The goal of this collaboration is to evaluate and demonstrate the performance of Asahi Kasei’s CO2 separation/recovery technology with zeolites.
The system separates CO2 and methane from biogas using the optimum combination of a special zeolite as adsorbent that selectively adsorbs CO2 and a special pressure vacuum swing adsorption (PVSA) process technology. The zeolite is a crystalline aluminosilicate having regular channels (pores) controlled on the order of angstroms (ten-millionths of a millimeter) and cavities (voids) with a specific surface area exceeding several hundred square meters per gram.
Asahi Kasei’s PVSA process technology, which separates specific gases by changes in pressure, enables the removal of CO2 from biogas to refine high-purity methane gas (biomethane) at a high recovery rate. Biogas from sewage sludge, garbage, etc, consists of approximately 60% methane and 40% CO2. While the use of biogas as a carbon-neutral fuel is rapidly expanding, it is also a source of biomethane as a substitute for natural gas in Europe, the US, and other regions.
In Kurashiki City, electricity is generated using biogas derived from sewage sludge at the Kojima sewage treatment plant. The system will use a portion of this biogas for the demonstration trial. If the CO2 separated by this system is utilized and/or stored, it would achieve carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), which is carbon negative. In the demonstration trial, the separated methane is returned and used as fuel to generate electricity for effective utilization of the biogas.
Commercialization of the system is expected around 2027 following additional trials in countries or regions where biogas purification is performed.
“We are excited to start the on-site demonstration trial of a biogas purification system using Asahi Kasei's zeolite and PVSA process technology,” said Osamu Matsuzaki, Senior Executive Officer of Asahi Kasei and Senior General Manager of Corporate Research & Development. “As the next step, by expanding co-creation partnerships globally, we will accelerate the advancement and practical implementation of this outstanding technology that can reduce environmental impacts, contributing to sustainability for the world.”
