Comparative study of Fischer-Tropsch production and post-combustion CO2 capture at an oil refinery: Economic evaluation and GHG (greenhouse gas emissions) balances

The impact on CO2 emissions of integrating new technologies (a biomass-to-Fischer-Tropsch fuel plant and a post-combustion CO2 capture plant) with a complex refinery has previously been investigated separately by the authors. In the present study these designs are integrated with a refinery and evaluated from the point-of-view of economics and GHG (greenhouse gas emissions) emissions and are compared to a reference refinery. Stand-alone Fischer-Tropsch fuel production is included for comparison. To account for uncertainties in the future energy market, the assessment has been conducted for different future energy market conditions. For the post-combustion CO2 capture process to be profitable, the present study stresses the importance of a high charge for CO2 emission. A policy support for biofuels is essential for the biomass-to-Fischer-Tropsch fuel production to be profitable. The level of the support, however, differs depending on scenario. In general, a high charge for CO2 economically favours Fischer-Tropsch fuel production, while a low charge for CO2 economically favours Fischer-Tropsch fuel production. Integrated Fischer-Tropsch fuel production is most profitable in scenarios with a low wood fuel price. The stand-alone alternative shows no profitability in any of the studied scenarios. Moreover, the high investment costs make all the studied cases sensitive to variations in capital costs. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved