Porous spherical CaO-based sorbents via PSS-assisted fast precipitation for CO2 capture.

In this paper, we report the development of synthetic CaO-based sorbents via a fast precipitation method with the assistance of sodium poly(styrenesulfonate) (PSS). The effect of PSS on physical properties of the CaO sorbents and their CO2 capture performance were investigated. The presence of PSS dispersed the CaO particles effectively as well as increased their specific surface area and pore volume remarkably. The obtained porous spherical structure facilitated CO2 to diffuse and react with inner CaO effectively, resulting in a significant improvement in initial CO2 carbonation capacity. A proper amount of Mg(2+) precursor solution was doped during a fast precipitation process to gain CaO-based sorbents with a high anti-sintering property, which maintained the porous spherical structure with the high specific surface area. CaO-based sorbents derived from a MgxCa1-xCO3 precursor existed in the form of CaO and MgO. The homogeneous distribution of MgO in the CaO-based sorbents effectively prevented the CaO crystallite from growing and sintering, further resulting in the favorable long-term durability with carbonation capacity of about 52.0% after 30 carbonation/calcination cycles.