Combined Cold Carbon Capture and Thermal Energy Storage
1 October 2026
Affiliation
NTU
Focus topic
CO2 Capture
Carbon capture medium doubles as thermal battery
Summary
The electricity needed to run capture equipment is the main reason carbon capture is expensive, and this design tackles that while solving a second problem at the same time.
The invention uses a phase change slurry, for example, an aqueous monoethanolamine solution, absorbs CO₂ exothermically at low temperature (roughly -10oC to 20oC) and is regenerated using ambient or low-grade heat below 70oC instead of high-temperature steam. The heat that conventional capture wastes is instead stored and recovered, so the same medium acts as both a carbon sink and a thermal battery.
Achievements: a lab-scale sub-zero calorimeter was built and calibrated against deionised water phase change to within 1.5% error; tests with 500 ppm CO₂ in nitrogen confirmed higher CO₂ loading and heat release at lower temperatures than a nitrogen blank. Simulations indicate up to 90% reduction in energy penalty where waste cold and waste heat are available, cost below USD 160/tCO₂, and thermal storage density about twice current cold-storage materials.
Carbon abatement potential is twofold: less energy consumed per tonne of CO₂ captured means lower indirect emissions and lower operating cost, while the higher effective energy density of the heat store improves the economics of storing energy.
What makes this novel compared to best-in-class technology?
Existing systems treat carbon capture and heat storage as two separate assets. Here the liquid that captures the CO₂ is also the heat store, so a single tank performs both duties. That lowers the energy cost of capture and makes heat storage far more compact.
TRL Level
1-3
Relevant for
Power plants and industrial sites with capture plus thermal storage needs, LNG and hydrogen terminals, data centres and industrial cold chains
About
Inventors: Yang Lizhong, Alessandro Romagnoli
Affiliation: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU), School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE); Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N)
Contact NTU for licensing opportunities and more information.
Please quote ID ref [2023-216] in your email.