(378c) Advanced Process Engineering Co-Simulation of the Futuregen Power and Hydrogen Production Plant

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is investing heavily in Fossil Energy R&D programs to promote the development of advanced power generation systems that meet the Nation's energy needs while maximizing efficiency and minimizing environmental impact and cost. One prime example is the DOE's $1 billion, 10-year, FutureGen Research Initiative aimed at creating the world's first coal-based, near-zero emissions electricity and hydrogen production power plant. The 275-megawatt FutureGen plant will employ advanced coal gasification technology integrated with combined cycle electricity generation, hydrogen production, and capture and sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO2). It will be the cleanest fossil fuel-fired power plant in the world, capturing and sequestering at least 90% of the CO2 with potential for 100% sequestration. The DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), building on collaborations with R&D technology partners, is developing the Advanced Process Engineering Co-Simulator (APECS) to help achieve the aggressive integration, environmental, performance, and economic goals for the FutureGen plant. This paper describes the APECS system which combines steady-state process simulation with high-fidelity equipment models based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD). We also highlight the application of APECS to a potential FutureGen plant simulation coupled with high-fidelity CFD simulations for key equipment items such as the gasifier and gas turbine combustor. The co-simulation results show that the APECS technology, for the first time, provides the necessary level of detail and accuracy essential for NETL engineers to better understand and optimize the fluid flow, heat and mass transfer, and chemical reactions that drive overall plant performance. Coupled with advanced visualization and high-performance computing, APECS offers opportunities for exploiting virtual plant simulations to reduce the time, cost, and technical risk of developing the high-efficiency, zero emission FutureGen power and hydrogen production plant.