International Test Centre for CO2 Capture

According to International Energy Agency (IEA) Coal Research and CANMET Western Research Center, mind as well as Fluor Corporation of USA, our research group at the University of Regina is considered to be world-class and one of the most active research groups on CO2 capture and separation technologies. Over the past 10 years, our research group has been working on advanced CO2 separation capture technologies. The main target application areas are industrial gas processing and CO2 removal from flue gases and other industrial gas streams. The ultimate goal of the research program is to develop more effective CO2 separation processes to remove CO2 from the above-mentioned applications. We are working on a number of fundamental and industry research projects that deal with or are related to high efficiency CO2 separation processes.

Our world-class laboratory facilities contain a field demonstration plant, a multi-purpose technology development plant, and various other pilot plant units for testing high efficiency gas treating systems. We have different sizes of absorption and regeneration towers packed with a variety of high performance packings as well as membrane absorption units.

Our laboratories also offer researchers and industry access to a wide range of state-of-the-art equipment, and our facility is considered to have one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date equipment arrays in the world. Highlights of our equipment include:

  • Microprocessor-based Infrared Gas Analyzers
  • GCs and GC with Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS)
  • Capillary Electrophoresis (CE with LC-MSD)
  • High Performance Liquid Chromatograph (HPLC-MSD)
  • Inductively Coupled Plasma with Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS)
  • Scanning Electron Microscope with Energy Dispersive Spectrometer (SEM-EDS)
  • X-Ray Diffractometer (XRD)
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance coupled with HPLC (LC-NMR)
  • Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (FTIR)
  • Surface Area, Porosity, and Chemisorption analyzer
  • Thermogravimateric Analyzer with Differential Scanning Calorimeter (TGA-DSC)
  • Heat of Reactions Calorimeter
  • High-speed Digital Data Logging Systems

The ultimate goal of the research program is to develop more effective CO2 separation processes to remove CO2 from flue gases, industrial gas processing plants, and other industrial gas streams.

Numerous human activities, and particularly our reliance on energy derived from the combustion of fossil fuel, have become significant contributors of greenhouse gases (GHGs) to the atmosphere. These gases, which include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, and oxides of nitrogen, trap heat and warm the air. There is a risk that increasing emissions of GHGs will change our planet’s climate.

Due to the energy intensive nature of Saskatchewan’s economy, and indeed many emerging economies around the world, it is crucial that we seek economic ways of reducing the emissions caused by many commonly used forms of energy production, such as coal-fired power stations. Many other industries also rely on the combustion of fossil fuels and many other industries are also major emitters of greenhouse gases. Such facilities, including oil refineries and fertilizer plants, produce significant volumes of CO2, the leading greenhouse gas released by human activity.

This situation presents Canada with the opportunity to take a leadership role in reducing emissions by the development of technologies both to capture CO2 and subsequently use and store it instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. At the same time, this action will enable industry to continue to use economical and reliable fossil fuel resources for power generation and to sustain its competitive position.

Support provided by:

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Western Economic Diversification Canada, Government of Saskatchewan, Alberta Research Council, Natural Resources Canada, University of Waterloo, and University of Regina.