(381d) Flex Fuel Polygeneration: Optimizing Cost, Sustainability, and Resiliency

Flex Fuel Polygeneration (FFPG) is a new technology that employs multiple energy sources and produces multiple energy carriers to construct optimal energy plant designs in terms of cost, sustainability, and resiliency. This technology allows for adjustments to be made to market fluctuations and improvements to the energy efficiency and environmental performance of power plants. The diversification of energy pathways also increases resiliency to contingencies such as earthquakes, flooding, reduced winds, or other events that may reduce the availability of energy sources. In this study we develop two FFPG plants that employ combinations of natural gas, biomass, wind, and the use of anaerobic digestion, fuel cells, different types of turbines, and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. To obtain FFPG plant performance results, we combine techno-economic analyses available in literature of existing energy plants to reflect the FFPG plant designs. By doing high level analysis we can look at the costs and products of theoretical plants and compare their performances to plants that are currently in operation. What we have found are preliminary results regarding the internal rates of return. Additional FFPG plants will be designed and analyzed at a high level to continue the advancement of this technology.