1. Bioenergy System Synergies: The Case of Carbon Capture and Storage Technologies
Gal Hochman, Robert Kopp, Ken Miller, Saketh Aleti, Vijay Appasamy, William Schmelz

2. Background
Coal is one of the most significant anthropogenic source of carbon dioxide emissions.
The pollutant damages from mining and burning coal cost about $343 billion to the U.S. public every year.
However, coal sourced energy forms about 18% of energy consumed in US.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

3. The map shows the coal production in 2013 by state
Wyoming mined 39.5% of national production
West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Illinois represented 30 % of coal production in the US
Coal production
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019
The map above shows the coal production in 2013 by state
Wyoming mined 39.5% of national production
Wyoming, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Illinois
represented 70 percent of coal production in the US
The table shows the selling revenues and CO2 emissions
Texas emitted the most and Alaska emitted the least
The map above shows the coal production in 2013 by state
Wyoming mined 39.5% of national production
Wyoming, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Illinois
represented 70 percent of coal production in the US
The table shows the selling revenues and CO2 emissions
Texas emitted the most and Alaska emitted the least
The map above shows the coal production in 2013 by state
Wyoming mined 39.5% of national production
Wyoming, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Illinois
represented 70 percent of coal production in the US
The table shows the selling revenues and CO2 emissions
Texas emitted the most and Alaska emitted the least

4. Bio-energy carbon capture and storage
The implementation of bio-energy with carbon capture and sequestration (BECCS) has the potential to render electricity production carbon-negative.
We first use the literature to characterize the BECCS technology
Data from the United States Department of Energy on the annual electricity generation of power plants in the regions.
We then assumed BECCS plants replace coal plants.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

5. Biomass Biomass Biomass Biomass
More specifically, we …
Collected annual energy production data from PJM and Northeast
Calculated annual CO2e emitted by current coal systems
Determined annual functional cost of current coal fuel systems
Calculated annual biomass feedstock necessary to replace coal
Calculated annual CO2e captures through BECCS (for simplicity, assume 90% capture).
Determined cost of implementation of BECCS system
The PJM region
a regional transmission organization (RTO) that coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019
Atmosphere
Atmosphere
Atmosphere
Atmosphere
CO2 Capture
CO2 Capture
CO2 Capture
CO2 Capture
Biomass
Biomass
Biomass
Biomass
Geological Storage
Geological Storage
Geological Storage
Geological Storage

6. Cost calculations (using the literature)
Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) for conventional coal: $0.0951/kWh
LCOE for BECCS: $0.1498/kWh
Conversion of plants to BECCS would cost $0.0547/kWh
The results show that BECCS would significantly reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

7. Annual Cost of Electricity Production
Implementation would increase annual energy cost for PJM and northeast regions by nearly 58%
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

8. The three primary forms of CCS are pre-combustion capture, post combustion capture and oxyfuel combustion.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

9. Various capture rates of carbon capture and storage technologies.
The increase in cost necessary to install different carbon capture and storage technologies.
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

10. The second step was to derive our own estimates for the cost of carbon storage:
Spatial representation of costs: Depleted oil fields & saline reservoirs
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

11. Capture, transport, storage costs (coal only): Depleted O&G fields + Saline reservoirs – preliminary
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

12. Availability of biomass waste
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

13. Third step: Regional computable general equilibrium model
Learning model
% Change of electricity cost via BECCS
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

14. Preliminary outcomes of the regional CGE model - continue
% change of output relative to base year (No CO2 taxes)
% change of output relative to base year (with CO2 taxes)
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

15. Preliminary outcomes of the regional CGE model - continue
Change in electricity CO2 emissions overtime
Change in output (Mil $) – with CO2 taxes
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

16. Bioenergy Carbon Capture & Sequestration: Preliminary results
The pre-combustion pathway has lost ground to the post-combustion pathway
Oxy-fuel capture technologies show much potential
Co-firing substantially reduced the cost of carbon capture and storage
The use of forestry and agriculture residue can result in BECCS yielding significant benefits, not only to the environment.
However, more analysis is needed to better understand the synergies
Assuming learning-by-doing, technology forcing can result in substantial environmental as well as economic effects
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019

17. The authors thank the Northeast SunGrant Program for financial support The authors also thank Rutgers Aresty Research Center
USAEE 2018
1/2/2019