Electrospun Poly(Vinyl Alcohol) – L-Arginine Nanofiber Composites for Direct Air Capture of CO2

Background

The accumulation of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere has been documented to be the primary driver of global warming. The global average CO₂ levels in the atmosphere continue to rise, with a predicted 1.5°C increase in global temperatures within the next two decades. The capture and storage of CO₂ is an essential part of mitigating climate change. Point source CO₂ capture alone from emission sources like power plants, refineries, and factories is no longer sufficient since it does not address CO₂ emissions from dispersed sources including the transportation or housing sectors. Non-point sources account for ~50% of global CO₂ emissions, so technologies that capture CO₂ from ambient air are needed to achieve net-zero emissions globally by 2050.

Direct air capture (DAC) is the only current technological solution capable of achieving negative carbon emission. DAC can complement point-source CO₂ capture and storage (CCS), compensate for residual emissions that escape during point-source capture, and target distributed emissions. Traditionally, liquid sorbents like aqueous solutions containing potassium or sodium carbonate/hydroxide or alkanolamine solvents like monoethanolamide (MEA) or diethanolamine (DEA) have been used to capture CO₂. Amino acids have the same functional groups as alkanolamines and are potentially environmentally friendly. Amino acid solutions also have higher surface tension, lower volatility, better chemical and thermal stability, and exhibit similar or better CO₂ absorption compared to alkanolamines. L-arginine in particular has shown excellent CO₂ sorption capacity.

Invention Description

Researchers at Arizona State University have developed L-Arginine incorporated polymer nanofiber composite mats for the direct air capture (DAC) of CO₂. The amino acid L-arginine is incorporated onto a poly(vinyl alcohol) nanofiber support, creating porous substrates with very high surface areas of L-arginine available for the sorption of CO₂. The nanofiber composites are fabricated from a single step electrospinning process using an aqueous polymer solution. The nanofiber mats showed excellent CO₂ sorption capability and kinetics in initial tests.

Potential Applications

Commercial CO₂ capture technologies (e.g., flue gas capture)
Low-cost DAC technology

Benefits & Advantages

High sorption kinetics and capacity
High surface area for CO₂ capture achieved from electrospinning
Cost-effective and easy to manufacture
Scalable & flexible
Works for high and low concentrations of CO₂

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