Techno-economic assessment of CO2 quality effect on its storage and transport: CO2QUEST: An overview of aims, objectives and main findings

This paper provides an overview of the aims, objectives and the main findings of the CO2QUEST FP7 collaborative project, funded by the European Commission and designed to address the fundamentally important and urgent issues regarding the impact of the typical impurities in CO2 streams captured from fossil fuel power plants and other CO2 intensive industries on their safe and economic pipeline transportation and storage. The main features and results recorded from some of the unique test facilities constructed as part of the project are presented. These include an extensively instrumented realistic-scale test pipeline for conducting pipeline rupture and dispersion tests in China, an injection test facility in France to study the mobility of trace metallic elements contained in a CO2 stream following injection near a shallow-water qualifier and fluid/rock interactions and well integrity experiments conducted using a fully instrumented deep-well CO2/impurities injection test facility in Israel. The above, along with the various unique mathematical models developed, provide the fundamentally important tools needed to define impurity tolerance levels, mixing protocols and control measures for pipeline networks and storage infrastructure, thus contributing to the development of relevant standards for the safe design and economic operation of CCS

Carbon capture: Whole system experimental and theoretical modeling investigation of the optimal CO<inf>2</inf> stream composition in the carbon capture and sequestration chain

Rapid increase in emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) has become a major concern to the global community. This is associated with the rapid growth in population and corresponding increase in energy demand. Combustion of fossil fuels accounts for the majority of CO2 emissions. Coal is used mostly for electricity generation, for instance, about 85.5% of coal (produced and imported) in the United 459Kingdom was used for electricity generation in 2011 [1]. Coal-fired power plants are therefore the largest stationary source of CO2

Design and Safety Studies of the Molten Salt Fast Reactor Concept in the Frame of the SAMOFAR H2020 Project

Since more than 15 years, the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS, France) has focused R&D efforts on the development of a new molten salt reactor concept called the Molten Salt Fast Reactor (MSFR) selected by the Generation-IV International Forum (GIF) due to its promising design and safety features. Studies are performed to ascertain whether MSFR systems can satisfy the goals of Generation-IV reactors. Molten salt reactors are liquid-fueled reactors, allowing a large flexibility in terms of operation (load following capabilities…) or design (core geometry, fuel composition, specific power level…) choices. They are characterized by features different in terms of design, operation and safety approach compared to solid-fueled reactors. In the frame of the European SAMOFAR (Safety Assessment of Molten Salt Fast Reactors) project of Horizon2020, dedicated studies are performed on these topics. An overview of these studies will be presented in this article. Firstly, an innovative design of the MSFR fuel circuit (defined as the circuit containing the fuel salt during power generation) and of the emergency draining system has been defined and is under optimization in terms of safety. Such reactors also call for the definition of dedicated operational procedures different from that of solid-fueled reactors, requiring the use of specific modelling tools (multiphysics and system codes). A system code is thus under completion and validation in the frame of SAMOFAR to define the start-up and load following procedures of the MSFR, including the evaluation of safety transients. Finally, a safety approach dedicated to liquid circulating fuel reactors has been developed on the basis of the ISAM methodology of the GIF taking into account other safety methodologies and guidelines. An application procedure and the required tools have been proposed. The approach is being applied to the MSFR, allowing a preliminary identification of initiating events, lines of defence and confinement barriers for the concept

Design and Safety Studies of the Molten Salt Fast Reactor Concept in the Frame of the SAMOFAR H2020 Project

Since more than 15 years, the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS, France) has focused R&D efforts on the development of a new molten salt reactor concept called the Molten Salt Fast Reactor (MSFR) selected by the Generation-IV International Forum (GIF) due to its promising design and safety features. Studies are performed to ascertain whether MSFR systems can satisfy the goals of Generation-IV reactors. Molten salt reactors are liquid-fueled reactors, allowing a large flexibility in terms of operation (load following capabilities…) or design (core geometry, fuel composition, specific power level…) choices. They are characterized by features different in terms of design, operation and safety approach compared to solid-fueled reactors. In the frame of the European SAMOFAR (Safety Assessment of Molten Salt Fast Reactors) project of Horizon2020, dedicated studies are performed on these topics. An overview of these studies will be presented in this article. Firstly, an innovative design of the MSFR fuel circuit (defined as the circuit containing the fuel salt during power generation) and of the emergency draining system has been defined and is under optimization in terms of safety. Such reactors also call for the definition of dedicated operational procedures different from that of solid-fueled reactors, requiring the use of specific modelling tools (multiphysics and system codes). A system code is thus under completion and validation in the frame of SAMOFAR to define the start-up and load following procedures of the MSFR, including the evaluation of safety transients. Finally, a safety approach dedicated to liquid circulating fuel reactors has been developed on the basis of the ISAM methodology of the GIF taking into account other safety methodologies and guidelines. An application procedure and the required tools have been proposed. The approach is being applied to the MSFR, allowing a preliminary identification of initiating events, lines of defence and confinement barriers for the concept