Dual Alkali Solvent System for CO2 Capture from Flue Gas

A novel two-aqueous-phase CO 2 capture system, namely the dual alkali solvent (DAS) system, has been developed. Unlike traditional solvent-based CO 2 capture systems in which the same solvent is used for both CO 2 absorption and stripping, the solvent of the DAS system consists of two aqueous phases. The upper phase, which contains an organic alkali 1-(2-hydroxyethyl) piperazine (HEP), is used for CO 2 absorption. The lower phase, which consists of a mixture of K 2 CO 3 /KHCO 3 aqueous solution and KHCO 3 precipitate, is used for CO 2 stripping. Only a certain kind of amine (such as HEP) is able to ensure the phase separation, satisfactory absorption efficiency, effective CO 2 transfer from the upper phase to the lower phase, and regeneration of the upper phase. In the meantime, due to the presence of K 2 CO 3 /KHCO 3 in the lower phase, HEP in the upper phase is capable of being regenerated from its sulfite/sulfate heat stable salt, which enables the simultaneous absorption of CO 2 and SO 2 /SO 3 from the flue gas. Preliminary experiments and simulations indicate that the implementation of the DAS system can lead to 24.0% stripping energy savings compared to the Econamine process, without significantly lowering the CO 2 absorption efficiency (∼90%).