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CLIMIT-Forskning, utvikling og demo av CO2-håndtering

Innovative membrane systems for CO2 capture and storage at sea

Awarded: NOK 3.0 mill.

Greenhouse gas emissions from ships are currently estimated at 3% of the total global emissions, and are expected to grow by 2050 up to 17%. This is inconsistent with the COP21 Paris agreement global action plan which aims to limit global warming to well below 2°C. In order to address the Paris agreement, the United Nations International Maritime Organization (IMO) targets to reduce the total annual GHG emissions by at least 50% by 2050 compared to 2008, while pursuing efforts towards phasing them out entirely. In MemCCSea project, our idea is to capture carbon dioxide (the main greenhouse gas) from ships and floating vessels ON BOARD using membrane technology, seawater together with special chemical promoters and advanced materials, such as ceramics, graphene and polymers. To accomplish this, we plan to create a membrane system to "clean" ships' emissions, with a 10 times smaller volume than conventional scrubbing systems. The membrane recovers more than 90% of the main engine CO2 emissions, with 25% lower costs compared to conventional scrubbing systems. Main outcomes from the project include i) the selection of a specific case ship for (virtual) membrane-based carbon capture system integration and the definition of the operating conditions and exhaust gas characteristics, ii) the selection of solvents (seawater, amine-based, metal hydroxides) for gas-liquid membrane capture, iii) the preparation and evaluation of Mixed Matrix Membranes (using polymer membranes with custom-modified graphene nanoparticles), iv) the modification of ceramic membrane surface for increased hydrophobicity and the initial evaluation of the modified ceramic membranes and v) calculation of mass and energy balances for membrane-based capture module assembly on-board ships. A 3D virtual reality tool (ShipVR) has been prepared to introduce the concept and the main results of MemCCSea project to the public. A 2D version of ShipVR is available at project's website http://memccsea.certh.gr The successful conclusion of the MemCCSea project took place with the dissemination and networking event “Opportunities and Challenges for the Decarbonization of the Maritime Sector”. Ship owners, classification societies, technology providers, marine engineers, policymakers, scientists and researchers held a fruitful discussion about challenges and possibilities of the marine sector decarbonization. A wide range of the solutions pallet was debated while the onboard use of membrane-based CCS technology was suggested as a potential solution. Developments and improvements of the systems were highlighted, together with interesting what-if scenarios, presenting the methodology for assessing the membrane-based CCS technology. The two discussion panels, comprising experts from shipping industry and academia, pointed out the main challenges and actions taken towards decarbonization, as well as emerging systems and trends. Additionally, the necessity of collaboration between industry and academia was stressed so as to drive and advance developments. The presentations, interviews and a follow-up of the event are uploaded on the MemCCSea website and project’s social media (https://www.linkedin.com/company/memccsea-act/ and https://twitter.com/memccsea).

The MemCCSea project, achieved the following outcomes 1) recovery of the main engine CO2 emissions greater than 90% based in membrane technology 2) overall CO2 emissions reduction (including added emissions by the capture plant and utilities) greater than 50%, 3) a 10-fold reduction of system volume and a reduction of operating costs greater than 25% 4) a pilot design for a complete autonomous system on board was implemented, taking into account the carbon capturing system as well as the storage. 5) An evaluation of the CAPEX/OPEX (capital expense/operational expense) was conducted in order to assess the feasibility of installing a CO2 system (using MemCCSea technology) onboard. The total cost was evaluated against a set value of CO2 emission cost over the lifespan of the vessel (~30 years) Potential outcomes Next generation materials (graphene-based) have shown promise as additives in CO2-capture membranes but additional research on the optimization and more importantly the upscaling cost is needed.

The MemCCSea proposal aims at developing hyper compact membrane systems for flexible operational and cost-effective post-combustion CO2 capture in maritime applications, including Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carrier ships and floating vessels (FSRU and FPSO) used by the offshore oil and gas industry. The ultimate goal of the project is to provide a feasible design and pilot demonstration capable to achieve higher than the state-of-the-art performance, meeting the following key targets: recovery of the main engine CO2 emissions greater than 90%, overall CO2 emissions reduction (including added emissions by the capture plant and utilities) greater than 50%, a-10 fold reduction of system volume and a reduction of operating costs greater than 25% compared to conventional amine-based scrubbing systems. The key technological challenge of the MemCCSea proposal is the development of customized compact carbon capture and separation membrane systems and potential CO2 storage options, taking into account the unique challenges posed by the maritime environment, stringent safety requirements and the need for energy efficiency. Two types of innovative membrane-based CO2 capture technologies will be investigated (Ceramic Gas-Liquid Membrane Contactors and Polymeric Mixed Matrix Membrane Permeators) and the developed systems will be evaluated and optimized in laboratory- and pilot-scale experimental facilities and through extensive modelling and simulation at component and system levels. At the end of the project both membrane technologies will attain the goal of TRL 5-6. Process simulation activities will evaluate the feasibility of these technologies at TRL 7, while model-based assessment will explore the applicability of the proposed solution at TRL 8-9. The MemCCSea project results will be fully transferable to other CO2 capture applications, will contribute to the fight against global warming and will enable the maritime transport sector to meet future stringent regulations.

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CLIMIT-Forskning, utvikling og demo av CO2-håndtering