This solution can be delivered to any factory. It will solve a known problem
Today, industry generates huge amounts of carbon dioxide, the accumulation of which affects climate change on Earth. In addition to using renewable energy sources, science is also looking for ways to capture CO2 from smoke emitted by factories or power plants. It must be admitted that eliminating the problem at the source sounds like a good plan. It has just been improved.
All the more so because various materials are being studied to help with this. Among them, sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), which is considered an effective and inexpensive material with stable properties and easy to obtain. Until now, however, the use of this chemical compound has caused a certain fundamental problem.
Crystal Problems
In the presence of Na2CO3, the carbon dioxide capture process resulted in the accumulation of crystals, which in turn resulted in low efficiency and durability of such solutions. To solve this problem, in the latest study, a team of researchers from Chibia University synthesized a hybrid material consisting of Na2CO3 wrapped in porous nanocarbon, reports ScienceDaily. Na2CO3-carbon (NaCH) hybrids were obtained by carbonization of disodium terephthalate at temperatures from 873 K to 973 K in the presence of nitrogen as a protective gas.
The CO2 capture and regeneration efficiency was then assessed at different carbonization temperatures as well as in the humid environment typical of factory exhaust gases. The most fruitful test yielded a CO2 capture of 6.25 mmol/g and a high carbon content of over 40%.
Promising durability
In terms of regeneration and reuse, the most effective NaCH sample retained more than 95% of its initial CO2 capture capacity over 10 cycles. Further experiments showed that one of the samples underwent a rapid mass change at an average temperature of around 80 °C. As it happens, this is often also the temperature of exhaust gases from thermal power plants, so the waste heat would be sufficient to regenerate such a filter.
The solution developed by the Japanese promises to be an effective, solid absorbent capable of capturing CO2 at a temperature typical of the source of this substance.
By transforming Na2CO3, which already has a good CO2 capture capacity, into a nanocomposite, it has become possible to increase the reaction rate and reduce the decomposition and regeneration temperature. This allows the use of waste heat from the factory for regeneration at a temperature of about 80 °C, which gives us an energy-efficient CO2 capture system
– summarizes Prof. Hirofumi Kanoh in Science Daily.
