POSCO to Collaborate with Doosan Heavy Industries on Joint Development of Ammonia Fuel Power Generation Technology

On the 19th, Doosan Heavy Industries & RIST Sign 'Clean Ammonia Gas Turbine R&D Agreement'
- Pioneering Power Generation Technology Operating Turbines by Combusting Ammonia-Decomposed Mixed Gas for the First Time Worldwide

[Gwangyang=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seonsik] POSCO announced on the 19th that it will develop power generation technology using ammonia synthesized from green and blue hydrogen as fuel.

On the 9th, POSCO held a meeting attended by Cho Ju-ik, Head of the Hydrogen Business Office, Lee Gwang-yeol, TM BU Head of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, and Hwang Gye-sun, Director of the Environmental Energy Research Institute at RIST (Pohang Institute of Industrial Science and Technology) to discuss cooperation plans for ammonia fuel power generation technology. On the 19th, they signed a non-face-to-face "Clean Ammonia Gas Turbine Research and Development Agreement."

The three parties will promote the development of power generation technology that operates turbines by combusting hydrogen generated from decomposed ammonia.

Ammonia is a compound combining hydrogen and nitrogen, and is considered an optimal "hydrogen carrier" due to various advantages such as the ability to store 1.7 times more hydrogen by volume compared to hydrogen itself, while utilizing existing transportation and storage infrastructure.

However, ammonia has limitations as a power generation fuel because its combustion speed is only about 20% of that of liquefied natural gas (LNG), the conventional gas turbine fuel, and its calorific value is only about 50%.

To overcome these limitations, the three parties chose a method of operating the gas turbine by decomposing ammonia into hydrogen and nitrogen gases through a cracker instead of combusting ammonia directly. While there have been cases of developing crackers and gas turbines separately, this is the world's first integrated power generation technology development.

When hydrogen and nitrogen gases are combusted, the combustion speed and calorific value significantly increase compared to vaporizing and combusting ammonia directly. Additionally, the three parties plan to apply technology that recovers some heat from exhaust gas generated during combustion and reinjects it into the cracker to increase the gas's heat content and improve power generation efficiency.

Ammonia fuel power generation emits no carbon dioxide, making it an ideal eco-friendly power generation model. Furthermore, applying this technology to LNG power generation is expected to contribute to reducing carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants. Combusting ammonia mixed with LNG at a 20% calorific value ratio can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 20% compared to LNG-only power generation.

Under the agreement, POSCO will promote the development of ammonia crackers together with RIST. Ammonia will be synthesized and supplied using green hydrogen produced from POSCO's overseas projects.

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, which has been developing hydrogen co-firing and full hydrogen turbines after successfully domesticating gas turbines last year, will develop combustors and gas turbines that burn gases decomposed into hydrogen and nitrogen at once based on its core technology.

Based on the agreement, the three parties will begin full-scale technology development using ammonia combustion experimental facilities to be established at the Pohang RIST Hydrogen Research Center.

Gwangyang=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seonsik hss79@asiae.co.kr

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