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Open Access | Published on December 22, 2020

Transferring the Carbonation of Biomass Bottom Ash from Batch to Continuous Operation

Schnabel Kevin
Brück Felix
Pohl Sven
Weigand Harald
Abstract

Biomass incineration residues may be used for CO2 capture and storage by carbonation of waste-borne metal hydroxides. Moist carbonation of these ashes can be performed under mild conditions (ambient pressure and temperature) and accelerated by using a CO2-rich gas. The process requires the wetting of the typically dry-discharged ashes and highly depends on the moisture content. Handling of the moist ashes in continuously operated reactors is challenging, especially due to build-up of incrustations. In this study, the carbonation of biomass bottom ash was performed in fixed-bed and rotating drum reactors. Wetting was performed either manually prior to fixed-bed carbonation or with spray-nozzles. The moisture dependent CO2 uptake was evaluated by a gas balance. Results show that the CO2 uptake in the fixed-bed and rotating drum was consistently between 20 and 35 g/kg, although the CO2 concentration in the rotating drum was significantly lower (10 vol% vs. 100 vol%). In the fixed bed, the uptake strongly depended on the moisture content, while in the rotating drum the effect was less pronounced. Application of such rotating drums allows for a continuous solids feed while combining wetting and carbonation.

Keywords
mineral carbonation, alkaline waste, carbon capture and storage, rotating drum