CO_2 emission and its mitigation by adsorption on zeolites and activated carbon

摘要

Climate change due to increased atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) is a cause for concern worldwide1. The major contributor to enhanced greenhouse effect is CO_2. By ratification of the Kyoto protocol (KP), developed countries have agreed to reduce their GHG emissions by 5.2% below the 1990 levels by 2012. Power plants are major sources of CO_2, emitting about 63% of the global industrial emissions2. Currently the world's primary energy need is met mostly by fossil fuels. In addition, coal is projected to be a dominant fuel3. CC_2 capture from large point sources (LPS) such as power plants is a potential emission mitigation option. A 500 MW coal-fired power plant with 40% efficiency emits about 2.5-3.5 million tons (mt) CO_2 per year4. Thus, even a few CO_2 capture plants of such capacity can lead to significant reduction in country-level total emissions.