Phase-Changing Ionic Liquids

Phase-Changing Ionic Liquids

Program:
IMPACCT
Award:
$2,559,562
Location:
Notre Dame, Indiana
Status:
ALUMNI
Project Term:
07/01/2010 - 12/31/2013
Website:

Technology Description:

The University of Notre Dame is developing a new CO2 capture process that uses special ionic liquids (ILs) to remove CO2 from the gas exhaust of coal-fired power plants. ILs are salts that are normally liquid at room temperature, but Notre Dame has discovered a new class of ILs that are solid at room temperature and change to liquid when they bind to CO2. Upon heating, the CO2 is released for storage, and the ILs re-solidify and donate some of the heat generated in the process to facilitate further CO2 release. These new ILs can reduce the energy required to capture CO2 from the exhaust stream of a coal-fired power plant when compared to state-of-the-art technology.

Potential Impact:

If successful, Notre Dame's special ILs would enable the reduction of significant greenhouse gas emissions while helping to position the U.S. as a global industry leader in carbon capture and storage technology.

Security:

Enabling continued use of domestic coal for electricity generation will preserve the stability of the electric grid.

Environment:

Carbon capture technology could prevent more than 800 million tons of CO2 from being emitted into the atmosphere each year.

Economy:

Enabling cost-effective carbon capture systems could accelerate their adoption at existing power plants.

Contact

ARPA-E Program Director:
Dr. Ping Liu
Project Contact:
Dr. Steve Takach
Press and General Inquiries Email:
ARPA-E-Comms@hq.doe.gov
Project Contact Email:
stakach@nd.edu

Partners

Mid-Atlantic Technology, Research & Innovation Center, Inc. (MATRIC)

Related Projects

• Alliant Techsystems (ATK) - Supersonic Technology for CO2 Capture
• Codexis - Better Enzymes for Carbon Capture
• Columbia University - Chemically Accelerated Carbon Mineralization
• General Electric (GE) Global Research - CO2 Capture with Liquid-to-Solid Absorbents
• Georgia Tech Research Corporation - Composite Membranes for CO2 Capture
• Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) - Synthetic Catalysts for CO2 Storage
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - CO2 Capture Using Electrical Energy
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) - High Surface-Area CO2 Sponge
• Research Triangle Institute (RTI) - CO2 Capture and Regeneration at Low Temperatures
• Sustainable Energy Solutions (SES) - Capturing CO2 from Exhaust Gas
• Texas A&M University - Stimuli-Responsive Metal Organic Frameworks
• University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) - Metal Organic Framework Research
• University of Colorado, Boulder (CU-Boulder) - Gelled Ionic Liquid-Based Membranes
• University of Kentucky - Hybrid Solvent-Membrane CO2 Capture
• University of Notre Dame - Phase-Changing Ionic Liquids

Release Date:
02/07/2009