Perspective on low-energy chemical absorption for CO2 capture

CO2 capture with a low energy consumption is of application significance for reducing CO2 emission. Chemical absorption, commercialized for decades, has been regarded as an effective method for CO2 capture. However, a high energy consumption and a high cost limit the large-scale industrial applications. Some new absorbents and specific devices are developed. With the reduce of energy consumption of chemical absorption, several demonstration projects have been established in China recently. And reducing the capture energy consumption and lowering the capture cost are the constant pursuits for achieving "carbon neutrality". The following suggestions of chemical absorption are proposed on the basis of the previous researches: developing a broadly applicable absorption theory for phase-change absorption system, building an database of the absorption systems, and establishing some quantitative models are proposed for effectively developing new solvents for CO2 absorption; strengthening the gas-liquid mass transfer and designing heat transfer components with high performance are proposed for improving carbon capture efficiency; coupling chemical absorption and mineralization are proposed to achieve in-situ CO2 absorption and fixation, which may increase the economy of the process. All those accumulated researches are expected to promote carbon capture and to achieve "carbon neutrality". © 2022, Chemical Industry Press Co., Ltd. All right reserved.