Modelling CO2 dispersion from vents and accidental releases

Today a strong international research effort is put into the development of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies as a strategy for reducing global CO2 emissions from industry and power generation, while at the same time contributing to the global energy supply. When processing, transporting and storaging large quantities of CO2, there is a potential for hazardous releases of CO2 into the surroundings from blowdown vents and from accidental leakages from process equipment, pipelines and storage ta nks or caverns. A release of CO2 will typically follow the contours of the terrain and accumulate in pits, valleys and lower-lying grounds and consequently represent a significant hazard to people and life in these areas. To estimate the exposure to the e nvironment, it is important to know both the concentration levels and the time variation of the released CO2. To predict consequences of accidental CO2 releases in general and to design CCS plants with respect to minimizing hazardous environmental conse quences from accidental CO2 releases in particular, reliable and accurate predictive simulation tools for realistic scenarios are needed. The Kameleon FireEx KFX® tool is based on 40 years of research and development activities on turbulent flow and combu stion at NTNU, SINTEF and ComputIT, and is probably the most advanced industrial CFD tool worldwide for three-dimensional transient simulation of gas dispersion, flares and fires under realistic conditions. Kameleon FireEx KFX® has the potential of becomi ng the leading and preferred CFD tool for simulation of release and dispersion of CO2 and other heavy, hazardous gases in complex, realistic geometries. The planned innovation project will involve CO2?specific release and dispersion modeling and CFD tool implementation and development which will significantly improve the current predicting capabilities of CO2 dispersion from vents and accidental releases.