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TECHNOLOGY

At ESTECH we are at the forefront of technological development, not only within carbon capture, but also within the production of green hydrogen. We have developed and patented a Power-to-X technology that combines carbon capture and parallel production of hydrogen, solely based on green electrical power with no thermal heat requirement. The technology is unique in its approach to carbon capture merging two operations in one circular process that converts toxic flue gas or exhaust gas into storable and transportable forms of energy or fuels.

Carbon Capture & Power-to-X (CAPPOW)

ESTECH'S CAPPOW TECHNOLOGY EXPLAINED

Commercial applications

At our current stage of development the potential applications of our technology are almost limitless. However, our commercial focus at this point is a fully developed ESTECH plant aimed at small and medium-sized companies, which today have access to electricity but cannot immediately electrify their production. The plant can be installed at combined heat and power (CHP) plants and waterworks, as well as any industrial production facility that emits CO2.

In principle, the plant will enable anyone with a gas boiler of a certain size to optimise their use of traditional energy sources with exhaust gas purification and CO2 capture combined with hydrogen production. Today, such a cost-effective solution is not available to the public sector, despite the fact that they are major contributors to Denmark’s overall CO2 emissions.

A complementary technology to traditional amine-based carbon capture

We consider ESTECH’s carbon capture and power-to-x technology (CAPPOW) as a complementary technology to the traditional amine-based CO2 capturing technology, which can only be used at sites with access to thermal energy. Our technology is ideal for decentralised carbon capture on smaller industrial sites, not just large installations such as power plants. The ESTECH technology is suitable for small and medium-size CO2 emitters but can be upscaled for large CO2 emitters where thermal energy is limited.

Transforming harmful compounds into valuable products

Our technology is also part of the government’s upcoming climate strategy, which will focus on new technology within carbon capture and the production of green energy. The goal is for Europe to be climate neutral by 2050 and to reduce CO2 emissions by 55 percent by 2030.

Pyrolysis of sludge is an environmentally interesting area where dangerous, organic and chemical residues are captured, but where large amounts of CO2 are emitted in the process. VandCenter Syd (Danish waterwork) e.g. converts faecal sludge into biogas and sludge in general into agricultural fertiliser. When the sludge is purified via pyrolysis it becomes green manure. The purification, CO2 capture and simultaneous hydrogen production abilities of ESTECH’s technology is therefore an ideal solution to very specific challenges.

The technology combines two processes in one

Characteristics and advantages

  • Only electric power (green) is required to operate the system, as opposed to the commonly used amine process, which requires a significant amount of thermal energy to operate, and has a continuous chemical consumption
  • No hazardous chemicals are used
  • Highly scalable, decentralised solution – from smaller industrial sites to large power plants
  • The CCCH2 process is based on CO2 scrubbing in a high-efficiency scrubber tower, and electrochemical separation of CO2, O2 and H2 from the scrubber wash-water
  • CO2 and O2 can be liquified for transport and used for industrial applications or CO2 storage
  • CO2 and O2 can also be used in the production of synthetic fuels
  • The produced hydrogen is of commercial grade and can be sold for direct use as fuel or as part of synthetic fuel production
  • The technology uses less energy by integrating carbon capture with hydrogen production
  • The construction cost of the plant is lower than other technologies and health risks are significantly decreased
Energy-efficient CCS technology

Selected results

  • The design of the electrolysis cell proved capability to handle process chemistry
  • An extremely high proportion of CO2 is captured potentially to be sold or store
  • Today, the plant produces clean hydrogen via the built-in electrolytic process potentially to be reused
  • The plant is highly energy-efficient compared with other plants that focus on either CO2 capture or hydrogen production
  • PureteQ’s patented exhaust gas purification technology based on hydrodynamic fluid distribution ensures optimal conditions for reaction between gas and fluid
  • The plant’s intuitive integrated control panel provides simple operation and maintenance. The control system is based on PureteQ’s well-known and well-proven software. The control system is connected to a cloud-based system, which enables real-time remote control, management and optimisation across several facilities, as well as environmental and technical reporting
Demonstrating the scalability of the technology

FROM PILOT PLANT TO COMMERCIAL PLANT

The pilot plant at VandCenter Syd has served as a test plant since 2021 in preparation for the coming larger demonstration plant. Tests carried out at our pilot plant show that a high percentage of the green energy used is utilised in hydrogen production, which means that it has the potential to become the most energy-efficient CCS technology on the market for small and medium-sized industries with no available thermal energy. December 2021, we received funding from the Danish Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program (EUDP) for the development of a demonstration plant. During 2022, the near-industrial-size demonstration plant has been designed. The new plant will be demonstrating the scalability of the technology. Read our news releases to follow the further development.

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