Using a scalable, environmentally-safe carbon-mineralization process to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from flue gas stacks, the demonstration facility will act as a pilot to support the build out of a commercial SkyMine plant at the site.
The byproducts produced by the mineralization process will be analyzed under site-specific conditions to qualify mineral products that will be sold by the Capitol-SkyMine plant.
Skyonic said that SkyMine technology is an alternative to current carbon capture and storage methods, offering the first for-profit system that can be retrofitted to existing plant infrastructures.
The technology is designed to support scalable CO2 removal configurations that offer power-generators, refineries, distilleries and other industrial manufacturers the possibility to become carbon negative. SkyMine also removes heavy metals and ‘acid rain’ gases from flue gas streams.
Joe Jones, founder and CEO of Skyonic, said: “Skyonic has deployed various stages of demonstration plants in field tests since 2005, but we are especially pleased to be fully operational at the site of our future commercial-scale plant. Development funding from the Department of Energy is being used to dramatically advance our approach.”
The Department of Energy awarded Skyonic $3m to support planning for the Capitol-SkyMine plant. Skyonic expects to begin construction in the third quarter of 2010, and to be in full production by 2012. The plant will also provide real-world data on the cost and operation of additional SkyMine facilities around the world, the company said.
