High Capacity Supported Ionic Liquids for Carbon Dioxide Capture in Rebreather Systems

Busek Co. Inc. and Ionic Research Technologies, LLC propose to develop a novel carbon dioxide and water removal technology using ionic liquids for closed circuit self-contained breathing apparatus that will extend its operating lifetime, while simultaneously reducing overall weight and logistic burden. Ionic liquids offer unique characteristics including high capacity CO2 capture, tunable gas selectivity, humidity capture, and negligible vapor pressures. The proposed technology is a significant advancement on current state-of-the-art technologies in use for CO2 scrubbing applications. The Phase I effort will demonstrate the feasibility by identifying suitable ionic liquid systems through advanced modeling predictions and laboratory validation tests. The phase I option will produce a sub-scale proof-of-concept CO2 scrubbing device utilizing supported ionic liquid technology. The results of Phase I will provide a baseline for the design of the Phase II prototype.