Analysis of the integration of a steel plant in Australia with a carbon capture system powered by renewable energy and NG-CHP

This study demonstrates an economic feasibility analysis of renewable energy (solar and wind)-powered carbon capture plant integrated with a steel making facility located in Sydney, Melbourne and Townsville. This evaluation is performed assuming implementation in year 2020. Two financial metrics are used to determine the economic viability of the proposed project, namely, cost of avoidance (COA) and net annual benefit (NB). The natural gas combined heat and power (NG-CHP) plant is used as an alternative to renewable energy to power the carbon capture system. Results show that the integration of renewable energy-powered carbon capture system with a steel plant was more feasible compare to NG-CHP powered carbon capture system when deployed in Sydney and Townsville. The renewable energy technology was also able to capture a high proportion of the CO2 capture target by capturing up to 93%, 74% and 94% of the total emissions capture target in Sydney, Melbourne and Townsville respectively. Out of the five solar thermal technologies analysed, evacuated tube collectors (ETCs) and parabolic trough collectors (PTCs) were found to be most economically feasible in Townsville and Sydney respectively for capturing high fractions of the carbon dioxide capture target. While this study explores a fully renewable energy-powered and fully NG-CHP powered carbon capture facility, it is likely that a mix of these two technologies may produce an optimal economic and operational output in which nearly all the carbon dioxide capture target can be met at a reasonable cost while ensuring stable operation of the carbon capture plant.