The “Innovation Liquid Energy” (ger. “Innovation Flüssige Energie” - IFE) Project: Development of a 1MW Power-to-Liquid Plant Based on Co-SOC Electrolysis and Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis

Abstract

The European climate protection program adopted in 2018 targets for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the current 20% to 40% (compared to 1990) by 2030 ([1]), together with a simultaneous increase in the share of energy from renewable sources from the current 20% to 32%. In the transport sector, an increase in the share of renewable fuels from the current 10% to 14% is aimed for, with a maximum of 7% of this being Generation 1 fuels. Therefore, additional solutions such as power-to-liquid (PtL) fuels are needed to generate an immediate impact on existing fleets in order to achieve European and global CO2 emission targets in mobility.The overall objective of the IFE (Innovation Liquid Energy) project is the development and realization of a Power-to-Liquid plant with a combined water and carbon dioxide high-temperature electrolysis (Co-SOEC) and a Fischer Tropsch synthesis for the production of synthetic fuel. By coupling these two processes in a way which enables heat integration, an increase of the overall electrical efficiency to 55% is to be achieved. The overall plant with a nominal electrolyser power of around 1 MW will constitute of several parts. Carbon dioxide is extracted from industrial waste gas or from a biogas/biomass plant and fed into the electrolyser process. There, a synthesis gas of hydrogen and carbon monoxide is produced based on an innovative Co-SOEC unit with an efficiency higher than 80%. In the next process stage, the syngas is fed into a low-temperature Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, where syncrude is produced with predominantly liquid and paraffinic products. The estimated output of Fischer-Tropsch products is around 500.000 L diesel-equivalent. The diesel fraction is targeted to meet the required quality of the EN15940 standard for alternative paraffinic diesel fuel.The present work shows the status of the project and how specific challenges such as the reuse of the tail gas, the reuse of the aqueous product fraction and heat integration are addressed. Thereby a focus on the development of the co-SOEC unit and the optimization of the overall process towards highest efficiencies is being laid. Furthermore a techno-economic view on the potential cost of Fischer-Tropsch products is given, where, dependent on the electricity cost and full-load operating hours of the plant, FT-diesel costs in the range of 1-3 € seem reasonable (without tax and margin).[1] The European parliament and the council of the European Union:DIRECTIVE (EU) 2018/2001, (L 328/82), Brüssel, 2018 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32018L2001&from=EN