Ammonia from solid fuels: A cost-effective route to energy security with negative CO2 emissions

Carlos Arnaiz del Pozo, Schalk Cloete and Ángel Jiménez Álvaro

Energy, 2023, vol. 278, issue PA

Abstract: This study investigates a potential solution to the global challenge of secure, affordable, and low-carbon energy supply: ammonia production from local coal and biomass resources with CO2 capture for negative emissions. Two innovative configurations; an E-gas gasifier with membrane-assisted water-gas shift and an air-blown MHI gasifier design, are compared with an oxygen-blown GE gasifier benchmark. Under the baseline cost assumptions of 2.5 €/GJ for coal, 6.1 €/GJ for biomass, and a CO2 tax of 100 €/ton, the GE configuration reached a levelized cost of ammonia (LCOA) of 391.5 €/ton, while the E-gas and MHI concepts showed 59.0 (−15.1%) and 18.6 (4.8%) €/ton lower and higher costs, respectively. Subsequent benchmarking against alternative ammonia supply pathways showed that the energy security offered by the E-gas configuration comes at a premium of around 40% over ammonia imported at cost from natural gas exporting regions, which will be cheaper than liquified natural gas if the CO2 price exceeds 60.9 €/ton. Since prices of imported energy are generally well above the cost of production, the carbon-negative energy security offered by the proposed plants can be economically attractive to importers with rising CO2 taxes. Thus, policy support for establishing local ammonia value chains can be recommended.

Keywords: Ammonia; CO2 capture; Gasification; Techno-economic assessment; Energy carrier; Energy security (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:278:y:2023:i:pa:s0360544223012744

DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2023.127880

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