Session: 13-01: Carbon Capture & Cleaner Fossil Fuel Technologies

Paper Number: 130660

130660 - Experimental Study of a Lab Scale Carbonator for CO2 Capture Purpose 

Abstract: 

The direct CO₂ emission from the production of cement has remained broadly stable over the past five years but contributed around 12% to the global CO₂ emission in 2017. To achieve the Net Zero Emission by 2050, a decline of 4% by 2030 in this sector is required. To tackle this goal, the coupling of Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) and Calcium Looping (CaL) is a promising alternative. This technology is based on the reversible chemical reaction which involves calcium oxide (CaO), carbon dioxide (CO₂) and calcium carbonate (CaCO₃). Two reactors are used for this process: a calciner in which CO₂ is released from CaCO₃ particles and a carbonator where CO₂ is captured by the CaO particles. The CaO sorbent is repeatedly cycled between the two reactors. The reaction temperature of both reactions depends on the CO₂ partial pressure in the atmosphere. The calcination is an endothermal reaction which takes place between 850 and 1000°C whereas the carbonation is exothermal taking place at temperatures between 650 and 750°C when CO₂ concentrations from industrial flue gases (10-30 vol%) are used.

This study is focusses on the carbonation step of a CaL process. To overcome the limitation of handling materials with a broader particle size distribution which is the case for current state-of-art carbonators (e.g. fluidized bed or entrained flow reactors), a new design for a lab scale carbonator has been developed. The design consists in a modified rotary kiln with internal shovels to improve the contact between gas and particles. To achieve high CO₂ uptake performance, good solid-gas contact is required, but this is not characteristic of normal rotary kiln designs. Another design challenge of this concept is the implementation of a high-temperature sealing between the fixed and the rotating parts of the system.

To evaluate the carbonation efficiency of the developed reactor, experimental tests were carried out varying parameters such as the CO₂ concentration (between 10 and 30 vol%) and the mass flow of CaO particles. CO₂ capture efficiencies ranged between 62 and 82 % were measured. The highest efficiency was reached when a CO₂ concentration of 13 vol% and a CaO mass flow of 7.8 kg/h were used. This study showed the feasibility of the novel reactor concept to be integrated into a CaL cycle where particles with broader size distribution can be used. These preliminary results are still being improved since a following project is currently underway.  

 

 

Presenting Author: Dayana D'arc De Fátima Palhares German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany

Presenting Author Biography: Dayana D'Arc de Fátima Palhares, Ph.D., has a background in chemical engineering. After completing her thesis in Brazil on solar calcination of industrial waste, she has been working at the Institute of Future Fuels of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Germany for the past 18 months. Currently, she focuses on topics related to solar calcination of limestone and CO2 capture at high temperatures.

Authors:

Clarisse Lorreyte German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Hazal Parmaksiz German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Bruno Lachmann German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Stefania Tescari German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Lamark De Oliveira German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Dayana D'arc De Fátima Palhares German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Gkiokchan Moumin German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Juan Pablo Rincon Duarte German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Thomas Fend German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Martin Roeb German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany
Christian Sattler German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Future Fuels, Germany