The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced that a DOE-funded project on second-generation carbon dioxide (CO2) solvent technology will begin testing at the Technology Centre Mongstad (TCM) in western Norway.  The DOE and the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy have a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) covering fossil energy-related research to leverage each countries’ investments in carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).

“This project represents a significant step toward commercially deploying carbon capture technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Doug Hollett, DOE’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy. “It also embodies the importance of the ongoing collaboration between the U.S. and Norway on clean energy technology development.”

ION Engineering, with funding from the DOE, is the first project from DOE’s Carbon Capture program to be located at an international host site. TCM, part of Statoil’s Mongstad refinery, is the world’s largest and most advanced carbon capture test facility.  Worked conducted at TCM will be funded through a $7.6 million award from the DOE with a $6.7 million cost share provided by TCM.

Compared to conventional liquid CO2 absorption technologies, ION’s novel system provides a more energy-efficient process with high CO2 capture capacity and reduced water usage. Commercial deployment of this capture technology will improve the efficiency and economics of CO2 capture and advance the commercialization of CCUS, making it a viable option for greenhouse gas mitigation.

ION Engineering’s solvent system was first successfully tested at small pilot scale (1 MWe) at the DOE-funded National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC) in Alabama.  The project at TCM continues this effort at larger scale (12 MWe) and will focus on refinement and validation of ION’s CO2 absorption system using industrial flue gas to simulate coal-fired power generation conditions.