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A carbon dioxide scrubber is a piece of equipment that absorbs carbon dioxide (CO₂). It is used to treat exhaust gases from industrial plants or from exhaled air in life support systems such as rebreathers or in spacecraft, submersible craft or airtight chambers. Carbon dioxide scrubbers are also used in controlled atmosphere (CA) storage and carbon capture and storage processes.

Technologies

Amine scrubbing

The primary application for CO₂ scrubbing is for removal of CO₂ from the exhaust of coal- and gas-fired power plants. Virtually the only technology being seriously evaluated involves the use of various amines, e.g. monoethanolamine. Cold solutions of these organic compounds bind CO₂, but the binding is reversed at higher temperatures:

CO₂ + 2 HOCH
₂CH
₂NH
₂ ↔ HOCH
₂CH
₂NH
₃ + HOCH
₂CH
₂NHCO
₂

As of 2009, this technology has only been lightly implemented because of capital costs of installing the facility and the operating costs of utilizing it.

Minerals and zeolites

Several minerals and mineral-like materials reversibly bind CO₂. Most often, these minerals are oxides or hydroxides, and often the CO₂ is bound as carbonate. Carbon dioxide reacts with quicklime (calcium oxide) to form limestone (calcium carbonate), in a process called carbonate looping. Other minerals include serpentinite, a magnesium silicate hydroxide, and olivine. Molecular sieves also function in this capacity.

Various (cyclical) scrubbing processes have been proposed to remove CO₂ from the air or from flue gases and release them in a controlled environment, reverting the scrubbing agent. These usually involve using a variant of the Kraft process which may be based on sodium hydroxide. The CO₂ is absorbed into such a solution, transfers to lime (via a process called causticization) and is released again through the use of a kiln. With some modifications to the existing processes (mainly changing to an oxygen-fired kiln) the resulting exhaust becomes a concentrated stream of CO₂, ready for storage or use in fuels. An alternative to this thermo-chemical process is an electrical one which releases the CO₂ through electrolyzing of the carbonate solution. While simpler, this electrical process consumes more energy as electrolysis, also splits water. Early incarnations of environmentally motivated CO₂ capture used electricity as the energy source and were therefore dependent on green energy. Some thermal CO₂ capture systems use heat generated on-site, which reduces the inefficiencies resulting from off-site electricity production, but it still needs a source of (green) heat, which nuclear power or concentrated solar power could provide.

Sodium hydroxide

Zeman and Lackner outlined a specific method of air capture.

First, CO₂ is absorbed by an alkaline NaOH solution to produce dissolved sodium carbonate. The absorption reaction is a gas liquid reaction, strongly exothermic, here:

2NaOH(aq) + CO₂(g) → Na
₂CO
₃(aq) + H₂O(l)

Na
₂CO
₃(aq) + Ca(OH)
₂(s) → 2NaOH(aq) + CaCO
₃(s)

ΔH° = −114.7 kJ/mol

Causticization is performed ubiquitously in the pulp and paper industry and readily transfers 94% of the carbonate ions from the sodium to the calcium cation. Subsequently, the calcium carbonate precipitate is filtered from solution and thermally decomposed to produce gaseous CO₂. The calcination reaction is the only endothermic reaction in the process and is shown here:

CaCO
₃(s) → CaO(s) + CO₂(g)

ΔH° = +179.2 kJ/mol

The thermal decomposition of calcite is performed in a lime kiln fired with oxygen in order to avoid an additional gas separation step. Hydration of the lime (CaO) completes the cycle. Lime hydration is an exothermic reaction that can be performed with water or steam. Using water, it is a liquid/solid reaction as shown here:

CaO(s) + H₂O(l) → Ca(OH)
₂(s)

ΔH° = −64.5 kJ/mol

Lithium hydroxide

Other strong bases such as soda lime, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, and lithium hydroxide are able to remove carbon dioxide by chemically reacting with it. In particular, lithium hydroxide was used aboard spacecraft, such as in the Apollo program, to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It reacts with carbon dioxide to form lithium carbonate. Recently lithium hydroxide absorbent technology has been adapted for use in anesthesia machines. Anesthesia machines which provide life support and inhaled agents during surgery typically employ a closed circuit necessitating the removal of carbon dioxide exhaled by the patient. Lithium hydroxide may offer some safety and convenience benefits over the older calcium based products.

2 LiOH(s) + 2 H₂O(g) → 2 LiOH·H₂O(s)

2 LiOH·H₂O(s) + CO₂(g) → Li
₂CO
₃(s) + 3 H₂O(g)

The net reaction being:

2LiOH(s) + CO₂(g) → Li
₂CO
₃(s) + H₂O(g)

Lithium peroxide can also be used as it absorbs more CO₂ per unit weight with the added advantage of releasing oxygen.

In recent years lithium orthosilicate has attracted much attention towards CO₂ capture, as well as energy storage. This material offers considerable performance advantages although it requires high temperatures for the formation of carbonate to take place.

Regenerative carbon dioxide removal system

The regenerative carbon dioxide removal system (RCRS) on the Space Shuttle orbiter used a two-bed system that provided continuous removal of carbon dioxide without expendable products. Regenerable systems allowed a shuttle mission a longer stay in space without having to replenish its sorbent canisters. Older lithium hydroxide (LiOH)-based systems, which are non-regenerable, were replaced by regenerable metal-oxide-based systems. A system based on metal oxide primarily consisted of a metal oxide sorbent canister and a regenerator assembly. It worked by removing carbon dioxide using a sorbent material and then regenerating the sorbent material. The metal-oxide sorbent canister was regenerated by pumping air at approximately 200 °C (392 °F) through it at a standard flow rate of 3.5 L/s (7.4 cu ft/min) for 10 hours.

Activated carbon

Activated carbon can be used as a carbon dioxide scrubber. Air with high carbon dioxide content, such as air from fruit storage locations, can be blown through beds of activated carbon and the carbon dioxide will adhere to the activated carbon . Once the bed is saturated it must then be "regenerated" by blowing low carbon dioxide air, such as ambient air, through the bed. This will release the carbon dioxide from the bed, and it can then be used to scrub again, leaving the net amount of carbon dioxide in the air the same as when the process was started.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs)

Metal-organic frameworks are well-studied for carbon dioxide capture and sequestration via adsorption. No large-scale commercial technology exists. In one set of tests MOFs were able to separate 90% of the CO₂ from the flue gas stream using a vacuum pressure swing process. The cost of energy is estimated to increase by 65% if MOFs were used vs an increase of 81% for amines as the capturing agent.

Extend air cartridge

An extend air cartridge (EAC) is a make or type of pre-loaded one-use absorbent canister that can be fitted into a recipient cavity in a suitably-designed rebreather.

Other methods

Many other methods and materials have been discussed for scrubbing carbon dioxide.

• Adsorption
• Regenerative carbon dioxide removal system (RCRS)
• Algae filled bioreactors
• Membrane gas separations
• Reversing heat exchangers

See also

• Carbon capture and storage – Process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide from industrial flue gas
• Carbon dioxide removal – Removal of atmospheric carbon dioxide through human activity
• Greenhouse gas – Gas in an atmosphere with certain absorption characteristics
• Rebreather – Portable apparatus to recycle breathing gas
• Sabatier reaction – Methanation process of carbon dioxide with hydrogen

References

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• Scrubbers
• Carbon dioxide
• Space suit components
• Spacecraft life support systems
• Rebreather components
• Gas technologies
• Carbon capture and storage