Session: 11-01 Carbon Capture and Sequestration

Paper Number: 117439

117439 - A Pathway Towards a Net-Zero: A Study on Hvac and Direct Co2 Capture as Response to the Climate Crisis and Indoor Air Quality 

As the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere continues to rise, and the reality of global warming challenges hits the world, policymakers and global research societies are racing to address climate change challenges brought about by high atmospheric concentration of CO₂. There are several available options for CO₂ emissions reduction in the atmosphere. However, retrofitting CO₂ capture facility to some industrial plants is difficult, because old plants were constructed with no CO₂ capture systems in mind. Even with available CO₂ capture facility onsite, most plants can only capture their emissions in the range of 50-94%, the uncaptured CO₂ apparently finds its way into the atmosphere. Even in an ideal industrial setup, in which 100% of CO₂ generated is captured onsite, it is still technically difficult to directly apply end-of-pipe capture system to the CO₂ emitted by transport sector (i.e., marine, aviation and land transports), which contributes about 50% to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As a result, we must create ways to return the atmospheric concentration of CO₂ to the pre-industrial era, or find means to reduce its impacts on humans/environment in a way that is independent of CO₂ generation origin. Returning the atmospheric concentration of CO₂ to the pre-industrial era is almost impossible to achieve in this century, but keeping the global warming at ∼1.5 °C more than the pre-industrial era is possible but would involve adoption of aggressive carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies, which must ensure the removal of between 100 and 1000 GtCO₂ by the year 2100. Among all the current CDR technologies, direct air capture (DAC) is the likely technique to deliver the needed CO₂ removal because it is independent of CO₂ emission origin, and the capture machine can be stationed anywhere, especially in a location where the price of energy is very cheap or where renewable energy is relatively abundant.

In this presentation, I will be highlighting the global and our project efforts in CO₂ mitigation strategies and the objectives of CO₂ cluster program, which involve the integration of DAC with the traditional (eating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems (mainly the air conditioning system), as a preexisting technology, to capture CO₂ directly from the atmosphere. 

Presenting Author: Abdukarem Amhamed Qatar Environment and Energy Research Insitute

Presenting Author Biography: Dr. Amhamed is a senior scientist, Chartered Chemical Engineer, and Chartered Fellow with over 20 years of experience in industry, technology development, and project management. He has a strong background in technology development and applied industrial process integration, design, and optimization, with a particular focus on gas separation, CO2 absorption and adsorption, steam reforming catalysis, and product development. He has attracted over $15,000,000 in external funding for his research and has a strong track record of generating innovative research ideas and developing proposals that lead to successful projects. Furthermore, Dr. Amhamed has been awarded multiple grants for research and development projects related to carbon management and energy efficiency. These grants include the "CO2 Cluster Project" (NPRP12C-0821-190017) the cluster project has been awarded the highest grant by Qatar National Research Fund’s National Priorities Research Program Cluster Track (NPRP-C) with the sum of $6,400,000 for a duration of five years. Additionally, Dr. Amhamed has received funding for the "Qatar Thermal Comfort Standard" (QTCS) project (NPRP13S-0203-200243) for a sum of $510,000 for a duration of three years, and for the "Advanced Direct Air Capture of CO2 Using the HVAC Systems" (DAC) project (GSRA8-L-1-0506-21032) for a sum of $306,000 for a duration of four years. Dr. Amhamed also received funding for "Formulating sustainable urban Food-Water-Energy Nexus project" (BFSUGI01-1031-170001) for a sum of $1.7 million, and recently he has received a new grant for the development of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from green hydrogen and direct CO2 capture (HBKU-INT-VPR-TG-02-01).
He is also an expert in the Technology Development using Stage-Gate Processes Technique, has a proven track record of publishing his work in high-impact journals, and has filed and been granted over 10 patent applications. Dr. Amhamed also has experience in teaching and training, including supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students and delivering lectures and workshops on various topics related to his field of expertise. He has been recognized for his ability to effectively communicate complex technical concepts to students and colleagues, and has a reputation for being an engaging and knowledgeable instructor. He is able to provide mentoring to students and help them to develop their research and professional skills, in order to achieve their goals