Using CO(2)/N(2) gas separation membranes for post-combustion capture, the most important problem is how to create the driving force efficiently because the feed flue gas has only ambient pressure and a relatively low CO(2) content. In order to fulfill the separation target -95 mol% CO(2) purity and appropriate degree of CO(2) separation - multi-stage systems are necessary using feasible membranes. This paper describes a detailed parametric study for multi-stage membrane systems used in a coal-fired power plant. According to the above-mentioned boundary conditions, the investigation process was divided into two steps: (a) energy consumption and (b) capture cost analyses. In the first step, by varying the position of the compressors and vacuum pumps and recycling the flue gas to the feed side, cascade variants were developed and analyzed in detail. The cascade system was integrated in the 600 MW North RhineWestphalia reference power plant and compared with the chemical absorption process. In the second step, an economic model was developed to make a further analysis of the cascade system. A correlation was established between the membrane parameters (selectivity, permeability) and system performance (energy consumption, capture cost). (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.