Eco Factor: Organic liquid to capture two times more acid gases than conventional liquids.
Most of the electricity the world consumes comes from coal-fired power plants, which emit tons of harmful acid gases. Presently these plants make use of special binding liquids that capture carbon dioxide from the emissions. The gases are unbound by using heated water, which is a waste of both energy and water. New research conducted by Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has resulted in a solution that can solve the problem with a new organic liquid that requires less energy and saves water.
The organic liquid is a mixture of water and monoethanolamine, a basic organic molecule that grabs carbon dioxide and other acid gases such as sulfur dioxide. This liquid can be used to store two times the amount of gases by weight than conventional liquids.
The process, known as “Reversible Acid Gas Capture,” can directly replace current methods and allow power plants to capture more gases in a way that uses no water and less energy, thereby saving money. The liquid is completely recyclable and the captured gases can be released quite easily for safe disposal.
Via: PNL [Press Release]
