Scalenohedral calcite crystal growth by carbonation process for CO2 sequestration

Abstract

The objective of the present research work is to intensify the CO2 sequestration process via carbonation process to improve yield and kinetics in the formation of the scalenohedral calcite polymorph of calcium carbonate, which has some valuable applications in paper industry. In the present work, we have synthesized a novel microstructure of scalenohedral calcite by a simple and eco - friendly carbonation process and it has been carried out in liquid-gas system. Various parameters such as temperature,CO2 flow rates and the total volume concentration were investigated to enhance the sensitivity of the process. The highest average length of the scalenohedral calcite was obtained at pH 6.0, temperature 450C, Ca(OH)2concentration 0.2M, CO2 flow rate 80mL/ min and the total volume 1L. The synthesized calcite was characterized by XRD and SEM to identify the phases and surface morphology. The scalenohedral calcite was applied successfully as filler to improve the optical properties of waste paper recycling of the hand sheets (old newspaper, ONP).