Techno-Economic Evaluation of a Small-Scale Power Generation Unit Based on a Chemical Looping Combustion Process in Fixed Bed Reactor Network

This paper reports the techno-economic analysis of a small-scale power generation unit integrating chemical looping combustion (CLC) with inherent CO2 capture and power sections. In the CLC section four adiabatic fixed beds are operated using Cu as an oxygen carrier and methane as the fuel to continuously produce two hot gas streams at an approximately constant mass flow rate and temperatures of about 1045 and 1175 K, respectively. While the former is used to warm-up the inlet air, the energetic content of the latter is converted into electricity through a gas turbine system based on a combined cycle. By means of a one-dimensional numerical model, it was assessed that the net power generation of the proposed power unit is about 0.50 MW, with a global energy efficiency (51%) higher than that of alternative carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies. The proposed system is characterized by better economic performance than alternative CCS-based power plants, reaching a levelized cost of energy and cost of...