In June 2015, Union signed another contract with Air Liquide for a CO2 project in Adelaide, Australia. Adelaide, which is located on the plains between the coast and the foothills, is the capital of the state of South Australia. With a population of 1.3 million, it is the country’s fifth-largest city.
Air Liquide has entered an agreement with a local power plant for delivery of flue gas to be purified to food-grade CO2 and resold to the food and beverage industry. It was crucial for Air Liquide to choose a sustainable solution with both a low utility consumption and well-proven technology.
Velimir Japundzic, Air Liquide’s Project Manager, elaborates; “It was, of course, important to choose a supplier with the right solution, and at the end of the day that was Union with their Advanced Amine Technology (AAT). What we needed was a large-scale CO2 plant, and the composition of the raw gas was a decisive factor, as it requires the right solution. In addition, we wanted a technology with minimum impact on the environment, and the AAT technology was the answer to these demands.”
The Advanced Amine Technology (capture plant) from Union Engineering is based on the most well-proven absorption technology currently available on the market, namely highly concentrated monoethanolamine (MEA). MEA is a primary amine that readily reacts with carbon dioxide. Since this reaction consists of chemical absorption, it works well with gas streams with a low partial CO2 pressure such as flue gases.
The CO2 plant is scheduled to start operating in 3rd quarter of 2016.