Metal Monolithic Amine-grafted Zeolite for CO{sub 2} Capture

Abstract

The solid amine sorbent for CO{sub 2} capture process has advantages of simplicity and low operating cost compared to the MEA (monoethanolamine) process. Solid amine sorbents reported so far suffered from either low CO{sub 2} capture capacity or low stability. The solid amine sorbent developed in this project exhibited more than 3.2 mmol/g and degraded less than 10% even after 500 cycles of heating and cooling in absence of steam. The presence of steam further enhanced CO{sub 2} capture capacity. The cost of the sorbent is estimated to be less than $7.00/lb. This sorbent was developed using the results of in situ infrared spectroscopic study. Infrared results showed that CO{sub 2} adsorbs on TEPA (tetraethylenepentamine)/PEG (polyethylene glycol) as carbamates and bicarbonates. The CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity and oxidation resistance of the amine sorbent can be enhanced by the interactions between NH{sub 2} of TEPA molecules with the OH group of PEG molecules. PEG was also found to be effectively disperse and immobilize the aromatic amines for SO{sub 2} adsorption. The infrared study also showed that SiO{sub 2} is a significantly better support than zeolites due to its proper hydrophobicity. The results of this study led to the development of amore » high performance solid amine sorbent under simulated gas flow condition in a fixed bed, a fluidized bed, and a metal monolith unit. This study showed heat transfer could become a major technical issue in scaling up a fixed bed adsorber. The use of the fluidized bed and metal monoliths can alleviate the heat transfer issue. The metal monolith could be suitable for small scale applications due to the high cost of manufacturing; the fluidized bed mode would be most suitable for large scale applications. Preliminary economic analysis suggested that the Akron solid amine process would cost 45% less than that of MEA process.« less