Abstract

Chemical Looping Combustion (CLC) technology has emerged as a promising alternative capable of restricting the effects of global warming due to anthropogenic gas emissions, especially CO2, through its inherent capture. This study aims to synthesize and evaluate Cu-based oxygen carriers supported on natural materials such as diatomite and kaolin, through the incipient wet impregnation method for CLC process applications. Oxygen carriers were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), and scanning electron microscopy with surface energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). The mechanical strength of the two oxygen carrier particles was determined after the sintering procedure resulting in high crushing force. Reactivity of oxygen carriers was evaluated in a thermobalance with CH4 and H2 gases. Different reaction pathways were attempted when undergoing the redox cycles: total direct reduction of CuO to Cu0 for Cu-K and partial reduction of CuO to Cu2O and CuO to Cu-D. However, the highest reactivity and reaction rate was achieved in Cu-D due to the pore structure of diatomite, the chemical composition and the resulting interaction between CuO and the support. H2 gas reactivity tests showed a higher conversion rate and greater stability between cycles for both oxygen carriers. Thus, the reducible CuO content present in Cu-Diatomite during the reactivity test with H2 as the fuel gas was ideal for achieving high solids conversion, tendency for greater stability and a higher reaction rate.

Highlights

  • Sustainability is one of the most important and necessary challenges for societies today

  • The conversions obtained by Cu-K and copper oxide supported on diatomite (Cu-D) were calculated from the possible redox reactions involved, according to their oxidation degree and in terms of sample weight variation, as shown in Figures 4a and b

  • It is reported that the reduction reactions occurred in two steps in both samples; the first when there is only N2(g) atmosphere, which involves reactions of the Chemical Looping with Oxygen Uncoupling (CLOU) process, causing the transformation of CuO → Cu2O, and the second when there is the supply of H2(g) or CH4(g) as combustible gases

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Summary

Introduction

Sustainability is one of the most important and necessary challenges for societies today. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a long-lived anthropogenic gas in the atmosphere and there is an intensification of the effects of global warming due to its progressive emission from fossil fuel combustion processes (Takht & Saeed, 2014; Fernandes et al, 2019; Oliveira et al, 2020; Gomes et al, 2021). The Paris Agreement was established in order to limit these effects, requiring the decarbonization of the world’s energy systems, limiting the average global temperature increase to 2 °C for the century. In order to achieve this goal, Chemical Looping Combustion (CLC) has emerged as a promising technology for CO2 capture in power plants and industrial applications with low energy penalty compared to other competing CO2 capture and storage (CCS) technologies (Adánez-Rubio et al, 2018; Adánez et al, 2018; McGlashan et al, 2012; Wang, Yan et al, 2018)

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