| Tokyo, December 12, 2005 - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), in cooperation with the Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER), will conduct verification testing of a large-scale carbon dioxide (CO2) recovery plant over a period of five months starting next July. The recovery plant will collect CO2 from flue gas emitted at J-POWER's coal-fired power generation plant in Kyushu. In preparation for the test, MHI commenced construction of the testing plant at J-POWER's Matsushima Thermal Power Station in Nagasaki. The verification test will be conducted as part of a technology development promotion initiative of the Research Institute of Innovative Technologies for the Earth (RITE). Through the test, MHI will collect data to be applied in establishing an optimum CO2 recovery system. |
1.Significance of the Verification Test
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The test will serve to verify the optimal technology for separating and collecting CO2 from flue gas emitted by coal-fired boilers.
MHI has already developed and commercialized an energy-efficient CO2 recovery system for natural gas-fired boilers. Testing of technology for CO2 recovery from coal-fired boilers remains at the pilot system level, however, and testing at the verification plant level is necessary for commercialization to proceed.
For this reason, MHI solicited cooperation from J-POWER, which is the largest coal-fired power plant operator in Japan and has extensive plant operation experience. J-POWER views curbing global warming as one of the company's most important management issues, and therefore agreed to accept MHI's request and offer its full cooperation for the verification testing.
While coal is in an advantageous position for stable energy source supply due to its abundant recoverable reserves, compared with natural gas and oil, it has become an issue in preventing global warming because CO2 emission from coal-fired boilers is greater. Therefore, the CO2 recovery system for coal-fired boilers, to be verified in this test, is expected to become one of important measures against global warming. |
2.Outline of the Test
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Time frame |
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Commencement of test facility construction: December 2005 |
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Testing period: July to November 2006 (subject to change)
(Target testing duration: 3,000 hours) |
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Outline of test facility |
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Plant site: J-POWER's Matsushima Thermal Power Station in Nagasaki
(Installation floor area: approximately 300 square meters) |
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CO2 processing capacity: 10 tons per day |
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Flue gas processing capacity: 1,750 m3N/h (normal cubic meters per hour)
The CO2 recovery plant will use flue gas from J-POWER's on-site desulfurization (DeSOx) plant. CO2 recovery processing capacity will be about 0.1% of the rated flue gas flow from the plant (1,700,000 m3N/h). |
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Testing specifics |
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Procedure: |
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Flue gas from the DeSOx plant will be led into the CO2 recovery test plant. After cooling down of the gas, CO2 will be separated from the flue gas being absorbed in the CO2 solvent (recovery from gas into solvent) and collected at a re-boiler (separation from solvent by boiling). As the purpose of the test is to verify CO2 recovery technology, the collected CO2 will be returned for mixing with unprocessed flue gas. |
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Items to be evaluated/verified |
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- Evaluation: negative impact of particles in flue gas on CO2 recovery system
- Evaluation: rate of CO2 solvent deterioration
- Evaluation: efficiency of advanced desulfurization technology
- Verification: long-term system reliability |
Configuration of Verification Plant
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About Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading heavy machinery manufacturers, with consolidated sales of 2,590 billion yen in fiscal 2004 (year ended March 31, 2005). MHI's diverse lineup of products and services encompasses shipbuilding, steel structures, power plants, chemical plants, steel plants, environmental equipment, industrial and general machinery, aircraft, space rocketry and air-conditioning systems.
For more information, please visit the MHI website (http://www.mhi.co.jp).
PRESS CONTACT:
Hideo Ikuno: h.ikuno@daiya-pr.co.jp
Tel: +813-6716-5277, Fax: +813-6716-5929
Daiya PR (in charge of public relations for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.) |
