Potential application of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents in reduction of industrial CO2 emissions

Abstract

Global warming is attributed to CO2 emissions which are responsible for climate change. Various industries such as cement manufacturing plants, power plants, petrochemical industries, iron, and steel are the major contributors of CO2 emissions. Carbon capture and storage has been considered as an essential technology to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Conventionally, amine-based solvents are used for the CO2 capture in the industry. These conventional processes suffer from numerous problems such as high vapor pressure, corrosion, degradation of the solvents, and requirement of high regeneration energy. Ionic liquids (ILs) are widely accepted as the solvents of next generation having capability to replace the amine solvents for the CO2 absorption. The non-volatility, superior thermal stability, non-corrosiveness, and low regeneration energy make them ideal for future perspective. However, ionic liquids have significantly lower CO2 solubility as compared to conventional solvents and requires complex purification step which adds to its cost. Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are believed to be IL-analogues having similar property and have shown ability for CO2 absorption. The potential application of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents as alternatives to amine solvents has been discussed in this chapter.