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• Black liquor gasification was coupled with calcium looping. • Calcium looping for CO 2 capture and H 2 production was compared. • CO 2 capture route (39 €/t) was less expensive than H 2 production route (48.8 €/t). • CO 2 avoided cost was highly dependent on capital cost of black liquor gasification. • Export of H 2 had the lowest CO 2 avoided cost among black liquor gasification cases. Although considered one of the major energy-intensive industries (EIIs), the pulp and paper industry has also the potential for energy production from an industrial waste, black liquor. This study proposes black liquor gasification (BLG) coupled with calcium looping (CaL) as a CO 2 capture route for the pulp and paper industry. BLG with H 2 production (BLG-CaL-H 2), BLG with gas turbine combined cycle (BLG-CaL-GT) or with solid oxide fuel cell (BLG-CaL-SOFC) were considered. The dependence of carbon capture and storage (CCS) cost on the natural gas, limestone, electricity imported and H 2 sale prices aside the expenditures related with BLG-CaL were evaluated. The CCS route, based on CaL retrofitted to the pulp and paper plant, was found to have a lower cost of CO 2 avoided (39.0 €/tCO 2) when compared with BLG-CaL (48.8–57.1 €/tCO 2). Between the BLG-CaL scenarios, BLG-CaL-H 2 presented the lowest cost of CO 2 avoided (48.8 €/tCO 2) but the highest energy penalty. Based on the thermodynamic performance, it was shown that CaL retrofit and BLG-CaL-SOFC presented the best overall performance, turning the electricity importer reference plant into electricity exporter. The economic sensitivity showed that the capital requirement of BLG-CaL has a strong effect on the cost of CO 2 avoided for all alternatives. The H 2 production is also strongly affected by the H 2 sale price while BLG-CaL-SOFC and BLG-CaL-GT are strongly dependent on natural gas price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We examine consequences of new energy technologies in the pulp and paper industry with respect to net CO2 emissions and oil use. The entire production chain from the extraction of primary resources is included in the analysis. Stand-alone production of electricity and transportation fuel from biomass is included to balance the systems compared, so that they produce the same CO2 emission and oil use reductions. The technologies considered are black liquor gasification (BLG) with electricity and motor fuels production in chemical pulp mills and increased energy efficiency in thermomechanical pulp mills. The technologies are evaluated with respect to net CO2 emission, oil use, primary energy use, biomass use and monetary cost. We find that BLG in chemical pulp mills is favourable compared to stand-alone production of fuels and electricity from biomass. It is more efficient to implement BLG with motor fuels production and stand-alone electricity production from biomass, than to implement BLG with electricity production and stand-alone production of motor fuels. Increased energy efficiency in refining of thermomechanical pulp gives CO2 savings more efficiently than stand-alone production of electricity from biomass. Sensitivity analysis indicates that our conclusions are robust with respect to energy and biomass prices and the choice of coal or natural gas for marginal electricity. Newsprint from thermomechanical pulp would require slightly less biomass and have lower costs than paper from chemical pulp, per metric ton (t) product, when the systems are also required to render the same oil use and CO2 emission reductions. Substituting mineral fillers for 25% of the chemical pulp changes the balance in favour of the chemical pulp paper. At an oil price of 40 US$/barrel, all studied pulp and paper mill technology improvements give unchanged or reduced monetary costs also when oil use and CO2 emissions are not balanced with stand-alone bioenergy plants. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Black liquor gasification (BLG) has potential to replace a Tomlinson recovery boiler as an alternative technology to increase safety, flexibility and energy efficiency of pulp and paper mills. This paper presents an extensive literature review of the research and development of various BLG technologies over recent years based on low and high temperature gasification that include SCA-Billerud process, Manufacturing and Technology Conversion International (MTCI) process, direct alkali regeneration system (DARS), BLG with direct causticization, Chemrec BLG system, and catalytic hydrothermal BLG. A few technologies were tested on pilot scale but most of them were abandoned due to technical inferiority and very fewer are now at commercial stage. The drivers for the commercialization of BLG enabling bio-refinery operations at modern pulp mills, co-producing pulp and value added energy products, are discussed. In addition, the potential areas of research and development in BLG required to solve the critical issues and to fill research knowledge gaps are addressed and highlighted. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Based on KAMa pulp and paper mill, a polygeneration system integrated with a black liquor gasifier is proposed. The effects of CO2 captured by oxygen-fuel combustion and Selexol absorption on the performance of the polygeneration system are studied in terms of both thermodynamic performance and cost assessment. Using the Aspen Plus simulator, the performance of the studied polygeneration systems are analyzed from the perspectives of the first and second laws of thermodynamics. Compared with the reference system, the first law efficiency of the polygeneration system increased from 15.7% to 29.3%, with an investment increment of 17.9%. The investment incremental rates for CO2 capture by oxyfuel combustion and Selexol absorption are 15.1% and 16.7%, respectively. Energy penalty due to CO2 capture and compression is 0.61 MJ electricity/kg CO2, avoided in the oxygen-fuel method at a cost of $29.6/tonne CO2. However, energy penalty can reach 1.03 MJ product (electricity and methanol) per kg CO2, avoided in the Selexol absorption CO2 capture process at a cost of $46.0/tonne CO2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper estimates potential hydrogen production via dry black liquor gasification system with direct causticization integrated with a reference pulp mill. The advantage of using direct causticization is elimination of energy intensive lime kiln. Pressure swing adsorption is integrated in the carbon capture process for hydrogen upgrading. The energy conversion performance of the integrated system is compared with other bio-fuel alternatives and evaluated based on system performance indicators. The results indicated a significant hydrogen production potential (about 141 MW) with an energy ratio of about 0.74 from the reference black liquor capacity (about 243.5 MW) and extra biomass import (about 50 MW) to compensate total energy deficit. About 867,000 tonnes of CO 2 abatement per year is estimated i.e. combining CO 2 capture and CO 2 offset from hydrogen replacing motor gasoline. The hydrogen production offers a substantial motor fuel replacement especially in regions with large pulp and paper industry e.g. about 63% of domestic gasoline replacement in Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kraft pulp production generates residues and by‐products of significant importance to the mill. Solid residues from forestry activities are commonly used to generate steam in power boilers. In the recovery cycle, black liquor generates steam (and subsequently energy) by burning in the Tomlinson boiler, while white liquor is regenerated. Well‐developed alternative technologies can use these residues and by‐products to generate different types of biofuels. This review addresses the use of such technologies integrated with Kraft mills, in the concept of biorefineries, showing advantages, disadvantages, and successful examples. Solid residues from forestry can be used to produce bio‐oil through processes such as fast pyrolysis and hydrothermal liquefaction. Bio‐oils are currently used for heating through combustion in commercial/industrial boilers, but greater appreciation occurs if used as biofuels, which is done through catalytic upgrading processes. Black liquor gasification generates synthesis gas, which can be burned for energy co‐generation, used to produce synthetic fuels, or as a hydrogenating agent for bio‐oil or crude tall oil catalytic upgrading. Kraft biorefineries are gradually being implemented, justifying efforts to improve existing and new biomass conversion technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY This paper compares different energy-related investment options that can be implemented in a kraft pulp mill with a potential steam surplus. The options investigated include lignin extraction, electricity production, capturing of CO2 and black liquor gasification with production of electricity or biofuels, here DME. The investment options are compared with respect to annual net profit and global CO2 emissions for different future energy market scenarios. A further analysis of how different parameters such as policy instruments and investment costs affect the different technologies also is included. The results show that, generally, for reasonable levels of biofuel support, the best economic performance among the studied technologies is achieved by extraction of lignin valued as oil. However, if the level of support for biofuels is high, black liquor gasification with DME production generally has the best economic performance among the studied options. All the investment options investigated decrease global CO2 emissions significantly. Capturing and storing CO2 from the recovery boiler flue gases result in the highest CO2 emissions reduction and also is an economically attractive option in scenarios with a high CO2 emissions charge. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Synthetic natural gas (SNG) production from dry black liquor gasification (DBLG) system is an attractive option to reduce CO2 emissions replacing natural gas. This article evaluates the energy conversion performance of SNG production from oxygen blown circulating fluidized bed (CFB) black liquor gasification process with direct causticization by investigating system integration with a reference pulp mill producing 1000 air dried tonnes (ADt) of pulp per day. The direct causticization process eliminates use of energy intensive lime kiln that is a main component required in the conventional black liquor recovery cycle with the recovery boiler. The paper has estimated SNG production potential, the process energy ratio of black liquor (BL) conversion to SNG, and quantified the potential CO2 abatement. Based on reference pulp mill capacity, the results indicate a large potential of SNG production (about 162MW) from black liquor but at a cost of additional biomass import (36.7MW) to compensate the total energy deficit. The process shows cold gas energy efficiency of about 58% considering black liquor and biomass import as major energy inputs. About 700ktonnes per year of CO2 abatement i.e. both possible CO2 capture and CO2 offset from bio-fuel use replacing natural gas, is estimated. Moreover, the SNG production offers a significant fuel replacement in transport sector especially in countries with large pulp and paper industry e.g. in Sweden, about 72% of motor gasoline and 40% of total motor fuel could be replaced. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Black liquor gasification (BLG) is being developed as an alternative technology for energy and chemical recovery in kraft pulp mills. This study compares BLG – with downstream production of DME (dimethyl ether) or electricity – with recovery boiler-based pulping biorefinery concepts for different types of mills. The comparison is based on profitability as well as CO2 emissions, using different future energy market scenarios. The possibility for carbon capture and storage (CCS) is considered. The results show that, if commercialised, BLG with DME production could be profitable for both market pulp mills and integrated pulp and paper mills in all energy market scenarios considered. Recovery boiler-based biorefinery concepts including extraction of lignin or solid biomass gasification with DME production could also be profitable for market and integrated mills, respectively. If the mill is located close to an infrastructure for CO2 collection and transportation, CCS significantly improves profitability in scenarios with a high CO2 emissions charge, for both combustion- and gasification-based systems. Concepts that include CCS generally show a large potential for reduction of global CO2 emissions. Few of the concepts without CCS achieve a significant reduction of CO2 emissions, especially for integrated mills. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Black liquor gasification (BLG) is currently being developed as an alternative technology for energy and chemical recovery at chemical pulp mills. This study examines how different assumptions regarding systems surrounding the pulp mill affect the CO2 emission balances for different BLG concepts. The syngas from the gasification process can be used for different applications; this study considers production of renewable motor fuels and electricity generation. Both a market pulp mill and an integrated pulp and paper mill are considered as host mill for the BLG plant. Furthermore, the consequences of limited availability of biomass are shown, i.e., increasing the use of biomass in a mill is not necessarily CO2-neutral. The results show that the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by introducing BLG is generally much higher for a market pulp mill than for an integrated pulp and paper mill. Electricity generation from the syngas is favoured when assuming high grid electricity CO2 emissions where as motor fuel production is favoured when assuming low grid electricity CO2 emissions. When considering the consequences of limited availability of biomass, the CO2 emission balances are strongly affected, in some cases changing the results from a decrease to an increase of the CO2 emissions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Using energy systems analysis, we examine the potential to reduce CO2 emissions and oil use by integrating motor biofuel production with pulp mills. BLG-DME (black liquor gasification with di-methyl ether production) is compared with solid biomass gasification with BIG-FT (solid biomass gasification with Fischer-Tropsch fuel production). The studied systems are expanded with stand-alone production of biomass-based electricity and motor fuel so that they yield the same functional unit in terms of motor fuel and electricity as well as pulp or paper product, in order to facilitate comparison. More motor biofuel can be produced in integration with the studied mills with BLG-DME than with BIG-FT because the black liquor flow is large compared with other fuel streams in the mill and the integration potential for BIG-FT is limited by the mill’s heat demand. When both systems are required to produce the same functional unit, the BLG-DME system achieves higher system efficiency and larger reductions in CO2 emissions and oil use per unit of biomass consumed. In general, integration of motor biofuel production with a pulp mill is more efficient than stand-alone motor biofuel production. Larger reductions in CO2 emissions or oil use can, however, be achieved if biomass replaces coal or oil in stationary applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Black liquor gasification (BLG) for bio-fuel or electricity production at the modern pulp mills is a field in continuous evolution and the efforts are considerably driven by the climate change, fuel security, and renewable energy. This paper evaluates and compares two BLG systems for methanol production: (i) oxygen blown pressurized thermal BLG; and (ii) dry BLG with direct causticization, which have been regarded as the most potential technology candidates for the future deployment. A key objective is to assess integration possibilities of BLG technologies with the reference Kraft pulp mill producing 1000air dried tonnes (ADt) pulp/day replacing conventional recovery cycle. The study was performed to compare the systems’ performance in terms of potential methanol production, energy efficiency, and potential CO2 reductions. The results indicate larger potential of black liquor conversion to methanol from the pressurized BLG system (about 77million tonnes/year of methanol) than the dry BLG system (about 30million tonnes/year of methanol) utilizing identical amount of black liquor available worldwide (220million tDS/year). The potential CO2 emissions reduction from the transport sector is substantially higher in pressurized BLG system (117million tonnes/year CO2 reductions) as compared to dry BLG system (45million tonnes/year CO2 reductions). However, the dry BLG system with direct causticization shows better results when considering consequences of additional biomass import. In addition, comparison of methanol production via BLG with other bio-refinery products, e.g. hydrogen, dimethyl ether (DME) and bio-methane, has also been discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A novel technology to mitigate the climate changes and improve energy security is Pressurized Entrained flow High Temperature Black Liquor Gasification (PEHT-BLG) in combination with an efficient fuel synthesis using the resulting syngas. In order to optimise the technology for use in a pulp and paper mill based biorefinery, it is of great importance to understand how the operational parameters of the gasifier affect the product gas composition. The present paper is based on experiments where gas samples were withdrawn from the hot part of a 3MW entrained flow pressurized black liquor gasifier of semi industrial scale using a high temperature gas sampling system. Specifically, the influence of process conditions on product gas composition (CO2, CO, H2, CH4, H2S, and COS) were examined by systematically varying the operational parameters: system pressure, oxygen to black liquor equivalence ratio, black liquor flow rate to pressure ratio and black liquor pre-heat temperature. Due to the harsh environment inside the gasification reactor, gas sampling is a challenging task. However, for the purpose of the current study, a specially designed high temperature gas sampling system was successfully developed and used. The results, obtained from two separate experimental campaigns, show that all of the investigated operational parameters have a significant influence on the product gas composition and present valuable information about to the process characteristics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: There is great interest in developing black liquor gasification technology over recent years for efficient recovery of bio-based residues in chemical pulp mills. Two potential technologies of producing dimethyl ether (DME) and methane (CH4) as alternative fuels from black liquor gasification integrated with the pulp mill have been studied and compared in this paper. System performance is evaluated based on: (i) comparison with the reference pulp mill, (ii) fuel to product efficiency (FTPE) and (iii) biofuel production potential (BPP). The comparison with the reference mill shows that black liquor to biofuel route will add a highly significant new revenue stream to the pulp industry. The results indicate a large potential of DME and CH4 production globally in terms of black liquor availability. BPP and FTPE of CH4 production is higher than DME due to more optimized integration with the pulping process and elimination of evaporation unit in the pulp mill. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The black liquor gasification based bio-fuel production at chemical pulp mill is an attractive option to replace conventional recovery boilers increasing system energy efficiency. The present paper studies circulating fluidized bed system with direct causticization using TiO2 for the gasification of the black liquor to the synthesis gas. The advantage of using direct causticization is the elimination of energy-intensive lime kiln which is an integral part of the conventional black liquor recovery system. The study evaluates the effects of gasifying medium i.e. oxygen or air, on the fluidized bed gasification system, the synthesis gas composition, and the downstream processes for the synthesis gas conversion to the synthetic natural gas (SNG). The results showed higher synthetic natural gas production potential with about 10% higher energy efficiency using oxygen blown gasification system than the air blown system. From the pulp mill integration perspective, the material and energy balance results in better integration of air blown system than the oxygen blown system, e.g. less steam required to be generated in the power boiler, less electricity import, and less additional biomass requirement. However, the air blown system still requires a significant amount of energy in terms of the synthesis gas handling and gas upgrading using the nitrogen rejection system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses black liquor gasification which is a process for recovering the energy and chemicals in black liquor produced from the Kraft pulping process. The process, which can be combined with catalytic conversion of synthesis gas (syngas) into motor fuels, holds potential for the production of motor fuel from black liquor. The article focuses on the results obtained by spatially resolved measurements of the composition of gas in the DP-1 gasifier, which is a pressurized black liquor gasifier that contains a water cooled quench probe, in Sweden. Results from several detailed experiments using high-speed photography of black liquor sprays are also discussed in-depth.

Abstract: When gasified black liquor is used for hydrogen production, significant amounts of biomass must be imported. This paper compares two alternative options for producing hydrogen from biomass: (A) pulp-mill-integrated hydrogen production from gasified back liquor; and (B) stand-alone production of hydrogen from gasified biomass. The comparison assumes that the same amount of biomass that is imported in Alternative A is supplied to a stand-alone hydrogen production plant and that the gasified black liquor in Alternative B is used in a black liquor gasification combined cycle (BLGCC) CHP unit. The comparison is based upon equal amounts of black liquor fed to the gasifier, and identical steam and power requirements for the pulp mill. The two systems are compared on the basis of total CO2 emission consequences, based upon different assumptions for the reference energy system that reflect different societal CO2 emissions reduction target levels. Ambitions targets are expected to lead to a more CO2–lean reference energy system, in which case hydrogen production from gasified black liquor (Alternative A) is best from a CO2 emissions’ perspective, whereas with high CO2 emissions associated with electricity production, hydrogen from gasified biomass and electricity from gasified black liquor (Alternative B) is preferable. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]