High-Efficiency, Low-Cost, Additive-Manufactured Air Contactor

Removing CO2 from the atmosphere can play a significant role in reducing global warming if the process can be carried out at low cost. The key to reducing the cost is to develop new technology for the contactor, which is the component in the system that captures CO2 from the air so that it can be recovered, concentrated, and stored. We propose to develop an innovative contactor that reduces the most expensive elements of direct air capture (DAC) of CO2: (1) an innovative contactor design that is produced using Creare’s low-cost additive manufacturing methods; and (2) a low-cost, highly durable sorbent from RTI International (RTI) that captures CO2 molecules from ambient air and then releases CO2 for storage when heated to moderate temperatures. The contactor design is tailored for wind-driven operation, which reduces cost by eliminating the need for large arrays of fans to blow air through the system. The RTI sorbent is much less expensive to produce than competing sorbents because it is manufactured using methods that are easily scalable to large volumes. In this program, we will develop methods to coat the contactor structures with RTI’s sorbent, demonstrate operation of the contactors, develop the mechanical/fluid design, maximize sorption performance for the design, build a small-scale demonstration unit, measure performance under realistic conditions, and use data from these tests to produce a conceptual design for a full-scale (1 million ton CO2 per year) DAC plant. Preliminary analysis predicts a CO2 removal cost less than $50 per ton of CO2.