Comparison of the Properties of Natural Sorbents for the Calcium Looping Process

Capturing CO2 from industrial processes may be one of the main ways to control global temperature increases. One of the proposed methods is the calcium looping technology (CaL). The aim of this research was to assess the sequestration capacity of selected carbonate rocks, serpentinite, and basalt using a TGA-DSC analysis, thus simulating the CaL process. The highest degrees of conversion were obtained for limestones, lower degrees were obtained for magnesite and serpentinite, and the lowest were obtained for basalt. The decrease in the conversion rate, along with the subsequent CaL cycles, was most intense for the sorbents with the highest values. Thermally pretreated limestone samples demonstrated different degrees of conversion, which were the highest for the calcium-carbonate-rich limestones. The cumulative carbonation of the pretreated samples was more than twice as low as that of the raw ones. The thermal pretreatment was effective for the examined rocks.

Automated summary

The study assessed the sequestration capacity of selected carbonate rocks, serpentinite, and basalt for CaL process. The results showed that limestones had the highest conversion rates, while basalt had the lowest. Thermal pretreatment of samples was effective in enhancing the conversion rates.