Solar-integrated blue hydrogen production with optimized post-combustion carbon capture: A techno-economic and exergoeconomic assessment

• Lean and rich vapor compression reduces thermal energy use in hydrogen production. • 79% reduction in energy penalties achieved by system optimization and solar use. • Solar systems reduce blue hydrogen emissions by 310 tons per day. • Steam methane reforming has 95.5% exergy and 30% exergoeconomic efficiency. • The levelized cost of hydrogen is reduced $0.27/kg H 2 compared to blue hydrogen. Hydrogen production plays a key role in the energy transition. However, conventional methods of hydrogen produc’tion, such as steam methane reforming (SMR), are associated with high emissions. To address this issue, carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) can be used to convert grey hydrogen into blue hydrogen. However, this process is often inefficient due to its high energy consumption and challenges related to post-combustion carbon capture in conventional configurations, as well as its dependence on fossil fuels. In this research, to enhance the sustainability of blue hydrogen, renewable energy sources, such as solar energy (including photovoltaic system and parabolic trough), are used to power optimized carbon capture plants. Aspen HYSYS v11 and Thermoflex are employed to simulate the production of low-carbon blue hydrogen. By optimizing a standard post-combustion carbon capture configuration and integrating it with a solar plant, a 79% reduction in energy penalties is achieved. This optimization leads to an estimated reduction of approximately 310 tonnes of CO 2 per day for the blue hydrogen plant, which has a total production capacity of 214.2 tonnes per day. Feasibility, exergy, and exergoeconomic analyses reveal the following efficiency metrics: exergy efficiency for SMR, PCC (Post-combustion Carbon Capture), and the solar plant is 95.5%, 82.3%, and 15%, respectively, while exergoeconomic efficiency is 30%, 20.8%, and 28.45%. The levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) was compared across different technologies, showing that grey hydrogen costs approximately $1.53 per kg. Incorporating carbon capture technology increases the cost to $2.01 per kg while enhancing sustainability. However, optimizing the carbon capture process and integrating solar energy can reduce the cost to $1.74 per kg.