SBIR Phase I:Structured bed for CO2 Capture

This SBIR Phase I project will show proof-of-concept for a structured bed reactor using dry materials coating metal foil surfaces to capture CO2 from power plants and other combustion sources. This process will employ a scale-up version of an existing heat exchanging reactor platform in combination with sorbent materials developed by Hoffman at the National Energy Technology Laboratory and other new materials, that can lower the regenerative heat by 30-40% compared to the use of CO2 capture with aqueous methanolamine currently in use. The system could remove 90% of the CO2 while keeping the increase in cost of electricity under the 35% threshold. The broader/commercial impact of the project will be to have effective mechanisms to remove CO2 at low costs. When commercialized, the technology will reduce green house gas emissions and reduce imports of energy from foreign sources. This is expected to be done below the U.S. Department of Energy aggressive targets of $20 per ton of CO2 removal and 35% increase in cost of electricity. Further, this technology will impose very low parasitic backpressure on power plant exhaust. The transformational nature of the technology, coupled with the involvement of graduate and undergraduate students, will ensure that the United States maintains a technological lead in developing and deploying advanced energy technologies. The technology could also be applied to other sources of CO2 and it could be eventually be exported to countries like China and India.