{"60072":{"#nid":"60072","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Steam Process Removes Carbon Dioxide to Regenerate Capture Materials","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBecause they can remove carbon dioxide from the flue gases of coal-burning facilities such as power plants, solid materials containing amines are being extensively studied as part of potential CO2 sequestration programs designed to reduce the impact of the greenhouse gas. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut although these adsorbent materials do a good job of trapping the carbon dioxide, commonly-used techniques for separating the CO2 from the amine materials -- thereby regenerating them for re-use -- seem unlikely to be suitable for high-volume industrial applications. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENow, researchers have demonstrated a relatively simple regeneration technique that could utilize waste steam generated by many facilities that burn fossil fuels. This steam-stripping technique could produce concentrated carbon dioxide ready for sequestration in the ocean or deep-earth locations -- while readying the amine materials for further use. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022We have demonstrated an approach to developing a practical adsorption process for capturing carbon dioxide and then releasing it in a form suitable for sequestration,\u0022 said Christopher Jones, a professor in the School of Chemical \u0026amp; Biomolecular Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research was reported online June 23, 2010 in the early view version of the journal \u003Cem\u003EChemSusChem\u003C\/em\u003E. The work was supported by New York-based Global Thermostat, LLC., a company that is developing and commercializing technology for the direct capture of carbon dioxide from the air. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAmine sorbents are often regenerated through a process that involves a change in temperature to supply the energy required to break the amine-carbon dioxide chemical bonds. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor convenience, researchers commonly remove the CO2 by heating the amine material in the presence of a flowing gas such as nitrogen or helium. That removes the carbon dioxide, but mixes it with the flowing gas -- regenerating the material, but leaving the CO2 mixed with nitrogen or helium. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnother approach is to heat the material in a carbon dioxide stream, but that is less efficient and can lead to fouling of the amine. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJones and his team from Georgia Tech, SRI International and Global Thermostat took a different approach, heating the sorbent amine in steam at a temperature of approximately 105 degrees Celsius, causing the carbon dioxide to separate from the material. The steam can then be compressed, condensing the water and leaving a concentrated flow of carbon dioxide suitable for sequestration or other use -- such as a nutrient for algae growth. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBecause most coal-burning facilities generate steam, some of that might be bled off to achieve the separation and regeneration without a significant energy penalty. \u0022In many facilities, steam at this temperature would have no other application, so using it for this purpose would not have a significant cost to the plant,\u0022 Jones noted. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers studied three common formulations of the amine material: Class 1 adsorbents based on porous supports impregnated with monomeric or polymeric amines, Class 2 adsorbents that are covalently linked to a solid support, and Class 3 adsorbents based on porous supports upon which aminopolymers are polymerized in-situ, starting from an amine-containing monomer. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe adsorbents were studied through three cycles of carbon dioxide adsorption and steam-stripping. The researchers found differences in how each material was affected by the steam-stripping; performance of the most stable material actually improved, while the least stable material suffered a 13 percent efficiency decline. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Steam-stripping is widely used in other separation processes, but has never been reported for use with supported amine materials, perhaps due to concerns about sorbent stability,\u0022 Jones said. \u0022We reported three uses of the materials in the paper and have only tested them through five or six uses, but we expect the materials could be used many more times. To be practical, the amine-containing materials need to be useful through thousands of cycles.\u0022 \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPilot-scale carbon dioxide separation facilities are already in operation using amines dissolved in water. Because of the energy required to regenerate the liquid solutions, many researchers have been examining solid amines -- but the work so far has focused mostly on improving the efficiency of the materials, he added. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThough much remains to be done before solid amine materials can be used in large-scale applications, Jones believes the study demonstrates that improved materials can be developed with properties tailored for the steam regeneration process. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022We believe there is potential for development of materials that will be stable for long-term use during regeneration using this technique,\u0022 he said. \u0022This study lays the groundwork for an array of future studies that will lead to an understanding of the structural changes induced by steam-stripping.\u0022 \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to Jones, the research team included Wen Li, Sunho Choi and Jeffery Drese from Georgia Tech, Marc Hornbostel and Gopala Krishnan from SRI International, and Peter M. Eisenberger of Global Thermostat, LLC. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EResearch News \u0026amp; Publications Office\u003Cbr \/\u003EGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003Cbr \/\u003E75 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 314\u003Cbr \/\u003EAtlanta, Georgia 30308 USA\u003C\/strong\u003E \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMedia Relations Assistance\u003C\/strong\u003E: John Toon (404-894-6986)(\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jtoon@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejtoon@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E) or Abby Vogel Robinson (404-385-3364)(\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:abby@innovate.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Eabby@innovate.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E). \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETechnical Contact\u003C\/strong\u003E: Christopher Jones (404-385-1683)(\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:christopher.jones@chbe.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Echristopher.jones@chbe.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E). \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWriter\u003C\/strong\u003E: John Toon \u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EResearchers have demonstrated a relatively simple regeneration technique that could utilize waste steam to remove carbon dioxide from solid amine materials used to capture the greenhouse gas from the flue gases of coal-burning facilities.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"A new process could facilitate carbon dioxide capture"}],"uid":"27303","created_gmt":"2010-07-14 00:00:00","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:06:18","author":"John Toon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2010-07-14T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2010-07-14T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"60073":{"id":"60073","type":"image","title":"coal-burning powerplant","body":null,"created":"1449176239","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 20:57:19","changed":"1475894503","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:41:43","alt":"coal-burning powerplant","file":{"fid":"191044","name":"tyw43672.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tyw43672_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tyw43672_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":443794,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/tyw43672_0.jpg?itok=e2_3PfJb"}},"60074":{"id":"60074","type":"image","title":"Power transmission tower","body":null,"created":"1449176239","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 20:57:19","changed":"1475894503","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:41:43","alt":"Power transmission tower","file":{"fid":"191045","name":"tem43672.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tem43672_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tem43672_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1080030,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/tem43672_0.jpg?itok=AxsIMJTA"}}},"media_ids":["60073","60074"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.chbe.gatech.edu\/","title":"School of Chemical \u0026 Biomolecular Engineering"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.chbe.gatech.edu\/fac_staff\/faculty\/jones.php","title":"Christopher Jones"}],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[{"id":"141","name":"Chemistry and Chemical Engineering"},{"id":"144","name":"Energy"},{"id":"154","name":"Environment"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"1702","name":"carbon capture"},{"id":"7454","name":"CO2"},{"id":"4198","name":"coal"},{"id":"170984","name":"sequestration"},{"id":"168996","name":"steam"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJohn Toon\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EResearch News \u0026amp; Publications Office\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/contact\/index.html?id=jt7\u0022\u003EContact John Toon\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404-894-6986\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jtoon@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}