A Chinese company is turning the emissions from a coal-fired power plant into fertiliser, expanding the application of a technology that could make both carbon capture and food cheaper.
A report published on Monday by China Electric Power News cited a person involved in the project as saying that “flue gas enters from one end of the pipe, and fertiliser comes out from the other end”.
China Electric Power News is a newspaper under the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top economic planner.
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Carbon capture is the process of extracting carbon dioxide (CO2) from emissions, thereby preventing it from entering the atmosphere and causing climate change.
The captured carbon is liquefied and finally buried underground. However, this requires specific geological conditions and the whole process has high start-up and operating costs.
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Jiangnan Environmental Technology (JNG) has taken a different route by using ammonia to capture the sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide produced by burning coal, then transforming the chemicals into fertiliser. This fertiliser can then be sold, offsetting the cost of capturing the carbon.