A team of International researchers have developed a promising method for carbon capture and storage. Professor Cafer T. Yavuz from KAUST university, professor Bo Liu of USTC university and Professor Qiang XU of SUSTech university from China were able to make it happen.
Methane Hydrate is known for its ability to capture and trap gas molecules as CO2 under high pressure. However, it is difficult to recreate the conditions to do it in lab because of energy intensive, as the methane-ice solid requires refrigeration. But using salt, Guanidinium sulfate, the researchers have successfully created lattice like structures called Clathrates that is very similar to methane hydrate activity and trapping CO2 molecules resulting an energy systematic way to hold the greenhouse gas.
The researchers have discovered a rare example of clathrate that is stable and nontoxic at a climate temperature and pressure, a highly advantageous feature compared with ethanol amine, NH3 and other solutions that are normally used in carbon capture. The process was known as amine scrubbing for hundred years.
They also found that Guanidinium sulfate can organize and trap CO2 molecules without reacting with them.
Previous carbon capture methods, where chemical bonds form between CO2 molecules, this new method works well. However chemical bonds need energy to break them down which boost the cost of the CO2 capture operation.
Clathrate structure makes use of low energy, physical adsorption processes while capturing CO2 without water and N2 interference, opening a promising position for future carbon capture and storage technologies.
This discovery introduces a new way of storing and transporting CO2 as a solid. Carbon dioxide can carry out as a solid form as ice or in form of carbonates, fill up gas cylinders. But salt Clathrate allows CO2 to be in the form of powder. This helps to remark high volume in weight capacity, making the method ne energy intensive, with enormous possible for real life applications.
The research team make it possible to carry CO2 in a solid form without pressure and refrigerator. The effect is strong and wide as the global fuel industries were looking for a method to capture, transport and store carbon dioxide without any energy forfeit.
The research team is confident that their discovery will lead to further improvements in CO2 capture in terms of solidity, recyclability, natural process and selectivity and lowering revival energy cost and forfeit.
