Step Change Adsorbents and Processes for CO2 Capture.

能源供应和输送的安全和可持续性是全球面临的重大挑战。需要新材料、工程解决方案和技术创新来帮助应对减贫、快速经济发展和气候变化等相互竞争的挑战。未来30年，世界能源需求将继续增长。化石燃料将主导全球能源生产，最终导致二氧化碳排放量增加。在新的、先进的能源生产技术开发出来之前，还需要碳捕获和储存技术。这将使化石燃料燃烧时不会向大气中排放二氧化碳。碳捕获和储存涉及从大型气体来源（如燃烧化石燃料的发电站）中去除二氧化碳，用于地下储存，例如在枯竭的石油圈闭中。为了从传统燃煤电厂的烟气中捕获或分离二氧化碳，目前选择的技术是使用称为胺的化合物溶液。然而，众所周知，这项技术最终可以减少高达90%的二氧化碳排放，但它是能源密集型的，会导致工厂效率急剧下降，最终导致电力成本增加。为了克服与当前捕集技术相关的问题，需要先进的二氧化碳捕集技术。这个研究项目涉及这种技术的开发。吸附剂是一种多孔固体，可以选择性地“吸收”二氧化碳，有可能显著减少30 -50%的能量损失，并降低二氧化碳捕获的后续成本。然而，实现这一潜力需要两个方面的发展：新型阶梯变化多孔材料和相关的植物集成工艺。就第一种而言，含有“纳米级”孔洞和空腔的微孔材料，其壁上装有碱性基团（例如胺），可以增加捕获的二氧化碳量。其次，需要将吸附剂材料处理和循环到一个可以集成到捕获工厂的有效过程中。这一研究方案将大大加快发展吸附剂技术的步伐，作为燃烧后捕获中化学吸收的可行替代办法。为了实现这一目标，伯明翰大学、利物浦大学、诺丁汉大学和伦敦大学学院的学者组成了一个跨学科的联盟。这是第一次将英国领先的研究小组聚集在一起，研究二氧化碳捕获的吸附剂。该集团提供化学和化学工程专业知识，从新材料的制造和表征到测试和放大。将开展一项开发新型微孔聚合物、水滑石和碳基多孔材料的广泛计划。与目前的技术相比，为了实现二氧化碳捕获效率的阶段性改进，这些材料已经设定了目标。这些新型材料捕获二氧化碳的特性和能力将在实验室中进行测量，并使用专门建造的设备来模拟发电站烟道气的条件和组成。将设计再生技术以去除二氧化碳，并允许吸附剂材料的循环操作，并测量吸附剂的寿命。该项目的最终目标是在真实的发电厂环境中展示吸附剂材料-因此，我们将随着计划的发展而重点淘汰不符合一项或多项实际标准的材料。该项目将使社会、能源生产公司和对二氧化碳捕获技术潜力感兴趣的政府机构受益。通过将学术和科学专家与工业界聚集在一起的联盟活动，我们将在吸附剂技术方面创造一个逐步变化，作为本方案的主要产出。

Security and sustainability of energy supply and delivery are major global challenges. New materials, engineering solutions and technological innovations are required to help meet competing challenges of poverty reduction, rapid economic development and climate change. The worlds for energy will continue to increase over the next 30 years. Fossil fuels will dominate global energy production, ultimately leading to increased CO2 emissions. Until new, advanced technologies are developed for energy production, carbon capture and storage technologies are required. These will allow fossil fuels to be burned without emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Carbon capture and storage involves the removal of CO2 from large sources of the gas, such as fossil fuel burning power stations, for underground storage, for example in depleted oil traps. To capture or separate CO2 from the flue gas of traditional coal-fired powerplant the current technology of choice is to use solutions of chemical compounds called amines. However, it is known that this technology, which could ultimately cut CO2 emissions by up to 90%, is energy intensive and leads to a sharp decrease in plant efficiency and ultimately an increase in the cost of electricity.To overcome the problems associated with current capture technologies, advanced CO2 capture technologies are required. This research project involves the development one such technology. Adsorbents, porous solids that can selectively 'soak up' CO2, have the potential to significantly reduce the energy penalty, by 30 -50%, and subsequent cost of CO2 capture. However, two developments are required to realise this potential: novel step change porous materials and associated plant integration processes. In terms of the first, microporous materials, containing 'nanosized' holes and cavities, the walls of which are loaded with basic groups (e.g., amines) can increase the amount of CO2 that is captured. Secondly, processes for handling and cycling the adsorbent materials into an efficient process that can be integrated into a capture plant are required. This programme of research will greatly accelerate the pace of development of adsorbent technology as a viable alternative to chemical absorption in post-combustion capture.To achieve this aim, an interdisciplinary consortium of academics from Universities of Birmingham, Liverpool and Nottingham and University College London has been formed. This brings together, for the first time, leading UK groups conducting research on adsorbents for CO2 capture. The group provides a mix of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering expertise, ranging from manufacture and characterisation of novel materials, through to testing and scale-up. An extensive programme to develop novel microporous polymer, hydrotalcite and carbon-based porous materials will be undertaken. Targets have been set for these materials required to achieve step change improvements in CO2 capture efficiency compared to current technologies. The properties and ability of these novel materials to capture CO2 will be measured in the laboratory and using specially built equipment to simulate the conditions and make up of power station flue gases. Techniques for regeneration will be devised to remove CO2 and allow for cyclic operation of the adsorbent materials and measure the lifetime of the adsorbents. The ultimate goal of the project is to demonstrate the adsorbent materials in real power plant environments - as such, we will focus the programme as it develops to knock out materials which fail on one or more of the practical criteria.The project will benefit society as well as energy producing companies and government bodies interested in the potential of CO2 capture techniques. Through consortiums activities which bring together academic and scientific experts, and industry we will create a step-change in adsorbent technology as the key output of this programme.