 emission reduction in CHPs by CCS in China (see Table 3).

Financial Support for CCS Projects in ChinaThere are several international financing sources and domestic incentive mechanisms available to CCS-related projects. More financial incentive

Large Coal Unit

Super Critical US-Critical IGCC N.Gas

CHP NGCC Total

2005 6,933 335 0 0 0 0 7,269

2010 7,772 2,371 117 0 85 2 10,347

2020 6,015 4,827 1,099 73 300 253 12,568

2030 2,582 4,793 2,094 516 1,262 1,599 12,847

2040 1,088 3,429 1,754 857 1,948 4,061 13,138

2050 0 1,534 1,233 863 1,241 8,370 13,241

Large Coal Unit

Super Critical US-Critical IGCC N.Gas

CHP NGCC Total

2005 469 21 0 0 0 0 490

2010 525 149 7 0 3 0 685

2020 407 303 67 4 11 8 800

2030 175 301 128 30 44 48 727

2040 74 215 108 50 68 123 638

2050 0 96 76 51 43 253 519

Large Coal Unit

Super Critical US-Critical IGCC N.Gas

CHP NGCC Total

2005 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2010 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2020 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2030 0 0 103 24 6 12 145

2040 0 0 86 40 55 98 279

2050 0 0 60 41 35 202 338

Table 1. Installed capacity for CHP in China (10,000 kW).

Table 2. CO2 emissions in CHP (Mt CO2).

Table 3. CO2 emission reduction by CCS in CHP (Mt CO2).

Notes:IGCC = integrated gas

combined cycle;CHP = combined heat

and power;NGCC = natural gas

combined cycle

24_EM0315-FT4-Chen.indd 26 2/24/15 10:58 AM

Copyright 2015 Air & Waste Management Association

Natural gas power plant, pg 24: Lefteris_/iStock/Thinkstock; China map, pg 25: forest_strider/iStock/Thinkstock

march 2015 em 27awma.org

th

ANNIVERSARY

ttth

ANNNNIVERIVERIVERIVERSARY

Reference1. Asian Development Bank–People’s Republic of China joint initiative, Study on Carbon Capture and Storage in Natural Gas-Based Power Plants.

See http://www.adb.org/projects/documents/study-carbon-capture-and-storage-natural-gas-based-power-plants-tacr.

mechanisms may become available once com-mercialization becomes foreseeable. The cur-rent funds backed mainly by governments and development institutions support CCS research activities and demonstration projects: General funding sources for projects (i.e., equity invest-ment, commercial banks, multilateral sources, carbon fi nancing, project risk mitigation support); ADB-managed funds; global environment facility funds; Word Bank-managed climate investment funds; Clean Development Mechanism; and Financial Incentive Mechanism.

Recommendations for CCS in ChinaEven though there remains uncertainty in China, the importance for CO2 emission is crucial; CCS is the key option for the reduction. For natural gas-based urban heat and power plants, the need is to establish some fi rm data on the likely impact of post-combustion CCS in order to compare with

the information gathered already for coal-fi red plants. For example, to ensure sustainable devel-opment, it has been suggested that the target net effi ciency penalty for 90% CO2 capture in a power plant should be less than 5 percentage points, compared with plants without CO2 capture.

CCS for natural gas power and CHP plants needs a stronger national strategic approach to support its development and application in order to meet the 2°C target. It is recommended that pilot CCS demonstrations in natural gas-based power plants should be progressed as a matter of urgency in order to establish some fi rm data on the likely impact of post-combustion CCS, for comparison with the information gathered already for coal-fi red plants. Once that position has been achieved, the scope to make improvements can be deter-mined and research and development programs can be focused accordingly. em

This webinar series, offered in three sessions on consecutive days, is for new andexperienced environmental professionals interested in learning how to manage theimpact of the U.S. Clean Air Act Title V operating permits, to streamline monitoring,and to standardize permits across jurisdictions. It will provide strategies on how toensure compliance while minimizing operational intrusions required by Title V permits. Example permit conditions will be discussed to illustrate how agencies andcompanies have approached compliance demonstration requirements. Informationon when to re-open a permit and the modification process will also be provided.

Session 1: Tuesday, March 17 – 1:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern

Session 2: Wednesday, March 18 – 1:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern

Session 3: Thursday, March 19 – 1:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern

Moderator:Dallas Baker, P.E., BCEE, Chief, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality; and 2015 A&WMA President

Presenter:Tony Jabon, Trinity Consultants

A&WMA Webinar Series

FeesWebinar series (all three sessions): A&WMA Members: $350.00Non-Members: $550.00

Single session:A&WMA Members: $99.00Non-Members: $149.00

24_EM0315-FT4-Chen.indd 27 2/24/15 10:58 AM

Copyright 2015 Air & Waste Management Association