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US-12616934-B2 - Fully automated direct air capture carbon dioxide processing system

US12616934B2US 12616934 B2US12616934 B2US 12616934B2US-12616934-B2

Abstract

A carbon processing system comprises an air mover and a multi-stage reactor. The multi-stage reactor processes ambient air and generates carbon dioxide and generates exhausted gas released to ambient air. In operation, air contacts the base solution via the air mover. The air reacts with the base solution thereby generating a base solution having carbon dioxide and generating exhaust (absorption reaction). Next, the exhaust is released from the reactor. Next, heat is applied to the base solution having carbon dioxide thereby generating carbon dioxide and generating a base solution without carbon dioxide (desorption reaction). The base solution without carbon dioxide generated after applying heat is reusable in processing new air. The absorption reaction and desorption reaction are reversible reactions resulting in regeneration of the base solution into its form prior to contact with the air yielding high scalability and less processing volume as required by many conventional carbon processing techniques.

Inventors

  • Sudip Mukhopadhyay
  • Mark Patrick Cyffka

Assignees

  • AirMyne, Inc.

Dates

Publication Date
20260505
Application Date
20240521

Claims (18)

  1. 1 . A carbon dioxide processing method comprising: by operation of an air mover, moving ambient air into a multi-stage reactor comprising a container, wherein the ambient air contacts a base solution in the container; removing carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) gas from the ambient air in the container, wherein the base solution removes the CO 2 gas from the ambient air to form an exhaust gas in the container; releasing the exhaust gas from the container; and heating the base solution to release the CO 2 gas from the base solution.
  2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the container comprises a single container that contains the base solution during: a first stage of a carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the ambient air; and a second stage of the carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the base solution.
  3. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the container comprises a first container that contains the base solution during a first stage of a carbon dioxide removing process; the multi-stage reactor comprises a second, distinct container, and heating the base solution to release the CO 2 gas from the base solution comprises heating the base solution in the second container to release the CO 2 gas from the base solution during a second stage of the carbon dioxide removing process.
  4. 4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein moving the ambient air into the multi-stage reactor comprises: bubbling the ambient air through the base solution in the container.
  5. 5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the base solution is water containing a dissolved salt of the form a[Q + ]b[X − ], Q is the cation species, X is the anion species, a and b are integers such that the total charge of the water containing the dissolved salt is neutral.
  6. 6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the base solution comprises: a phase transfer catalyst, and a promoter.
  7. 7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the air mover is configured to move the ambient air into the container at a pressure in a range of 0.1 to 10,000 pounds per square inch gauge (psig).
  8. 8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the container comprises an air displacer partially submerged in the base solution in the container, and moving the ambient air into the container comprises: moving the ambient air into the container through the air displacer.
  9. 9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the air mover comprises a fan, and moving the ambient air into the container comprises: moving the ambient air into the container by operation of the fan.
  10. 10 . A carbon dioxide processing system comprising: a multi-stage reactor comprising a container, the container comprising a base solution; an air mover configured to move ambient air into the container, wherein the base solution is configured to remove carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) gas from the ambient air to form an exhaust gas in the container; and a heat source configured to heat the base solution to remove the CO 2 gas from the base solution.
  11. 11 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the container comprises a single container that contains the base solution during: a first stage of a carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the ambient air; and a second stage of the carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the base solution.
  12. 12 . The system of claim 10 , wherein: the container comprises a first container that contains the base solution during a first stage of a carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the ambient air; and the multi-stage reactor comprises a second, distinct container that contains the base solution during a second stage of the carbon dioxide removing process, when the CO 2 gas is removed from the base solution.
  13. 13 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the base solution is water containing a dissolved salt of the form a[Q + ]b[X − ], Q is the cation species, X is the anion species, a and b are integers such that the total charge of the water containing the dissolved salt is neutral.
  14. 14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the base solution comprises: a phase transfer catalyst, and a promoter.
  15. 15 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the air mover is configured to move the ambient air into the container at a pressure in a range of 0.1 to 10,000 psig.
  16. 16 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the multi-stage reactor comprises an air displacer partially submerged in the base solution in the container, and the air mover is configured to move the ambient air into the container through the air displacer.
  17. 17 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the air mover comprises a fan.
  18. 18 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the air mover is configured to bubble the ambient air through the base solution in the container.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/117,633, entitled “Fully Automated Direct Air Capture Carbon Dioxide Processing System,” filed on Mar. 6, 2023, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/948,492, entitled “Fully Automated Direct Air Capture Carbon Dioxide Processing System,” filed on Sep. 20, 2022, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 11,612,853, which claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/295,942, entitled “Fully Automated Direct Air Capture Carbon Dioxide Processing System,” filed on Jan. 2, 2022, the subject matters of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates generally to carbon processing, and more specifically, to scalable carbon processing systems. BACKGROUND INFORMATION In chemical manufacturing plants and downstream refinery processes, acidic gases, including H2S, are quite often removed from a mixture of flue gases with five- to 35-percent concentration using liquid amine absorption towers. Amines react with acidic gases to form a complex, which can be reversibly broken into starting amine and acidic gas at elevated temperatures. Similar amine-based processes are commonly used for the removal of other acid gases, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur oxides (SOx), and carbon dioxide (CO2) with higher concentrations of industrial flue gases in manufacturing plants. Other chemical processes based on solid adsorbents, zeolites, and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are also commonly used for removing acidic flue gases with higher concentration in large-scale setups. SUMMARY A carbon processing system comprises an air mover and a multi-stage reactor. The multi-stage reactor processes ambient air and generates carbon dioxide, as well as exhausted gas. The exhausted gas is released to ambient air. The carbon dioxide that is generated is usable in injection, sequestration, or in production of commodity carbon dioxide-derived materials, such as dry ice. The generated carbon dioxide is also usable in mobile refrigerants, industrial refrigerants, feedstock or starting material for the manufacture of useful chemicals including urea, methanol, formaldehyde, esters, ethers, hydrocarbons, polymers, plastics, and carbon monoxide. The carbon processing system uses a base solution that is regenerated during the novel process and reused during each carbon processing cycle. This provides for significant automation capabilities and scalability of the carbon processing system. In one embodiment, the carbon processing system employs direct air-capture techniques. For example, the carbon processing system uses an air mover to provide air to the system for processing. The air mover comprises at least one of a compressor, a blower, a fan, a turbofan, a pump, a diaphragm pump, a Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system, an air contactor, a cooling tower, a falling-film evaporator, or an absorber. The multi-stage reactor involves a single container or two or more containers that provide the multi-stage functionality. The multi-stage reactor includes a base solution. The base solution is water (H2O) containing a dissolved salt of the form a[Q+]b[X−]. The symbol “Q” in this general equation is the cation species, and in one example, is a quaternary ammonium cation taken from the group consisting of NH4+, N(CH3)4+, N(ethyl)4+, N(Butyl)4+, and N(Propyl)4+, or is a cation taken from the group consisting of K+, Na+, Ca2+, and Mg2+. The symbol “X” in this general equation is the anion species, and in one example, is taken from the group consisting of OH−, O2−, CO32−, HCO3−, Cl−, Br−, and I−. The symbols “a” and “b” in this general equation are integers such that the total charge of the water containing the dissolved salt is neutral. In other embodiments, the base solution includes corrosion inhibitors, additives, or promoters. The corrosion inhibitors include vanadium pentoxide or other metallic oxides, and the additives or promoters include MEA (monoethanolamine), DEA (diethanolamine), TEA (triethanolamine), MDEA (methyl diethanolamine), piperazine, glycine, or any material that lowers an activation energy. In yet another embodiment, the base solution includes a phase transfer catalyst or agent with the structure of the form c[M+]d[Y−] that reduces interfacial surface tension and promotes mixing in gas-liquid or gas-liquid-solid systems. The symbol “M” in this general equation is the cation species. The symbol “Y” in this general equation is the anion species. The symbols “c” and “d” in this general equation are integers such that the total charge is neutral. In operation, air contacts the base solution via the air mover. The air reacts with the base solution thereby generating a base solution having carbon dioxide and generating exhaust. This first stage is an absorption reaction. Next, the exhaust is released from the rea