An investigation of

carbon capture technologies

for Sävenäs waste-to-energy plant

Jasmine Andersson

Natural Resources Engineering, master's

2020

Luleå University of Technology

Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering
ABSTRACT
Carbon capture technologies have the potential to decarbonize the emissions to air from the heat
and power sector and contribute to the necessary greenhouse gas emission mitigation in order
to meet the Paris Agreement requirements. The energy requirement and ability to retrofit carbon
capture units are crucial to convert existing power plants into more environmental benign
processes to meet the Swedish national goal of greenhouse gas neutrality at 2045. This report
investigates the viability of carbon capture technologies at waste-to-energy (WTE) plants with a
techno-economic analysis of the Sävenäs WTE plant in Gothenburg. Flue gas characteristics at
WTE plants, with a carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration of ~10%, facilitates absorption
techniques for post-combustion capturing which offers a high level of readiness and large-scale
operations compared to other capture technologies.
To assess the feasibility of the carbon capture options, multicriteria aspects were considered
covering energy requirement, environmental impact as well as economic advantages and
disadvantages associated with CO2 emission abatement and loss of income due to energy
withdrawal. Mass and energy balance calculations were executed based on steady-state
assumptions and conservation of mass and energy in order to develop process models for carbon
capture and thus expose process integration possibilities and the energy recovery potential. The
balance calculations were performed for Monoethanolamine (MEA) and Chilled Ammonia
Process (CAP) as they were the most promising absorption technologies at the time of this master
thesis project.
The calculations show that the energy efficiency at Sävenäs WTE plant is reduced by 32% using
MEA solution on a yearly average. However, extensive energy recovery would be achieved by
integrating a heat-pump to the treatment process combined with district heating integration.
With this integration the energy efficiency was reduce only by 12%. Energy penalty associated
with CAP was found to reduce the efficiency by 21%. Energy recovery solutions are primarily
derived from district heating integration which result in a net energy efficiency reduction by
10%.
Due to its location in Sweden the demand of heat produced at Sävenäs WTE plant is at its
highest between October and March. The CO2 emission abatement and cost analysis showed
that a carbon capture facility is preferable operating during summertime when most of the about
1.5 TWh heat distributed per year from Sävenäs WTE plant won’t have to be replaced with
other less environmental benign and energy efficient sources. If captured biogenic CO2 is
considered a negative emission, then the WTE plant would achieve carbon neutrality even by
operating only six months per year due to the high fraction of biogenic content in the fuel
mixture.
The process model for CAP revealed extensive water utilization to avoid ammonia slip and thus
additional energy requirements associated with cooling. The flue gas treatment characteristics at
Sävenäs WTE plant corresponds well with the specifications for CAP but nonetheless the
location of the WTE plant does not offer a natural source of cooling water with a preferable
temperature of 5ºC (Jilvero, 2014). Hence, MEA was found to be the most viable option for
Sävenäs WTE plant with a high technological readiness and seasonal operation already proven
feasible at large pilot-scale plants (AEB Amsterdam et al., 2019).
SAMMANFATTNING
Koldioxidavskiljning har under de senaste åren fått mycket uppmärksamhet, både medialt och
politiskt, i debatten om hur vi ska minska våra koldioxidutsläpp för att säkerställa att Parisavtalet
efterlevs. Den tekniska mognadsgraden och förmågan att integrera avskiljningen i nuvarande
processer är avgörande för att fullskaliga anläggningar med koldioxidavskiljning ska kunna tas i
drift innan 2045 då Sverige har som målsättning att uppnå koldioxidneutralitet. Denna rapport
undersöker möjligheten att integrera koldioxidavskiljning vid Sävenäs avfallskraftvärmeverk i
Gothenburg. Avfallsförbränningsprocessen i sig möjliggör integrering med tekniker lämpade för
koldioxidavskiljning efter förbränning av bränslet, som är anpassade för den låga koldioxidhalten
(~10%) i rökgasen.
För att möjliggöra en jämförelse mellan avskiljningsteknikerna och utreda deras lämplighet
fastställdes ett antal kriterier för fortsatt utredning; energiåtgång, miljöpåverkan och ekonomiska
fördelar och nackdelar kopplade till minskade koldioxidutsläpp och minskad energiproduktion.
Utifrån en litteraturstudie fastställdes det att koldioxidavskiljning genom absorption var den bäst
lämpade tekniken kopplad till Sävenäs nuvarande rökgasreningsprocess. Utifrån underlaget valdes
Monoethanolamine (MEA) och kyld ammoniakprocess (CAP) ut för vidare analys. Massa- och
energibalansberäkningar genomfördas för att fastställa energiåtgången hos teknikerna och till
vilken grad energiåtervinning var möjlig genom integrering med existerande fjärrvärmenät.
Resultatet visade att MEA absorption medför en sänkning av energieffektiviteten på Sävenäs
med 32%. Men energiåtervinning är möjlig, framförallt genom indirekt energiåtervinning med
hjälp av potentiella investeringar i värmepumpar som vid maximal energiåtervinning minskade
energieffektiviteten till totalt 12%. Utredningen av CAP resulterade i en sänkning med 21% men
tack vare möjligheten till direkt värmeåterföring till fjärrvärmenätet uppgick den totala förlusten
till 10%.
I och med Sävenäs placering i Sverige ser behovet av energidistribution till fjärrvärmenätet olika
ut beroende på årstiden. Efterfrågan är som störst mellan oktober och mars vilket också avspeglar
sig i prissättningen. Det skulle därmed ur både ett kostnads- och miljöperspektiv vara lämpligast
att driva koldioxidavskiljning under sommarhalvåret och på så vis undvika stora ekonomiska
förluster eller att den distribuerade värmen idag ersätt av en annan mindre miljövänlig källa. Om
lagring av biogen koldioxid klassas som negativa utsläpp skulle Sävenäs avfallskraftvärmeverk
fortfarande uppnå koldioxidneutralitet efter sex månaders koldioxidavskiljning, vilket visar på
den potential det finns att omvärdera Sävenäs till en koldioxidsänka.
Den fastställda processmodellen för CAP resulterade i ett stort behov av vatten med tillhörande
energitillskott för kylning för att motverka utsläpp till luft av flyktig ammoniak. Egenskaperna
hos Sävenäs rökgaser är kompatibla med CAP men en saknar en naturlig källa på vatten med en
årlig medeltemperatur på 5ºC (Jilvero, 2014). Utifrån den sammanvägda analysen anses MEA
vara den bäst lämpade koldioxidavskiljningstekniken då den erbjuder en hög teknisk
mognadsgrad och säsongsbetonad koldioxidavskiljning är bevisat genomförbar med denna teknik
(AEB Amsterdam et al., 2019).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This master thesis project is the final act within my master’s degree in Natural Resources
Engineering, which specializes in the fields of environmental science and water utilization at
Luleå University of Technology. I would like to thank Renova for the opportunity and the
encouragement to proceed with this master thesis idea in the very beginning. A Special thanks
to my supervisor at Renova, Lia Detterfelt, for your guidance and engagement in my work, and
thank you Malin Bruhn at Renova for helping me with the technical parts of the project and for
educating me about Sävenäs waste-to-energy process.
Finally, I’d like to thank my supervisor in the department of waste science and technology at
Luleå University of Technology, Professor Anders Lagerkvist, for your expertise and feedback
provided to this project.
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................1
1.1 Background...................................................................................................................1
1.2 Project objective and aim ..............................................................................................2
1.3 Project scope .................................................................................................................2
2 REFERENCE WASTE-TO-ENERGY PLANT ...............................................................3
2.1 Renova .........................................................................................................................3
2.2 Sävenäs WTE plant .......................................................................................................3
2.2.1 Boiler .....................................................................................................................3
2.2.2 Energy utilization ...................................................................................................3
2.2.3 Reference flue gas treatment process .......................................................................4
2.3 Emission regulation .......................................................................................................5
3 THEORY .......................................................................................................................6
3.1 Carbon capture technologies for the energy sector .........................................................6
3.1.1 Pre-combustion ......................................................................................................6
3.1.2 Oxy-fuel combustion .............................................................................................6
3.1.3 Post-combustion.....................................................................................................6
3.2 Carbon capture technologies for Sävenäs WTE plant .....................................................7
3.3 Carbon dioxide compression and transport ....................................................................8
4 METHOD ..........................................................................................................................9
4.1 Reference flue gas treatment system ..............................................................................9
4.2 Process design specifications ........................................................................................ 10
4.3 Carbon capture concept generation ............................................................................. 11
4.3.1 Key design parameters for Monoethanolamine ...................................................... 11
4.3.2 Key design parameters for Chilled Ammonia Process ............................................ 13
4.4 Carbon capture concept selection ................................................................................ 15
4.4.1 Mass and energy balance calculations .................................................................... 15
4.4.2 Compression calculation ....................................................................................... 15
4.5 Performance and impact assessments ............................................................................ 16
4.5.1 Energy performance ............................................................................................. 16
4.5.2 Emission abatement .............................................................................................. 17
4.5.3 Environmental impact assessment.......................................................................... 17
4.5.4 Cost assessment..................................................................................................... 18
5 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ....................................................................................... 19
5.1 Mass and energy balance calculations ........................................................................... 19
5.1.1 Process configuration and balance calculations for Monoethanolamine .................. 19
5.1.2 Chilled ammonia process ...................................................................................... 22
5.2 Compression ............................................................................................................... 24
5.3 Energy performance .................................................................................................... 25
5.3.1 R1 value .............................................................................................................. 25
5.3.2 Energy efficiency associated with Monoethanolamine ........................................... 26
5.3.3 Energy efficiency associated with Chilled Ammonia Process ................................. 26
5.4 Environmental impact assessment ................................................................................ 27
5.5 Emission abatement ..................................................................................................... 28
5.6 Cost Assessment .......................................................................................................... 30
5.6.1 European trading system (ETS) ............................................................................. 30
5.6.2 Economic losses linked to the distribution of heat and electricity .......................... 31
5.6.3 Sensitivity analysis of cost assessment ..................................................................... 32
8 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................. 35
8.1 Further research .......................................................................................................... 36
9 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 37

APPENDIX A ...................................................................................................................... 42
APPENDIX B ...................................................................................................................... 49
APPENDIX C...................................................................................................................... 56
1 INTRODUCTION
This master thesis project is part of a Master of Science in Natural Resources Engineering at
Luleå University of Technology. The project was assigned by Renova AB in Gothenburg to
investigate which carbon capture technology is the most viable option for Sävenäs waste-to-
energy (WTE) plant as part of their ongoing evaluation of potential pathways towards a fossil
free energy production.

1.1 Background
Due to the increasing level of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) the decarbonization of existing
industries using carbon capture technologies have gained much attention in media during the
last few years in Sweden (DN Debatt, 2019; Svt nyheter, 2019). A development due to raised
concerns regarding the latest climate change reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (2005) and the Paris agreement. Facilities are now operating large scale carbon capture
and storage (CCS) projects in the thermal and industrial sector and new technologies are
developed rapidly (Koytsoumpa et al., 2018).
CCS include capturing, transport and final storage of CO2 and the method is commonly divided
into three basic concepts. Based on how the CO2 is separated and removed from the flue gas
flow at industrial and thermal sector the concepts are, pre-combustion, post combustion and
oxyfuel combustion (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2005; Koytsoumpa et al.,
2018). The efficiency of CO2 removal is increasing with the purity of CO2 in the flue gas flow
although the flue gas composition and operating conditions may also interfere with the removal
efficiency (Bains et al., 2017).

In order to meet the long-term goal of neutral carbon emissions by 2050 the European
commission (2011) mention CCS technologies as one of their main strategies to decarbonize the
energy systems. The carbon emission pricing in the European trading system (ETS) is now
increasing in an attempt to accelerate technologies such as CCS into becoming commercial.
Waste incineration plants in Sweden are included in the ETS and are thereby affected by the
rate of change in the Union, however it is not common practice in the European Union to
include WTE plants in the trading system.
The Swedish parliament has agreed to work accordingly to an environmental framework in order
to meet the Paris agreement by accomplish net neutral greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2045
(Dir. 2014:165, 2015). The procedure to accomplish this goal is yet to be revealed and some
scenarios promote the Swedish economy to shift from a linear structure to a circular. This change
will subsequentially affect WTE plants as more material is reused and recycled. Avfall Sverige
(2019) proclaims that although national waste streams may change the WTE plants still plays an
important role in a circular economy to decontaminate waste streams where other options aren’t
plausible.
The European commission (2011) also express certain interest in industries with biomass in their
fuel mixture and highlight them as a possible source of negative carbon emissions. A Swedish
governmental investigation regarding this matter was initiated in 2018 to evaluate the carbon
capture capacity of bio-CCS among other pathways towards negative GHG emissions after 2045
(Dir. 2014:165, 2015; Dir. 2018:70, 2018).

1
1.2 Project objective and aim
This master thesis project aims to investigate the feasibility of CCS implementation at Sävenäs
WTE plant while still operating within Swedish emission regulations for waste incineration. This
project intends to present a techno-economic analysis of the next generation flue gas treatment
processes. The main objective within this report is to:
▪ Investigate which carbon capture methods are applicable at Sävenäs WTE plant.
▪ Find a suitable process model for carbon capture technologies to retrofit at Sävenäs WTE
plant with integrated heat recovery.
▪ Determine the impact regarding the energy efficiency by energy and mass balance
calculations for carbon capture technologies.
▪ Investigate the environmental consequences associated with CCS technologies regarding
the effect on emission composition at Sävenäs WTE plant.
▪ Develop an order-of-magnitude economical assessment for Sävenäs WTE plant with
integrated carbon capture technologies.

1.3 Project scope

The master thesis project scope establishes the size and workflow of this project:
▪ This project will be limited to the current flue gas treatment process number seven at
Sävenäs WTE plant. This process consists of state-of-the-art technologies developed for
flue gas treatment and energy recovery.
▪ Energy requirements and possible solutions for heat recovery will be established and
visualized by mass and energy balance calculations based on a steady state assumption.
▪ This project will not present a complete life cycle assessment (LCA) for the chosen carbon
capture methods, instead it will present a viability study of the methods from an WTE
plant operational perspective.
▪ The economical assessment will investigate the revenues correlated with energy
distribution for Sävenäs WTE plant and incentives for CO2 emission abatement.
▪ Investment and operational cost will not be evaluated in this project.

2
2 REFERENCE WASTE-TO-ENERGY PLANT
A reference WTE plant was chosen in order to execute aims and objectives within this project
by examine the characteristics of a flue gas treatment process. The Sävenäs WTE plant in
Gothenburg is operated by Renova and has a production standard in accordance with the
European Commission document of best available technique. This chapter covers information
regarding Renova and the chosen reference flue gas treatment process at Sävenäs WTE plant.

2.1 Renova
The WTE plant Sävenäs in Gothenburg is managed by Renova AB. The company is owned by
the municipalities Ale, Gothenburg, Härryda, Kungälv, Lerum, Mölndal, Partille, Stenungsund,
Tjörn and Öckerö. In 2018, the Sävenäs WTE plant supplied the city of Gothenburg with about
280 GWh of electricity and 1.5 TWh of heat to the district heating network (Renova, 2018).

2.2 Sävenäs WTE plant

The production process at Sävenäs covers four separate systems for incineration of combustible
waste material. Each system consists of a furnace, boiler, flue gas economizer and condensation
decontamination. The flue gas treatment process, named number seven at Sävenäs WTE plant,
is illustrated in Figure 1 while the other three treatment processes are designed differently. The
treatment process number seven will in this project be referred to as the reference flue gas
treatment process. The reference process is the latest addition to Sävenäs WTE plant and consists
of state-of-the-art technologies thus the carbon capture technology will be primarily tailored to
its characteristics within this project.

2.2.1 Boiler
Municipal waste material is continuously fed onto a grate which is moving and the waste is
combusted at nearly 1000 ºC. Air is added in three different streams to enhance turbulence hence
ensure complete combustion. The primary and secondary airstream originates from the waste
and slag chamber which lowers the pressure substantially in the chamber and quells the odor.
The third airstream is supplied from above the grate by recycled flue gas which is derived from
the flue gas stream between the electrostatic precipitator and the wet scrubber. The recycled flue
gas accounts for 20% of the total gas volume which enhances the reduction of the NOx content.

2.2.2 Energy utilization

Hot flue gas from the combustion steams feedwater distributed in several tubes located inside the
boiler. The water is kept pressurized at 40 bar and a temperature of 400 ºC to avoid formation
of droplets as it may interfere with the performance of the turbine. The turbine is coupled to a
generator and thermal energy generated from combustion is converted into electricity. The
excess heat is recovered by condensation in a heat-exchanger and supplies the district heating in
Gothenburg.

3
Figure 1. Flowchart of the production process at Sävenäs WTE plant as well as the reference flue gas
treatment process number seven (Renova, 2019).

2.2.3 Reference flue gas treatment process

The flue gas treatment process begins with an electrostatic precipitator which captures 99.5 % of
all particulates in the flue gas. The flue gas temperature is additionally lowered in an economizer
for extra energy utilization.
At the following three-step wet scrubber the flue gas temperature is quenched down by recycled
water from the condensation reactor. Primarily, the condensate consists of hydrochlorides and
elevated concentration of dissolved metals. A limestone slurry is injected to the system in order
to control pH at 0.5. The flue gas is led through a droplet separator for optimal vapor liquid
separation before entering the second step in the wet-scrubber system where sodium hydroxide
is injected to enhance Sulphur reduction. Consequentially the conditions are now near neutral
and the condensate is mixed with the neutralized water from the previous step before water is
conveyed to the treatment facility and gypsum production. The flue gas enters a wet electrostatic
precipitator to reduce remaining aerosols before condensation. At the final condenser additional
heat is recovered and distributed to the district heating network.
After condensation the flue gas passes through a heat-exchanger before entering a catalyst for
selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx. The flue gas temperature is raised to 230 ºC to
guarantee optimal SCR efficiency and 25 % liquid Ammonia is injected as a reductant to separate
NOx and dioxins. The flue gas stream is recycled to the previous heat-exchangers in order to
raise the temperature of the incoming flue gas stream.

4
2.3 Emission regulation
Sävenäs WTE plant is covered by the Swedish waste incineration regulation and emissions to air
are monitored and reported according to the environmental code and the prevailing permission
as shown in Table 1 (SFS 2013:253, 2013; Renova, 2019). Certain pollutants are measured
continuously at stack while periodic measurements are conducted according to guidelines.
Table 1. Treatment requirements of flue gas emissions to air for Sävenäs WTE plant on 24-hour basis
(Renova, 2019).

Element Value Unit Measurements

NOx 200 mg/m3 Continuous
Hg 0.03 mg/m3 Periodic
N2 O 10 mg/m3 Periodic
CO 50 mg/m3 Continuous
Particulates 10 mg/m3 Continuous
SO2 50 mg/m3 Continuous
Dioxin 0.1 ng/m3 Periodic
HCl 10 ng/m3 Continuous
HF 1 ng/m3 Periodic
NH3 10 mg/m3 Continuous
The Swedish government agreed to include WTE plants into the European Trading System
(ETS) in 2013 although this is not common practice in the other EU member states. The
European Commission (2016) aims for an annual reduction of greenhouse gas allowances within
the emission trading system (ETS) by 2.2 %, compared to the previous 1.78 %, in order for EU
members to contribute to the Paris Agreement requirements of a 40% GHG reduction by 2030.
This will be done by continuously reducing the surplus of the emission allowances on the market
and reinvest into technologies which will contribute to decarbonize the sectors covered by ETS.

Free Allowance (ton/year) Fossil Emission (ton/year) Price (EUR/ton CO2)

250000 20

EUR/ton CO2
200000 15
ton/year

150000
10
100000
50000 5

0 0
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Figure 2. CO2 free allowances and corresponding fossil emissions during 2013-2018 for Sävenäs WTE
plant (Renova, 2019) as well as estimated price development during the same period of time (Markets
Insider, 2019).

The ETS free allowances associated with CO2 emission at Sävenäs WTE plant have since the
introduction in year 2013 been reduced with 10-20% each year (Figure 2). During the same
period of time the emission of fossil origin shows little variation. The allocation of free allowances
is being processed right now for the forthcoming period of 2020-2030. The cost of emitting one
ton of CO2 corresponds to the supply and demand on the trading market and the price has
recently increased substantially as shown in Figure 2.

5
3 THEORY
This chapter covers a description of the most common CCS strategies, focusing on post-
combustion technologies. The material presented in this chapter regarding carbon capture
technologies is a summary of multiple research articles, detailed information regarding the
evaluated technologies is found in Appendix A. Compression and transportation options are also
included in this chapter accompanied with associated regulations and requirements.

3.1 Carbon capture technologies for the energy sector

Carbon capture technologies aims to capture CO2 by separating the CO2 from the flue gas. Once
separated, the purified CO2 gas is compressed and cooled to liquid phase to enable transportation,
regardless of the final destination. The CO2 product could potentially be further utilized (CCU)
or transported to final storage site (CCS), however there are no difference between the capturing
strategies.
There are today three main combustion processes where carbon capture technologies are
applicable; Pre-combustion, Oxy-fuel combustion and Post-combustion (Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change, 2005; Leung et al., 2014).

3.1.1 Pre-combustion
A pre-combustion carbon capture process aims to separate CO2 before combustion. The fuel,
most commonly fossil, is reacting with oxygen originated from either air, pure oxygen or steam
in a gasifier (Leung et al., 2014). The reaction is converting the fossil fuel into synthesis gas,
which mainly consists of hydrogen gas and carbon monoxide (CO). The synthesis gas is further
refined via water-shift-gas reaction using steamed water to convert CO to CO2 resulting in a
high CO2 partial pressure (Q.F. Araujo & Maderios, 2017). The CO2 is then separated from the
synthesis gas while the remaining H2 could potentially be used for power generation (Petrescu
& Cormos, 2017).

3.1.2 Oxy-fuel combustion

Oxy-fuel combustion uses pure oxygen rather than air during combustion provided by an air
separation unit. This method subsequentially result in a reduction of produced flue gas since no
N2 originating from air is diluting the gas. It is in theory possible to accomplish an enrichment
of CO2 to 90 % (Komaki et al., 2014; Liu & Shao, 2010) although in pilot studies the CO2 purity
range between 70-85 % (Komaki et al., 2014; Strömberg et al., 2009). Higher CO2
concentrations are claimed to increase the following capture capacity for the chosen technology
(Q.F. Araujo & Maderios, 2017) and Porter et al. (2016) refer to oxy-combustion as the most
promising technology for coal fired power plants. However, no large-scale oxy-combustion
projects were identified in a carbon capture technology review done by Q.F. Araujo & Maderios
(2017).

3.1.3 Post-combustion
The post-combustion method aims to capture CO2 from flue gas after combustion. Post-
combustion technologies are developed to retrofit existing processes and the technology is
compatible with processes within the industrial and energy sector (Leung et al., 2014). Although
the matureness of many post-combustion technologies is high and proven to operate at large-
scale, total cost of introducing such technologies to existing processes are frequently discussed
and the main obstacle before becoming fully commercialized (Koytsoumpa et al., 2018; Leung
et al., 2014).

6
3.2 Carbon capture technologies for Sävenäs WTE plant
Based on current combustion and flue gas treatment process at Sävenäs WTE plant the
appropriate carbon capture technologies are the ones found as suitable for post-combustion. Pre-
combustion and oxyfuel combustion demands a reconstruction of the entire plant while post-
combustion technologies could retrofit on site.
According to Aaron and Tsouris (2011) the post-combustion technologies can be divided into
seven different techniques; Absorption, Adsorption, Cryogenic Distillation, Membrane
Diffusion, Hydrate Formation and Dissociation, Electrical Desorption and Redox. However,
the latter three are still associated with great challenges and are only operated at research stage
hence they will not be further discussed in this report. The remaining four categories are listed
in Figure 3 and includes state-of-the-art post-combustion technologies supported by Araujo
(2017), Shakerian (2015) and Wilcox (2012). Complete information of each individual post-
combustion technology shown in Figure 3 is discussed in Appendix A.

Figure 3. Summary of post-combustion technologies included in this project. Complete information

regarding each technology are discussed in Appendix A.

The most mature post-combustion technologies are absorption processes using amines with
Monoethanolamine (MEA) as the technology which new carbon capture technologies are
benchmarked against. Absorption technologies are favorable for Sävenäs WTE plant as they are
compatible with low partial pressure of CO2 (< 15%) in the flue gas (Aaron & Tsouris, 2011).
Adsorption by physisorption using materials such as activated carbon is a possible solutions to
capture carbon however further improvements regarding selectivity towards CO2 is needed for
activated carbon as well as scaled-up production. Zeolite is another emerging adsorption
technology which could potentially incorporate with amine absorption (Pardakhti et al., 2019)
however the technology alone is not considered viable and need further research. Chemisorption
technologies using oxides such as lime (CaO) has gained a lot of attention recently especially
within the cement industry where exhaust CaO is recycled and utilized for carbon capture.
Cryogenic distillation of CO2 is associated with a high energy penalty due to the combined
temperature and pressure required to operate such process. Membranes do require high CO2
partial pressure, thus processing gas with high CO2 content, such as natural gas, is suitable for
such technology (Q.F. Araujo & Maderios, 2017).

7
3.3 Carbon dioxide compression and transport
Compression is an essential step in all carbon capture processes no matter if the CO2 is destined
to be stored underground or further utilized. Flue gas composition and chosen carbon capture
method do not only affect the emission characteristics but do also dictate the final compressibility
and energy requirement.
CO2 is compressed and cooled to liquid phase in order to simplify transport by either ship,
pipeline or railway. Non-condensable impurities in gas phase, such as Nitrogen (N2), Hydrogen
(H2), Oxygen (O2), Methane (CH4) and Argon (Ar), have a significant effect on the CO2
compressibility and thereby the critical pressure, which consequently affect the pressure needed
for compression. Acidic impurities such as Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) may cause corrosion and in
the presence of water the formation of Carbonic acid (H2CO3) will consequently intensify the
effect, hence the water content should be monitored as well.
There are only quality recommendations available for CO2 transport but a CO2 purity rate of
99% for transportation modelling have been reported in the literature (Pour et al., 2017;
Voldsund et al., 2019). Gas specifications from the Norwegian CCS project Northern Lights are
listed in Table 2.
Table 2. Recommended concentration requirements for transport and storage of CO2 from Northern
Lights Guidelines (Equinor, 2019).

Component Concentration limit, ppm

(mol)
Water, H2O 30
Oxygen, O2 10
Sulphur Oxides, SOx 10
Nitric Oxides/Nitrogen Dioxide, NOx 10
Hydrogen Sulfide, H2S 9
Carbon Monoxide, CO 100
Amine 10
Ammonia, NH3 10
Hydrogen, H2 50
Formaldehyde 20
Acetaldehyde 20
Mercury, Hg 0.03
Cadmium, Cd 0.03
Pipelines are the most viable transportation method for CO2 at long distances (Leung et al., 2014;
Wilcox, 2012). Formation of vapor is avoided by operating the transportation in pipelines within
the boundaries for supercritical fluid and avoid conditions near the critical point for CO2. Typical
pressure conditions derived from post-combustion capture modelling for cement and natural-
gas power plants are 100-110 bar (Amrollahi et al., 2010; Voldsund et al., 2019) which is well
above the critical point for CO2. However, the Northern Lights project offers transportation and
storage provided by ship conveyance for liquid CO2 with required characteristics for equilibrium
at 15 bar(g) and -30ºC (Equinor, 2019).

8
4 METHOD
This chapter covers the method of evolution behind this project with information regarding the
procedure for evaluating CCS technologies which, as shown in Figure 4, consisted of five
separate actions. The first two actions included mapping the reference flue gas treatment process
at Sävenäs WTE plant. Concept generation covers collected process data for each carbon
captured technology while concept selection demonstrates mass and energy balance calculations.
Final assessment focus on the key performance parameters investigated in accordance with the
established project scope.

Figure 4. Project method and procedure for CCS concept selection(Ulrich, 2012).

4.1 Reference flue gas treatment system

The production of Sävenäs WTE plant were mapped to evaluate the process characteristics. A
process flowsheet of Sävenäs flue gas treatment process was established in Figure 5 in order to
allow further studies regarding the impact of implementation of different carbon capture
technologies.

Figure 5. Flowchart of reference flue gas treatment process at Sävenäs WTE plant with economizer (1),
three step wet-scrubber including HCL-reduction (2), SO2-reduction (3) and condenser (4). The flue gas
enters a heat-exchanger made of glass (5) heated by cross-current flue gas flow recirculated from the
selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx (6). After NOx-reduction flue gas is vented through a stack
(7) (Renova, 2019).

9
4.2 Process design specifications
The key design parameters within this project were determined based on the reference flue gas
treatment process in collaboration with the evaluated carbon capture technologies. All process
systems were designed to fulfill a minimum of 90% reduction of CO2 based on typical removal
efficiency 85-95% applied in carbon capture simulations and pilot plant studies (Li et al., 2015;
Tang & You, 2017; J. Thomassen, personal communication, 14 October 2019; Voldsund et al.,
2019). Flue gas characteristics for the reference flue gas treatment were established in Table 3.
Table 3. Flue gas characteristics for reference flue gas treatment process and boiler at Sävenäs WTE
plant (Renova, 2019).

Parameter Value Unit

Temperature 53 ºC degrees
Flow 65 000 Nm3/h dry
Velocity 13 m/s
Pressure 1 atm
Effect boiler 40 MW
Steam production 53 Ton/h
The flue gas composition was derived from recorded data of emissions to air from the year of
2018 from end-of-the-pipe measurements presented in Table 4.
Table 4. Average flue gas composition and concentrations for reference flue gas flow at Sävenäs during
2018 (Renova, 2019).

Component Value1 Unit

CO2 12 Vol %
O2 8 Vol %
H2O 7 Vol % saturated gas
N22 78 Vol %
NOx 16 mg/Nm3
SO2 1 mg/Nm3
HCl 0.2 mg/Nm3
NH3 2 mg/Nm3
PM 0.2 mg/Nm3
1
All values correspond to dry gas basis except H20.
2
Assumption based on standard air composition.

10
4.3 Carbon capture concept generation
Key design parameters and standard values for each technology were determined by combining
published data from various simulations and pilot plant studies. The following assessment was
limited to monoethanolamine (MEA) and chilled ammonia process (CAP). Other post-
combustion technologies discussed in Appendix A were not included due to inadequate process
data or noncorrelation with the reference flue gas treatment process.

4.3.1 Key design parameters for Monoethanolamine

Monoethanolamine (MEA) absorption process consists of an absorber column with an integrated
water wash and a regenerator column with an integrated reboiler in order to control the
temperature within the columns as shown if Figure 6.

Figure 6. Process flowsheet for carbon capture using MEA solvent.

The flue gas feed enters the absorber column at 53 ºC where it is mixed with a lean MEA solvent
solution in a counter current flow. The upper section of the absorber consists of a water wash in
order to reduce volatiles and MEA degradation products in the flue gas flow.
The CO2 rich solvent is further heated in a cross current flow with the lean solvent before
entering the upper section of the regenerator column. The temperature in the column is
controlled by a reboiler driven by low pressure steam. The water content vaporizes as the
temperature rise and the saturated vapor leaving the regenerator primarily consists of H2O and
CO2. The latent heat is recovered through a heat-exchanger and the condensate is separated
from the CO2 and dry purified CO2 gas continues to the final compression unit (Li et al., 2015).

11
There are several scientific papers regarding process configurations for MEA in proportion to
other CCS methods thus it is the most studied and benchmarked carbon capture technology.
Key design parameters for MEA are frequently analyzed thus input parameters are now optimized
and fairly consistent. The established key design parameters for MEA process modelling are
summarized in Table 5.
Table 5. Key design parameters for MEA absorption technology and established standard values which
were used in the following mass and energy balance calculations (4.4.1).

Parameter Value Unit References

Mean Range
Solution (Li et al., 2015; Notz et al., 2011;
301 30-35 Wt %
concentration Voldsund et al., 2019)
Mol (Chahen, Huard, Cuccia, Lorena, et al.,
Lean CO2 loading 0.3 0.22-0.35 CO2/mol 2016; Li et al., 2015; Voldsund et al.,
MEA 2019)
mol
(Chahen, Huard, Cuccia, Lorena, et al.,
Rich CO2 loading 0.5 0.45- 0.55 CO2/mol 2016; Li et al., 2015)
mea
L/G ratio in absorber 3 2-3 kg/kg (Knudsen et al., 2009)
(Knudsen et al., 2009; Pour et al., 2017;
Feed temperature 53 47-58 ºC Tang & You, 2017)
Lean temp 35 30-40 ºC (Li et al., 2015)
Absorber pressure 1 1 Atm (Notz et al., 2011)
Heat of absorption -84.3 -84.3 kJ/mol (Wilcox, 2012)
Heat of desorption 60 60 kJ/mol
(Li et al., 2015; Pour et al., 2017;
Stripper temperature 120 100-140 ºC Voldsund et al., 2019)
Stripper pressure 2 1.5-2.5 Bar (Li et al., 2015; Notz et al., 2011)
ΔT,Heat exchange
12.5 10-15 ºC (Knudsen et al., 2009; Li et al., 2015)
on hot side
0.001- (Knudsen et al., 2009; Tang & You,
MEA make-up 0.00125 kg/kg CO2 2017; Voldsund et al., 2019)
0.0016
(Knudsen et al., 2009; Voldsund et al.,
SOx 10 ppmv 2019)
3
410 Mg/Nm
NOx ppm (Voldsund et al., 2019)
65
Condenser temp 30 17-40 ºC (Li et al., 2015; Tang & You, 2017)
1
MEA concentration >30% has been investigated in some studies although common practice is
a 30 wt.% concentration.

12
4.3.2 Key design parameters for Chilled Ammonia Process
CO2 capturing using ammonia (NH3) in a CAP primarily includes an absorber operating at low
temperatures and a high-pressure regenerator. However, in order to maintain low temperatures
and ensure full recovery of volatile ammonia species a complex network of cooling units, wet
scrubbers and heat-exchangers are integrated with the capturing process as shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7. Process configurations for carbon capture using Ammonia.

Flue gas is cooled by a direct cooler where the water content condensates and a dry gas with
approximately 1% H2O enters the absorber column (Augustsson et al., 2016). The flue gas is
mixed with a lean ammonia solvent solution distributed from the upper section of the column.
The temperature is controlled by recirculating solvent solution passing through a cold-water
heat-exchanger (intercooler). Ammonia slip in the CO2 depleted flue gas is recovered by a cold-
water wash and regenerated in an ammonia stripper unit before returned to the absorber while
the purified flue gas is vented through the stack.
The CO2 enriched solvent solution exits the absorber column, passing a heat-exchanger with
lean solvent in a counter current flow direction before entering the upper section of the
regeneration column. The regeneration process is conducted in a pressurized vessel hence the
vapor leaving the vessel have an elevated pressure level. The vapor is cooled and condensate is
recirculated back to the regenerator column. In a review of conducted pilot studies Augustsson
et al. (2016) argue that in order to avoid accumulation of heat stable salts in the condenser one
need to be able to control the ionic balance of the system. One solution promoted in the review
was to add a water wash with an integrated appendix stripper (AP) to the system. This solution
was adopted by Voldsund et al. (2019) and similar configuration was also proposed by Jilvero
(2014).

13
Available process data for CAP were mainly derived from pilot studies at Mongstad pilot plant
in Norway during the last decade where the process configurations have developed from solid
precipitation towards aqueous ammonia solutions. Recent studies have been conducted through
simulations by Voldsund et al. (2019) and Jilvero (2014).
Table 6. Key process parameters for absorption of carbon using a chilled ammonia process with no
precipitation.

Parameter Value Unit References

Mean Range
Absorber Temp. 10 0-20 ºC (Augustsson et al., 2016;
Feron, 2016)
NH3 concentration 18 7.8-28 wt.% (Darde et al., 2009, 2012;
Mathias et al., 2009)
Lean solvent flow 7.5 6.5-9 kg lean/kg flue gas (Voldsund et al., 2019)
Lean loading 0.35 0.3-0.41 mol CO2/mol NH3 (Darde et al., 2009, 2012;
Mathias et al., 2009;
Voldsund et al., 2019)
Rich loading 0.8 0.66- mol CO2/mol NH3 (Darde et al., 2009, 2012;
Mathias et al., 2009)
0.92
Desorber pressure 22 20-25 bar (Augustsson et al., 2016;
Voldsund et al., 2019)
Reboiler 154 150-157 ºC (Augustsson et al., 2016;
Voldsund et al., 2019)
temperature
Regeneration energy 2500 2050- kJ/kg CO2 (Augustsson et al., 2016;
Darde et al., 2009, 2012;
3000 Dave et al., 2009; Mathias et
al., 2009)
NH3 reboiler 116 108-125 ºC (Augustsson et al., 2016;
Voldsund et al., 2019)
temperature
NH3 reboiler 1 1 bar (Augustsson et al., 2016)
pressure
Appendix reboiler 115 115 ºC (Voldsund et al., 2019)
temperature
Heat of absorption -65 60-70 kJ/mol (Feron, 2016; Qin et al.,
2011)
Heat of regeneration 26.9 26.9 kJ/mol (Feron, 2016)

14
4.4 Carbon capture concept selection
Calculations included in this project were limited to mass and energy balance calculations as well
as additional energy and work requirement calculations for a compression unit.

4.4.1 Mass and energy balance calculations

Mass and energy balances were included to emphasis with the process complexities and provide
a step-by-step investigation of the energy requirement which is presented in Appendix B. Mass
and energy balance calculations were adopted for both MEA and CAP based on the assumption
of conservation of mass and the first law of thermodynamics.

4.4.2 Compression calculation

The compression unit was assumed to be operating correspondingly to the guidelines for train
or truck transportation in a recent report by Johnsson & Kjärstad (2019) which corresponds to
mentioned equilibrium conditions for ship transportation. The flue gas is compressed in a one
stage compression unit in combination with dehydration (Voldsund et al., 2019) to reach the
desired 15 bar(g) (Equinor, 2019).
The electricity requirement, 𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝. for the compression unit was calculated according to
Eq.4.5.1.1. which corresponds to the electricity required for compression of 1 kg of CO2 where
the specific work, 𝑊 for compression is derived from Eq.4.5.1.2 expressed in kJ/kg of CO2.
𝑊
𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝. = (4.5.1.1)
ƞ𝑖𝑠 ƞ𝑚 𝑡

𝑍𝑅𝑇 𝑁𝛾 𝑝 (𝛾−1)⁄𝑁𝛾
𝑊= ∗ 𝛾−1 ((𝑝2) − 1) (4.5.1.2)
𝑀 1

Established values of constants were based on Tang & You (2017) assumptions as shown in
Table 7.
Table 7. Operational key design parameters for a compression unit with values established by Tang &
You (2017).

Parameter Constant Value Unit

Compressibility factor Z 0.9942
Universal gas constant R 8.3145 mol K
Suction temperature T 303.15 K
Molar mass, CO2 M 44.01 g/mol
Number of compressor stages N 1
Specific heat ratio (cp/cv) γ 1.3
Suction pressure1 p1 0.2-2.5 MPa
Discharge pressure p2 1.5 MPa
Entropic efficiency ƞis 80 %
Mechanical efficiency ƞm 95 %
Time conversion factor t 3600
1
For MEA 0.2 MPa and for NH3 2.5 MPa.

15
4.5 Performance and impact assessments
Key performance indicators were established to evaluate the result from the mass and energy
balance calculations within the delimiting aims and objectives of this master thesis project. This
chapter covers the method for assessing the main indicators, which are; energy performance (1),
CO2 emission abatement (2) as well as environmental impact (3) and cost assessment (4).

4.5.1 Energy performance

Net energy performance for Sävenäs WTE plant with integrated carbon capture technologies
was derived from determined energy (steam) requirement and heat recovery potential.
R1 Formula. Energy recovery from waste at WTE plants is part of the hierarchy of waste
management and is defined by the waste framework directive(SFS 2011:927, 2011). The net
energy efficiency defines whether an incineration plant processing municipal waste should be
classified as a WTE plant or a waste disposal facility. The energy efficiency equation is defined
by guidelines from European commission (2008) and was calculated accordingly (Eq. 4.4.2.4).
𝐸𝑝 −(𝐸𝑓 +𝐸𝑖 )
𝐸= (4.4.2.4)
0.97∗(𝐸𝑊 +𝐸𝑓 )

Energy produced, 𝐸𝑝 is the net energy production including electricity, 𝐸𝐸𝑙. and district
heating, 𝐸𝐷𝐻 multiplied with 2.6 and 1.1 respectively (Eq. 4.4.2.5). Additional energy, 𝐸𝑓 from
fuel and imported electricity, 𝐸𝑖 is also taken into consideration in the formula. The total input
of energy from waste, 𝐸𝑊 was defined by the net calorific value measured in 2018 to 11 MJ/kg
for treated waste at Sävenäs (Renova, 2019).
𝐸𝑝 = 2.6 ∗ 𝐸𝐸𝑙. + 1.1 ∗ 𝐸𝐷𝐻 (4.4.2.5)

The energy distribution for district heating, 𝐸𝐷𝐻 is calculated as the sum of the average amount
of distributed energy during between 2016-2018 and the low-pressure steam requirement for
carbon capture technologies. Withdrawing low-pressure steam, 𝐸𝐿𝑃 from the turbine
consequentially affects the electricity produced thus the associated reduction was also considered
in Equation 4.4.2.6.
𝐸𝐿𝑃 = 𝑚̇𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 ∗ (𝐻𝑇2 − 𝐻𝑇1 ) (4.4.2.6)
The total electricity distribution was calculated as the sum of the average electricity distributed
between 2016-2018 and low-pressure steam withdrawn, 𝐸𝐿𝑃 .

16
4.5.2 Emission abatement
The capture ratio of CO2 is a key performance indicator for CCS technologies established to
measure the progress of emerging technologies and is commonly used to enable comparison
between different technologies (Notz et al., 2011; Voldsund et al., 2019). The avoided carbon
was derived from the total amount of CO2 captured with a carbon capture technology divided
with the amount of CO2 produced the reference plant on a yearly basis.
𝑚,𝐶𝑂2,𝑐𝑎𝑝𝑡.
𝐶𝑂2,𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑑 = (4.4.3.1)
𝑚,𝐶𝑂2,𝑟𝑒𝑓.

In order to calculate the net CO2 emission from a WTE plant with CCS technology one need
to also consider the biogenic fraction in the fuel mixture. Equation 4.4.3.2 and 4.4.3.3 were
incorporated in an investigation performed by Pour (2017) from a WTE process model with
amine absorption and was implemented to calculate the CO2 emission for all technologies within
this project.

𝐶𝑂2,𝐹𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑙 = 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2,𝑟𝑒𝑓 ((1 − 𝐶𝑂2,𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑑 ) ∗ (1 − 𝑋𝑏𝑖𝑜 )) (4.4.3.2)

Based on emitted CO2 from Sävenäs WTE plant between the year of 2016 and 2018 the average
biogenic fraction, Xbio, was 65 %.
The biogenic content in the fuel mixture is considered as neutral if emitted to the atmosphere
while emissions from fossil fuel is considered neural if stored underground (Pour et al., 2017). If
the captured biogenic CO2 is stored underground (CCS) rather than utilized in new products
(CCU) then the net emissions from biogenic source were calculated as negative emission (CO2
sink), an assumption supported by a recent report from Swedish environmental research institute
(Zetterberg et al., 2019).

𝑛𝑒𝑡 𝐶𝑂2,𝐶𝐶𝑆 = 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2,𝑟𝑒𝑓 ((1 − 𝐶𝑂2,𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑑 ) ∗ (1 − 𝑋𝑏𝑖𝑜 ) − (𝐶𝑂2,𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑖𝑑 ∗ 𝑋𝑏𝑖𝑜 )) (4.4.3.3)

4.5.3 Environmental impact assessment

This project focused on the introduction of new chemicals and the environmental consequences
associated with each technology as well as their ability to retrofit in an existing flue gas treatment
process. Following key environmental impacts were established for further evaluation;
▪ Emission to atmosphere
▪ Degradation products
▪ Environmental impact
▪ Hazardous to human health

17
4.5.4 Cost assessment
In order to determine the cost of implementing CCS technology the loss of revenues due to
depleted energy distribution were investigated. The estimated energy distribution for Sävenäs
with integrated CCS technology was calculated with respect to the energy requirement
(Eq. 4.4.5.1) and steam consumption, 𝐸𝐷𝐻.𝐶𝐶𝑆 which subsequentially result in a loss of electricity
production, 𝐸𝐸𝑙.𝐶𝐶𝑆 (Eq. 4.4.5.2).
𝐸𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝐶𝐶𝑆 = 𝐸𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝑅𝑒𝑓. − (𝐸𝐷𝐻.𝐶𝐶𝑆 + 𝐸𝐸𝑙.𝐶𝐶𝑆 ) (4.5.4.1)

𝐸𝐸𝑙.𝐶𝐶𝑆 = 𝑚̇ ∗ (𝐻150 − 𝐻100 ) (4.5.4.2)

The price of heat distributed to the district heating network do fluctuate throughout the year as
the demand of heat decreases rapidly towards and during the months of summer. In order to
address these variations, the cost assessment for CCS, 𝐶𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝐶𝐶𝑆 (Eq. 4.5.4.3) was divided into
evaluating the effects in summer and winter respectively.

𝐸𝐷𝐻.𝐶𝐶𝑆 𝐸𝐸𝑙.𝐶𝐶𝑆
𝐶𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝐶𝐶𝑆 = 𝑅𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝑅𝑒𝑓 − (( 2
∗ (𝑃𝐷𝐻.𝑆 + 𝑃𝐷𝐻.𝑊 )) + ( 2
∗ (𝑃𝐸𝑙.𝑆 + 𝑃𝐸𝐿.𝑊 ))) (4.5.4.3)

Revenues, 𝑅𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑑.𝑅𝑒𝑓 as well as the costs associated with electricity and district heat distribution
were calculated from average prices on yearly basis and not derived from true values for Sävenäs
WTE plant.
Revenues included in this evaluation are covered by the ETS and assumptions regarding the
CO2 pricing development in Europe is showed in Table 8 with estimated rate of change in
percentage on yearly basis. The evaluation is accounted for from the year of 2020 to the year of
2045.
Table 8. Estimated development of ETS pricing and the evolution of Sävenäs WTE plant between 2020
and 2045.

Unit Start value Yearly development

ETS price EUR/ton 25 +3%
ETS Free Allowances1 ton/year 77 068 -5%
Fossil emission ton/year 200 000 -1%
1
Free emission allowances are believed to be maintained at 70 000 ton/year between 2020-2030
based on indications from Renova (Renova, personal communication, 19 December 2019) and
rate of change (-5%) are applied on the forthcoming period 2030-2045 in order to decrease the
fossil emissions from energy sector substantially and meet the Swedish government’s target for
net zero emission before 2045 (Dir. 2014:165, 2015).

18
5 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter covers the results from mass and energy balance calculations along with suggested
process configurations and heat recovery potential for MEA and CAP. Overall energy
performance for Sävenäs WTE plant was derived from the balance calculations and established
using the R1 formula. This chapter also includes gathered information regarding established key
parameters within the environmental impact assessment. Finally, a cost assessment is presented
followed by a sensitivity analysis of the results derived from an altered ETS development.

5.1 Mass and energy balance calculations

Flowcharts for MEA and CAP were developed based on standard adsorption process design
incorporate with Sävenäs WTE plant and subsequent mass and energy balance calculations.

5.1.1 Process configuration and balance calculations for Monoethanolamine

Calculations for MEA were limited to primarily the rich and lean solvent flow as well as flue gas
flows. The calculations were executed with no respect to MEA reclaimer or make-up for solvent
slips thus the losses were relatively small in the closed system, about 1-1.5 kg MEA/ton captured
CO2 (Tang & You, 2017; Voldsund et al., 2019) which in this case accounts for 11 kg of MEA
solvent per hour. Water make-up correlates with temperature management in the system and
the established flue gas input temperature was assumed to be equal to the output temperature,
thus the amount of make-up water was neglected in this case.
Mass Balance. The attained mass balance for the MEA absorption process (Fig.8) was derived
from the reference flue gas flowrate and established values for key design parameters in Table 5.
As shown in Figure 8 the lean/rich solvent flowrate is about four times the inlet gas flowrate, a
consequence derived from the molar mass ratios between MEA and H2O (1:8) in liquid phase
for the 30 wt.% MEA solvent and solvent loading capacity of 0.2 mol CO2/mol MEA.

Figure 8. Process configuration for MEA technology with mass balance calculation derived from
reference flue gas flow rate at Sävenäs WTE plant.

19
Energy Balance. The heat of regeneration for MEA was derived from established reboiler duties
in literature and set at 3.6 kJ/kg captured CO2 for the regeneration process. The calculated heat
of desorption, sensible heat and heat of vaporization shown in Figure 9 correlates well with a
MEA optimization process study performed by Li et al. (2015).

21%

Heat of desorption, 42%

42%
Sensible heat, 37%
Heat of vaporization, 21%

37%

Figure 9. Reboiler duty for regeneration of MEA and CO2.

In order to run the MEA process displayed in Figure 10 approximately 11 MWh of steam is
required. While sensible heat and heat of vaporization could potentially be recovered by water
condensation and cooling, the heat of desorption is calculated as a complete heat loss. Hence
heat losses at the regenerator correspond to the heat of desorption which, as shown in Figure 9,
is associated with the largest regeneration energy penalty for amine technologies.
The net energy penalty for the MEA process was estimated to 3.1 MWh which includes
complete heat recovery as shown in Figure 10 by the sum of required steam (11MWh) at 3.5
bar and 150ºC and potential heat recovery by integration with district heating (1.7 MWh) and
additional heat-pumps (0.2 + 6 MWh). For the entire plant the net energy penalty would be
117 GWh/year (if 11 months of operation per year is assumed) which accounts for an
approximately 10 % reduction of heat distribution to the district heating during 2018 (Renova,
2018).

Figure 10. Energy balance (MWh) for MEA including potential heat recovery integration with the district
heating network and potential heat recovery with additional heat-pump. Calculations based on reference
flue gas characteristics and treatment process.

20
Retrofitting and Heat Recovery. As shown in Figure 10, heat recovery solutions were divided
into two separate systems entirely based on required output temperature. Average temperature
of recirculated water returning from the district heating network is about 60ºC thus heat
recovery from MEA process is only possible prior condensation. Heat recovery at lower
temperatures require work of heat-pumps in order to utilize the energy content. The maximum
capacity of existing heat-pumps at Sävenäs is 5 MWh thus energy recovery by heat-pumps in
Figure 10 require additional investments.
Retrofitting a MEA capture process do not require any larger changes of the existing flue gas
treatment process or demand any alteration of the incoming flue gas stream. The exothermic
characteristics of the chemical reaction in the absorber column produces 6 MWh and could
potentially cause elevated temperatures within the column. An intercooling unit connected to
the absorber column (Fig.11) is an effective solution in order to maintain low temperatures
within the entire absorber column. The benefits of an intercooler unit include maintained rich
solvent loading and a reduced column height compared to standard process configuration (Li et
al., 2015; J. Thomassen, personal communication, 14 October 2019). The intercooler unit
suggested in Figure 11 demands cooling water temperature at approximately 25ºC. However,
according to a study conducted by Li et al. (2015) the benefits of an intercooler system are
noticeable already at 40ºC which offers a more environmental benign solution thus the cooling
water produced from heat-pumps at Sävenäs WTE plant maintain a temperature of 30ºC today.

Figure 11. Intercooler unit connected to an absorber column with recirculating solvent solution.

Energy recovery from direct integration with the district heating network are limited by the
temperature of the recirculated heating water. The largest energy recovery (2MWh) was derived
prior condensation of water vapor hence the proposed heat-exchanger should be a gas-liquid
system (Fig.12).

Figure 12. Gas/Liquid Heat-exchanger for heat recovery between district heating (DH) and vapor from
desorption reaction.

21
In order to further recover energy at lower temperature the proposed solution of heat-pumps
require additional work which has not been accounted for in the energy balance hence the net
energy penalty needs to be further analyzed for such process configuration. Heat-pumps
incorporated with existing flue gas treatment process provide a recovery of 5 MWh today which
corresponds to the energy recovery from the lean solvent temperature reduction (6 MWh) hence
such process configuration is considered a feasible solution. Sensible heat recovery from output
condensate (Fig.10) only accounts for a small fraction (0.2 MWh) and the net energy recovery
needs to be further investigated before proposing a feasible recovery solution.

5.1.2 Chilled ammonia process

Calculations for CAP were limited to primarily the rich and lean solvent flow as well as the gas
flows and recovered NH3 thus the cooling water requirement was noted in the flow-sheets but
not considered in the balance calculations.
Mass Balance. The main lean and rich solvent system propose flowrates similar to inlet flue gas
flow due to high loading capacity compared to MEA. The split fraction of lean solvent
corresponds to about 12% of total lean flowrate (Voldsund et al., 2019) and excess purge water
from the Appendix reboiler (AP) require additional make-up water to maintain water balance,
𝑚̇𝑚𝑘.𝑤 in the process. The flowrate of recovered NH3 from the appendix stripper (AP), 𝑚̇𝑠𝑡.𝑎𝑝𝑝
and the ammonia stripper, 𝑚̇𝑠𝑡.𝑁𝐻3 was estimated to 5% and 10% respectively, which is
recirculated to the absorber as shown in Figure 13.

Figure 13. Process configuration for CAP derived from key design parameters and mass balance
calculations.

In order to control the absorber temperature below 10ºC cooling water with a temperature of
5ºC is appropriate (Jilvero, 2014). The amount of water required for water wash units as well
as cooling was not included in the mass balance calculations nor were the effects of refrigerant
usage evaluated.

22
Energy Balance. The heat of regeneration in Figure 14 represent the reboiler duty for the main
regenerator. The heat requirement for the appendix reboiler and NH3 regenerator was not
included.

26%

Heat of desorption, 26 %
44%
Sensible heat, 30%
Heat of vaporization, 44%

30%

Figure 14. Reboiler duty for regeneration of Ammonia and CO2.

The energy balance for CAP in Figure 15 contain several recirculating systems of vapor and
water. The water cycles for cooling water to control temperatures were not accounted for in the
energy balance calculations. Excess heat from the condenser is the only possible heat recovery
integration with present district heating network, however additional energy derived from steam
is needed at three locations throughout the system.

Figure 15. Energy balance for CAP with possible options of heat recovery displayed for district heating
integration and additional heat-pumps.

The net energy penalty for the CAP system was estimated to 3 MWh by summarizing the input
steam at 3.5 bar and 150ºC with the potential sources for heat recovery by integration with
existing district heating network and/or heat-pumps as shown in Figure 15. Net energy penalty
for entire plant was calculated to 113 GWh/year (if 11 months of operation per year is assumed)
which accounts for an approximately 9 % reduction of heat distribution to the district heating.

23
Retrofitting and Heat Recovery. In order to retrofit a CAP to the reference flue gas treatment
process several cooling units are required as well as additional water washes. The process system
is very complex and although it operates with lower mass transfers than MEA the extensive
amount of water increases the demand of space. The process complexity opposes simplifications
necessary to calculate mass and energy balances for the entire process hence the appendix and
NH3 regenerator were not included due to too many uncertainties regarding the flowrates.
Compared to MEA, CAP has the potential to recover a larger portion (5 MWh) by district
heating network integration as the initial temperature and estimated steam flowrate is higher. A
steam-liquid heat-exchanger is proposed for such integration as the largest amount of energy
recovery is derived from heat of condensation of the water content (Fig. 23). Heat recovery
conducted by heat-pumps are limited to a much smaller fraction (0.2 MWh) and here again the
net energy penalty should be further analyzed in order to evaluate the feasibility, including the
appendix and NH3 regenerators.
CAP operates at such low temperatures that the cooling demand cannot be achieved without
the use of heat-pumps and refrigerants connected to the process through the direct cooler unit,
the intercooler unit at the absorber as well as several units integrated with the process in order
to reduce the NH3 slip. Merging several streams to a larger heat-pump for better energy
efficiency might be possible however such complex flowcharts demands further investigations
and was not implemented in this project.

5.2 Compression
The estimated energy requirement associated with compression is in favor of a CAP system
which operates the desorption process at 25 bar and thus decrease the amount of work required
to achieve adequate fluid characteristics for ship transportation. It should be noted that the energy
requirement in Table 9 do not include any electricity required for cooling.
The calculated energy requirement for compression was calculated to 23 GWh for MEA which
in addition to the heat of regeneration results in a net energy requirement for the compression
unit to about 140 GWh/year for the entire WTE plant.
Table 9. Energy requirement for compression of CO2 gas and conversion to liquid at 15 bar(g) and
-30ºC at the reference treatment process.

Unit MEA CAP

Number of compressor stages No. 1 1
Work kJ/kg CO2 124 -29
Energy requirement kJ/kg CO2 163 -38
1
Captured CO2 ton/year 103 500 103 500
Energy requirement GWh/year2 4.8 -1.13
Energy requirement for the
GWh/year2 23 -
entire WTE plant
1
Propotion of emissions for reference flue gas treatment process calculated from CO2 emission
between 2016-2018 for Sävenäs WTE plant (Renova, 2019).
2
Assumed to be operating 7920 hours (11 months) per year.
3
Theoretical energy requirement for CAP compression as the regenerator already operates at
25 bar.

24
5.3 Energy performance
The mass and energy balance calculations and associated flowcharts visualized the energy
requirements as well as the recovery potential for each individual method. In order to evaluate
the effects associated with a certain recovery action MEA and Ammonia integration aspects were
divided into three separate actions using the R1 formula.

5.3.1 R1 value
For Sävenäs WTE plant to be classified as a WTE plant, according to the EU standard, their R1
score has to exceed 0.6 (SFS 2011:927, 2011). As shown in Table 10, Sävenäs WTE plant
exceed that limit today with no carbon capture technology implemented (Ref. no CCS). MEA
and Ammonia capture processes were divided into groups by the corresponding possibility of
heat recovery, either directly to the district heating network (DH) or both direct and indirectly
by the use of heat-pumps (HP) to provide heat to the district heating. The estimated electricity
distribution was calculated from the reduction of electricity produced at the turbine due to 3.5
bar steam withdrawal. The electricity reduction was calculated to 0.4 MW and 0.3 MW for
MEA and CAP respectively for the reference flue gas treatment process.
Additional internal electricity required for auxiliary pumps and fans were not included in the R1
calculation.
Table 10. Energy distribution calculated according to the R1 formula for WTE plants.

Ref. MEA
MEA MEA CAP no. CAP CAP
no no.
DH DH+HP recovery DH DH+HP
CCS recovery
Energy distribution
431 278 296 350 328 389 390
(GWh/year)1
- Steam
distribution
equivalent
322 208 226 280 243 287 288
(GWh/year)
- Electricity
distribution
equivalent
109 100 100 100 102 102 102
(GWh/year)2
R1 1.28 0.91 0.97 1.13 1.02 1.15 1.16

R1 with comp.3 1.28 0.90 0.96 1.12 1.02 1.15 1.16

1
Calculated with respect to correction factor for energy (1.1) and electricity (2.6) requirement
for one flue gas treatment process.
2
Derived from the reduction of electricity production due to steam withdrawals associated with
MEA and CAP.
3
Based on a 1 stage compression unit for 15 bar(g) for ship transportation.

As shown in Table 10, introducing MEA or CAP capture technology to the flue gas treatment
process will undoubtingly affect the energy performance of Sävenäs WTE plant. However, the
largest energy penalty associated with the investigated technologies still exceeds the limit of 0.6
for Sävenäs and do not jeopardize their position as a WTE plant.

25
5.3.2 Energy efficiency associated with Monoethanolamine
The vast amount of studies regarding the heat of regeneration associated with MEA absorption
processes reflects its technological readiness and benchmarking properties within the
development of CCS technology. The majority of studies agrees upon the large energy penalty
with little variation (3.6-3.8 MJ/kg CO2) although many efforts regarding process configuration
improvements are being evaluated and published continuously (Knudsen et al., 2009; Li et al.,
2015). The scientific consensus and technological matureness reduces the amount of assumptions
and uncertainties behind the energy balance calculation and determined energy performance
from the R1 equation. The energy efficiency for Sävenäs WTE plant was reduced by 32% using
MEA with no heat recovery which are in line with similar findings for carbon-fired plants by
Q.F. Araujo & Maderios (2017). By direct and indirect heat recovery the reduction accounts for
12% of the distributed electricity and heat from Sävenäs WTE plant in 2018.

5.3.3 Energy efficiency associated with Chilled Ammonia Process

Regeneration duty for CAP from previous studies included in this work shows large variations
(2.0-3.0 MJ/kg CO2) as a result of the uncertainties regarding the heat of desorption. The
presence of different ammonia spices correlates with the overall chemical reactivity towards CO2
and how CO2 is bound to ammonia species in solution. Increased ammonia concentration in
solvent solution facilitates lower regeneration duty and established value of 2.5 MJ/kg CO2
corresponds to simulations of similar molar ratio (Jilvero et al., 2011). The complexity with CAP
is to determine the balance between ammonia concentration and temperature to avoid
precipitation as well as ammonia slip. By only focusing on the regeneration duty one excludes
the energy required in order to manage ammonia slip from the absorber as well as the
regeneration column. This leaves a great uncertainty regarding the total amount of energy
required for CAP. Augustsson et al. (2016) claim in a simulation with 75% capture ratio that
with access to cold water the total energy penalty would be 2.2 MJ/kg CO2 however without
accessible water same input values resulted in a penalty increment of 0.4 MJ/kg CO2. Another
simulation by Voldsund et al. (2019) assumed the energy requirement for cooling water to 3.3
MJ/kg CO2 when the water was provided from a nearby cooling tower.
The energy efficiency at Sävenäs WTE plant was reduced with the same magnitude as MEA
(~10%) by direct heat recovery. The evaluated CAP solutions indicate the great potential of this
technology if cooling water is available to a low energy cost, preferably from a natural source.
Including the work required for compression reinforces CAP position as an interesting option
due to the operating conditions within the regenerator column.

26
5.4 Environmental impact assessment
Reducing the CO2 content in the flue gas output subsequentially changes the concentration of
other components as well. Table 11 displays the average concentrations on yearly basis for
elements which require continuous monitoring in 2018. The measured values are listed with the
corresponding value if CCS would have been implemented.
Table 11. Comparison of flue gas composition with and without CCS for continuously measured
components.

Unit1 Without CCS With CCS Guidelines2

3
NOx mg/Nm 16.7 18.7 50
CO mg/Nm3 17.6 19.7 50
3
Particulates mg/Nm 0.2 0.24 10
SO2 mg/Nm3 1.1 1.3 50
HCl mg/Nm3 0.3 0.36 10
3
NH3 mg/Nm 1.8 2.2 10
1
Dry gas basis with 11% O2 content.
2
For a time period of 24-hours (Renova, 2019).

Table 12 demonstrates the result from the impact assessment for both investigated carbon capture
technologies, detailed information regarding each individual key parameter in Figure 12 is found
in Appendix C. The environmental assessment was delimited by the lack of information and
published results from pilot-scale studies and investigations within the area. There is little
transparency regarding environmental impacts in the early development of capture technologies
and absorbent manufacturing hence the assessment was derived from a general perspective rather
than focusing on WTE plants alone.
Table 12. Environmental assessment of established key parameters for MEA and CAP carbon capture
technologies.

MEA CAP
Emission to atmosphere
Degradation products
Environmental impact
Hazardous to human health

The main impurities susceptible to react with the absorbents are SOx and NOx although most
degradation was correlated directly with the prevailing temperature causing heat-stable salts and
thermal degradation products from MEA. The flue gas at Sävenäs is characterized by very low
concentrations of SOx and NOx during normal process conditions and no additional flue gas
treatment action prior the carbon capture unit is feasible in order to prevent the formation of
stable salts or carcinogenic degradation products.

27
For MEA the long-term effects of exposure to degradation products (Nitrosamines) needs to be
further evaluated and extra caution should be taken in order to control emissions of nitrosamines.
A filter with activated carbon was installed at the pilot plant in Klemetsrud with satisfying results
(J. Thomassen, personal communication, 14 October 2019) and similar set-ups are found in the
literature as well (Tang & You, 2017) hence a similar solution would possibly be necessary for
Sävenäs as well. Determine the concentrations of nitrosamines in the flue gas primarily with and
later without a filter would indicate the efficiency and necessity of an activated carbon filter.
There are today no general guidelines for Nitrosamines emissions to air and individual guideline
values are stipulated ones the environmental permit is established in accordance with the Swedish
Environmental code (1998:808) (1998). Ammonia (NH3) is already today continuously
monitored as shown in Table 11.
The large amount of water required for washing the flue gases to avoid ammonia slip in the CAP
system will not only increase the energy penalty but also affect the water treatment facility at
Sävenäs and exceed current treatment capacity. The water could possibly be recirculated in a
closed system hence the total amount of fresh water intake would decrease. In addition to water
washes the CAP system require several coolers operating at temperatures <10ºC. The river
Säveån flows directly outside the power plant and could be an natural source for cooling water
however the average temperature of 10ºC on a yearly basis is, according to Jilvero (2014),
inadequate to achieve a viable CAP system.

5.5 Emission abatement

The reduction rate for each investigated carbon capture technology was set to 90% which is
conceivable for both MEA and CAP and therefore consequently the CO2 emission abatement
was equal regardless of the chosen method.
CCS technology incorporated with the reference flue gas treatment process captures a total of
104 000 tons per year. However, by considering the flue gas origin the fossil CO2 captured and
stored only accounts for about 37 000 ton while the rest origin from biogenic sources. The net
emission reduction in Table 13 was thereby derived from the total fossil mission at stack and
captured biogenic CO2. CCS technology would, due to the large fraction of biogenic content
in the waste mixture, convert Sävenäs WTE plant to a carbon sink.
Table 13. Calculated emission with and without CCS technology integrated at the reference flue gas
treatment process.

CO2 emissions Unit

Biogenic Fossil Total
Emission at ref. without CCS1 74 700 40 300 115 000 ton/year
Emissions avoided with CCS 67 200 36 700 103 500 ton/year
Emission with CCS 7 500 3 600 11 500 ton/year
Net Emission with CCS2 - 63 600 ton/year
Net Emission with CCS for
-300 000 ton/year
the entire WTE plant
1
Propotion of emissions for reference flue gas treatment process calculated from CO2 emission
between 2016-2018 for Sävenäs WTE plant (Renova, 2019).
2
Net emission calculated by the sum of biogenic and fossil emissions where captured biogenic
CO2 is considered an emission sink (net emission = fossil emissions – captured biogenic (Pour
et al., 2017)).

28
An integrated CCS process would, based on monitored CO2 emissions between 2016-2018,
result in a carbon sink capacity of 300 000 ton CO2 per year if all flue gas at Sävenäs WTE plant
were treated. However, the carbon sink definition has no legal support in Sweden and are not
applicable on WTE plants. A state founded investigation of bio-CCS and other carbon sink
activities are intended to be published shortly after the execution of this project. Although
potential carbon sink opportunities with bio-CCS are frequently discussed no legal framework
or official reports have yet been published regarding this matter (Dir. 2018:70, 2018).
In order to determine the best option for Sävenäs the emission abatement assessment was
expanded to include an evaluation of the optimal capture ratio based on total emissions expanded
over an entire year. As shown in Figure 16, emission avoided if CCS technology with 90%
capture ratio installed at two out of four flue gas treatment processes would result in negative net
emissions.

Fossil emission 50% CCS Net emission 50% CCS Fossil emission 100% CCS Net Emission 100% CCS
200000

100000

0
ton/year

-100000

-200000

-300000

-400000

Figure 16. Comparison of net emissions with CCS technology installed at 50% versus 100% of the existing
flue gas treatment processes at Sävenäs WTE plant where 50% represent 2/4 flue gas treatment process
and 100% represent 4/4 flue gas treatment processes. Net emission was calculated as follows; net emissions
= fossil emission – captured biogenic emission derived from 2018 CO2 emission record.

Further economic benefits would need to be established in order to make a CCS unit treating
all flue gas profitable compared to a unit treating half of the flue gas at Sävenäs WTE plant. Bio-
CCS credits were evaluated in a recent report from the Swedish environmental research institute
together with other suggestions of bio-CCS incentives (Zetterberg, Källmark, & Möllersten,
2019).
The CO2 emission abatement analysis prove that a 50% flue gas treatment is adequate enough to
achieve net zero emission and avoid the effect of increasing costs associated with the ETS. Instead
of installing a carbon capture unit for 50% treatment of the flue gases throughout the year another
solution could be to treat 100% of the flue gases during a shorter amount of time.

29
5.6 Cost Assessment
5.6.1 European trading system (ETS)
The question of economic viability for CCS technologies are, to some extent, dictated by the
ETS which is now under evaluation. Past variations may indicate future developments however
the system in its current form was adapted on the market 10 years ago and trends are difficult to
distinguish. The carbon price has rapidly increased during the past two years and in order to
further decarbonize the energy sector the amount of emission permits will continue to decrease
with 2.2% per year. The assumed price increment of 3% is lower than previous development
based on the assumption that large emission polluters will decrease their emissions by either
conversion to a biogenic source, carbon capture or partly electrify the production processes in
the future. Another driver for a non-rapid price increment is the risk of companies emigrating
out of the European Union to countries and regions with undeveloped environmental legislation
which offers CO2 emission to a much lower cost. Such scenario threatens the European economy
and will be avoided, if possible, by the union member states.
The reduction of free allowances in Figure 17 is lower than previous time period (2015-2020)
however the level is fixed during the forthcoming period hence the estimated rate of change
corresponds to the more recent development. Emissions of fossil origin have increased during
the last five years and the initial value was based on average CO2 emissions between 2016-2018.
A reduction of plastics in the waste mixture is to prefer and efforts of reduced plastic usage and
increased recycling is an ongoing project both national and international (Avfall Sverige
Utvecklingssatsning, 2018). However, in a recent report, Avfall Sverige suggests that if the
recycling capacity for all materials would increase simultaneously during the same period of time
then the fossil content in the waste mixture is expected to decrease between 4-12 wt.% until
year 2025 (Avfall Sverige, 2019a). The upper limit corresponds to great changes of incentives,
products and consumer habits thus a more modest development was assumed within this project.

Free Allowances (ton/year) Fossil Emissions 0% Fossil emission cost (MSEK/year)

250000 80

70
200000
60

50
150000
MSEK/year
ton/year

40

100000
30

20
50000
10

0 0
2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045

Figure 17. Economical assessment of costs derived from ETS emission penalties for Sävenäs WTE plant
with predicted development from year 2020 onwards for Free Allowances (-5% after 2030), Fossil
emission (-1%) and ETS emission permit costs (+3%).

30
5.6.2 Economic losses linked to the distribution of heat and electricity
The cost of CCS was derived from the corresponding loss of revenues associated with reduced
energy efficiency and consequentially reduced distribution of electricity and energy to the district
heating network. The price of electricity between summer and winter season showed only small
variations between 2014 and 2019 and the average price was estimated to about 380 SEK/MWh.
The average price for district heating distribution however increases from about 30 SEK/MWh
in summer to about 170 SEK/MWh in wintertime. In Figure 18 the loss of revenues was
compared between MEA and CAP and the associated heat recovery possibilities established from
energy balance calculations.

District Heating Summer (MSEK/year) Electricity Summer (MSEK/year)

District Heating Winter (MSEK/year) Electricity Winter (MSEK/year)
80

70

60
MSEK/year

50

40

30

20

10

0
MEA no recovery MEA DH MEA DH+HP CAP no recovery CAP DH CAP DH+HP

Figure 18. Loss of revenues calculated for Sävenäs WTE plant due to reduced heat and electricity
distribution with CCS technology capturing 90% of the total CO2 emissions in 2018. Possible heat
recovery associated with MEA and CAP are integration with district heating (DH) and/or heat-pumps
(HP). Diagram shows the economic penalty during summer, winter and whole year due to reduced
energy distribution.

The loss of revenue amounts to about 25% of total income for the most energy intensive method
(MEA with no recovery) based on the above-mentioned energy prices. The largest losses are
associated with heat distribution to the district heating network during wintertime. If, as
suggested in previous chapter, the carbon capture facility only operate during a certain period of
time then the loss of revenues in Figure 18 could be cut substantially due to the seasonal pricing
fluctuations.
The heating demand for households is limited to a period of 6 months and could in the future
decrease to a shorter period of time due to shorter winters. This makes carbon capture
technologies much more profitable during summertime while the steam is utilized for cooling
instead heating. Seasonal operation is already proven to be technically possible for MEA and is
already standard procedure at Dutch large-scale CCU pilot plant facilities which produces
sodium-bicarbonate and fertilizers for horticulture (AEB Amsterdam et al., 2019).

31
5.6.3 Sensitivity analysis of cost assessment
The accuracy of a cost assessment entirely based on previous pricing development under a short
period of time is considered inadequate for this project however available data was the limiting
factor. A sensitivity analysis was performed in order to address the uncertainties of which the
assessment was derived upon and visualize the effects associated with the input variables in Table
14. The effects associated with fluctuating district heating demand was investigated with respect
to the effects associated with integrated CCS technologies. The investigated ETS variables were
calculated with current process configurations i.e no CCS technology.
Table 14. Rate of change for variables considered in the sensitivity analysis for cost assessment.

Unit Interval
ETS Free Allowances reduction1 % per year -15, -10, -5, 0
ETS Emission price increase2 % per year 0, 2, 4, 6
3
Fossil Emission % per year -1, 0, 1, 2
District heating pricing (Winter)4 SEK/MWh 150, 170, 190
1
Initial value for ETS Free allowances are 70 000 free allowances between 2020-2029.
2
Initial value for ETS emission price based on market price year 2019.
3
Initial value for fossil emission based on measurements 2018.
4
With summer price set to 25 SEK/MWh.
The expected loss of revenue due to increased internal utilization of steam and electricity was,
as shown in Figure 19, derived from the district heating distribution between October to March
due to elevated heating demand during the coldest months of the year. A higher rate of heat
recovery increases the resilience against fluctuating pricing as shown in Figure 19. The demand
of district heating was assumed to be maintained due to future urbanization hence the price
variations in Table 14 were small. Shorter winters are however expected due to climate change
with an expected on average temperature rise of 2 degrees between 2020-2045 in the
Gothenburg area (SMHI, 2019). Such development will consequentially reduce the overall
revenues on a yearly basis despite maintained pricing at wintertime.

MEA MEA DH MEA DH+HP CAP CAP DH CAP DH+HP

60

50
Loss (MSEK/year)

40

30

20

10

0
150 170 190
District heating price (SEK/MWh)

Figure 19. Loss of revenue calculated for heat distribution to district heat system and rate of change due
to fluctuating price (SEK/MWh). Comparison of MEA and CAP based on possible degree of heat
recovery; MEA/CAP (no recovery), DH (district heating recovery), DH+HP (recovery by district
heating and heat pump installations).

32
The cost of emitting fossil CO2 was investigated with respect to indicated amount of free
allowances between 2020-2029 (Renova, personal communication, 19 December 2019) and
estimated rate of change between 2030 and 2045. The other input variables, emission pricing
and fossil emission, were unmodified during the investigated time period with the initial values
corresponding to present data with no CCS technology installed. As shown in Figure 20 the
initial cost associated with ETS are about 33 MSEK which corresponds to 77 000 free allowances
per year. The upper limit (-15%) corresponds to previous reduction of free allowances for
Sävenäs WTE plant while the lowest reduction (0%) would be applied in an attempt to maintain
the energy production price at current levels for WTE plants which is more likely to be
applicable hence the free allowances between 2020 and 2029 follows that trend.

ETS Free Allowances -15%/year ETS Free Allowances -10%/year

ETS Free Allowances -5%/year ETS Free Allowances 0%/year
60

50

40
Cost (MSEK)

30

20

10

0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045

Figure 20. Estimated ETS Free allowances given to Sävenäs with maintained ETS emission prices and
fossil emission levels at 25 EUR/ton CO2 and 200 000 ton CO2/year respectively. Comparison between
four different scenarios with an altered free allowance reduction between 0-15% on a yearly basis from
2030 and forward.

The cost of emitting 1 ton of CO2 was investigated with respect to estimated rate of change
between 2020 and 2045 (Figure 21). The amount of free allowances given to Sävenäs WTE
plant as well as fossil emission were maintained at current levels during the investigated period
of time. The initial cost of 261 SEK/ton CO2 corresponds to the price in 2019 (25 EUR) with
an estimated exchange rate of 10.7 SEK/EUR. The lower rate of change (0%) in Figure 21
corresponds to the long- and short-term effects associated with recession and Brexit respectively
that could affect the overall pricing development during this period of time. The upper limit
(+6%) represent the rate of change promoted by Thomson Reuters (2014), however their
scenario analysis focused on the period between 2014 and 2030, further development were not
discussed. The ETS market is sensitive to a variety of external activities and has the ability to
rapidly change compared to the other input variable associated with the total cost of CO2
emissions for Sävenäs WTE plant, thus it is difficult to predict.

33
 ETS Price 0%/year ETS Price +2%/year
ETS Price +4%/year ETS Price +6%/year
180
160
140
120
Cost (MSEK)

100
80
60
40
20
0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045

Figure 21. Comparison of ETS pricing scenarios based on a price level increment between 0-7.5% on
yearly basis with the initial price of 25 EUR/ton CO2 with an exchange rate of 10.7 SEK/EUR. Free
allowances and fossil emission levels are maintained at 77 000 ton CO2/year and 200 000 ton CO2/year
respectively during the same period of time.

Fossil emissions primarily correspond to the amount of plastic in the waste mixture at WTE
plants. In Figure 22, the upper limit (+2%) corresponds to the development from previous years
(2016-2018) at Sävenäs WTE plant while the lower limit (-1%) is associated with the estimated
development in Avfall Sverige's (2019b) report, if suggested incentives were to be applied.

Fossil Emission -1%/year Fossil Emission 0%/year

Fossil Emission +1%/year Fossil Emission +2%/year
80

70

60
Cost (MSEK)

50

40

30

20

10

0
2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045

Figure 22. Investigated scenarios with respect to fossil emission for Sävenäs WTE plant without CCS
technology. Initial fossil CO2 emission levels was based on monitored values between 2016-2018 while
the other input variables; Free allowances and price, were maintained at 77 000 ton CO2/year 2020 and
25EUR/ton CO2 year 2019.

34
8 CONCLUSIONS
Absorptions technologies were found to be the most viable option for carbon capturing at
Sävenäs WTE plant. The technologies found suitable for the characteristics of the reference flue
gas treatment were Monoethanolamine (MEA) and chilled ammonia processing (CAP). The
results from the following analysis regarding energy requirement, environmental impact and cost
associated with energy withdrawal showed great differences between the two technologies.
Energy Performance. MEA technology offers an energy intensive but well-established process
compared to other absorption technologies. Retrofitting MEA to Sävenäs WTE flue gas
treatment process offers several heat recovery options which reduces the final energy penalty
from 32% to 12% and additional energy utilization will not jeopardize the position as a WTE
plant according to R1 standard. The energy requirement for CAP was established to represent
22% of the energy production at Sävenäs. By primarily direct heat recovery with present district
heating network this energy requirement was decreased to 10%.
Environmental Impact. Degradation products due to thermal or oxidative degradation from
MEA, nitrosamines, and ammonia from CAP absorption processes increase the risk of
eutrophication if emissions to air are not managed accordingly. Nitrosamines are potentially
carcinogenic, and the process requires additional flue gas treatment by non-selective adsorbents,
for example activated carbon. Ammonia slip is a documented problem with CAP and in order
to maintain emission below prevailing requirements several water wash units are required in
order to capture and recycle the absorbent back into the process.
Emission Abatement and Cost Assessment. If captured biogenic CO2 is considered as negative
emissions, then the WTE plant would achieve carbon neutrality even by operating only six
months per year due to the high fraction of biogenic content in the fuel mixture. This stipulates
the benefit of carbon capture in order to convert Sävenäs WTE plant to a carbon sink. Seasonal
operations are already proven feasible at large pilot-scale plants for MEA absorption (AEB
Amsterdam et al., 2019).
From an energy performance perspective, a CAP system would be the most viable option based
on the calculated mass and energy balances. However, in order to proceed with the calculations,
for both MEA and CAP, some estimated values and simplifications of chemical reactions were
applied. One should also keep in mind the volatility of ammonia and the extensive use of cooling
water necessary to operate such system in order to control ammonia slip. Sävenäs WTE plant’s
location rather than its flue gas treatment process opposes an integration of a CAP system due to
lack of a natural cold-water supply. Based on this study, the most viable option for Sävenäs WTE
plant is to install a MEA capture process which treats all flue gas at the plant and primarily
operates during summertime until bio-CCS incentives are applied.

35
8.1 Further research
Some questions encountered during the workflow of this master thesis project were left
unanswered due to the established limitations in the project scope. Further research is still
encouraged although the subject of the questions did not match this project aims and objectives.
Suggestions for further research is;
1. Investigate transportation and storage options in this region and nationwide as well as
possible collaboration alternatives for Sävenäs WTE plant.
2. Include investment costs (CAPEX) and operational costs (OPEX) to the cost assessment.
3. Carbon dioxide utilization where only briefly disused in this report and the extent of
applications could be further evaluated in order to assess the economic and environmental
influences it may have contra a carbon dioxide storage procedure.
Finally, new absorbing solvents and carbon capture technologies are rapidly developed hence a
similar project scope could be performed in a near future to, again, monitor state-of-the-art
carbon capture technologies and their applications.

36
9 REFERENCES

Aaron, D., & Tsouris, C. (2011). Seperation of CO2 from flue gas: A review. Seperation
Science and Technology, 2005(40: 1-3), 321–348.
AEB Amsterdam, AVR, Linde Group, & HVC. (2019, September 19). Could carbon capture
and usage initiatives at waste to energy facilities qualify for support from the EU
innovation fund? EU DG for Climate Action, CO2ValueEurope, Brussels.
Altway, A., Susianto, S., Suprapto, S., Nurkhamidah, S., Farihatin Nisa, N. I., Hardiyanto, F.,
Mulya, H. R., & Altway, S. (2015). Modeling and simulation of CO2 absorption into
promoted aqueous potassium carbonate solution in industrial scale packed column.
Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering and Catalysis, 2015(10), 111–124.
Amrollahi, Z., Ertesvåg, I. S., & Bolland, O. (2010). Thermodynamic analysis on post-
combustion CO2 capture of natural-gas-fired power plant. International Journal of
Greenhouse Gas Control, 2011(5), 422–426.
Anderson, C., Ho, M., Harkin, T., Wiley, D., & Hooper, B. (2014). Large scale economics of
a precipitating potassium carbonate CO" capture process for black coal power
generation. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology, 2014(4), 8–19.
Augustsson, O., Baburao, B., Dube, S., Bedell, S., Strunz, P., Balfe, M., & Stallmann, O.
(2016). Chilled Ammonia Process Scale-up and Lessons Learned. Energy Procedia,
2017(114), 5593–5615.
Avfall Sverige. (2019a). Bränslekvalitet—Nuläge och scenarier för sammansättning av restavfall
till år 2025 (2019:27). Avfall Sverige Utvecklingssatsning.
Avfall Sverige. (2019b). Avfallsförbränning för framtida behov: Scenarioanalys och
handlingsplaner (2019:06 ISSN 1103-4092). Avfall Sverige Utvecklingssatsning.
Avfall Sverige Utvecklingssatsning. (2018). Hur når vi en fossilfri avfallsförbränning? (2018:28).
SFS 2011:927, § Bilaga 2 (2011). https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-
lagar/dokument/svensk-forfattningssamling/avfallsforordning-2011927_sfs-2011-927
Badr, S., Hungerbuehler, K., & Papadokonstantakis, S. (2016). A framework for
environmental, health and safety hazard assessment for amine-based post combustion
CO2 capture. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2017(56), 202–220.
Bae, Y.-S., & Snurr, R. Q. (2011). Development and Evaluation of Porous Materials for
Crabon Dioxide Seperation and Capture. Angewandte Chemie INternational Edition,
2011(50), 11586–11596. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201101891
Bains, P., Psarras, P., & Wilcox, J. (2017). CO2 capture from the industry sector. Progress in
Energy and Combustion Science, 2017(63), 146–172.
Bolland, O. (2013, September). CO2 capture in power plants, part 4—Absorption.
Borhani, T. N. G., Azarpour, A., Akbari, V., Alwi, A. R. W., & Abdul Manan, Z. (2015).
CO2 capture with potassium carbonate solutions: A state-of-the-art review.
International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2015(41), 142–162.
CENR. (2000, June). Atmospheriv Ammonia: Sources and Fate. A Review of Ongoing
Federal Research and Future Needs. CENR Air quality research subcomittee.
Chahen, L., Huard, T., Cuccia, L., Dugay, J., Pichon, V., Vial, J., Gouedard, C., Bonnard, L.,
Cellier, N., & Carrette, P.-L. (2016). CO2 capture pilot plant identification of novel

37
 degradation products in gaseous effluents. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas
Control, 2016(51), 305–316.
Chahen, L., Huard, T., Cuccia, Lorena, Dugay, J., Pichon, V., Vial, J., Gouedard, C.,
Bonnard, L., Cellier, N., & Carrette, P.-L. (2016). Comprehensive monitoring of
MEA degradation in a post-combustion CO2 capture pilot plant with identification of
novel degradation products in gaseous effluents. International Journal of Greenhouse
Gas Control, 2016(51), 305–316.
Choi, S., Drese, J. H., & Jones, C. W. (2009). Adsorbent Materials for Carbon Dioxide
Capture from Large Anthropogenic Point Sources. ChemSusChem, 2009(2), 796–854.
https://doi.org/10.1002/ccsc.200900036
Darde, V., Maribo-Morgensen, B., van Well, W. . J. M., Stenby, E. H., & Thomsen, K.
(2012). Process simulation of CO2 capture with aqueous ammonia using extended
UNIQUAC model. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2012(10), 74–
87.
Darde, V., Thomsen, K., van Well, W. . J. M., & Stenby, E. H. (2009). Chilled ammonia
process for CO2 capture. Energy Procedia, 2009(1), 1035–1042.
Dave, N., Do, T., Puxty, G., Rowland, R., Feron, P. H. M., & Attalla, M. I. (2009). CO2
capture by aqueous amines and aqueous ammonia—A comparison. Energy Procedia,
2009(1), 949–954.
Dean, C. C., Blamey, J., Florian, N. H., Al-Jeboori, M. J., & Fennell, P. S. (2011). The
calcium looping cycle for CO2 capture from power generation, cement manufacture
and hydrogen production. Chemical Engineering Research and Design, 2011(89),
836–855.
Dir. 2014:165. (2015). Förslag till klimatpolitiskt ramverk för Sverige (Tilläggsdirektiv till
Målsberedningen (M 2010:04) M2010:04). Miljödepartementet.
Dir. 2018:70. (2018). Kompletterande åtgärder för att nå negativa utsläpp av växthusgaser
(Kommittedirektiv 2018:70). Miljödepartementet.
DN Debatt. (2019, May 27). DN Debatt ‘Koldioxidlagring kan enkelt halvera utsläppen i
Sverige’. Dagens Nyheter. https://www.dn.se/debatt/koldioxidlagring-kan-enkelt-
halvera-utslappen-i-sverige/
Equinor. (2019). Northern lights project concept report (Public RE-PM673-00001).
Guidlines of the interpretation of the R1 energy efficiency formula for incineration facilities
dedicated to pocessing of municipal solid waste according to annex II of directive
2008/98/EC on waste, Directive 2008/98/EC (2008).
European commission. (2011). Energy roadmap 2050.
European commission. (2016). The EU Emission Trading System (Climate Action).
https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/ets_en#Main_legislation
Feron, P. H. M. (2016). Absorption-based post-combustion capture of carbon dioxide (Vol.
2016). Woodhead Publishing.
Hilz, J., Haaf, M., Helbig, M., Lindqvist, N., Ströhle, J., & Epple, B. (2019). Scale-up of the
carbonate looping process to a 20 MW pilot plant based on long-term pilot tests.
International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2019(88), 332–341.
Inna, K., & Svendsen, Hallvard. F. (2007). Heat of absorption of carbon dioxide in
Monoethanolamine. Chemical Engineering Research and Design, 2007(46 (17)),
5803–5809.
38
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2005). IPCC Special report on Carbon dioxine
Capture and Storage.
Jilvero, H. (2014). Ammonia as an absorbent of carbon dioxide in post-combustion capture
[Doctoral Thesis]. Department of Energy and Environment.
Jilvero, H., Normann, F., Andersson, K., & Johnson, F. (2011, May 17). Heat requirement of
CO2 absorption by aqueous ammonia. 1st Post Combustion Capture Conference, Adu
Dhabi.
Johnsson, F., & Kjärstad, J. (2019). Avskiljning, transport och lagring av koldioxid i Sverige—
Behov av forskning och demostration. Institutionen för rymd-, geo-, och
miljövetenskap, Chalmers Tekniska Högskola.
Knudsen, J. N., Jensen, J. N., Vilhelmsen, P.-J., & Biede, O. (2009). Experience with CO2
capture from coal flue gas in pilot-scale: Testing of different amine solvents. Energy
Procedia, 2009(1), 783–790.
Komaki, A., Gotou, T., Uchida, T., Yamada, T., Kiga, T., & Spero, C. (2014). Operational
erxperiences of oxyfuel power plant in Callide oxyfuel project. Energy Procedia,
2014(63), 490–496.
Koytsoumpa, E. I., Bergins, C., & Kakaras, E. (2018). The CO2 economy: Review of CO2
capture and reuse technologies. The Journal of Supercritical Fluids, 132, 3–16.
Leung, D. Y. C., Caramanna, G., & Maroto-Valer, M. M. (2014). An overview of current
status of carbon dioxide capture and storage technologies. Renewable and Sustainable
Energy Reviews, 2014(39), 426–443.
Li, K., Cousins, A., Yu, H., Feron, P., Tade, M., Luo, W., & Chen, J. (2015). Systematic
study of aqueous monoethanolamine-based CO2 capture process: Model development
and process improvment. Energy Science and Engineering, 2016(4), 23–39.
Luo, X., & Wang, M. (2018). Optimal operation of MEA-based post-combustion carbon
apture process for natural gas combined cycle power plants. Green Energy and
Technology, 1(1), 1377–1391.
Mac Dowell, N., & Shah, N. (2013). Identification of the cost-optimal degree of CO2
capture: An optimisation study using dynamic process models. International Journal of
Greenhouse Gas Control, 13(2013), 44–58.
Mac Dowell, Niall, Florin, N., Buchard, A., Hallett, J., Galindo, A., Jackson, G., Adjiman, C.
S., Williams, C. K., Shah, N., & Fennell, P. (2010). An overview of CO2 capture
technologies. Energy and Environmental Science, 2010(11), 1645–1669.
Markets Insider. (2019, October 29). CO2 European emission allowances—Price commodity.
Markets Insider. https://markets.businessinsider.com/commodities/co2-european-
emission-allowances
Mathias, P. M., Reddy, S., & O’Connell, J. P. (2009). Quantitative evaluation of chilled-
ammonia preocess for CO2 capture using thermodynamic analysis and process
simulation. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2010(4), 174–179.
SFS 2013:253, 2013:253 (2013). riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-lagar/dokument/svensk-
forfattningssamling/forordning-2013253-om-forbranning-av-avfall_sfs-2013-253
NIST Chemistry WebBook. (1998). Gas phase heat capacity (Shomate Equation). National
Institute of Standards and Technology. https://webbook.nist.gov/chemistry/
NIST Chemistry WebBook. (2018). Monoethanolamine. National Institute of Standards and
Technology. https://webbook.nist.gov/cgi/cbook.cgi?ID=C141435&Mask=6FF
39
Notz, R., Mangalapally, Hari. P., & Hasse, H. (2011). Post combustion CO2 capture by
reactive absorption: Pilot plant description and results of systematic studies with MEA.
International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2012(6), 84–112.
Pardakhti, M., Jafari, T., Tobin, Z., Dutta, B., Moharreri, E., Shemshaki, N. S., Suib, S., &
Srivastava, R. (2019). Trends in solid adsorbent materials development for CO2
capture. Applied Materials and Interfaces, 2019(11), 34533–34559.
Petrescu, L., & Cormos, C.-C. (2017). Environmental assessment of IGCC power plants with
pre-combustion CO2 capture by chemical and calcium looping. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 2017(158), 233–244.
Porter, R. T. J., Fairweather, M., Kloster, C., Mac Dowell, N., Shah, N., & Woolley, R. M.
(2016). Cost and performance of some carbon capture technology options for
producing different quality CO2 product streams. International Journal of Greenhouse
Gas Control, 2017(57), 185–195.
Pour, N., Webley, P. A., & Cook, P. J. (2017). Potential for using municipal solid waste as a
resource for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). International Journal
of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2018(68), 1–15.
Q.F. Araujo, O., & Maderios, J. L. (2017). Carbon capture and storage technologies: Present
scenario and drivers of innovation. Current Opinion in Chemical Engineering,
2017(17), 22–34.
Qin, F., Wang, S., Kim, I., & Svendsen, Hallvard. F. (2011). Heat of absorption of CO2 in
aqueous ammonia and ammonium carbonate/carbamate solutions. International Journal
of Greenhouse Gas Control, 2011(5), 405–412.
Renova. (2018). Hållbarhetsredovisning.
Renova. (2019). Miljörapport 2018 fr avfallskraftvärmeverket och sorteringsanläggningen, inkl.
Återvinningscentralen och anläggningen för farligt avfall vid Sävenäs (Diarie
nr.0120/19).
Renova. (2019, December 19). ETS free allowances prediction [Personal communication].
Selin, Dr. N. E. (2011). Environmental Guidelines and Regulations for nitrosamines: A policy
summary for CO2 technology centre Mongstad. Final repprt (rev.2). Engineering
system division and department of earth, atmospheric adn planetary science.
Environmental code (1998:808), Pub. L. No. 1998:808 (1998).
https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-lagar/dokument/svensk-
forfattningssamling/miljobalk-1998808_sfs-1998-808
Shakerian, F., Kim, K.-H., Szulejko, J. E., & Park, J.-W. (2015). A comparative review
between amines and ammonia as sorptive media for post-combustion CO2 capture.
Applied Energy, 2015(148), 10–22.
Shao, R., & Stangeland, A. (2009). Bellona report: Amines used in CO2 capture—Health and
Environmental Impacts [Bellona].
SMHI. (2019, July 12). Förändring av vinterns medeltemperatur i Västra Götalands län,
scenario RCP4.5. https://www.smhi.se/klimat/framtidens-
klimat/klimatscenarier/sweden/county/vastra-gotalands/rcp45/winter/temperature
Smith, K. H., Nicholas, N. J., & Stevens, G. W. (2016). Absorption-based post-combustion
capture of carbon dioxide (Vol. 2016). Woodhead Publishing.
Smith, K., Xiao, G., Mumford, K., Gouw, J., Indrawan, I., Thanumurthy, N., Quyn, D.,
Curhbertson, R., Rayar, A., Nicholas, N., Lee, A., da Silva, G., Kentish, S., Harkin,
40
 T., Qader, A., Anderson, C., Hooper, B., & Stevens, G. (2014). Demonstration of a
concentrated potassium carbonate process for CO2 capture. Energy Fuels, 2014(28),
299–306.
Strömberg, L., Lindgren, G., Jacoby, J., Giering, R., Anheden, M., Burchhardt, U., Altmann,
H., Kluger, F., & Stamatelopoulos, G.-N. (2009). Update on Vattenfalls 30 MWth
Oxyfuel Pilot plant in Schwarze Pumpe. Energy Procedia, 2009(1), 581–589.
Svensk Ventilation. (2019). Olika typer av värmeväxlare. Branshorganistaionen Svensk
Ventilation.
Svt nyheter. (2019, October 26). Koldioxfri cement kan bli verklighet. SVT
Nyheter/Vetenskap. https://www.svt.se/nyheter/vetenskap/koldioxidfri-cement-kan-
bli-verklighet
Tang, Y., & You, F. (2017). Multicriteria environmental and economic analysis of municipal
solid waste incineration power plant with carbon capture and seperation from life-cycle
perspective. ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering, 2018(6), 937–956.
Thomassen, J. (2019, October 14). Fortum CCS pilot plant at Klemetsrud MSW power plant
[Personal communication].
Thomson Reuters. (2014). The MSR: Impact on market balance and prices. POINT
CARBON.
https://ec.europa.eu/clima/sites/clima/files/docs/0094/thomson_reuters_point_carbo
n_en.pdf
Ulrich, K. T. (2012). Product Design and Development (5 edition).
Valenti, G., Bonalumi, D., & Macchi, E. (2009). Energy and exergy analyses for the carbon
capture with the Chilled Ammonia Process (CAP). Energy Procedia, 2009(1), 1059–
1066.
Voldsund, M., Gardarsdottir, S. O., De Lena, E., Pérez-Calvo, J.-F., Jamali, A., Berstad, D.,
Fu, C., Romano, M., Roussanaly, S., Anantharaman, R., Hoppe, H., Sutter, D.,
Mazzotti, M., Gazzani, M., Cinti, G., & Jordal, K. (2019). Comparision of
Technologies for CO2 capture from Cement Production—Part 1: Technical
Evaluation. Energies, 2019(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/en12030559
Wilcox, J. (2012). Carbon Capture (1st ed.). Springer science+Business media.
Zetterberg, L., Källmark, L., & Möllersten, K. (2019). Incitament och finansiering av Bio-CCS
i Sverige (C 417). IVL Svenska miljöinstitutet.

41
APPENDIX A
This appendix chapter covers a complete description of each individual post-combustion
technology included in the initial literature study summarized in Chapter 3.2.

A1 Absorption
Carbon capture with an absorption process is derived from the conversion of CO2 from gas phase
into liquid phase by reactions between water and reactive sorbents which selectively absorbed
CO2. This is followed by a stripping step where the solvent is regenerated resulting in a purified
CO2 gas stream. The stripper temperature is limited to the regeneration temperature as well as
the thermal degradation temperature of the absorbent (Wilcox, 2012).
Absorption processes are characterized by the mass-transfer steps of CO2 from gas to liquid phase
as shown in Figure 23. CO2 dissolves into the liquid-gas interface and diffuses with the absorbents
in liquid phase before the subsequently chemical reaction occur.

Figure 23. Phase changes and driving forces of CO2 in an absorption process.

A1.1 Monoethanolamine
Amine are derivatives from ammonia where the hydrogen atom(s) is replaced by carbon in the
molecule chain. The reaction kinetics of CO2 in aqueous solution with amines are depending
upon the reaction between CO2 and water as well as CO2 and amine. Amine absorption of CO2
is a complex reaction where the reaction product of Equation A1.1.1 is short-lived thus a
carbamate bond between the CO2 and nitrogen atoms is formed instantaneously according to
Equation A1.1.2, which is called the primary amine (𝑅2 𝑁𝐶𝑂2− ) (Wilcox, 2012).
𝐶𝑂2 + 𝑅2 𝑁𝐻 ↔ 𝑅2 𝑁𝐻 + 𝐶𝑂2− (A1.1.1)
𝑅2 𝑁𝐻 + 𝐶𝑂2− + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 𝑅2 𝑁𝐶𝑂2− + 𝐻3 𝑂+ (A1.1.2)
Amine absorption is a mature technology and is used by several large-scale post-combustion
project globally, mainly for natural gas separation or for natural gas fired plants (Wilcox, 2012).
Amines used for CCS technologies are usually, but not limited to, Monoethanolamine (MEA)
the most benchmarked post-combustion method to which new absorption formulas are being
compared to (Chahen, Huard, Cuccia, et al., 2016). The dilemma with MEA, as Aaron &
Tsouris (2011) describes it, is to accomplish the optimal balance between energy requirement
and solvent activity. It is possible to lower the energy requirement further at the absorption phase
by forming strong bonds with the CO2 at low temperatures using reactive solvents. But in order
to break the bonds and regenerate the solvents an extensive temperature raise is needed, hence
the overall energy penalty will become larger than the original option discussed. Energy
efficiency and capture rates are in favor for the less reactive MEA and efforts are being made to
optimize the chemical properties (Notz et al., 2011; Shakerian et al., 2015).

42
The largest fraction is associated with the regeneration process. Li et al. (2015) divides the energy
requirement at the desorption process into three separate categories; Heat of desorption, sensible
heat and heat of vaporization. In order to optimize these heat requirements, temperature
differences within the process in- and outputs are depleted, MEA concentrations increased and
vaporization of H2O decreased. However, these configurations are delimited by corrosion
factors, mass flow rates and maintaining CO2 reduction rates thus the absorption process is a very
complex process.
It is widely known that flue gas impurities O2, SO2 and NOx react with the amines and form
heat stable salts which interfere with the CO2 capture rate (Choi et al., 2009). Degradation of
MEA, pre-dominantly oxidative, are subsequently creating by-products such as nitrosamines
which are investigated for its carcinogenic abilities and hazardous long-term effects (Badr et al.,
2016; Chahen, Huard, Cuccia, Lorena, et al., 2016).

A1.2 Ammonia
Another option is using aqueous ammonia as a solvent in Alstroms chilled ammonia process
(CAP) or in an aqueous ammonia process. CO2 gas reacts with dissolved ammonia carbonate
(NH4)2CO3 and ammonia bicarbonate NH4HCO3 and a temperature and concentration
dependent speciation is formed (Feron, 2016). The CAP system operates with the revisable
formation of ammonium bicarbonate in the form of solids or non-solids (Eq. A1.2.1).
𝐶𝑂2 + 𝑁𝐻3 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 𝑁𝐻4 𝐻𝐶𝑂3 (A1.2.1)
However, to fully understand the reactions within the absorber one need to consider all the
interactions between the CO2, H2O and NH3. Primary the ammonium bicarbonate is derived
from Eq. A1.2.2 – A1.2.6.
𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 𝐻𝐶𝑂3− (A1.2.2)
𝑁𝐻3 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 𝑁𝐻4+ + 𝑂𝐻 − (A1.2.3)
𝑁𝐻4+ + 𝐻𝐶𝑂3− ↔ 𝑁𝐻4 𝐻𝐶𝑂3 (A1.2.4)
𝐶𝑂2 + 2𝑁𝐻3 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ (𝑁𝐻4 )2 𝐶𝑂3 (A1.2.5)
𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂 + (𝑁𝐻4 )2 𝐶𝑂3 ↔ 2𝑁𝐻4 𝐻𝐶𝑂3 (A1.2.6)
In addition, the ammonium bicarbonate is also reacting with aqueous ammonia in a reversible
reaction with ammonium carbamate (Eq. A1.2.7).
𝑁𝐻3 + 𝑁𝐻4 𝐻𝐶𝑂3 ↔ 𝑁𝐻2 𝐶𝑂𝑂𝑁𝐻4 (A1.2.7)
The ammonia is regenerated in the stripper and returned to the absorption column. The rich
CO2 gas is washed with water to recover vaporized ammonia and is then compressed and cooled
into liquid phase. Ammonia residues from the absorption in the remaining flue gas is also treated
by water washing before exiting through the stack. Jilvero (2014) says that the CAP processes
are shifting from precipitation of solids towards conditions for liquid phase due to previous
operational difficulties, a statement backed up by Augustsson et al. (2016) and Feron (2016).

43
Augustsson (2016) claims that the benefits of precipitate solid ammonium bicarbonate are
diminished when derived from net-energy calculations at pilot-scale operations as well as causing
stability issues. The mentioned issues are referring to the formation of ammonium bicarbonate
along the walls of the absorber column which is supported by experiments at laboratory scale by
Aaron (2011).
The state of the product is controlled by the CO2 loading which for a solid product exceeds the
solubility limit for ammonia while for non-solid product the CO2 loading is kept below the
crystallization point. However by increasing the solvent temperature to avoid precipitates the
loss of NH3 concentration in the gaseous effluent increases which subsequentially require further
treatment and regeneration steps (Feron, 2016).
The use of ammonia instead of amines has in some studies achieved higher absorption rates and
lower regeneration energy compared to MEA (Aaron & Tsouris, 2011; Shakerian et al., 2015).
Ammonia is also more durable and do not suffer from degradation to the same extent as amines
(Niall Mac Dowell et al., 2010; Shakerian et al., 2015).
The technological center of Mongstad offers carbon capture facilities with CAP for pilot-scale
testing in Norway which is the largest testing facility in the world where Augustsson et al. (2016)
among other scientists have conducted their research. The CAP technology was also successfully
demonstrated in Americas Electric Power Mountaineer Plant in 2011 (Feron, 2016).

A1.3 Hot Potassium Carbonate

The inorganic salt potassium carbonate (K2CO3) is soluble in water hence it dissolves in water as
free predominantly potassium ions (K+) and carbonate (CO32-). In order to understand the
following absorption reactions the chemical interactions between CO2 and H2O needs to be
considered accordingly to Eq. A1.3.1.
𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 𝐻 + + 𝐻𝐶𝑂3− (A1.3.1)
The formation of bicarbonate (HCO3-) is pH dependent and the predominant specie between
6.5-10.3 (Borhani et al., 2015; K. H. Smith et al., 2016). The overall stochiometric reaction for
carbon capture is described in Eq. A1.3.2 with precipitation of potassium carbonate KHCO3.
𝐾2 𝐶𝑂3 + 𝐶𝑂2 + 𝐻2 𝑂 ↔ 2𝐾𝐻𝐶𝑂3 (A1.3.2)
The reaction is considered slower compared to amines thus larger equipment is needed (K. H.
Smith et al., 2016). It is however, according to Altway et al. (2015), common practice to add a
promoter to the K2CO3 solution in order to accelerate the absorption rate. Inorganic promoters
are durable and relatively non-sensitive to impurities in the flue gas. The range of suitable in-
organic promoters is limited to the ability to form stable oxyanions in water and reactivity
towards Ca2+. Although several compounds fulfill the requirements a purely inorganic promoter
system is not yet developed due to toxicity (Arsenite) or inefficient concentration capacity
(Vanadate) (K. H. Smith et al., 2016). In order to enhance the reaction rate amine promoters
have been successfully studied and offers a viable option for carbon capture. The main
disadvantages with amine promoters are the reduction of active species due to formation of
carbamate ions where HCO3- concentration exceeds the amine concentration (K. H. Smith et
al., 2016).

44
Corrosion is a documented problem however Altway et al. (2015) successfully used Vanadin as
an corrosion inhibitor which is confirmed by other Hot Potassium Carbonate (HPC) studies
(Borhani et al., 2015). There is a wide range of different inhibitors and one should pay attention
to the novelty of the blends.
The HPC operates in a similar process set-up as amines however the operational temperatures
are different. From Altway et al. (2015) mathematical modeling lean solution temperatures
ranged between 60-70 ºC for >97% absorption rates as higher temperatures result in lower gas
solubility constant. The cooperative research center for greenhouse gas technologies (CO2CRC)
have developed a technology which operates at conditions which facilitates precipitation of
potassium bicarbonate. This technology provides a lower solvent circulation flow and
subsequentially a lower regeneration energy requirement (Anderson et al., 2014; K. Smith et al.,
2014).
HPC is considered a more environmental benign alternative due to its non-toxic properties and
degradation resistance compared to MEA. Flue gas impurities SOx and NOx form potassium
sulfite (K2SO4) and potassium nitrite (KNO3) commonly used as fertilizer and legalized for food
additive in the EU respectively (Anderson et al., 2014).

A2 Adsorption
Adsorption processes aims to separate the CO2 from the flue gas by selectively adsorbing the
CO2 molecules onto porous element surfaces. CO2 gas molecules have a quadrupolar moment
initiated by interactive and repulsive electrostatic forces between the molecule elements hence
it is possible to adsorb CO2 by polar crystalline structures. The reaction is divided into two
categories; Physisorption or Chemisorption, depending on the bonding between the adsorbent
and the adsorbate. Wilcox (2012) describes the pre-dominant characteristics of physisorption as
van-der-waals forces, mono- or multilayered, rapid and reversible reaction with no electron
transfer and an adsorption heat about three times lower than the latent heat. A chemisorption
reaction is characterized by covalent bonds, only monolayer with electron transfers hence the
reaction is slower relative the physisorption reaction. The adsorption heat is pre-dominantly
three time higher than the latent heat although exceptions do occur.
The reaction rate is either controlled by a temperature swing adsorption (TSA) or pressure swing
adsorption (PSA). At a TSA process pressure is constant and increasing temperature result in a
lower equilibrium loading rate of CO2 per unit mass sorbent and subsequently regeneration of
the adsorbent. Regeneration temperatures may cause degradation (Choi et al., 2009; Wilcox,
2012). A PSA process alters the partial pressure while the temperature is stable, adsorption take
place at pressurized conditions where the adsorbent partial pressure is increased through
compression. The adsorbent is later regenerated by depressurizing the flue gas stream (Wilcox,
2012).

45
A2.1 Physisorption materials
Sorbents for physisorption reaction includes inorganic materials zeolite and activated carbon as
well as designed material with a metal/organic framework.
Zeolites are a group of aluminosilicates with a porous crystalline structure where aluminum
anions within the framework creates a polar structure. H2O has a higher polarity than CO2 and
may consequently interfere with the CO2 adsorption rate. Wilcox (2012) state that H2O content
in flue gas is the largest challenge associated with zeolite carbon separation. The competition
with H2O is also agreed upon by S. Choi (2009) who claims that higher CO2 feed concentration
is favorable in such cases, however these concentration levels do not correspond to the reference
WTE treatment process. Zeolites has a good regeneration capacity and are not subject to
degradation processes hence it can endure many absorption cycles and the regeneration process
is either done by PSA or TSA. The energy penalty associated with zeolite adsorption is derived
from the regeneration process which requires high temperatures due to the sensitivity to H 2O
which is the limiting factor for further development (Pardakhti et al., 2019). Pardakhti et al.
(2019) suggests zeolites as a support to other adsorption or absorption technologies, especially
integration with amines to enhance the CO2 loading capacity.
Activated carbon is synthesized from carbonaceous materials by carbonization and activation of
either coal, wood or other biomass sources. The activated material consists of micro-pores
created by randomly stacked graphite components and has the characteristics of a hydrophobic
material. The CO2 interact with the activated carbon through weak bonds and the regeneration
is operated in low temperatures through TSA hence the energy penalty is also low (Choi et al.,
2009).The adsorption rate depends not only on the pore structures but also on the elemental
activity of nitrogen, oxygen and phosphorus which increases the CO2 adsorption capacity
(Pardakhti et al., 2019). Despite favorable operational conditions and environmental benign
materials at a low cost, the activated carbon need further improvements. The selectivity and
ability to operate a scaled process chain from production and activation to capture and storage is
still a limiting factor.
A novel and emerging adsorption technology is the development of metal-organic frameworks
(MOF). The material is designed by blocks of organic and inorganic constituents in a large variety
of possible structures hence the material characteristics is manageable. Bae (2011) reviewed the
CO2 capture potential for MOFs by evaluating a choice of parameters in order to enhance the
selectively adsorption of CO2. Despite their findings the MOF technology is yet still an emerging
technology and not commercialized for industrial processing.

A2.2 Chemisorption materials

Oxides with Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Strontium (Sr) and Barium (Ba) are well known
adsorbents for CO2 where one mole of metal oxides adsorb one mole of CO2. Calcium oxide
(CaO) is derived from limestone and is due to the limestone abundance in nature preferable used
in the reversible carbonation reaction (Eq A2.2.1 and Eq. A2.2.2) in order to adsorb CO2 (Dean
et al., 2011).
𝐶𝑎𝑂 + 𝐶𝑂2 ↔ 𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂3 (A2.2.1)
𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂3 ↔ 𝐶𝑎𝑂 + 𝐶𝑂2 (A2.2.2)
The reaction is slower than other physical adsorption reactions and is characterized by a rapid
adsorption rate at the beginning which flattens out until maximum is reached. According to an
summary of recent studies 70% of the maximum adsorption rate is reached after only hours (Choi
et al., 2009).
46
Calcium absorbent suffer from extensive loss of adsorption rate during the cycles of regeneration
compared to physical adsorption materials. However, the decrease is not due to degradation of
the adsorbent, instead sintering causes altered pore structure and depleted porosity. This is
conducted to be the main problem although the scientists do not entirely agree upon the cause
of sintering as well as the rate of magnitude and decay (Choi et al., 2009; Dean et al., 2011).

Figure 24. Principle of a carbonate cycle inspired by Hilz et al. (2019)

The main advantage with calcium looping for CO2 adsorption is the cheap and abundant access
to limestone, a relatively environmentally benign option (Dean et al., 2011). However, the
operational temperatures for the carbonator and the calciner range between 600 and 900 ºC
respectively. The endothermic reaction in the calciner require additional fuel to reach the desired
temperature and the pure oxygen demand requires and air separation unit. Hilz et al. (2019)
argues that if the excess heat from the carbonator and calciner is utilized by an additional water-
steam cycle then the energy penalty range between 2-5%.

A3 Cryogenic Distillation
Distillation refers to the conversion between phases such as vapor and liquid or liquid and solid.
By inducing a change of phase, it is possible to separate CO2 from a flue gas stream. The
separation is based on the differences in boiling point as a function of pressure. A relatively high
boiling point value indicate a higher concentration in vapor phase compared to the other
compounds. Table 15 present some approximative boiling points for various gases at different
pressures (Wilcox, 2012).
Table 15. Approximate boiling points at corresponding pressure for some compounds in gaseous phase
(Wilcox, 2012).

Gas Boiling Point (Kelvin)

0.1 atm 0.5 atm 1 atm 3 atm 6 atm
Water (H2O) 319 355 373 407 432
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Solid Solid Solid Solid 221
Oxygen (O2) 73 84 90 102 113
Nitrogen (N2) Solid 72 77 87 98
Hydrogen (H2) 14.5 18 20 24 28

The cryogenic distillation technology is associated with a high energy requirement for CO2
separation, hence it is not investigated further (Choi et al., 2009) but is considered an option for
oxygen separation from air at oxy-combustion processes (Aaron & Tsouris, 2011; Wilcox, 2012).

47
A4 Membrane
Membrane for CO2 capture is usually synthesized from either natural or synthetic materials such
as wool, cellulose or polyamide. The membrane separates the CO2 from the flue gas flow directly
by CO2 selection or indirectly by separating the dominant specie and consequently increases the
CO2 concentration. The separation process efficiency rate depends on the concentration of the
targeted specie. In post-combustion processes the low CO2 concentration is not sufficient
enough and flue gas modification is needed to enhance the separation driving force. In order to
do so it is common to operate with a 20 atm pressure drop at the membrane between the sides
of high pressure feed and the low pressure permeate (Wilcox, 2012).
Membrane has the advantage, compared to absorption and adsorption technologies, to not
include any regeneration. However, retrofitting this technology at post-combustion industrial
processes is not an option today. The method needs further development in order to meet the
characteristic low CO2 partial pressure which, according to Araujo & Maderios (2017), is the
limiting factor for exhaust flue gases from post-combustion processes. According to Wilcox
(2012) the main disadvantages with this method are the complicated fabrication of membrane
with a limited pore size distribution. The separation efficiency is also affected by the availability
of H2O as the molecules may cause blockage.
This method is preferable incorporated with natural gas processing today. Large-scale tests for
post-combustion will be demonstrated between 2025-2030 but as of today only small-scale tests
have been completed. Although efforts are being made to accelerate the development of
membrane technology lack of adequate data which corresponds to WTE flue gas treatment
processing is a limiting factor hence no investigation of energy performance will be completed
in this report.

48
APPENDIX B
An absorption process includes an absorber, heat-exchanger, regenerator, condenser/quench and
a re-boiler. Mass and energy balance calculations were set up in order to visualize estimated mass
flows and energy conversion rates for the investigated absorption technologies.
The compiled input flue gas composition in vol.% displayed in Figure 25 is limited to the four
most abundant species derived from standard air composition and measured concentrations from
the reference flue gas flow.

Figure 25. Composition of wet flue gas entering the absorber.

The CO2 capture ratio within the absorber was estimated to 90%, the pre-dominantly capture
ratio derived from published simulation data. It was assumed that the cost of CO2 capturing will
increase substantially at >90% based on results from cost assessments performed by Luo & Wang
(2018) and Mac Dowell & Shah (2013).

B1 Absorber
The purpose of the absorber is to separate CO2 from the flue gas by loading a liquid mixture of
water and absorbents into the absorber column. The solution entering the absorber contains a
small fraction of CO2 thus the liquid solvent solutions are referred to as lean and rich solvent
respectively based on the CO2 content. Temperature difference between flue gas input and
output is preferable reduced in order to avoid an increment of water content in the flue gas
output.

Figure 26. Flowchart of absorber column including standard mass balance inputs and outputs

49
Table 16. Description of mass and energy balance parameters for absorption processes.

Mass and energy flow Unit Description Equation

𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 m3/h Flue gas input, wet basis B1.1.2
𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑑𝑟𝑦 m3/h Flue gas input, dry basis B1.1.2
𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 kg/h Flue gas flowrate input B1.1.3
𝑚̇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 kg/h Lean solvent flowrate Table 17-18
𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑜𝑢𝑡 kg/h Flue gas flowrate output B1.1.4
𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ kg/h Rich solvent flowrate Table 17-18
𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 kg/h Captured CO2 flowrate B1.1.5
𝑚̇𝑠𝑜𝑙. kg/h Solvent loading B1.1.6
𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 kJ/kg Flue gas input energy B1.1.9
𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 kJ/kg Lean solvent energy B1.1.11
𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ kJ/kg Rich solvent energy B1.1.16
𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑜𝑢𝑡 kJ/kg Flue gas output energy B1.1.9
𝐸𝑎𝑏 kJ/kg Absorption reaction energy B1.1.12
𝑄𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚 kJ/kg Absorption chemical energy B1.1.13
𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣 kJ/kg Absorption sensible energy B1.1.15

The mass balance was calculated according to the principle of conservation of mass which results
in the overall balance Equation B1.1.1.
𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 + 𝑚̇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 = 𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑜𝑢𝑡 + 𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ (B1.1.1)

The available record of flue gas flow was only reported on dry gas basis. The flowrate was
recalculated in order to consider the moisture content, α (vol%) of the input flue gas flowrate,
𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 . The dry gas flowrate, 𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑑𝑟𝑦 was estimated to 58 700 Nm3/h and were derived from the
average flowrate during 2018 for the reference flue gas treatment process.
𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑑𝑟𝑦
𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 = (B1.1.2)
1−𝛼

Mass of flue gas input, 𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 was derived from the volumetric ratio of the gas mixture and the
specific density, 𝜌𝑖 for the components at flue gas temperature T=53ºC.
𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 = 𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 ∗ ∑𝑛𝑖=0 𝑣𝑜𝑙 %𝑖 ∗ 𝜌𝑖 (B1.1.3)

The output temperature was assumed to correspond entirely to the input value and the variance
of water content between input and output flue gas was assumed to be negligible. The output
flue gas, 𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑜𝑢𝑡 was calculated by subtracting the mass of CO2 captured, 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 in accordance
with Eq.B1.1.4.
𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 − 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 (B1.1.4)

The captured mass of CO2 is the total mass of CO2 in the flue gas flow multiplied with the ratio
of absorption, 𝑥𝐶𝑂2 which for absorption techniques was estimated to 90%.
𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 = 𝑥𝐶𝑂2 𝑚̇𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 𝐶𝑂2 (B1.1.5)

50
The mass of solvent solution is a mixture of captured and recirculated CO2 and the sorbent in
water solution. The loading of lean and rich solvent solution was derived from known molar
mass ratios between CO2 and the absorbent. For MEA and Ammonia the established molar ratios
are presented in Table 17 and Table 18 respectively.
Table 17. Molar loading for lean and rich solvent in absorber for MEA.

Parameter Unit CO2 MEA H2O

Molar mass kg/kmol 44.01 61.08 18.015
MEA concentration Wt.% 0 0.3 0.7
Lean solvent mol/mol 0.3 1 7.9
Rich solvent mol/mol 0.5 1 7.9
Solvent loading mol/mol 0.2 1 7.9
Solvent flowrate kmol/h 257 1285 10166
Lean solvent flowrate kg/h 16970 78500 183150
Rich solvent flowrate kg/h 28280 78500 183150

Table 18. Molar loading for lean and rich solvent in absorber for CAP.

Parameter Unit CO2 NH3 H2O

Molar mass kg/kmol 44.01 17.031 18.015
NH3 concentration Wt.% 0 18 82
Lean solvent mol/mol 0.35 1 4.31
Rich solvent mol/mol 0.8 1 4.31
Solvent loading mol/mol 0.45 1 4.31
Solvent flowrate kmol/h 257 571 2460
Lean solvent flowrate kg/h 8800 9730 44300
Rich solvent flowrate kg/h 20100 9730 44300

The mass, 𝑚̇𝑠𝑜𝑙. for one mole of solution was calculated by the given molar fractions in Table
17 and 18.
𝑚̇𝑠𝑜𝑙. = ∑𝑖 𝑛𝑖 𝑀𝑖 (B1.1.6)

51
The mass calculation method was verified by comparing the calculated value for MEA solvent
solution with lecture material from Bolland (2013) at the Norwegian University of Science and
Technology. From his material and with known mass of captured CO2, 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2, the flowrate was
derived from the difference between lean and rich solvent loading.
𝑚𝑀𝐸𝐴+𝐻2𝑂
𝑚𝐶𝑂2
= 22 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑀𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ − 𝑀𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 = 0.2 (B1.1.7)

In order to maintain adequate carbon capture ratio, the solvent flowrate of MEA and H2O,
𝑚̇𝑀𝐸𝐴+𝐻2𝑂 was, according to Bolland, 249 000 kg/h which deviated from calculated mass of
solution with less than 5% and further calculations were derived from the calculated flowrates
based on molar ratios in Table 17 and 18.
The energy flow through the absorber was calculated according to the principle of conservation
of energy as the sum of sensible heat fluxes from flue gases, 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 and 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑜𝑢𝑡 and solvent loading
entering, 𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 and exiting, 𝐸,𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ the absorber. In addition to the established flows the chemical
and specific energy within the absorber were considered, 𝐸𝑎𝑏 .
𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 + 𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 = 𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ + 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑜𝑢𝑡 + 𝐸𝑎𝑏 + 𝐻𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 (B1.1.8)

Energy content of the input flue gas, 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 was calculated as the sum of sensible and latent heat.
Sensible heat flow was calculated for the flue gas mixture by the sum of the sensible heat for each
individual component while latent heat only considers the energy requirement for water
vaporization based on water content in the flue gas, 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝐻20 .

𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑣𝑓𝑔,𝑖𝑛 (∑𝑛𝑖=0 𝑣𝑜𝑙%𝑖 ∗ 𝐻𝑖 ∗ 𝜌𝑖 + 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝐻20 ∗ 𝐻𝑙𝑎𝑡,𝐻2𝑂 ∗ 𝜌𝐻2𝑂 ) (B1.1.9)

Enthalpies for specific compounds were calculated based on Shomate equation with constants
according to NIST Chemistry WebBook (1998).
𝑡2 𝑡3 𝑡4 1
𝐻𝑖 = 𝐴𝑡 + 𝐵 +𝐶 +𝐷 −𝐸𝑡+𝐹−𝐻 (B1.1.10)
2 3 4

Enthalpy for MEA, 𝐻𝑀𝐸𝐴 were assumed to be 175 kJ/mol based on the value for standard
conditions due to lack of official information regarding thermodynamic data (NIST Chemistry
WebBook, 2018).
𝑚
𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 = ∑ 𝑀𝑖 𝐻𝑖 (B1.1.11)
𝑖

The energy requirement for the absorption process, 𝐸𝑎𝑏 was calculated as the sum of specific
heat requirement, 𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣 and the chemical energy, 𝑄𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚 .
𝐸𝑎𝑏 = 𝑄𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚 + 𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣 (B1.1.12)
The chemical energy, 𝑄𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚 was calculated according to Eq. B1.1.13 as derived from the kinetic
energy of the exothermic reaction, ΔH.
𝑄𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚 = 𝑛𝐶𝑂2 ∗ ΔH (B1.1.13)

52
The specific heat requirement, 𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣 to raise the temperature of the lean solvent within the
absorber was calculated in accordance with Eq. B1.1.14 with respect to the specific heat capacity
for solvent solution (Table 10) based on specific heat calculations in Eq. B1.1.15.
𝑐𝑝 = ∑ 𝑐𝑝,𝑖 ∗ 𝑢𝑖 (B1.1.14)

𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑣 = 𝑚̇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑝,𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 ∗ (𝑇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ − 𝑇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 ) (B1.1.15)

Table 19. Specific heat capacities for carbon capture solutions

Lean solvent (kJ/kg.K) Rich solvent (kJ/kg.K)

30% MEA 3.50 3.34
18% Ammonia 4.10 3.85

Energy content of the rich solvent leaving the absorber was calculated by the conservation of
energy principle.
𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ = 𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 + 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑖𝑛 − 𝐸𝑎𝑏 − 𝐸𝑓𝑙,𝑜𝑢𝑡 (B1.1.16)

B2 Heat exchanger
Heat-losses were accounted for by assuming a 90% efficiency for heat exchangers throughout
the entire process which, according to Svensk Ventilation (2019), is maximum value for a cross-
current heat-exchanger. This assumption may not be representative for all types.
The temperature flux between the hot lean solvent hot rich solvent flow is established to 12.5ºC
for MEA (Knudsen et al., 2009; Li et al., 2015) and for CAP minimum delta T on was set to 5
ºC (Valenti et al., 2009). The work required to increase or decrease the temperature of the
solvent flow is calculated in Eq. B2.1.1.
𝑄𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ = 𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ ∗ 𝑐𝑝,𝐻2𝑂 ∗ (𝑇2 − 𝑇1 ) (B2.1.1)

All temperatures except the hot lean solvent were established from literature (see Table 5 and 6)
and was calculated according to the energy equation Eq. B2.1.2 where kinetic and potential
energy were neglected.
𝑄
𝑇2 = (−) 𝑚 + 𝑇1 (B2.1.2)
𝑀𝐸𝐴,𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 ∗ 𝑐𝑝,𝐻2𝑂

53
B3 Regenerator
The purpose of the regenerator is to desorb the CO2 by breaking the chemical bonds between
CO2 and the sorbent by additional energy supply. The mass flowrate through the regenerator
correlate with the solvent loading and vaporization of water content. The temperature is raised
by an attached reboiler and kept under pressurized conditions.

Figure 27. Mass balance flowchart for regenerator column in carbon capture absorption process.

Table 20. Description of mass and energy balance parameters for desorption processes.

Mass and energy flow Unit Description Equation

𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ kg/h Rich solvent flowrate Table 17-18
𝑚̇𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 kg/h Condensate flowrate input B3.1.2
𝑚̇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 kg/h Lean solvent flowrate B3.1.2
𝑚̇𝑣𝑎𝑝 𝐻20 kg/h Water vapor flowrate output B3.1.4
𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 kg/h CO2 gas flowrate B1.1.5
𝑚̇𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 kg/h Steam requirement flowrate B3.1.7
𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ kJ/kg Rich solvent energy B1.1.10
𝐸𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 kJ/kg Steam input energy B1.1.10
𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑. kJ/kg Condensate energy B1.1.10
𝐸𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑛 kJ/kg Lean solvent energy B1.1.10
𝐸𝑅𝑒𝑔. kJ/kg Regenerator energy requirement B3.1.4 –
B1.3.6
𝐸𝑣𝑎𝑝. kJ/kg Water vapor energy B3.1.3
𝑄𝑣𝑎𝑝 kJ/kg Vaporization energy requirement B3.1.4
𝑄𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑠 kJ/kg Sensible heat requirement B3.1.5
𝑄𝑑𝑒𝑠 kJ/kg Desorption heat requirement B3.1.6

The mass balance was calculated according to the conservation of mass principle.
𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ + 𝑚̇𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 = 𝑚̇𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 + 𝑚̇𝑣𝑎𝑝 𝐻20 + 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 (B3.1.1)

All the evaporated water leaving the column as vapor, 𝑚̇𝑣𝑎𝑝 𝐻20 were assumed to be recirculated
into the regenerator again, 𝑚̇𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 thus the lean solvent flowrate were calculated according to
B3.1.2.
𝑚̇ 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 = 𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ − 𝑚̇𝐶𝑂2 (B3.1.2)

54
This process is executed at elevated temperatures hence steam is used in order to raise the
temperature. The energy balance for the process correspond to the conservation of energy
principle.
𝐸𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ + 𝐸𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 + 𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑. = 𝐸𝑅𝑒𝑔. + 𝐸𝐿𝑒𝑎𝑛 + 𝐸𝑣𝑎𝑝. + 𝐻𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 (B3.1.3)

The energy content provided from the rich solvent stream as well as the condensate were derived
from enthalpy calculations using the Shomate method described earlier in this section.
The energy requirement for regeneration, 𝐸𝑅𝑒𝑔. is calculated according to Li et al. (2015) as the
sum of latent heat of evaporation,𝑄𝑣𝑎𝑝 of the water content (Eq. B3.1.4), the sensible heat, 𝑄𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑠
to increase the solvent solution to desired temperature (Eq.B3.1.5) and the heat of
desorption, 𝑄𝑑𝑒𝑠 in order to break the chemical bonds between and desorb the CO2 (B3.1.6).
𝑄𝑣𝑎𝑝 = 𝑚̇𝑣𝑎𝑝,𝐻20 ∗ 𝐿𝑣𝑎𝑝 (B3.1.4)
𝑇𝑟𝑒𝑔
𝑄𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑠 = 𝑚̇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ ∗ ∫𝑇𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝐶𝑝,𝑟𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑑𝑇 (B3.1.5)

𝑄𝑑𝑒𝑠 = 𝑛𝐶𝑂2 ∗ 𝐻𝑎𝑏𝑠. (B3.1.6)

The heat of regeneration, 𝐻𝑎𝑏𝑠. was derived from measured values published by Inna & Svendsen
(2007) for MEA (60 kJ/mol) and Ammonia (26.9 kJ/mol) respectively. The mass of water
vapor, 𝑚̇𝑣𝑎𝑝,𝐻20 is unknown however the reboiler duty was established from previous studies in
literature and by calculating the sensible heat and heat of desorption the following heat of
vaporization were established and subsequentially also the amount of vaporizeed water.
Steam production. The amount of steam required,𝑚̇𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 for regeneration of MEA is calculated
according to Eq.B3.1.7 with the assumption of steam pressure 3.5 bar(g) and a steam temperature
of 150 ºC.
𝐸
𝑚̇𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 = 𝐻𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚 (B3.1.7)
𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑚

55
APPENDIX C

C1 Environmental concerns associated with Monoethanolamine

MEA is biodegradable however by-products associated with MEA decomposition and
degradation due to primarily oxidation or thermal degradation could be hazardous (Jilvero,
2014). Nitrosamines are formed by interactions between nitrite and secondary amine. Nitrite
concentrations are primarily limited to the NOx concentration in the inlet flue gas and secondary
to oxidative degradation. Carcinogenic properties of nitrosamines have been reported, however
not all of the nitrosamines are hazardous to human health. Potentially carcinogens nitrosamines
are N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) (Selin, 2011).
NDMA were detected using non-selective adsorbents, activated carbon and Tenax, in a study
performed by Chahen, Huard, Cuccia, Lorena, et al. (2016) among with another 37 degradation
products in gas phase using similar flue gas composition as Sävenäs WTE plant.
The pilot plant at the Fortum’s WTE plant in Klemetsrud have reported emissions of amines to
atmosphere well below prevailing guidelines throughout the 5000-hour long test (J. Thomassen,
personal communication, 14 October 2019). Their flue gas treatment process corresponds to
Sävenäs configurations hence the flue gas composition, especially NOx concentration, is assumed
to be comparable. Similar results have been reported in the literature where the risks are claimed
to be manageable for low NOx levels which correspond to flue gas concentrations at Sävenäs
(Badr et al., 2016; Shao & Stangeland, 2009).
Shao & Stangeland (2009) express that the uncertainties regarding MEA degradation products
lies within the lack of knowledge concerning the toxic effect of long-term exposure as well as
pathways and residence time of degradations products. This information is of importance to assess
natural sinks for degradation products which Niall Mac Dowell et al. (2010) agrees upon as well
as describes scenarios where the water soluble degradation products are entering the natural water
cycle.

56
C2 Environmental concerns associated with Chilled ammonia process
Atmospheric ammonia interacts with acidic pollutants such as NOx and SOx and creates fine
aerosols which contributes to eutrophication and entail a risk to human health. Ammonia
pollution is pre-dominantly originating from livestock farming and fertilizers however the
committee of environment and natural resources (CENR, 2000) raised their concerns regarding
NH3 emissions from power plant. Increased awareness and regulations regarding NOx emissions
in energy sector have contributed to increasing levels of NH3 from power production due to
extensive use of SCR and SCNR techniques but the pollution contribution for all industrial
processes only covers 1% on a global scale of NH3 emissions.
Ammonia is a volatile compound and thus emissions from both the absorber and the regenerator
column has to be controlled in order to maintain emissions level at stack below the required 10
mg/m3. The emissions is referred to as the ammonia slip and will require extensive solvent make-
up if not managed (Feron, 2016). In an article by Augustsson et al. (2016) ammonium slip from
several pilot-scale project are reviewed and range between 2-10 ppm which is confirmed by
Jilvero (2014) in his investigation regarding ammonia control methods. Extensive water use is
associated with ammonia slip control which in order to achieve adequate capture ratios require
a water temperature of approximately 5 degrees. Consequently, an environmental benign process
requires a natural access of cold water located in the nearby area of the carbon capture unit.

57