I-Corps: Megaton carbon capture technology for point-source emitters

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a large-scale carbon capture technology. Current commercial large-scale carbon capture technologies (amine scrubbing and calcium looping) have a high operational cost of $50/ton or higher. Emerging carbon capture technologies such as metal organic framework and composite sorbent generally do not possess the mechanical properties such as crush resistance required for megaton-scale deployment.

The proposed technology is designed to achieve megaton-scale carbon capture with an estimated operational cost of $30/ton. This is a deep technology innovation that works with an industrially-proven subscription model. The proposed technology will reduce the emissions when the powerplant does not already have a carbon capture unit, and reduce the cost if the power plant already has an existing carbon capture unit.

This I-Corps project is based on the development of development of granular metal carbonate (GMC) as a single-ingredient solid adsorbent for point-source carbon dioxide (CO2) capture. Abrased GMC particles are recycled through granulation. The recyclability of GMC limits the waste of sorbent while maintaining a low heat capacity, achieving the lowest cost per ton of CO2 captured.

The proposed technology may remove >90% of the CO2 from flue gases containing 5%-40% CO2 in humid and dry environments. This approach leverages the high CO2 concentration in the flue gas (>5%) and excess heat to achieve economical carbon capture with a small footprint (<10% of the plant’s surface area).

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.