Energy Modeling and Techno-Economic Analysis of a Biomass Gasification-CHAT-ST Power Cycle for Sustainable Approaches in Modern Electricity Grids

Abstract

In this study, an advanced combined power generation cycle was evaluated to obtain sustainable energy with high power and efficiency. This combined cycle includes biomass gasification, the Cascaded Humidified Advanced Turbine (CHAT), and the steam turbine. The fuel consumed by the system is derived from the gas produced in the biomass gasification process. The biomass consumed in this study is wood because of its reasonable supply and availability. The economic analysis conducted in the present research has produced significant gains. The proposed cycle with current prices intended to sell electricity in Iran has a positive Net Present Value (NPV). Therefore, the presented cycle in terms of energy supply has good economic value. Due to the significantly higher purchase/sale price of electricity from renewable power plants in developed countries in Europe or the United States, the power generation cycle proposed in this study may be more economically feasible in other regions than Iran. Of course, with a slight price increase in electricity sales in Iran (3 US₵ kWh-1), the proposed system will have acceptable NPV. Because of the complicated equipment used in high-pressure and low-pressure turbines and compressors sets, the equipment used in this cycle requires a higher initial investment cost than conventional power generation systems. The results showed that the investment cost per unit of energy was approximately 909 USD kW-1.

Keywords

• biomass gasifier
• cascaded humidified advanced turbine
• steam turbine
• combined cycle
• economic analysis