Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Economic Capture of CO2 with Amines and Ionic Liquids Tethered in the Gas Phase
EPA Contract Number: EPD10031Title: Economic Capture of CO2 with Amines and Ionic Liquids Tethered in the Gas Phase
Investigators: Hammen, Richard F.
Small Business: IntelliMet, LLC
EPA Contact: Richards, April
Phase: I
Project Period: March 1, 2010 through August 31, 2010
Project Amount: $69,479
RFA: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) - Phase I (2010) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) , SBIR - Greenhouse Gases
Description:
The overall objective of this project is to develop CO2 absorption columns with high rates of CO2 capture and desorption. The project was developed with an ultimate economic goal of providing CO2 capture systems that operate at a cost of less than $20 per ton of CO2 . To accomplish this objective, this Phase I research fabricated and characterized a library of composite CO2 capture columns with varying CO2 binding reagents, such as tethered amines and tethered cationic substituents. Briefly, in the Phase I research, IntelliMet:
- Prepared composite sorbent columns with CO2-binding amines tethered in the gas phase of the composite matrix.
- Prepared composite sorbent columns with CO2-binding imidazolium salts tethered in the gas phase of the composite matrix.
- Performed experiments to measure the performance of the sorbent columns with respect to the CO2 capture capacity, adsorption kinetics, and desorption kinetics.
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
A series of tethered amine columns was prepared by the solid phase synthesis methods developed at IntelliMet. The tethered amine columns were synthesized because amine-based solid sorbents are well known to bind CO2 in proportion to the quantity of amines in the sorbent structure or volume. In this project, the quantity of amine groups in the columns was measured by titration of the columns with metal ion probes that were detectable in real time by optical absorbance.
The metal binding capacity of the various columns varied from 3 to 18 grams copper per liter of sorbent. By knowing the ratio of amine nitrogen atoms to bound copper, the concentrations of amino groups in the columns are determined. IntelliMet found that the quantity of amines varied with the composition of the interstitial “spiderweb” copolymers, the nature of the amine immobilized, and the methods of synthesis of the composites. The amine concentrations in the CO2 columns therefore ranged from 0.1-0.6 moles of amine per liter of sorbent column volume.
The CO2 capture capacity of the columns is directly proportional to the quantity of tethered amine groups and, to some extent, the structure of the immobilized amine. The tethered amine sorbent columns produced in this project therefore had sufficient molar quantities of amine functional groups tethered in the columns’ void volumes to perform carbon dioxide capture experiments.
The experiments to measure carbon dioxide capture kinetics showed rapid uptake of carbon dioxide at flow rates exceeding ten column volumes per minute. The tethered amine columns were recycled several times with no evidence of loss of capacity.
Conclusions:
The sorbent columns with amines tethered in the gas phase were synthesized to prepare carbon dioxide-capturing beds with rapid rates of CO2 adsorption and desorption. The capacities of the beds were measured by titration with metal ion probes and found to be sufficient for measurement of CO2 binding. The carbon dioxide binding was rapid and quantitative at high flow rates.
Commercialization:
IntelliMet’s products are a new class of ion exchange and metal-chelating columns that selectively capture metal ions in solutions in the mining industry. The rapid metal capture kinetics and the metal selectivity of the Company’s products enable the extraction and separation of metals from solution with clean and controlled processes. The efficiency of the columns enables the installation of non-polluting processes in an industry that has been burdened by a legacy of environmental matters. IntelliMet’s business objective is to provide metal capture and separation units to the metal mining industry.
The phases of commercialization of IntelliMet's products are:
- Develop metal capture and separation applications that address large markets and can have a good profit margin. Generally, this means that IntelliMet focuses on high value metals, such as precious metals, rare earth elements, and uranium.
- Develop relationships with customers who will fund the testing of the product at development scale and at pilot scale.
- Proceed through the engineering steps of scale up of the process to meet the fluid processing needs of the mine operators.
- Provide metal capture columns to customers who will use the columns and pay a fee based on the value of the metals recovered in the IntelliMet columns.
The cost of metal production with IntelliMet products is basically a function of the mass of the metal mined. For a new company entering the market, it is an obvious advantage to develop high-value metal production. As the company grows, it then will more easily serve metal markets that have lower values per unit mass of the metal, and the company can expand into these markets.
One of the metal production systems that IntelliMet is commercializing is a column that separates and purifies neodymium. Neodymium is used for making the super-magnets necessary for hybrid and electric vehicle manufacture. The market price for neodymium is more than $110 per kilogram of metal or metal oxide. Another metal for which IntelliMet has developed capture and separation processes is molybdenum; this metal is used for making steel alloys. Molybdenum oxide currently sells for more than $30 per kilogram.
In contrast, current prices for carbon dioxide on carbon trade exchanges are less than $20 per ton ($0.02 per kg). We have been told that the CO2 purchased for enhanced oil recovery operations is in a similar value range. This price per kilogram for carbon dioxide is obviously four orders of magnitude less than the value of a kilogram of the metals that IntelliMet can capture and separate with its sorbent columns. From this point of view, there is not a significant inherent commercial opportunity or market for producing carbon dioxide products, and the commercialization of carbon capture systems would require a very different business model.
This SBIR project was undertaken on the premise that the same technology base that IntelliMet has developed for the mining industry could apply to the prospect of capturing carbon dioxide from exhaust gases. The evolution of the carbon market is in its early stages, and concepts as to how to best address global warming concerns are being developed. As the market matures, the value and economics of carbon capture will become more clarified. This project confirms the technology premise works, and IntelliMet will consider commercialization when market conditions will support the investment.
Supplemental Keywords:
small business, SBIR, EPA, greenhouse gases, GHG, CO2 capture, carbon capture columns, CO2 absorption columns, air quality, nanocomposite sorbent, global warming, climate change,The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.