Pre-combustion capture refers to the removal CO2 from fossil fuels prior to combustion. It is often carried out using a gasification processes whereby a feedstock, e.g., coal, is partially oxidized in steam and oxygen/air under high temperature and pressure to form synthesis gas. A synthesis gas is a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, CO2, and smaller amounts of other gaseous components. There are many technologies that carry out this process but one of the most establish is the use of fluidised bed which suspend the fuel whilst introducing flue gas and steam from the base of the reactor. Increasing the flow of the gas mixture enables the fuel particles to mix in a fluidic motion, known as a fluidised bed (see the fluidised bed simulation of coal animation below).
We can support the optimisation of the process using computational multiphase modelling by simulating different operating conditions, or compositions of CO2 gas, whether from coal or biomass, for example.