Techno-economic analysis and life cycle analysis of e-fuel production using nuclear energy

Journal Article · 01 June 2023 · Journal of CO2 Utilization

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcou.2023.102481 · OSTI ID:1988202

Delgado, Hernan E. ^[1]; Cappello, Vincenzo  ^[1]; Zang, Guiyan  ^[1]; Sun, Pingping  ^[1]; Ng, Clarence  ^[1]; Vyawahare, Pradeep  ^[1]; Elgowainy, Amgad A. ^[1]; Wendt, Daniel S. ^[2]; Boardman, Richard D. ^[2]; Marcinkoski, Jason ^[3]

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1. Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
2. Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
3. US Department of Energy (USDOE), Washington, DC (United States). Office of Nuclear Energy (NE)

Electrofuels, or e-fuels, are synthetic liquid hydrocarbon fuels which may be produced using carbon dioxide (CO₂) and low carbon hydrogen (H₂) as feedstock. They are of great interest because they have much lower carbon intensity compared to the conventional petroleum fuels and can utilize the existing fuel infrastructure owing to their ability to blend with or replace existing fuels. We modeled an e-fuel production process to produce low carbon jet, diesel, and naphtha using a reverse water gas shift process to produce synthesis gas, followed by a Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synthesis process. Nuclear energy is considered for e-fuel production due to its steady energy supply, near-zero carbon emissions, capability to produce hydrogen with high efficiency via high temperature electrolysis, and proximity to biogenic CO₂ sources from nearby corn-ethanol plants in the United States. The modeled FT process achieved a high carbon conversion ratio of 99% by recycling CO₂ and the use of oxy-combustion, and a process energy efficiency of approximately 70%. The life cycle greenhouse gases emissions are estimated to be 7 and -25 gCO₂e/MJ, without and with steam coproduct credit, respectively, by using the Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies (GREET®) model. Additionally, the process economics were evaluated for three scales corresponding to nuclear power plant capacities of 100, 400, and 1000 MWe, estimating a minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) of $$\$$3.61$/gal ($$\$$0.95$/L), $$\$$2.82$/gal ($$\$$0.74$/L), and $$\$$2.66$/gal ($$\$$0.70$/L) of FT fuel mix, respectively, by considering $$\$$3$$/kg of H₂ tax credit prescribed in the recent Inflation Reduction Act.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE); USDOE Office of Science (SC)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-06CH11357; AC02–06CH11357; AC07-05ID14517
• OSTI ID: 1988202
• Alternate ID(s): OSTI ID: 1993044; OSTI ID: 2375881
• Report Number(s): INL/JOU-23-73895-Rev000; 181811; TRN: US2500359
• Journal Information: Journal of CO2 Utilization, Vol. 72; ISSN 2212-9820
• Publisher: ElsevierCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English