1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas, capable of stably processing all the carbon dioxide in the flue gas discharged from an industrial facility such as a gas turbine, a furnace, or a boiler.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, to collect carbon dioxide in flue gas, for example, a system is adopted when an amine-based absorbing solvent is used as a CO2 absorbing solvent to remove and collect CO2 from flue gas; firstly, a process is performed to bring the CO2 absorbing solvent into contact with the flue gas in an absorption column, and thereafter the CO2 absorbing solvent that has absorbed CO2 is heated in a regeneration column; secondly, CO2 is freed and the CO2 absorbing solvent is regenerated, and circulated in the absorption column again, and finally, reused (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H3-193116).
In a CO2 collection method using the conventional CO2 collecting device 1030, the flue gas 1002 containing CO2, discharged from the industrial facility such as a boiler and a gas turbine, is firstly sent to the flue gas cooling device 1004 after pressure is raised by an flue gas fan 1010, cooled by cooling water 1003, and thereafter sent to the CO2 absorption column 1006.
In the CO2 absorption column 1006, the flue gas 1002 is countercurrently contacted with, for example, the CO2 absorbing solvent 1005 based on an amine-based absorbent, and the CO2 in the flue gas 1002 is absorbed in the CO2 absorbing solvent 1005 due to a chemical reaction (R—NH2+H2O+CO2→R—NH3HCO3), and flue gas 1011 from which the CO2 is removed is released from the system. The CO2 absorbing solvent 1007 absorbing the CO2 is also called a rich solvent. Pressure is raised for the rich solvent 1007 by a rich solvent pump 1012, and heated by a rich/lean solvent heat exchanger 1013 by the CO2 absorbing solvent (lean solvent) 1009 regenerated by removing CO2 in the regeneration column 1008 described later, and supplied to the regeneration column 1008.
The rich solvent 1007 released from the upper part of the regeneration column 1008 to the interior of the regeneration column 1008 receives heat from water vapor generated inside the regeneration column 1008 and a large amount of CO2 is discharged. The CO2 absorbing solvent from which a portion or a large amount of CO2 is released inside the regeneration column 1008 is called a semi-lean solvent. The semi-lean solvent becomes a CO2 absorbing solvent from which almost all of the CO2 is removed by the time it reaches the lower portion of the regeneration column 1008. The absorbing solvent regenerated by removing almost all of the CO2 is called a lean solvent. A re-boiler 1014 heats the lean solvent by using steam. Meanwhile, CO2 gas 1015 together with water vapor released from the rich solvent and the semi-lean solvent inside the regeneration column 1008 is derived from the head top part of the regeneration column 1008, the water vapor is condensed by an overhead condenser 1016, water is separated by a separation drum 1017, and CO2 gas 1018 is released from the system and collected. The water separated by the separation drum 1017 is supplied by a condensed-water circulating pump 1019 to the upper part of regeneration column 1008. The regenerated CO2 absorbing solvent (lean solvent) 1009 is cooled by the rich solvent 1007 by the rich/lean solvent heat exchanger 1013, which is followed by raising the pressure by a lean solvent pump 1020, and the resultant water is cooled by a lean solvent cooler 1021, and thereafter supplied to the CO2 absorption column 1006.
In
As the conventional effective utilization of the carbon dioxide in flue gas, some of the carbon dioxide in flue gas is merely collected to produce carbon dioxide for carbonated drinks and dry ice. However, the greenhouse effect caused by carbon dioxide is recently pointed out as one of the causes of global warming. Measures are becoming an urgent necessity internationally to protect the global environment, and also, the source of generating the carbon dioxide affects every field of human activity, which burns fossil fuels, and demands of restricting the discharge tend are becoming even stronger. Along with this tendency, in power generation facilities such as thermal power stations that use a large amount of fossil fuels, there have been a method in which flue gas of industrial facilities such as a boiler and a gas turbine is brought into contact with a CO2 absorbing solvent, all of CO2 in the flue gas is removed and collected, and a method for storing the collected CO2 without releasing it into the atmosphere.
As described above, in the conventional CO2 collecting system 1000, there has been proposed that, when collecting all of carbon dioxide in flue gas, a containing unit such as a valve or damper that can be opened and closed inside the stack 1001b, as shown in
However, at the time of stopping the operation of the CO2 collecting device, unless an operation such as containment of the valve, damper or the like, which closes the interior of the stack or releasing is surely performed, discharge of flue gas is not performed smoothly, and there are occasions that the industrial facilities (such as gas turbines) at the upstream side are adversely affected.
Further, in a turbine facility that generates electricity of 200,000 kilowatts in which 3000 ton of carbon dioxide are processed in each day, an amount of discharged flue gas becomes enormous and a stack having, for example, a diameter of 7 to 10 meters is required. Under such circumstances, a facility of a containing unit such as a valve and a damper that contains the flue gas needs to be larger.
Accordingly, a system capable of drawing in substantially all of a large amount of flue gas to a carbon-dioxide collecting device in a simple, stable, and safe manner has been desired.
It is an object of the present invention to at least partially solve the problems in the conventional technology.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas includes: a stack that discharges flue gas discharged from an industrial facility to outside; a blower that is installed at a downstream side of the stack and draws the flue gas therein; a carbon-dioxide collecting device that collects carbon dioxide in the flue gas drawn in by the blower; and a gas flow sensor that is arranged near an exit side within the stack and measures a gas flow rate. A drawing amount of the flue gas to the carbon-dioxide collecting device by the blower is increased until an flow rate of the flue gas from the stack becomes zero in the gas flow sensor, and when the flow rate of the flue gas from the stack becomes zero, drawing in any more than the amount is stopped, and the carbon dioxide in the flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas includes: a stack that discharges flue gas discharged from an industrial facility to outside; a blower that is installed at a downstream side of the stack and draws the flue gas therein; a carbon-dioxide collecting device that collects carbon dioxide in the flue gas drawn in by the blower; and a sensor that is arranged at least one location in a stack flue at a downstream side of the stack within the stack and measures gas temperature or gas type. A drawing amount of the flue gas by the blower to the carbon-dioxide collecting device is increased until the gas temperature or a concentration of the gas type changes in the sensor, and when the gas temperature or the concentration of the gas type changes, drawing in any more than the amount is stopped, and the carbon dioxide in the flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, a system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas includes: a stack that discharges flue gas discharged from an industrial facility to outside; a blower that is installed at a downstream side of the stack and draws the flue gas therein; a carbon-dioxide collecting device that collects carbon dioxide in the flue gas drawn in by the blower; and a plurality of sensors that are arranged in an stack flue at an upstream side of the stack and at a downstream side of the stack and measure gas temperature or a concentration of gas type. A drawing amount of the flue gas by the blower to the carbon-dioxide collecting device is increased until a difference in the gas temperature or the concentration of the gas type is generated, and when the difference is generated, drawing in any more than the amount is stopped, and the carbon dioxide in the flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
In the system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas, the gas type may be oxygen or carbon dioxide.
The above and other objects, features, advantages and technical and industrial significance of this invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings.
The present invention is explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments. In addition, constituent elements in the following embodiments include elements that readily occur to those skilled in the art or substantially equivalent elements.
A system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas according to a first embodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
The carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is not particularly limited and can be any device that collects carbon dioxide, similar to the CO2 collecting device shown in the
In the first embodiment, the exhaust flow rate to the outside of the flue gas 12 from the stack 13 is monitored all the time in the gas flow sensor S1.
When the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased until the exhaust flow rate from the stack 13 becomes zero, the discharged amount of the flue gas 12 to the outside from the stack declines slowly as shown in
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 and all of the carbon dioxide in flue gas can be collected.
Further, in the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15, since air is mixed in the flue gas which is a target to be processed, malfunctions is not generated even when outside atmosphere is drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 from the stack 13.
In the present invention, the industrial facility is not particularly limited, and examples thereof can include a boiler, a combustion furnace, and a gas turbine facility, which generate carbon dioxide. When the gas turbine facility is used, a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) that collects heat having high temperature (about 580° C.) of the flue gas 12 discharged from a gas turbine can be installed.
A system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas according to a second embodiment of the present invention is explained next with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
That is, in the gas temperature sensor S2, the exhaust temperature of the flue gas to be discharged from the stack 13 to the outside is monitored all the time by the gas temperature sensor S2.
Even when the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased, the exhaust temperature from the stack 13 is almost maintained at constant temperature (100 to 180° C.) up to a certain time point as shown in
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 and all of the carbon dioxide in flue gas can be collected.
By using the gas temperature sensor S3 to control the drawing amount while monitoring the gas temperature in the same way as the gas temperature sensor S2, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 and all of the carbon dioxide in the flue gas can be collected.
In the gas temperature sensors S3 and S4, the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased until a difference in the flue gas temperature is generated, and when the difference in the gas temperatures is generated, drawing in any more than that amount is stopped and the carbon dioxide in flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15.
A system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas according to a third embodiment of the present invention is explained next with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
That is, in the O2 sensor S5, the O2 sensor S5 monitors all the time the oxygen concentration of the flue gas to be discharged from the stack 13 to the outside.
Even when the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased, the oxygen concentration of flue gas from the stack is maintained almost at constant (in a case of the flue gas from a boiler, it is 2 to 5%, and in a case of the flue gas from a gas turbine, it is 12 to 15%) up to a certain time point as shown in
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 and all of the carbon dioxide in flue gas can be collected.
In
In the O2 sensors S6 and S7, the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased until a difference in the oxygen concentration in the flue gas is generated, and when the difference in the oxygen concentration is generated, drawing in any more than that amount is stopped and carbon dioxide in the flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15.
A system for collecting carbon dioxide in flue gas according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is explained next with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
That is, in the CO2 sensor S8, the CO2 sensor S8 monitors all the time the carbon dioxide concentration of the flue gas to be discharged from the stack 13 to the outside.
Even when the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased, the carbon dioxide concentration of flue gas from the stack is maintained almost at constant (in a case of the flue gas from a boiler, it is 8 to 14% and in a case of the flue gas from a gas turbine, it is 3.5 to 4%) up to a certain time point as shown in
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 and all of the carbon dioxide in flue gas can be collected.
In
In the CO2 sensors S9 and S10, the drawing amount of the flue gas 12 by the blower 14 to the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15 is increased until a difference in the carbon dioxide concentration in the flue gas is generated, and when the difference in the carbon dioxide concentration is generated, drawing in any more than that amount is stopped, and the carbon dioxide in flue gas is collected while drawing in the flue gas by a substantially constant amount.
Accordingly, all of the flue gas from the industrial facility 11 can be stably drawn into the carbon-dioxide collecting device 15.
To achieve more accurate control, the first to fourth embodiments can be appropriately combined to use a plurality of different sensors and to perform the control.
According to the present invention, substantially all of a large amount of flue gas can be drawn into a carbon-dioxide collecting device with a simple facility and in a stable and safe manner.
Although the invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art that fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2008-178260 | Jul 2008 | JP | national |
This is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/368,474 filed on Feb. 10, 2009, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 12368474 | Feb 2009 | US |
Child | 14094197 | US |