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The CTL Process

 
     
 

CTL is a well developed technology, currently best demonstrated in coal-rich South Africa, where commercial scale CTL plants have been operating for over 50 years and now supply 160,000 barrels or 30% of South Africa’s gasoline and diesel fuel needs. These plants, like those proposed for the Arckaringa Project, involve two major stages – a gasifi cation stage to produce a synthetic gas or ‘Syngas’ rich in hydrogen and carbon, and a liquefaction stage, where the Syngas is reacted over a catalyst – the ‘Fischer-Tropsch’ process - to produce high quality, ultra clean synthetic fuels and chemical feedstocks.

 
 

 

  
 
 
     
 

Opportunities from Syngas

 
 
dot The clean up and purification processes: leave a harmless glassy slag useable in construction; produce sulphur for industrial sales and; allow Carbon Dioxide (CO2) to be stripped from the Syngas ready for sequestration or sale.
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After condensation into steam, the Syngas can be combined with tail gases from the Fischer Tropsch units to feed steam and combined cycle gas turbines and generate power for the Project and surplus electricity for export.


dot Plant set up and operation can be varied to alter the proportion of liquid products and power to suit market circumstances.
 
     
 

Benefits of CTL production

  
 
dot Domestic supply will replace fuel imports and enhance energy security
dot CTL fuels are ultra clean to use – they contain zero sulphur, reduce gaseous and particulate emissions, increase engine efficiency and lower maintenance costs.
dot CTL is a prime example of clean coal technology – the associated combined cycle units produce negligible SOx, significantly less NOx and 10 – 20% less CO2 per unit of power generated than a conventional coal fired plant, whilst carbon capture and storage offers the potential to reduce the overall greenhouse gas emissions from CTL to below the “well to wheel” level of fuels derived from crude oil.