Reduction of greenhouse gases in integrated pulp and paper mills: possibilities for CO2 capture and storage

Earlier work has shown that capturing the CO2 from flue gases in the recovery boiler at a market pulp mill can be a cost-effective way of reducing mill CO2 emissions. In this paper, it is investigated whether the same is valid for an integrated pulp and paper mill. Five configurations are compared, supplying the extra energy needed by a biofuel boiler, an NGCC, a heat pump or by reducing the steam demand at the mill in combination with a biofuel boiler or an NGCC. The configurations have been evaluated with energy market scenarios and the avoidance cost has been calculated. The NGCC configurations have the lowest avoidance costs in all scenarios and they also have the advantage of liberating biofuel for use in other parts of society.