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Climate change is a serious issue that requires global priority. Countries around the world are developing policies to reduce the effects of global warming and climate change. For example, the European Union proposes a comprehensive set of guidelines to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Likewise, the European Green Deal prioritizes reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Capturing emitted carbon dioxide (CO2) and chemically converting it into useful commercial products is one way to limit global warming and mitigate its effects. Scientists are currently exploring carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technology as a promising way to expand carbon dioxide storage and processing at low cost.
However, global CCU research is largely limited to approximately 20 transforming compounds. Given the diversity of CO2 emission sources, the availability of a wider range of compounds is critical, which will require more in-depth research into processes that can convert CO2 even at low concentrations.
A team of researchers from Korea’s Chung-Ang University is conducting research on CCU processes that use waste or rich natural resources as raw materials to ensure they are economically feasible.
A research team led by Professor Sungho Yoon and Associate Professor Chul-Jin Lee recently published a study discussing the use of industrial carbon dioxide and dolomite, a common and common sedimentary rock rich in calcium and magnesium, to produce two commercial potential products: calcium formate. and magnesium oxide.
“There is growing interest in using carbon dioxide to produce valuable products that can help mitigate the effects of climate change while generating economic benefits. By combining carbon dioxide hydrogenation reactions and cation exchange reactions, we have developed a method for simultaneous purification of metal oxides and processes to produce valuable formates,” commented Professor Yin.
In their study, the scientists used a catalyst (Ru/bpyTN-30-CTF) to add hydrogen to carbon dioxide, resulting in two value-added products: calcium formate and magnesium oxide. Calcium formate, a cement additive, deicer, and animal feed additive, is also used in leather tanning.
In contrast, magnesium oxide is widely used in the construction and pharmaceutical industries. This process is not only feasible, but also extremely fast, producing the product in just 5 minutes at room temperature. In addition, researchers estimate that this process could reduce global warming potential by 20% compared to traditional methods of producing calcium formate.
The team is also assessing whether their method can replace existing production methods by studying its environmental impact and economic viability. “Based on the results, we can say that our method is an environmentally friendly alternative to carbon dioxide conversion that can replace traditional methods and help reduce industrial carbon dioxide emissions,” explained Professor Yin.
While converting carbon dioxide into useful products sounds promising, these processes are not always easy to scale. Most CCU technologies have not yet been commercialized because their economic feasibility is low compared to mainstream commercial processes. “We need to combine the CCU process with waste recycling to make it environmentally and economically viable. This could help achieve net-zero emissions targets in the future,” Dr Lee concluded.
Further information: Hayoung Yoon et al., Converting Magnesium and Calcium Ion Dynamics in Dolomite into Useful Value-Added Products Using CO2, Journal of Chemical Engineering (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.cej.2023.143684
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