The Problem:
Amid growing concerns over the billions of tons of annual CO2 emissions contributing to the global climate change crisis, significant efforts are underway to curb emissions. Energy-efficient capture of CO2 is an incredibly challenging process due to the low concentrations, and partial pressures of CO2 typically encountered at power plants and other point sources of CO2 emissions. While many solvent-based technologies exist, there is still an urgent need to achieve a long-term, energy-efficient solution to capture CO2 from industrial sources.
The Solution:
Researchers at The University of Alabama have developed a method of capturing carbon dioxide from gas by feeding the stream through an imidazole-containing polymer membrane, reducing volatile compounds from the stream, and capturing the greenhouse gases that contribute to the detriment of the global environment. In addition to being tunable, versatile, and economical, the imidazole polymer membrane can also be blended with other materials to influence reactivity, absorption rates, and offset any additional material costs.
Benefits:
• More efficient than existing CO2 capture methods.
• Capable of being blended/copolymerized to change properties such as reactivity, absorption rates, and H2O interactions.
• Thermally and oxidatively stable.
• Increased CO2 solubility and selectivity for CO2 capture.
• Potentially more cost-effective than existing methods due to customizable polymer properties.
The University of Alabama Office for Innovation and Commercialization(OIC) is a non-profit corporation that is responsible for commercializing University of Alabama technologies and for supporting University research. At OIC, we seek parties that are interested in learning more about our technologies and commercialization opportunities, and we welcome any inquiries you may have.
