Modeling and Simulation of a Natural Gas and Alternative Fuels Combined Cycle Power Plant with Amine-Based CO₂ capture in Peru

This study evaluates alternative scenarios for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the Ventanilla thermoelectric power plant in Lima, Peru, using the process simulation software ProMax 6.0. The scenarios involve blending hydrogen (0% and 15%) with natural gas (NG) as fuel and implementing CO₂ capture systems using monoethanolamine (MEA), 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP), and amine blends such as MEA/piperazine (PZ), MEA/methyldiethanolamine (MDEA), and MDEA/PZ. The study aimed to achieve CO₂ capture with a purity equal or higher than 99.8% to evaluate its commercialization potential. Additionally, an economic analysis was conducted to assess the profitability of the process, considering carbon taxes from Argentina ($3.33 per ton CO₂), Chile ($5 per ton CO₂), and Peru ($5, $10, or $20 per ton CO₂ depending on the total emissions). A sensitivity analysis was also performed, taking into account the maximum and minimum dollar exchange rates observed in Peru over the past five years (4.134 soles and 3.434 soles respectively). And, hydrogen costs were evaluated based on their production pathways, with prices considered for green ($1.3 per kg H₂), blue ($2.49 per kg H₂), and gray ($1.1 per kg H₂). Among the alternative studied scenarios, the MDEA (40%) and PZ (10%) blend with 100% NG as fuel exhibited the best net profit margin of 43.91%, achieving 426.49 MW of net power generation and CO₂ emissions of 101.28 kgCO₂/GJ. Moreover, vent gas with 99.8% CO₂ purity was obtained.