Performance analysis of a feasible technology for power and high-purity hydrogen production driven by methane fuel

In this novel work, a polygeneration system taking methane as material for high-purity hydrogen production and power generation was presented. The high-purity hydrogen production is obtained by application of chemical looping combustion as furnace thermally coupled with CaO sorption enhanced methane steam reforming (CLC-SEMSR) technology. A combined cycle power generation system is involved in this suggested process in order to obtain a more reasonable utilization of methane. This polygeneration process achieves in-situ CO2 capture, which significantly reduces the energy consumption for CO2 separation. Exergy efficiency analysis tool is used to evaluate the suggested polygeneration system in comparison with the popularly industrial hydrogen production route, methane steam reforming (MSR). The evaluation results indicate that, this novel polygeneration system can obtain higher exergy efficiency of 83.1% in comparison with that of 68.7% in MSR. In polygeneration system the exergy destruction reduces to 5.1 MW compared with that of 12.0 MW in MSR which is due to the elimination of CO2 capture in both combustion and reforming processes. Particularly, the new polygeneration system is capable of producing high-purity H2 of 94.0% and generating power of 3.2 MW, and offers a possibility of developing new technology for methane based system.