Ecospray are a company who specialise in integrated solutions for the sustainable conversion of maritime and land-based industries. The company recently announced during a conference in Athens, that after extensive testing they have had a breakthrough and have been able to complete the development of their first 2 Carbon Capture Technologies for the Maritime sector.
These technologies are able to capture up to 80% of CO2 emitted during ship operations whilst in certain conditions. These technologies were tested extensively in the laboratory at the University of Turin. After testing the carbon technologies were installed on a commercial ship for further testing, where they were tested under real conditions over a period of two months. Results were received and improvements were made to the technologies immediately, with the outcome being the technologies being able to capture 2,000 tons of CO2 in a single trip.
Ecospray have now developed a pilot plant with the 2 CO2 capturing technologies that operate through chemical absorption. There are two versions of this process, one works with Amines and the other works with Calcium Hydroxide.
The process involving Amines works through the chemical absorption of CO2 using an amine solution. The feasibility of this process, which is significantly different from the regular process used for land applications, was confirmed by the pilot plant. The innovative system is easily appliable to the marine sector and also guarantees a 10-15% energy savings rate. This is a considerable improvement compared to the usual high-temperature regeneration process.
On the other hand, the process involving Calcium Hydroxide involves the CO2 reacting with lime milk. This leads to the CO2 being converted into solid calcium carbonate. High levels of reagent conversion were met, reaching 90-95%. This confirms that the process has an advanced optimisation rate.
The next steps for this project are already underway as Ecospray are already developing further CO2 capturing process, with the next one involving molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs). Industrilisation of MCFCs is expected in 2025.
Filippo Lossani, Director B.U. Marine, Ecospray said, “Carbon Capture technologies can contribute significantly to achieving the ‘zero emissions of CO2’ goal by 2050 in the shipping sector,” said. “It is necessary to adopt an analytical approach that starts from a full awareness of the state of the art and the needs of the sector. In order to implement a transition that is truly sustainable, it is essential to implement technologies that allow us to decarbonize the plants, facilities and vehicles we already have. This is what Carbon Capture is all about. Our systems will enable current ships to significantly reduce emissions and fall well within the current IMO CO2 reduction parameters. We have decided to develop different solutions to be able to adapt them to different contexts.” Mr. Lossani added, “This is because factors such as, for example, the size of a ship, its type, route and the space available on board greatly influence the choice of a solution. Our commitment, as a company, is to be commercially available on the market from next year. We hope that by that date the relevant legislation will also have been approved so that we can start a new, remarkablepath for the shipping industry”.
Ecospray plan to have the completed carbon technologies available on the market in 2024.