Aspen Plus
CO2 Capture from Syngas for IGCC Using MEA
Version Number: V14.0
Copyright (c) 2022 by Aspen Technology, Inc. All rights reserved.
Aspen Plus and the aspen leaf are trademarks or registered trademarks of Aspen Technology, Inc., Bedford, MA.
All other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
This document is intended as a guide to using AspenTech's software. This documentation contains AspenTech
proprietary and confidential information and may not be disclosed, used, or copied without the prior consent of
AspenTech or as set forth in the applicable license agreement. Users are solely responsible for the proper use of
the software and the application of the results obtained.
Although AspenTech has tested the software and reviewed the documentation, the sole warranty for the software
may be found in the applicable license agreement between AspenTech and the user. ASPENTECH MAKES NO
WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, WITH RESPECT TO THIS DOCUMENTATION,
ITS QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Aspen Technology, Inc.
20 Crosby Drive
Bedford, MA 01730
USA
Phone: (1) (781) 221-6400
Toll Free: (888) 996-7100
URL: http://www.aspentech.com
Contents
1 Introduction .........................................................................................................1
2 Simulation Details ................................................................................................2
Process Description .......................................................................................... 2
3 Simulation Results ...............................................................................................3
4 Conclusion ............................................................................................................6
5 Reference .............................................................................................................7
Contents iii
iv Contents
1 Introduction
The solvent-based absorption technique is an important and mature solution
for CO2 capture. This Aspen Plus example models CO2 capture from syngas for
IGCC at the rate of 1 Million ton/year by using MEA. The absorber and
stripper are simulated with rate-based distillation model.
It serves as a starting point for more complex models for process design and
optimization, debottlenecking, and plant and equipment design.
The model includes the following key features:
• ENRTL-RK property method for the electrolytes system
• ACIDGAS database for pure and binary pairs with proprietary parameters
specifically for carbon capture and acid gas cleaning
• Kinetic reactions for CO2 and MEA
• Rate-based model for distillation column simulation
• Column Analysis for distillation column design and rating
• Process CO2 emissions
1 Introduction 1
2 Simulation Details
Process Description
This example relies on a design case [1]. The dry flue gas, which consists of
CO2, H2 and N2, is sent to the absorber column to remove CO2.
The packed absorber column is divided into 20 stages in the simulation. The
syngas enters the column at the bottom and the lean MEA solvent enters the
column on stage 1. CO2 is absorbed by the solvent in the column. Clean gas
comes out the top of the absorber and the rich solvent leaves the absorber
from the bottom and is sent to the stripper.
Before entering the stripper, the rich solvent stream goes through a heat
exchanger to increase the temperature to 200 °F. The stripper is divided into
22 stages in the simulation. Rich solvent enters the stripper column on the
first stage. CO2 is stripped from the rich amine in the column and the MEA
solvent is regenerated. The lean solvent from the bottom of the stripper is
recycled with makeup back to the absorber.
Figure 1. CO2 capture using MEA flowsheet in Aspen Plus
2 2 Simulation Details
3 Simulation Results
Table 1 shows key simulation results of the absorber. Figure 1 (above) shows
correspondent Stream IDs. Table 2 and 3 summarize specs and results of the
stripper.
Table 1. Simulation results of absorber
Stream ID 8 1 2 3
Vapor fraction 0 1 1 0
Temperature [C] 37.8 37.8 40.8 84.9
Pressure [kPa] 1724 1724 1620 1655
Molar Flow [kmole/h] 55794.6 11793.4 8987.7 55887.4
Mass Flow [1000 kg/h] 1325.3 277.1 155.2 1447.2
Composition [molefrac]
CO2 0.016 0.247 0.018 0.065
H2 O 0.883 0.004 0.005 0.864
MEAmine 0.117 0 3.6e-6 0.116
Table 2. Key specs of stripper
Variable name Value
Specification 1 Reboiler duty 7.9e8 kJ/hr
Specification 2 Distillate flow rate 1.3e5 kg/hr
Table 3. Simulation results of stripper
Stream Name 4B 5 12
Vapor Fraction 0.0129 0 1
Temperature [C] 86.2 112.0 52.2
Pressure [kPa] 138 136 101
Molar Flow [kmole/h] 56237.8 55347.4 3252.9
Mass Flow [1000 kg/h] 1447.2 1317.2 130.0
3 Simulation Results 3
Composition[molefrac]
CO2 0.065 0.016 0.847
H2 O 0.863 0.881 0.137
MEAmine 0.116 0.118 1.3e-6
Table 4 summarizes specifications of the column geometry and internal types.
Figures 2 and 3 show hydraulic plots of the absorber and the stripper,
respectively.
Table 4. Specs of column geometries and internal types
Section Absorber Section 1 Stripper Section 1
Start stage - End Stage 1 - 20 2 -21
Section Height, ft 36 45
Diameter, ft 15 25
Packing type PALL PALL
Figure 2. Hydraulic plots of absorber
4 3 Simulation Results
Figure 3. Hydraulic plots of stripper
Aspen Plus supports 5 well known standards for Global Warming Potential,
IPCC SRA (1995), IPCC AR4 (2007), USEPA (2009), IPCC AR5 (2014), and
IPCC AR6 (2021). You can select the standard for Global Warming Potential
and specify carbon fee / carbon tax in Simulation | Setup | Emission
Options. In addition, you can turn on carbon tracking for utility in
Simulation | Utilities | Utility Name | Input | Carbon Tracking.
Finally, Table 5 shows process CO2 emissions including both material streams
and utilities from Simulation | Results Summary | CO2 Emissions.
Table 5. Results of CO2 emissions
Net CO2
Source Feed Product Utility
emission
Stream 1 2 12*
CO2 emission, 1380830 317529 1063310 411685 -334096
tonne/year
Carbon fee, 70.42 16.19 54.23 21.00 -17.04
million
USD/year
* Stream 12 represents a capture about 1M tonne/y of CO2 in the process, so
the net CO2 emission is negative. Fee values assume carbon price is
$51/tonne.
3 Simulation Results 5
4 Conclusion
This example shows how to:
• Model CO2 capture using MEA with Aspen Plus
• Define ENRTL-RK as property method
• Define reaction kinetics
• Simulate the distillation columns with rigorous rate-based distillation
models.
• Use Column Analysis to design the column geometry and internal types
• Estimates process CO2 emissions.
This example it is useful as a starting point for more sophisticated model
development.
6 4 Conclusion
5 Reference
[1] R.D. Doctor, J.C. Molburg, P.R. Thimmapuram, G.F. Berry, C.D.
Livengood, “Gasification Combined Cycle: Carbon Dioxide Recovery,
Transport, and Disposal”, Energy System Divison, Argonne National
Laboratory (1994)
5 Reference 7
