Oxy-fuel Combustion Power Cycles: A Sustainable Way to Reduce Carbon Dioxide Emission

Abstract

The energy generation from the fossil fuels results to emit a tremendousamount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The rise in the atmosphericcarbon dioxide level is the primary reason for global warming and other cli-mate change problems for which energy generation from renewable sourcesis an alternative solution to overcome this problem. However, the renewablessources are not as reliable for the higher amount of energy production andcannot fulfil the world’s energy demand; fossil fuels will continue to beconsumed heavily for the energy generation requirements in the immediatefuture. The only possible solution to overcome the greenhouse gas emissionfrom the power plant is by capturing and storing the carbon dioxide within thepower plants instead of emitting it into the atmosphere. The oxy-fuel combus-tion power cycle with a carbon capture and storage system is an effective wayto minimize emissions from the energy sectors. The oxy-fuel power cycle canreduce 90–99% of carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere. Moreover,the oxy-fuel power cycles have several advantages over the conventionalpower plants, these include high efficiency, lesser plant footprint, much easiercarbon-capturing processes, etc. Because of these advantages, the oxy-fuel combustion power cycles capture more attention. In the last decades, thenumber of studies has risen exponentially, leading to many experimental anddemonstrational projects under development today. This paper reviews theworks related to oxy-fuel combustion power generation technologies withcarbon capture and storage system. The cycle concepts and the advancementsin this technology have been briefly discussed in this paper.