Thermo-economic analysis of a novel P2X polygeneration system for hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol production with near-zero emissions

This paper presents a comprehensive thermo-economic analysis of a novel Power-to-X (P2X) polygeneration system designed for the production of hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol with near-zero CO 2 emissions. The system integrates an air separation unit (ASU), a direct oxy-combustor (DOC) powered by natural gas, combined with a supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO 2 ) power cycle, water electrolyzer (WE), a Haber-Bosch process (HBP), and a methanol production unit (MPU). The system is investigated in four configurations: ASU + DOC-sCO 2 (S1), ASU + DOC-sCO 2 + WE (S2), ASU + DOC-sCO 2 + WE + HBP (S3), and ASU + DOC-sCO 2 + WE + HBP + MPU (S4), each contributing to improve energy efficiency and reduced emissions. Simulation results show that the overall system efficiency reaches 56 %, improving from 45 % to 56 % across different configurations. The system's levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) decreases significantly from $1.70/kg to $0.80/kg, and the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) decreases from 4.30 ¢/kWh to 3.30 ¢/kWh. CO 2 emissions are reduced from 200 gCO 2 /MWe to 145 gCO 2 /MWe, with the CO 2 reduction rate improving from 89 % to 94 %. These results demonstrate the economic viability and environmental sustainability of the proposed P2X system paving the way for industrial decarbonization and large-scale deployment in future energy infrastructures. • Novel P2X system co-produces hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol. • Water and nitrogen produced from DOC-sCO 2 and ASU are reused in WE and HBP. • Overall system efficiency reaches 56 % from 45 % across different configurations. • Levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) decreases significantly from $1.70/kg to $0.80/kg. • Levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) decreases from 4.30 ¢/kWh to 3.30 ¢/kWh.