Monitoring & metering
measuring the purity of the extracted CO2. The third probe is a Vaisala CARBOCAP
CO2 probe, the GMP251, which checks the levels of CO2 (after carbon capture) in the pilot plant’s exhaust gas.
UNIQUE MONITORING TECHNOLOGY All three monitoring probes contain CARBOCAP technology which utilises an electrically tunable Fabry-Pérot Interferometer (FPI) filter. In addition to measuring the target species, the micromechanical FPI filter enables a reference measurement at a wavelength where no absorption occurs. When taking the reference measurement, the FPI filter is electrically adjusted to switch the bandpass band from the absorption wavelength to a non-absorption wavelength. This reference measurement compensates for any potential changes in the light source intensity, as well as for contamination in the optical path, which means that the sensor is highly stable over time.
Within the MGP261 and the MGP262,
humidity and CO2 are measured with the same optical filter, and a second optical channel measures methane. In many ways, this combines the analytical power of a laboratory spectrometer with the simple, rugged design of an industrial process control instrument. Commenting on the performance of the monitoring equipment, Jens Jørsboe says: “We have been delighted with the accuracy and reliability of the multigas probes; not least because they have enabled us to learn a great deal about the management of flue gas from waste incineration. Much is known about the emissions from fossil fuel combustion, but less information is available on the emissions from waste incineration. “The technology employed by the Vaisala
probes is also helping to minimise operational costs because by effectively calibrating themselves the probes’ service requirements have been minimal and downtime is avoided.”
Credit: Hufton&Crow / ARC
CARBON CAPTURE IN COPENHAGEN AND GLOBALLY With the benefit of continuous inline monitoring, the researchers have been able to optimise carbon capture performance following an evaluation of twelve different pilot plant configurations. Having proven the viability of the carbon capture process, the next step was to evaluate the relative advantages of carbon storage and utilisation. Jørsboe says:
“At the moment, utilisation of CO2 is the more expensive option because of the costs associated with the required further
refinement of the CO2, so the owners of the Amager Bakke plant are planning to apply for 1.5 billion DKK ($230 million USD) for a CCS
plant capable of capturing 500,000 tonnes of
CO2 per year – if the right regulatory framework and sufficient funding is provided by the Danish state. This plant would employ the same amine scrubbing process that has been proven by the pilot carbon capture plant.” The incineration of one tonne of municipal waste (MSW) is associated with the release of
between 0.7 and 1.7 tonnes of CO2, depending on the content of the waste. Consequently, energy generation from waste incineration is more carbon intensive than the burning of fossil gas, so carbon capture offers an opportunity to manage the growing requirement for municipal waste treatment without generating unacceptably high levels of GHGs. Looking forward, Jørsboe believes that this technology could be applied at every waste incinerator in the world, which according to the latest data from ecoprog represents around 2,500 WtE plants, with a disposal capacity of around 400 million tonnes of waste per year. In addition, it should be possible to harvest
residual heat, which could be transferred to local industry or to a district heating network. Summarising, Jørsboe says: “The recent COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow highlighted the urgent need for technologies that can help reduce global emissions of
greenhouse gases such as CO2. Many countries have committed to Net Zero targets, so our work at the Amager Bakke Waste-to-Energy Plant provides an opportunity for them to invest in one of the ways in which that objective can be achieved.”
Vaisala 16
www.vaisala.com April 2022 Instrumentation Monthly
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