Master's thesis – How cheap can Power-to-X be? Cost-Floor Estimation of Investment Costs of High-Temperature Electrolysis-Based PtX Processes

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The techno-economic analysis (TEA) is an essential tool to identify promising power-to-X(PtX) path. An important part of the TEA is the assessment of Capital Expenditures (CAPEX), which can significantly influence the manufacturing costs of a product in relation to the entire plant life cycle. The difficulty is that CAPEX can vary by size, depending on the scale and production optimization. A strong scaling and optimization potential was historically raised, for example, in the drastic reduction of current generation costs (LCOE) based on photovoltaics or in battery storage systems. A point of reference to CAPEX, which can potentially be approximated, provides the calculation of a lower hard limit purely on the basis of raw material costs (“Material Cost Floor”). In addition, the estimate can be extended by the costs of thermodynamically unavoidable energy requirements in the production of the plant elements. The focus of the work is in particular on the investment costs of plant engineering and components of PtX processes based on high-temperature electrolysis (SOEC). These SOEC-based processes are particularly interesting due to the high energy efficiency, but are often considered CAPEX-intensive because of the more complex plant periphery. However, the independence of rare materials, such as precious metals, ensures that scaling could lead to significant cost reductions. The estimation of the lower CAPEX limit of different process configurations based on the material Cost Floor, in particular taking into account the components of the plant periphery, enables a comparison between different process designs derived from first-principles considerations. In addition, the calculation of the lower CAPEX limits allows the identification of CAPEX reduction potentials. Identification of process configurations to be evaluated using existing approaches to techno-economic analysis (TEA) Development of the estimation methodology of the lower CAPEX limit by analysis of the material cost floor and, if necessary, minimum necessary production energy Comparison with common CAPEX estimation methods from literature and with current market prices of selected components Comparison of the estimation of different process configurations Identification of CAPEX reduction potentials Extension of existing TEA approaches by implementing the developed CAPEX assessment Documentation of results

Continuous master's degree in mechanical engineering, production engineering, process engineering or industrial engineering with a corresponding specialized degree or in a comparable degree course Interest in techno-economic issues and the economic assessment of technical processes Good knowledge of Python, especially for data analysis and modelling Previous knowledge of electrochemistry, high-temperature electrolysis (SOEC) or power-to-X are advantageous Careful, structured and independent work Impressed communication and team skills and pleasure in interdisciplinary cooperation Very good knowledge of English, both oral and written (at least C1 level according to the GER), and good knowledge of German (B2)

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