Capture of CO2 from Automobile Exhaust by Using Physical Adsorption Technique

Abstract

Carbon dioxide is considered as a major contributor toward global warming. The amount of carbon dioxide from automobiles is approximately 65%, which is more than any other sources of emissions. On considering the upcoming stringent emission norms, this problem needs to be addressed properly. In this work, an attempt was made to capture CO2 emission from automobile exhaust using activated carbon. The concept of physical adsorption by van der Waals forces of attraction, CO2 found to be adsorbed on the surface of activated carbon. Experiments were conducted on a three-cylinder, carbureted, variable-speed, water-cooled diesel engine at various load conditions (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100%). Test results were obtained by conducting experiments at various exhaust temperatures. Final results obtained shows that considerable amount of HC, CO, and CO2 gets reduced while operating engine with idle and part load conditions at reduced exhaust gas temperature. Activated carbon found to be a suitable one for CO2 capture from engine exhaust, and it has great scope to be implemented in a vehicle exhaust system.