Quantitative evaluation of CO emission reduction of active carbon recycling energy system for ironmaking by modeling with Aspen Plus

Suzuki, Katsuki*; Hayashi, Kentaro*; Kurihara, Kohei*; Nakagaki, Takao*; Kasahara, Seiji  

Use of the Active Carbon Recycling Energy System in ironmaking (iACRES) has been proposed for reducing CO emissions. To evaluate the performance of iACRES quantitatively, a process flow diagram of a blast furnace model with iACRES was developed using Aspen Plus, a chemical process simulator. CO emission reduction and exergy analysis were performed by using mass and energy balance obtained from simulation results. The following CO reduction methods were evaluated as iACRES: solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOEC) with CO capture and separation (CCS), SOEC without CCS, and a reverse water-gas shift reactor powered by a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. iACRES enabled CO emission reduction by 3-11% by recycling CO and H, whereas effective exergy ratio decreased by 1-7%.