Pre-combustion CO2 capture for IGCC plants by an adsorption process

A promising approach to provide in the near future electricity from fossil fuels, for the worldwide increasing energy requirements with near-zero CO2 emissions is the IGCC (Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle) technology with pre-combustion CO2 capture. One important aspect within this technology is the development of advanced processes for the capture of CO2, i.e. its separation from hydrogen, with improved efficiency to decrease the energy consumption in this step. In our laboratory, the CO2/H2 separation by a pressure swing adsorption process is investigated, including both the experimental characterization of suitable commercial and new adsorbents as well as the development, design and optimization of a proper process concept including the required purification steps by a process simulation.