Atmospheric Dispersion of Gaseous Amine Emitted from Absorption-Based Carbon Capture Plants in Saskatchewan, Canada

Abstract

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a key strategy to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from industrial point sources. Gas absorption into aqueous amine solutions is an immediate technology for carbon capture that has been tested in many demonstration plants. One concern of using the amine-based carbon capture process is the environmental impacts and health risk caused by emissions of gaseous amines from the process to the atmosphere. This work applied the knowledge of air dispersion modelling to map out the atmospheric dispersion and resulting ground surface level concentration of gaseous amine, namely Monoethanolamine (MEA), from a coal-fired power plant (with a carbon capture unit) and in surrounding areas, in case of an accidental leaking of amine from the CCS system to the atmosphere. The chosen study area was centered on a coal-fired power plant in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. The Environmental Protection (EPA) approved air pollution model (CALPUFF), together with meteorological and geophysical data were used for gaseous amine dispersion simulation. The results were presented, and the ground amine concentrations were found to vary with wind patterns (wind direction and wind speed). The maximum ground surface amine concentrations standard is 15.2 µg/m3. However, the results showed that when using the water wash unit, the MEA concentrations were well below the standard level, compared to those without the water wash unit. It is essential for CO2 capture plants located in highly populated areas to be equipped with water wash units.