Superhydrophobic Aerogel as Sorbent Material for CO2 Capture

Coal fired power plants are a leading producer of carbon dioxide emissions. To reduce the potential of global warming, carbon dioxide can be captured at the exhaust of coal fired power plants for capture and sequestration. The technology to capture carbon dioxide at the emissions source must be able to be implemented both economically and on a very large scale. Currently, the leading technology to capture carbon dioxide at coal fired power plants is through the temperature swing adsorption process by using aqueous amines. Carbon dioxide adsorbs readily onto amines, and is desorbed for capture upon heating. The heat capacity of the current aqueous based solutions is too high because the solutions are 70% water. The energy to heat and cool the water as the solvent is circulating is energy intensive, and imparts a high cost on the production of electricity. Solid sorbents have been identified as a material solution to improve the economics of CO2 capture by lowering the energy regeneration of the capture material. In Phase I, Aspen Aerogels developed a novel solid sorbent technology that has a much lower equivalent heat capacity than aqueous amines. The long-term cycle life of the new sorbent is also highly promising. Having a lower recirculating heat capacity and thus a lower energy for regeneration, this sorbent improves the economics of the carbon dioxide temperature swing process. In Phase II, Aspen Aerogels will improve the total working capacity of the sorbent and characterize its performance in exposure to sulfur and nitrogen gases over long cyclic testing to verify robustness and longevity to coal based combustion products. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: Success of manufacturing high efficiency novel sorbent based superhydrophobic aerogel material for CO2 will be of great benefit to retrofit the existing fleet of coal-fired power plants for carbon capture and sequestration and meet challenges of CO2 legislation targets. These aerogels will also find different applications in private and commercial sectors (catalyst, natural gas purification, refinery boilers, energy storage).