The prospects for coal-fired power plants with carbon capture and storage: A UK perspective

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities coupled to coal-fired power plants provide a climate change mitigation strategy that potentially permits the continued use of fossil fuels whilst reducing the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Potential design routes for the capture, transport and storage of CO2 from United Kingdom (UK) power plants are examined. Energy and carbon analyses were performed on coal-fired power stations with and without CCS. Both currently available and novel CCS technologies are evaluated. Due to lower operating efficiencies, the CCS plants showed a longer energy payback period and a lower energy gain ratio than conventional plant. Cost estimates are reported in the context of recent UK indus- try-led attempts to determine opportunities for cost reductions across the whole CCS chain, alongside international endeavours to devise common CCS cost estimation methods. These cost figures should be viewed as 'indicative' or suggestive. They are nevertheless helpful to various CCS stakeholder groups (such as those in industry, policy makers (civil servants and the staff of various government agencies), and civil society and environmental 'non-governmental organisations' (NGOs)) in order to enable them to assess the role of this technology in national energy strategies and its impact on local communities. 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://

[1]  René Kleijn,et al.  Metal requirements of low-carbon power generation , 2011 .

[2]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Integrated appraisal of micro-generators: methods and applications , 2008 .

[3]  Clair Gough,et al.  A roadmap for carbon capture and storage in the UK , 2010 .

[4]  Edward S. Rubin,et al.  Understanding the pitfalls of CCS cost estimates , 2012 .

[5]  John Theodore Houghton,et al.  Global Warming: The Complete Briefing , 1994 .

[6]  Geoff Hammond,et al.  The Implications of Upstream Emissions from the Power Sector , 2014 .

[7]  J. C. Abanades,et al.  Cost structure of a postcombustion CO2 capture system using CaO. , 2007, Environmental science & technology.

[8]  Henry D. Jacoby,et al.  Future carbon regulations and current investments in alternative coal-fired power plant technologies , 2007 .

[9]  Benjamin Evar,et al.  The Social Dynamics of Carbon Capture and Storage , 2012 .

[10]  Vincent R. Gray.  Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis Summary for Policymakers , 2007 .

[11]  Scott W. White,et al.  Birth to death analysis of the energy payback ratio and CO2 gas emission rates from coal, fission, wind, and DT-fusion electrical power plants , 2000 .

[12]  Godfrey Boyle,et al.  Energy Systems and Sustainability: Power for a Sustainable Future (2nd ed.) , 2012 .

[13]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Techno-economic appraisal of fossil-fuelled power generation systems with carbon dioxide capture and , 2011 .

[14]  I. Dincer,et al.  A worldwide perspective on energy, environment and sustainable development , 1998 .

[15]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Thermodynamic and related analysis of natural gas combined cycle power plants with and without carbon sequestration , 2007, International Journal of Energy Research.

[16]  Manfred Fischedick,et al.  Comparison of carbon capture and storage with renewable energy technologies regarding structural, economic, and ecological aspects in Germany , 2007 .

[17]  M. Mann,et al.  Biomass Power and Conventional Fossil Systems with and without CO2 Sequestration – Comparing the Energy Balance, Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Economics , 2004 .

[18]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development: A UK Perspective , 2000 .

[19]  B. Spigarelli,et al.  Opportunities and challenges in carbon dioxide capture , 2013 .

[20]  F. Roberts.  The aims, methods and uses of energy accounting , 1978 .

[21]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  The energy and environmental implications of UK more electric transition pathways: A whole systems perspective , 2013 .

[22]  R. Newell,et al.  Prospects for carbon capture and storage technologies , 2004 .

[23]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Enabling technologies for industrial energy demand management , 2008 .

[24]  Malcolm Slesser,et al.  Energy in the economy , 1978 .

[25]  Hannu Helle,et al.  Nonlinear optimization of steel production using traditional and novel blast furnace operation strategies , 2011 .

[26]  Kirsten Foy.  Comparison of Ion Transport Membranes , 2005 .

[27]  Masson-Delmotte,et al.  The Physical Science Basis , 2007 .

[28]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Embodied energy and carbon in construction materials , 2008 .

[29]  J. Watson,et al.  Strategies for the deployment of CCS technologies in the UK: a critical review , 2009 .

[30]  Paul Feron,et al.  CO2 Capture Process Principles and Costs , 2005 .

[31]  Margaret K. Mann,et al.  Biomass Power and Conventional Fossil Systems with and without CO 2 Sequestration - Comparing the Energy Balance, Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Economics , 2004 .

[32]  Emily L. Agus,et al.  The development of carbon dioxide capture legislation in the UK , 2012 .

[33]  Corinne Le Quéré,et al.  Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis , 2013 .

[34]  Rickard Svensson,et al.  Transportation systems for CO2––application to carbon capture and storage , 2004 .

[35]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Carbon dioxide capture and storage faces a challenging future , 2013 .

[36]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Interdisciplinary perspectives on environmental appraisal and valuation techniques , 2006 .