Sinotech CCS Co. Ltd., a Shanghai-based developer of carbon capture solutions, plans to install its first CCS unit aboard an Asian owned vessel by November 2022.
The developers signed a worldwide distribution agreement with Ecochlor in August 2022.
Depending upon the results of the first trial, which should be completed within “8 to 10 months”, the company intends to bring the CCS solution to market by Q3 or Q4 2023.
In common with several other developers, Sinotech is marinizing a mature amine-based absorption technology that has been successfully installed within China’s coal-fired power generation sector.
The company has received Approvals in Principle from a number of classification societies, including Bureau Veritas, Lloyd’s Register and ClassNK.
The solution stores liquefied CO2 within an onboard deck mounted Type C CO2 storage tank at around 20 bar. The solution uses a compression and separation system to remove impurities from the waste gases. The process incorporates a drying step before compression to eliminate moisture to minimise the risk of dry ice formation.
The solution requires around 1kg of amine to capture 1 tonne of CO2. The comparatively low price of amine (USD3,/tonne at current market prices in late August) means that the cost of consumables was unlikely to be significant.
However, the solution was also expected to be sensitive to desired carbon capture rates, opening up the opportunity of “flexing” rates away from the 25% CO2 capture rate. This might be particularly interesting for deep-sea vessels on longer routes, where the storage of captured carbon dioxide might become significant.
Another interesting aspect of Sinotech CCS’ development plans relates to its plans for processing the CO2. Sinotech plans to discharge the CCS from the onboard CO2 storage tanks while in port.
The company already has an agreement with China’s largest oil company, Sinopec, to supply the captured CO2. Sinopec uses CO2 within its upstream operations for enhanced oil recovery.
