By
51 min ago 2 min read
Japan researchers are claiming a carbon capture breakthrough after showing that adjacent nitrogen configurations can be built deliberately and reproducibly, paving the way for the next generation of capture materials.
A team at Chiba University synthesised three distinct so-called viciazites, each carrying a different type of adjacent nitrogen pairing.
To introduce adjacent primary amine groups (NH2 groups), they carbonised a compound called coronene at high temperature, then treated the material with and finally ammonia gas.
This three-step process produced adjacent NH2 groups with 76% selectivity, meaning that the vast majority of introduced nitrogen ended up in the target configuration. The other two materials were made using different precursors: one carrying adjacent pyrrolic nitrogen was synthesised at 82% selectivity, and the other with adjacent pyridinic nitrogen was synthesised at 60% selectivity.
Associate Professor Yasuhiro Yamada said, “Performance evaluation revealed that in carbon materials where NH2 groups are introduced adjacently, most of the adsorbed CO2 desorbs at temperatures below 60°C. By combining this property with industrial waste heat, it may be possible to achieve efficient CO₂ capture processes with substantially reduced operating costs.
“Additionally, the pyrrolic nitrogen-containing material, though releasing CO₂ at a higher temperature, may prove more durable in the long run owing to the superior chemical stability of that functional group.”
Aqueous amine scrubbing, the most common industrial method, requires heating large volumes of liquid above 100°C to release captured CO₂ and reset the system for reuse.
These energy demands translate directly into operating costs, making large-scale deployment challenging.
Carbon-based solid adsorbents have emerged as a promising alternative. These solid, inexpensive materials with large surface area can bind CO₂ and then release it with less heat under low temperature, especially when featuring nitrogen-containing functional groups.
Unfortunately, while the performance benefits of these functional groups are apparent, standard synthesis methods can only deposit them randomly and in mixed configurations, making it difficult to know which specific arrangement actually drives efficient performance and why.
