Energy Efficient Process for CO2 Capture from Flue gas with Novel Fixed-site-carrier Membranes

Decarbonization of Power and Industrial Sectors: The Role of Membrane Processes

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is the single largest contributor to climate change due to its increased emissions since global industrialization began. Carbon Capture, Storage, and Utilization (CCSU) is regarded as a promising strategy to mitigate climate change, reducing the atmospheric concentration of CO₂ from power and industrial activities. Post-combustion carbon capture (PCC) is necessary to implement CCSU into existing facilities without changing the combustion block. In this study, the recent research on various PCC technologies is discussed, along with the membrane technology for PCC, emphasizing the different types of membranes and their gas separation performances. Additionally, an overall comparison of membrane separation technology with respect to other PCC methods is implemented based on six different key parameters-CO₂ purity and recovery, technological maturity, scalability, environmental concerns, and capital and operational expenditures. In general, membrane separation is found to be the most competitive technique in conventional absorption as long as the highly-performed membrane materials and the technology itself reach the full commercialization stage. Recent updates on the main characteristics of different flue gas streams and the Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) of each PCC technology are also provided with a brief discussion of their latest progresses.

Critical Assessment of Membrane Technology Integration in a Coal-Fired Power Plant

Despite the many technologies for CO2 capture (e.g., chemical or physical absorption or adsorption), researchers are looking to develop other technologies that can reduce CAPEX and OPEX costs as well as the energy requirements associated with their integration into thermal power plants. The aim of this paper was to analyze the technical and economic integration of spiral wound membranes in a coal-fired power plant with an installed capacity of 330 MW (the case of the Rovinari power plant-in Romania). The study modeled energy processes using CHEMCAD version 8.1 software and polymer membranes developed in the CO2 Hybrid research project. Thus, different configurations such as a single membrane step with and without the use of a vacuum pump and two membrane steps placed in series were analyzed. In all cases, a compressor placed before the membrane system was considered. The use of two serialized stages allows for both high efficiency (minimum 90%) and CO2 purity of a minimum of 95%. However, the overall plant efficiency decreased from 45.78 to 23.96% and the LCOE increased from 75.6 to 170 €/kWh. The energy consumption required to capture 1 kg of CO2 is 2.46 MJel and 4.52 MJth.

Effect of Water Interactions on Polyvinylamine at Different pHs for Membrane Gas Separation

In our previous work, it was shown that the separation performance of the fixed-site-carrier polyvinylamine (PVAm) composite membrane increases exponentially with increasing relative humidity content in the gas. Through these efforts, it has been important to develop a greater understanding of the relationship between the water, structural, and interfacial properties of the PVAm surface. The degree of hydrophilicity of a given surface plays a crucial role in the separation performance of the membrane when exposed to a humidified gas. Therefore, in the current work, the wettability properties of PVAm at different pHs have been studied by experimental measurements and molecular dynamic simulations. It was confirmed that the intramolecular interactions are not linearly dependent on pH. As well as the H-bonding between protonated and unprotonated amine groups, the conformation polymer chain and the distribution charge density play a crucial role in the surface stability and wettability properties.

Effect of the reactive amino and glycidyl ether terminated polyethylene oxide additives on the gas transport properties of Pebax® bulk and thin film composite membranes

New CO₂ selective blend materials were tested for gas transport properties as thick film and thin film composite membrane.