Integrated drying and gasification of wet microalgae biomass to produce H2 rich syngas – A thermodynamic approach by considering in-situ energy supply

A novel integrated drying and gasification of microalgae wet biomass process, involving a chemical-looping combustion (CLC) option to supply energy, is developed using Aspen Plus. The integrated gasification system consists of four primary units, including (i) a wet biomass drying unit, (ii) the gasification system, (iii) the CLC section, and (iv) the gas purification process. The model shows a good accuracy (relative error < 10%) in predicting the product compositions as compared to the experimental results under consistent operating conditions. The performance of the integrated gasification system is evaluated using Spirulina microalgae at various moisture contents (0–45 wt%). The effect of gasifying agents O₂/steam and the fraction of the produced char used in the CLC section on the gasification performance is also evaluated. The tar is successfully reformed into syngas in the pyrolysis stage by adjusting the O₂ flow rate. The C (char) to CLC provides to a positive effect on the syngas composition, particularly for gasification of wet biomass, but brings an adverse impact on the yield of the syngas product. The integration of the CLC process and CO₂ absorber in the gasification system provides high-quality syngas by removing CO₂. The separated pure CO₂ can be used as a feedstock for other chemical industries.     

Co‐gasification performance of coal and petroleum coke blends in a pilot‐scale pressurized entrained‐flow gasifier

Co‐gasification performance of coal and petroleum coke (petcoke) blends in a pilot‐scale pressurized entrained‐flow gasifier was studied experimentally. Two different coals, including a subbituminous coal (Coal A) and a bituminous coal (Coal B), individually blended with a petcoke in the gasifier were considered. The experimental results suggested that, when the petcoke was mixed with Coal A over 70%, the slagging problem, which could shorten the operational period due to high ash content in the coal, was improved. It was found that increasing O₂/C tended to decrease the syngas concentration and better operational conditions of O₂/C were between 0.6 and 0.65 Nm³ kg^?1. For the blends of Coal B and the petcoke, the slagging problem was encountered no more, as a result of low ash content in both Coal B and the petcoke. The better co‐gasification performance could be achieved if the blending ratio of the two fuels was 50%, perhaps resulting from the synergistic effect of the blends. With the aforementioned blending ratio, the optimal condition of O₂/C was located at around 0.65 Nm³ kg^?1. The co‐gasification was also simulated using Aspen Plus. It revealed that the simulation could provide a useful insight into the practical operation of co‐gasification. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Production of syngas from steam gasification of three different ranks of coals and related reaction kinetics

The steam gasification properties of three different ranks of coals, Shengli lignite (SL), Shenhua subbituminous coal (SH), and Tavan Tolgoi anthracite (TT), were investigated using a lab-scale fixed-bed reactor, and the thermodynamic equilibrium constant and kinetics of the reaction were analyzed. The results showed that the aromaticity and condensation of aromatic structures in SL, SH, and TT became higher, and the maturity of organic substance became lower. The steam gasification reaction showed that the syngas from low-rank SL had a high H₂/CO molar ratio, while the syngas from high-rank TT had relatively high CO content. The direct carbon gasification reactions for these three different ranks of coals were far from in equilibrium; the water gas shift reaction of SL was near equilibrium, and the degree of reaction for SL was higher than that of SH and TT. We studied a random pore model (RPM), shrinking core model (SCM), and hybrid model (HM), and the hybrid model was found to be the most suitable model of the three for fitting the steam gasification reactions of the three types of coal. It had high fitting correlation coefficient R² values (ranging from 0.9939 to 0.9990) and small average error θ values (ranging from 0.009 to 0.016). The apparent activation energy E values of SL, SH, and TT fitted by HM were 179.10, 48.14, and 63.06 kJ/mol, respectively, and the corresponding pre-exponential factor k₀ values were 3.14 × 10⁷, 1.01, and 1.22 min⁻¹, respectively. This study finds that the steam gasification of SL, SH, and TT coal samples consists of homogeneous phase reaction and shrinking core reaction.     

Simulation and economic evaluation of biomass gasification with sets for heating,cooling and power production

In this work, syngas was used directly as fuel source for the renewable CCHP system, which can be producted through biomass gasification process. The advantages and limitation of entrained flow gasifier are compared, followed by discussion on the key parameters that are critical for the optimum production of syngas. Gasification agent of 450 °C temperature and 30 atm pressure has been proposed as a optical solution to a entrained flow gasifier using air as gasification agent at 0.27 ER (oxygen equivalence ratio), in that it provides a syngas of 5.665 MJ/m³ LHV and up to 77% gasification efficiency. Depending on the key parameters of gasification process, the properties of syngas produced can be varied. It is thus essential to thoroughly understand the cogeneration system to identify the suitable methods for a renewable CCHP system. These process was simulated using Aspen Plus to perform the rigorous material and energy balances. The results obtained from simulation and experiment agreed well. This paper later focused on economic evaluation of the entire process, as well as the environmental benefits. The renewable CCHP system could able to attain lower CO₂ and SO₂ emission with total energy efficiency and gas yield of 75.43% and 2.476 m³/kg respectively.     

Coal-gasification kinetics derived from pyrolysis in a fluidized-bed reactor

Coal pyrolysis and gasification reactions were carried out in a fluidized-bed reactor (0.1 m i.d. by 1.6 m height) over a temperature range from 1023 to 1173 K at atmospheric pressure. The overall gasification kinetics for the steam–char and oxygen–char reactions were determined in a thermobalance reactor. The compositions of the product gases from the coal-gasification reactions are 30–40% H₂, 23–28% CO, 27–35% CO₂ and 6–9% CH₄ with heating values of 2000–3750 kJ m⁻³. The heating value increases with increasing temperature and steam/coal ratio but decreases with increasing air/coal ratio. Our kinetic data derived from the two-phase theory on coal gasification in a thermobalance reactor and coal pyrolysis in a fluidized bed may be used to predict the product-gas compositions.     

Enhanced hydrogen-rich gas production from steam gasification of coal in a pressurized fluidized bed with CaO as a CO2 sorbent

Steam gasification of a typical Chinese bituminous coal for hydrogen production in a lab-scale pressurized bubbling fluidized bed with CaO as CO₂ sorbent was performed over a pressure range of ambient pressure to 4 bar. The compositions of the product gases were analyzed and correlated to the gasification operating variables that affecting H₂ production, such as pressure (P), mole ratio of steam to carbon ([H₂O]/[C]), mole ratio of CaO to carbon ([CaO]/[C]) and temperature (T). The experimental results indicated that the H₂ concentration was enhanced by raising the temperature, pressure and [H₂O]/[C] under the circumstances we observed. With the presence of CaO sorbent, CO₂ in the production gas was absorbed and converted to solid CaCO₃, thus shifting the steam reforming of hydrocarbons and water gas shift reaction beyond the equilibrium restrictions and enhancing the H₂ concentration. H₂ concentration was up to 78 vol% (dry basis) under a condition of 750 °C, 4 bar, [Ca]/[C] = 1 and [H₂O]/[C] = 2, while CO₂ (2.7 vol%) was almost in-situ captured by the CaO sorbent. This study demonstrated that CaO could be used as a substantially excellent CO₂ sorbent for the pressurized steam gasification of bituminous coal. For the gasification process with the presence of CaO, H₂-rich syngas was yielded at far lower temperatures and pressures in comparison to the commercialized coal gasification technologies. SEM/EDX and gas sorption analyses of solid residues sampled after the gasification showed that the pore structure of the sorbent was recovered after the steam gasification process, which was attributed to the formation of Ca(OH)₂. Additionally, a coal-CaO–H₂O system was simulated with using Aspen Plus software. Calculation results showed that higher temperatures and pressures favor the H₂ production within a certain range.     

Hydrogen production from oil sludge gasification/biomass mixtures and potential use in hydrotreatment processes

Gasification of oil sludge (OS) from crude oil refinery and biomass was investigated to evaluate hydrogen production and its potential use in diesel oil hydrodesulphurization process. Gasification process was studied by Aspen Hysys^® tools, considering different kinetic model for main OS compounds. Air and superheated steam mixtures as gasifying agents were simulated. Gasification parameters like: temperature, syngas chemical composition and gas yield were evaluated. Results showed OS thermal conversion needs a working temperature above 1300 °C to ensure a high conversion (>90%) of OS compounds. Thermal energy requirement for gasification was estimated between 0.80 and 1.25 kWh/kg OS, considering equivalence air (ER) and steam/oil sludge (SOS) ratio between 0.25-0.37 and 0.2–1.5 kg steam/kg OS, respectively. The gas yield was 2.28 Nm³/kg OS, with a H₂ content close to 25 mol%, for a H₂ potential production about 1.84 Nm³ H₂/kg OS; nevertheless, when OS and biomass mixtures are used, hydrogen production increases to 3.51 Nm³ H₂/kg OS, meaning 37% of H₂ (from natural gas) required for diesel oil hydrodesulphurization could be replaced, becoming an added value technological alternative for OS waste conversion as a source of H₂, inducing a considerable reduction of greenhouse gases and non-renewables resources.     

Hydrogen and syngas production from catalytic steam gasification of char derived from ion-exchangeable Na- and Ca-loaded coal

Catalytic steam gasification of char derived from low-rank coal possesses substantial potential as a source of hydrogen energy and syngas feedstocks, and its performances are largely associated with the employed catalysts. Therein, ion-exchangeable Na or Ca species are always regarded as excellent in-situ catalysts in low-rank coal. In this paper, gasification of Na-Char, Ca-Char and a Na/Ca-Char mixture with different partial pressures of steam was performed within a temperature range of 700–900 °C using a micro fluidized bed reaction analyzer. The results indicate that Na and Ca species could accelerate the gas release rate during gasification and even significantly increase H₂ production, in sharp contrast to non-catalytic gasification. Variations in the product gases during Na-Char and Ca-Char gasification were completely different, which associated with the different deactivation pathways and catalytic reaction mechanisms of Na and Ca catalysts. With an increasing gasification temperature, the decreasing trend of H₂ production for Na-Char gasification was mainly due to the loss of Na during gasification. Conversely, the enhancement of Ca activity promoted the H₂ production. The H₂/CO ratio of Ca-Char gasification at 700 °C approximately ranged from 1.0 to 2.0 as a function of the partial pressure of steam, which suggested catalytic gasification can be suitable for hydrogen-rich production and subsequent synthesis reactions. In addition, gasification of Na/Ca-Char mixture produced a higher hydrogen content in the product gases than that of Na-Char or Ca-Char gasification alone, particularly for the 30%Na/70%Ca-Char mixture. It implies that the high H₂ production of 70%Ca30%Na-Char mixture was attributed to the cooperative effects of the Na and Ca species on the catalytic activity. This study provides comprehensive information regarding the effects of ion-exchangeable Na, Ca and a Na/Ca mixture on the hydrogen production and syngas composition during steam gasification, which provides new insight into the utilization of low-rank coal.     

Effect of the type of gasifying agent on gas composition in a bubbling fluidized bed reactor

It is commonly accepted that gasification of coal has a high potential for a more sustainable and clean way of coal utilization. In recent years, research and development in coal gasification areas are mainly focused on the synthetic raw gas production, raw gas cleaning and, utilization of synthesis gas for different areas such as electricity, liquid fuels and chemicals productions within the concept of poly-generation applications. The most important parameter in the design phase of the gasification process is the quality of the synthetic raw gas that depends on various parameters such as gasifier reactor itself, type of gasification agent and operational conditions. In this work, coal gasification has been investigated in a laboratory scale atmospheric pressure bubbling fluidized bed reactor, with a focus on the influence of the gasification agents on the gas composition in the synthesis raw gas. Several tests were performed at continuous coal feeding of several kg/h. Gas quality (contents in H₂, CO, CO₂, CH₄, O₂) was analyzed by using online gas analyzer through experiments. Coal was crushed to a size below 1 mm. It was found that the gas produced through experiments had a maximum energy content of 5.28 MJ/Nm³ at a bed temperature of approximately 800 °C, with the equivalence ratio at 0.23 based on air as a gasification agent for the coal feedstock. Furthermore, with the addition of steam, the yield of hydrogen increases in the synthesis gas with respect to the water–gas shift reaction. It was also found that the gas produced through experiments had a maximum energy content of 9.21 MJ/Nm³ at a bed temperature range of approximately 800–950 °C, with the equivalence ratio at 0.21 based on steam and oxygen mixtures as gasification agents for the coal feedstock. The influence of gasification agents, operational conditions of gasifier, etc. on the quality of synthetic raw gas, gas production efficiency of gasifier and coal conversion ratio are discussed in details.     

Catalytic steam co-gasification of biomass and coal in a dual loop gasification system with olivine catalysts

A dual loop gasification system (DLG) has been previously proposed to facilitate tar destruction and H₂-rich gas production in steam gasification of biomass. To sustain the process auto-thermal, however, additional fuel with higher carbon content has to be supplied. Co-gasification of biomass in conjunction with coal is a preferred option. Herein, the heat balance of the steam co-gasification of pine sawdust and Shenmu bituminous coal in the DLG has been analyzed to verify the feasibility of the process with the help of Aspen Plus. Upon which, the co-gasification experiments in the DLG have been investigated with olivine as both solid heat carriers and in-situ tar destruction catalysts. The simulation results show that the self-heating of the DLG in the co-gasification is achieved at the coal blending ratio of 28%, gasification circulation ratio of 19 and reforming circulation ratio of 20 when the gasifier temperature 800 °C, reforming temperature 850 °C, combustor temperature 920 °C and S/C 1.1. The co-gasification experiments indicate that the tar is efficiently destructed in the DLG at the optimized reformer temperature and with olivine catalysts.     

Simulation of sorption enhanced staged gasification of biomass for hydrogen production in the presence of calcium oxide

A novel two-step sorption enhanced staged gasification of biomass for H₂ production was proposed and studied using Aspen Plus software. An equilibrium model based on Gibbs free energy minimization was developed and validated. The results showed that the two-step process was more advantageous for H₂ production compared with the conventional steam gasification and the one-step process. The independent control of each stage could realize a high temperature steam gasification in the first stage and a subsequent lower temperature steam reforming in the second stage, which thus promoted the gasification of biomass and benefited the water gas shift (WGS) reaction to produce more H₂. Meanwhile, the in situ CO₂ absorption of CaO in the second stage could enrich the H₂ concentration in the product gas, and also further shifted the WGS reaction equilibrium to convert more CO to H₂. With further introduction of catalyst for steam methane reforming (SMR), high-purity H₂ with the concentration of 99.7 vol% and yield of 142.8 g/kg daf biomass could be achieved.     

Gasification of torrefied oil palm biomass in a fixed-bed reactor: Effects of gasifying agents on product characteristics

Gasification represents an attractive pathway to generate fuel gas (i.e., syngas (H₂ and CO) and hydrocarbons) from oil palm biomass in Malaysia. Torrefaction is introduced here to enhance the oil palm biomass properties prior to gasification. In this work, the effect of torrefaction on the gasification of three oil palm biomass, i.e., empty fruit bunches (EFB), mesocarp fibres (MF), and palm kernel shells (PKS) are evaluated. Two gasifying agents were used, i.e., CO₂ and steam. The syngas lower heating values (LHV_syngas) for CO₂ gasification and steam gasification were in the range of 0.35–1.67 MJ m⁻³ and 1.61–2.22 MJ m⁻³, respectively. Compared with EFB and MF, PKS is more effective for fuel gas production as indicated by the more dominant emission of light hydrocarbons (CH₄, C₂H₄, and C₂H₆) in PKS case. Gasification efficiency was examined using carbon conversion efficiency (CCE) and cold gas efficiency (CGE). CCE ranges between 4% and 55.1% for CO₂ gasification while CGE varies between 4.8% and 46.2% and 27.6% and 62.9% for CO₂ gasification and steam gasification, respectively. Our results showed that higher concentration of gasifying agent promotes higher carbon conversion and that steam gasification provides higher thermal efficiency (CGE) compared to CO₂ gasification.     

Co–gasification of coal/biomass blends in 50 kWe circulating fluidized bed gasifier

This paper reports gasification of coal/biomass blends in a pilot scale (50 kWe) air-blown circulating fluidized bed gasifier. Yardsticks for gasification performance are net yield, LHV and composition and tar content of producer gas, cold gas efficiency (CGE) and carbon conversion efficiency (CCE). Net LHV decreased with increasing equivalence ratio (ER) whereas CCE and CGE increased. Max gas yield (1.91 Nm³/kg) and least tar yield (5.61 g/kg of dry fuel) was obtained for coal biomass composition of 60:40 wt% at 800 °C. Catalytic effect of alkali and alkaline earth metals in biomass enhanced char and tar conversion for coal/biomass blend of 60:40 wt% at ER = 0.29, with CGE and CCE of 44% and 84%, respectively. Gasification of 60:40 wt% coal/biomass blend with dolomite (10 wt%, in-bed) gave higher gas yield (2.11 Nm³/kg) and H₂ content (12.63 vol%) of producer gas with reduced tar content (4.3 g/kg dry fuel).     

Pre-combustion, post-combustion and oxy-combustion in thermal power plant for CO2 capture

This paper presents a summary of technical-economic studies. It allows evaluating, in the French context, the production cost of electricity derived from coal and gas power plants with the capture of CO₂, and the cost per tonne of CO₂ avoided. Three systems were studied: an Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC), a conventional combustion of Pulverized Coal (PC) and a Natural Gas Combined Cycle (NGCC). Three main methods were envisaged for the capture of CO₂: pre-combustion, post-combustion and oxy-combustion.For the IGCC, two gasification types have been studied: a current technology based on gasification of dry coal at 27 bars (Shell or GE/Texaco radiant type) integrated into a classical combined cycle providing 320 MWe, and a future technology (planned for about 2015–2020) based on gasification of a coal–water mixture (slurry) that can be compressed to 64 bars (GE/Texaco slurry type) integrated into an advanced combined cycle (type H with steam cooling of the combustion turbine blades) producing a gross power output of 1200 MWe.     

Conceptual design and analysis of a novel system based on ash agglomerating fluidized bed gasification for co-production of hydrogen and electricity

In this paper, a novel system with ash agglomerating fluidized bed gasification and CO₂ capture to produce hydrogen and electricity is firstly designed in Aspen Plus. The newly-proposed system is composed of eight subsystems, namely air separation unit, gasification unit, water gas shift unit, Rectisol unit, CO₂ compression unit, Claus unit, pressure swing adsorption unit, gas and steam turbine unit. The thermodynamic performance and hydrogen to coal ratio of the new proposed system are investigated. The results demonstrate that the hydrogen to coal ratio, energy efficiency, net electricity power and exergy efficiency of the overall system for Yangcheng anthracite are 0.096 kg/kg, 46.52%, 1.71 MW and 43.92%, respectively. Additionally, the exergy destruction ratio and exergy efficiency of each subsystem are researched. More importantly, the influences of the oxygen to coal ratio, steam to coal ratio and coal types on the hydrogen to coal ratio, energy efficiency and exergy efficiency are also studied.     

Hydrogen production with an auto-thermal MSW steam gasification and direct melting system: A process modeling

Municipal solid waste steam gasification and direct melting system is proposed in this study for H₂ production and ash melting simultaneously. Part of the H₂ generated in gasification is extracted for combustion with pure oxygen in the melting zone to provide the energy necessary for auto-thermal operation. A simulation model is developed with Aspen Plus to investigate the performance and optimum conditions of the system. For the feedstock with a lower heating value of 18.91 MJ/kg used in this study, 39.8% of the generated H₂ needs to be extracted to maintain the heat balance of the system at the gasification temperature of 900 °C, melting temperature of 1400 °C, and S/M of 1. The net H₂ yield is ～77.3 kg/t-MSW with a net cold gas efficiency of 49.1% under the same operating condition. An optimum operation condition for T (850–1000 °C) and S/M (0.6–1.0) is determined considering the balance between H₂ production ability and the auto-thermal energy balance.     

Catalytic supercritical water gasification mechanism of coal

Catalytic supercritical water gasification (SCWG) for H₂ production is a hopeful way of coal conversion to replace the traditional coal utilization mode. At present, the detailed catalytic mechanism in the process remains unknown. Herein, a comprehensive catalytic SCWG mechanism of coal is proposed by establishing a novel catalytic kinetic model. It shows that catalysts (K₂CO₃) break up the coal matrix by a cyclic redox reaction to produce plenty of mesopores, accelerating steam reforming of fixed carbon and coal pyrolysis. Water-gas shift reaction is facilitated by K₂CO₃ via formation of formate, which then promotes steam reforming of CH₄ at high temperature (≥700 °C) due to the decreasing CO. The proposed mechanism provides important insights in catalytic SCWG process of coal.     

Supercritical water gasification and partial oxidation of municipal sewage sludge: An experimental and thermodynamic study

Supercritical gasification (SCWG) and supercritical partial oxidation (SCWPO) technologies have emerged as preferred means of converting wet biomass to hydrogen-rich gases. We experimentally investigated the effects of moisture content, pressure and oxidation coefficient (n) on mole fraction, yield, gasification efficiency and energy recovery of gaseous products from SCWG or SCWPO of municipal sewage sludge, as well as on the carbon and nitrogen contents in liquid products. Potential of sludge for producing gaseous products was thermodynamically analyzed by an Aspen Plus model. The results show that 87 wt%, 25 MPa and n = 0 were optimum conditions for sludge gasification. Sludge with 87 wt% moisture content was pumpable at 75 °C, and further increasing the moisture content decreased the heating value and energy recovery of gaseous products. Pressure played little role in both the experimental and equilibrium gas yields. Highest mole fractions and yields of H₂ and CH₄ were achieved at n = 0.     

Highly efficient electricity generation from biomass by integration and hybridization with combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plants for natural gas

Integration/co-firing with existing fossil fuel plants could give near term highly efficient and low cost power production from biomass. This paper presents a techno-economical analysis on options for integrating biomass thermal conversion (optimized for local resources ∼50 MW_th) with existing CCGT (combined cycle gas turbine) power plants (800–1400 MW_th). Options include hybrid combined cycles (HCC), indirect gasification of biomass and simple cycle biomass steam plants which are simulated using the software Ebsilon Professional and Aspen Plus. Levelized cost of electricity (LCoE) is calculated with cost functions derived from power plant data. Results show that the integrated HCC configurations (fully-fired) show a significantly higher efficiency (40–41%, LHV (lower heating value)) than a stand-alone steam plant (35.5%); roughly half of the efficiency (2.4% points) is due to more efficient fuel drying. Because of higher investment costs, HCC options have cost advantages over stand-alone options at high biomass fuel prices (>25 EUR/MWh) or low discount rates (<5%). Gasification options show even higher efficiency (46–50%), and the lowest LCoE for the options studied for fuel costs exceeding 10 EUR/MWh. It can be concluded that clear efficiency improvements and possible cost reductions can be reached by integration of biomass with CCGT power plants compared to stand-alone plants.     

Assessment of low-rank coal and biomass co-pyrolysis system coupled with gasification

To utilize low-rank coal and biomass in a highly efficient and environmental-friendly manner, a co-pyrolysis system coupled with char gasification is investigated. This system has five main units, namely, the drying and mixing, pyrolysis, cooling and separation, combustion, and gasification units, which are simulated by ASPEN plus based on experimental data. Results show that 37% of the pyrolysis char is burned to supply heat for pyrolysis and drying processes based on cascade utilization of heat energy, whereas the rest is sent to a gasifier. The sensitivity analysis is performed to investigate the impacts of steam and O₂ injection on gas composition, gasification temperature, carbon conversion efficiency, heating value of gas during gasification, and gas production efficiency. The fractions of H₂, CH₄, CO, and CO₂ demonstrate diverse variation tendencies with an increasing equivalence ratio and steam-to-char (S/C) ratio. However, carbon conversion efficiency reaches its peak of 99.91% when the equivalence ratio is approximately 4 regardless of S/C ratio. An equivalence ratio of 4 and S/C ratio of 0.15 are used as decent examples to calculate the mass balance and to simulate the overall system. Results show that 1000 kg/h coal and 500 kg/h biomass can produce 285.83 m³/h pyrolysis gas and 2580.78 m³/h gasification gas with low heating values of 8.20 and 9.746 MJ/m³, respectively.