In order to stabilize and ultimately reduce concentrations of carbon dioxide, it is important to employ carbon sequestration - carbon capture, separation and storage or reuse. Existing capture technologies, however, are not cost-effective when considered in the context of sequestering CO2 from power plants. This technology utilizes the iron component of Mg-bearing minerals (e.g. olivine and serpentine) during carbon mineral sequestration. Through synthesis and utilization of iron oxide particles during the mineral processing, this technology provides an important step towards the economic feasibility of carbon mineral sequestration.
Carbon is stably sequestered using magnesium-bearing minerals, which naturally contain 5-10% iron. Extracting the iron from these minerals and producing iron oxide during carbon sequestration allows coupling to other processes for value-added production. The hydrogen gas produced from iron oxidation can be used as a clean energy source. Iron is looped to cyclically produce carbon dioxide and hydrogen gas in one process. In addition, the extracted iron can be used for other industrial applications, such as feedstock for steel. Taken together, this technology generates additional revenues for carbon sequestration while facilitating clean energy production.
This technology has been demonstrated using serpentine for carbon mineral sequestration and iron oxide generation using syngas as a carbonaceous field source.
Tech Ventures Reference: M09-092