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KIER demonstrates CO2 separation technology for power generation
Date posted:
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Post Author
Tracey Biller
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Dr Ryu Ho-jung’s research team at the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) has successfully demonstrated gas power generation technology capable of inherently separating carbon dioxide, reducing the need for additional capture facilities. The team has also achieved a world first by generating steam for electricity production in the process.
In an article on the institute’s website, Dr. Ryu explains that in conventional gas power generation, special facilities are required to separate and capture the CO2 released in fuel combustion along with nitrogen and water vapour, and this increases costs.
As an alternative, Dr Ryu’s researchers teamed up with the KEPCO Research Institute to develop chemical looping combustion (CLC) technology which delivers pure oxygen to the fuel using oxygen-carrying particles. The fuel then interacts exclusively with pure oxygen, eliminating any reaction with nitrogen from the air. As a result, the combustion process generates carbon dioxide and water vapor, enabling direct capture without the need for additional separation. Also, unlike conventional combustion which produces nitrogen oxides (NOₓ), a major contributor to ultrafine particulate matter, CLC technology operates through flameless combustion, drastically reducing NOx emissions.
In 2023, a 3 MW-scale pilot plant was established and full-scale demonstration tests were conducted. Over 300 hours of continuous operation, the technology achieved a carbon dioxide separation and emission efficiency exceeding 96%, surpassing the previous global benchmark of 94%. The trial also demonstrated a 30% reduction in carbon capture costs and a 4% improvement in power generation efficiency compared with existing methods.
While prior tests in the EU and China had not achieved steam production, the KIER team did so by optimising process design and scaling up oxygen production to minimise heat loss. Dr Ryu says this transition has moved the technology from the realm of promising future innovations to the domain of commercialisation.