Two Optimization Approaches for a Small-Scale Power-to-Ammonia Cycle

Ammonia is a promising carbon-free energy vector. Small-scale renewable power-to-ammonia (P2A) is particularly suited for isolated agricultural areas where ammonia can be used as fuel and fertilizer. This work compares two approaches to simulate and optimize the steady-state behavior of a novel small-scale P2A process: Aspen Plus^® and MOSAIC^®. Aspen Plus^® is a commercial flow sheeting software whereas MOSAIC^® is a freeware where equations and thermochemical properties need to be specified by hand. It can be shown that the results of MOSAIC^® and Aspen Plus^® are qualitatively comparable, but not identical. This suggests that the model in MOSAIC^® can be improved further, starting with the implementation of a more accurate numeric reactor kinetics and equation of state.