Utilization of mineral carbonation products: current state and potential

Abstract

Mineral carbonation (MC) is a form of carbon capture and storage that reacts CO2 with alkaline feedstock to securely store CO2 as solid carbonate minerals. To improve process economics and accelerate commercial deployment, research has increased around product utilization, where markets exist primarily in the construction industry. This review assesses the potential for advancing MC product utilization to decrease CO2 emissions toward neutral, or even negative, values. First, the literature surrounding the current state and challenges for indirect MC processes is reviewed, indicating that process intensification and scale‐up are important areas for further research. Alkalinity sources available for MC are examined, differentiating between those sourced from industrial processes and mining operations. Investigation of possible end uses of carbonate products reveals that further CO2 avoidance can be achieved by replacing conventional carbon‐intensive products. Companies that are currently commercializing MC processes are categorized based on the feed used and materials produced. An analysis of company process types indicates that up to 3 GtCO2 year–1 could be avoided globally. It is suggested that upcoming commercial efforts should focus on the carbonation of industrial wastes located near CO2 sources to produce precast concrete blocks. Carbonation of conventional concrete shows the highest potential for CO2 avoidance, but may face some market resistance. Carbonation of Mg silicates lacks sufficient market demand and requires the development of new high‐value products to overcome the expense of mining and feed preparation. It is suggested that research focus on enhanced understanding of magnesia cement chemistry and the development of flame‐retardant mineral fillers. © 2019 The Authors. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology published by Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Definition and Exploration of the Integrated CO2 Mineralization Technological Cycle

“…Developing realistic ICM solutions is no longer a question of designing energy efficient carbonation technologies; it is a matter of developing and optimizing the complete ICM technological cycle of Figure 2 as one global process, from the feedstock materials to the final commercial products. Significant research efforts address the various stages of this cycle, dealing with feedstocks of carbonatable materials (Bodénan et al, 2014), technological development of carbonation processes (National Petroleum Council, 2019), or utilization of carbonation products (Woodall et al, 2019).…”

Utilization of Gaseous Carbon Dioxide and Industrial Ca-Rich Waste for Calcium Carbonate Precipitation: A Review

“…Maintaining efficiency and energy demand for processing are important issues for future commercialization [25]. A useful approach to assessing a technology under development in terms of its energy efficiency is an exergy analysis [108][109][110].…”

“…One of the processes in which waste carbon dioxide from various sources can be applied as a substrate is carbon mineralization. An overview of mineral carbonation and its market potential has recently been presented [25] and an economic analysis of the various methods of CO 2 utilization has been prepared by Hepburn et al [26]. They show that mineral carbonation is one of the methods that comes closest to large-scale commercialization due to thermodynamically favored and economic considerations.…”

“…Furthermore, it is possible to use numerous industrial wastes as other substrates when the product of the mineral carbonation is calcium carbonate. Such solution ensures effective recycling of both gaseous CO 2 and liquid industrial waste, and in addition obtained final product can be applied in many industries [25].…”

Efficient nanoarray catalyze carbon dioxide conversion

“…More importantly, as a massive, safe and renewable carbon resource, carbon dioxide can be converted into valuable materials and chemicals [6], make contributions to climate change [7]. In this context, a meaningful way, carbon capture and utilization (CCU), has attracted attention [8,9]. Compare to CCS, the biggest advantage of CCU is that the utilization of carbon dioxide is a profitable activity since the products can be sold.…”