Activated hydrochar from areca sheath biomass for CO2 capture: adsorption performance and life cycle challenges
- 1Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education Manipal India
- 2Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, VŠB – Technical University of Ostrava 70800 Czech Republic
- 3Department of Mechanical Engineering, St. Vincent Pallotti College of Engineering & Technology Nagpur Maharashtra India
Abstract
The development of sustainable CO2 capture technologies is critical in the present global drive to combat climate change. Hydrochar, obtained from hydrothermal carbonization (HTC), has demonstrated capabilities to adsorb CO2. This study evaluates activated hydrochar derived from areca sheath biomass for CO2 capture, associated with a life cycle assessment (LCA) study. Hydrochars were produced at 180 °C (AS-180), 200 °C (AS-200), and 220 °C (AS-220), followed by chemical activation using KOH at a KOH : hydrochar mass ratio of 3 : 1 and carbonization at 700 °C for 2 h to enhance microporosity. AS-200 achieved the highest surface area (144 m2 g−1), outperforming AS-180 and AS-220. Life cycle assessment of sorbent production reveals pronounced differences in climate change impacts, with AS-200 exhibiting the lowest carbon footprint (235 kg CO2-eq. per kg), followed by AS-220 (611 kg CO2-eq. per kg) and AS-180 (941 kg CO2-eq. per kg). Across all cases, chemical activation using KOH dominates emissions (about 67%), while fossil-derived thermal energy contributes about 16%, identifying upstream chemical manufacture and energy supply as primary hotspots. AS-200 achieves the highest measured CO2 adsorption capacity (2.5 mmol g−1). Under the baseline inventory with an assumed 1% sorbent makeup, its adsorption–regeneration LCA gives 2.55 kg CO2-eq. per kg CO2 processed, with fresh-sorbent production contributing substantially. This modelled climate burden is conditional on the replacement assumption; cyclic stability and the actual replacement requirement were not established. The baseline assessment identifies upstream sorbent manufacture as a priority for reducing emissions. Wastewater-treatment burdens are excluded from these baseline totals.
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BibTeX
@article{mohan2026activated,
title = {{Activated hydrochar from areca sheath biomass for CO2 capture: adsorption performance and life cycle challenges}},
author = {Sooraj Mohan and Ranjan Kumar Ghadai and Jana Petrů and Sushant S. Satputaley and P. Dinesha},
journal = {RSC Advances},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1039/d6ra08488e},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1039/d6ra08488e},
note = {CC BY 3.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Activated hydrochar from areca sheath biomass for CO2 capture: adsorption performance and life cycle challenges
AU - Sooraj Mohan
AU - Ranjan Kumar Ghadai
AU - Jana Petrů
AU - Sushant S. Satputaley
AU - P. Dinesha
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/05
JO - RSC Advances
DO - 10.1039/d6ra08488e
UR - https://doi.org/10.1039/d6ra08488e
AB - The development of sustainable CO2 capture technologies is critical in the present global drive to combat climate change. Hydrochar, obtained from hydrothermal carbonization (HTC), has demonstrated capabilities to adsorb CO2. This study evaluates activated hydrochar derived from areca sheath biomass for CO2 capture, associated with a life cycle assessment (LCA) study. Hydrochars were produced at 180 °C (AS-180), 200 °C (AS-200), and 220 °C (AS-220), followed by chemical activation using KOH at a KOH : hydrochar mass ratio of 3 : 1 and carbonization at 700 °C for 2 h to enhance microporosity. AS-200 achieved the highest surface area (144 m2 g−1), outperforming AS-180 and AS-220. Life cycle assessment of sorbent production reveals pronounced differences in climate change impacts, with AS-200 exhibiting the lowest carbon footprint (235 kg CO2-eq. per kg), followed by AS-220 (611 kg CO2-eq. per kg) and AS-180 (941 kg CO2-eq. per kg). Across all cases, chemical activation using KOH dominates emissions (about 67%), while fossil-derived thermal energy contributes about 16%, identifying upstream chemical manufacture and energy supply as primary hotspots. AS-200 achieves the highest measured CO2 adsorption capacity (2.5 mmol g−1). Under the baseline inventory with an assumed 1% sorbent makeup, its adsorption–regeneration LCA gives 2.55 kg CO2-eq. per kg CO2 processed, with fresh-sorbent production contributing substantially. This modelled climate burden is conditional on the replacement assumption; cyclic stability and the actual replacement requirement were not established. The baseline assessment identifies upstream sorbent manufacture as a priority for reducing emissions. Wastewater-treatment burdens are excluded from these baseline totals.
SN - 2046-2069
ER -