Development of novel sorbent materials for CO2 capture at high temperatures

Sorbent materials for CO2 capture at high temperatures have received increasing attention in recent years due to their high CO2 adsorption capacity and selectivity. Amongst those sorbents, several alkaline ceramics have been proposed as possible CO2 chemisorbents. Within these alkaline ceramics, Li2ZrO3, Li4SiO4, Li2CuO2 and Na2ZrO3, among others, have been extensively studied, because they exhibit good CO2 capture properties such as CO2 chemisorption temperature range, good cyclability and good kinetic properties.
The target of this research project is the development of low-cost ceramic sorbents from waste materials, as for example, fly ash resulting from coal combustion in power plants. The vast amount of generated waste fly ashes is an increasing problem for the utility industry. If proved to have the right performance, the use of the aforementioned sorbents could not only reduce the operational cost of CO2 capture but also contribute to the minimization of growing environmental concerns associated with increasing amounts of waste being landfilled.