Clean power technology eyes China
Advances in coal-based power generation can make the energy sector cleaner and edge towards zero emissions. This will benefit industrial areas and alleviate pollution where it is most needed in the world. The project 'Cooperation action within CCS China-EU' (COACH) brought together European and Chinese partners to support establishment of Near Zero Emission Coal (NZEC)-fired power plants. The project aimed to address climate change by deploying thermal power plants in China equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities. The COACH project built on both Chinese and European technologies to enable large-scale, poly-generation energy power generation facilities. These would be capable of coal-based electric power generation, synthetic fuel production and heat integration with surrounding industries. The project rigorously investigated the technical and economic considerations of coal gasification for coal-based generation combined with CCS. It identified carbon dioxide (CO2) emission sources and studied storage of CO2 in specific regions, examining the associated legal, regulatory, economic and funding considerations. Moreover, COACH established an online portal so that project stakeholders can exchange data among themselves, in addition to a website for public use and dissemination of information. Most importantly, the project produced recommendations to further its objectives and called for capture cost benchmarking that considers the impact of having both methanol and electricity as product streams. It also suggested geological assessments to enable the selection of storage sites in specific locations across China. These recommendations, suggestions and project results could help China produce cleaner energy and serve to advance cleaner coal-based power generation worldwide.
