Thermodynamic analysis of air-blown gasification for IGCC applications

This paper analyzes the thermodynamic performance of IGCC power plants based on an air-blown gasifier. A preliminary computational model for a lab-scale gasifier was calibrated on experimental data available in open literature, as a first step for the modeling of a large-scale MHI-type air-blown demonstration gasifier. The latter was analyzed by a parametric analysis, carried out by varying the gasification temperature and the heat transferred to the membrane walls. In agreement with data from MHI, the power balance of the air-blown gasifier suggests that the cold gas efficiency is similar to the one of oxygen-blown gasifiers, even though energy flows are quite different in the two gasification technologies.