(604q) Process Modeling of a Coal, Wind and Nuclear Hybrid Energy System

Independent non-renewable traditional sources of energy are unsustainable, but purely renewable sources of energy are not yet economically viable.  A proposed hybrid energy system combining new technologies utilizing traditional energy sources coupled with a renewable source of power is considered.  A Pressurized Circulating Fluid Bed (PCFB) combustor is examined to provide clean energy from traditional coal.  The hypothetical plant is also coupled with a small modular nuclear reactor with renewable energy generation coming from harnessing and storing wind power.

A steady-state process simulation program is used to construct and evaluate the hybrid energy system process model.  The major issue facing the simulation is the time dependent nature of energy demand.  Since air currents are typically not in sync with the energy demands from the grid, the sources of wind power must be stored for later consumption.  A High Temperature Steam Electrolysis (HTSE) unit is incorporated into the model to generate and store hydrogen as a fuel source to offset the time differential from energy generated to energy demanded.

The proposed system, combining both traditional sources of energy and new renewable sources, is economically and environmentally sustainable.  Effluent from the PCFB combustor is fed into a gas scrubber to remove emissions including carbon dioxide which is fed to the HTSE to produce oxygen for oxy-fired operation of the PCFB and hydrogen for subsequent synfuel production.  Although the many components of the proposed Hybrid Energy System currently exists, the current work analyzes the integrated energy system using a detailed process model to assess thermal efficiency and economic sustainability.