CO2-free power generation in combined cycles—Integration of post-combustion separation of carbon dioxide in the steam cycle

Ever since the release of the Kyoto protocol the demand for CO2-free processes have been increasing. One of the most expanding sources of electric power in the industrialised world today is the gas-fired combined cycle, combining high efficiency and low investment cost. In this paper, the integration of a post-combustion CO2-separation unit into a combined cycle is studied from a thermodynamic and economic point-of-view.