8 Rivers - Allam-Fetvedt Cycle Technology
8 Rivers has developed the Allam-Fetvedt Cycle, a technology that will enable the world to meet its climate targets without paying more for electricity. The Allam-Fetvedt Cycle is a new way to generate low-cost power from carbon-based fuels without producing air emissions.
The future of our planet – considering a rapidly growing global population – demands a balanced portfolio of renewables and carbon-based methods of power generation, particularly those employing carbon capture. Free emissions capture is the holy grail of carbon-based power generation. Today, power cycles require the addition of expensive, efficiency-reducing equipment to decrease and capture emissions. The Allam-Fetvedt Cycle is a new type of power cycle that takes a novel approach to emissions reduction. It uses the oxy-combustion of carbon fuels and a high-pressure supercritical CO2 working fluid in a highly recuperated cycle that captures all emissions by design. The only by-products are liquid water and a stream of high-purity, pipeline-ready CO2. The cycle can utilize a variety of carbon-based fuels, including natural gas and gasified solid fuels such as biomass and municipal solid waste. The Allam-Fetvedt Cycle embodies major advantages over conventional systems: attaining high efficiencies at low costs with low to no water consumption. All this with full, free emissions capture. The Allam-Fetvedt Cycle powered by natural gas is exclusively licensed to NET Power, and 8 Rivers is a shareholder in NET Power.
Problem
In order to meet the world’s carbon targets, we must develop cost-effective technology to eliminate CO2 emissions from carbon-based fuels.
Solution
An entirely new power cycle that generates emissions-free electricity from carbon-based fuels for lower costs than traditional, emitting technologies.
Key Innovation
Using high pressure CO2, instead of steam, as the system working fluid.
Status
Progress of the solid-fuels AFC is underway with ongoing engineering and combustor testing.