ON-SITE METHANOL PRODUCTION PLANT FROM NATURAL GAS WITH MODULAR HTR

摘要

The consumption of natural gas has been increasing year by year due to its relatively low level of C02 emissions and low cost. All of the natural gas consumed in Japan is imported from foreign countries in the form of liquid natural gas (LNG). Therefore, liquefaction, transportation and storage equipment costs are large. On the other hand, handling methanol is as easy as handling oil. If a plant for producing methanol from natural gas is sited near a natural gas field, transportation and storage costs are expected to be significantly lower than such costs for LNG production. From the above viewpoint, the concept of an on-site methanol production plant with a modular HTR (High Temperature Reactor) was studied. The results of the study showed that the maximum COZ content which this concept can deal with is 35 Yo. In this “Maximum case”, the total power of the nuclear reactor is used effectively to produce methanol and a 20 ‘%0 reduction of C02 emissions can be attained, compared to the level of C02 emissions when natural gas is used without any synthesis process.