VUZ - Welding Research Institute

Industrial high temperature high pressure operations in a carbon dioxide environment (e.g. Carbon Capture and Storage, refinery processes) create challenges for the construction materials. Due to the large scale plants and the aggressive process conditions, component failures can be expensive and dangerous.

Cormet has built a SSRT autoclave and a recirculation loop for supercritical water and CO₂ environment with 650°C operation temperature and 35 MPa operation pressure. The operation environment can be water or CO₂ separately or combined.

The low pressure part of the recirculation loop is used for the creation and monitoring of the required water chemistry in terms of conductivity and dissolved oxygen concentration. The high pressure pump pressurizes the water flow.

CO₂ is fed in the high pressure line using a large booster pump and a mass flow controller. The water – CO₂ flow is heated in preheaters and led in the SSRT autoclave where stress corrosion cracking studies are performed. After the autoclave the water + CO₂ flow is cooled and depressurized in two stages.

Cormet crew has a long experience with supercritical water operation. The successful management of the high temperature high pressure supercritical CO₂ was a considerable challenge in terms of material selection and temperature control.