Effect of SO2 on CO2 Capture Using Liquid-like Nanoparticle Organic Hybrid Materials

Abstract

Liquid-like nanoparticle organic hybrid materials (NOHMs), consisting of silica nanoparticles with a grafted polymeric canopy, were synthesized. Previous work on NOHMs has revealed that CO2 capture behaviors in these hybrid materials can be tuned by modifying the structure of the polymeric canopy. Because SO2, which is another acidic gas found in flue gas, would also interact with NOHMs, this study was designed to investigate its effect on CO2 capture in NOHMs. In particular, CO2 capture capacities as well as swelling and CO2 packing behaviors of NOHMs were analyzed using thermogravimetric analyses and Raman and attenuated total reflectance (ATR) Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies before and after exposure of NOHMs to SO2. It was found that the SO2 absorption in NOHMs was only prominent at high SO2 levels (i.e., 3010 ppm; Ptot = 0.4 MPa) far exceeding the typical SO2 concentration in flue gas. As expected, the competitive absorption between SO2 and CO2 for the same absorption sites (i.e., ether and amine groups) resulted in a decreased CO2 capture capacity of NOHMs. The swelling of NOHMs was not notably affected by the presence of SO2 within the given concentration range (Ptot = 0–0.68 MPa). On the other hand, SO2, owing to its Lewis acidic nature, interacted with the ether groups of the polymeric canopy and, thus, changed the CO2 packing behaviors in NOHMs.