Amine Solvent Regeneration for CO2 Capture Using Geothermal Energy with Advanced Stripper Configurations

Absorption/stripping using alkanolamine solvents for removing CO2 from the flue gas of coal-fired power plants requires a substantial amount of energy. Typical designs anticipate the use of steam extraction between the Intermediate Pressure (IP) and Low Pressure (LP) turbines to provide heat for the reboiler. Geothermal energy in the form of hot brine offers an alternative to this large parasitic load on the power generation cycle. We investigate the requirements (number and spacing of extraction/injection well pairs) to provide heat at 150 degrees C for a pilot scale (60 MWe) and a full scale (900 MWe) capture process for thirty years. The calculations are based on properties of a geopressured/geothermal aquifer near the Texas Gulf Coast. In the vicinity of a large coal-fired power plant in South Texas, this aquifer lies between 3 050 and 3 350 m (10 000 and 11 000 ft) below the surface. We present a novel design of the stripper/regenerator process based on heat exchange with the brine, discharging the brine at 100 degrees C. The results indicate that the overall process is feasible and that costs are of similar magnitude to standard designs.