Hydrogen membrane reactors for CO2 capture

In the European FP6 research project CACHET palladium-based hydrogen membrane reactors for pre-combustion CO2 capture from natural gas combined cycles are being developed. In the project both the electroless plating method used by DICP and the SINTEF two-stage membrane preparation method based on magnetron sputtering have been successfully up-scaled to produce membranes with a length of 50 cm. The membranes have been tested extensively with hydrogen/nitrogen gas mixtures and with simulated feed gas for reforming and water gas shift conditions. The membrane performances in terms of flux, stability and separation efficiency were sufficient to start at ECN the design and the construction of a membrane reactor test facility, the Process Development Unit (PDU), in which membrane reactor tests under relevant process conditions will be performed. The process synthesis and techno-economic analysis indicate overall efficiencies between 46.7 and 47.4 % LHV for natural gas combined cycle power plant with hydrogen membrane reactors for CO2 capture. The cost of electricity is estimated to be 73 and 92€/MWh. These figures are based on 2008 cost data and the membrane performance after two years of development.