Characterization of porous alkali-activated fly ash composite as a solid absorbent

This research proposed the synthesis of porous alkali-activated fly ash (AA-fly ash) composites with a simple method for CO2 capture application. Two types of foaming agents, viz., zinc stearate/H2O2 and Al powder, were used to produce pores in the materials. Results revealed that porous AA-fly ash composite with a density of 1 g/cm(3) could be fabricated. Using Al powder, the method obtained a porous AA-fly ash paste with surface area of 36 m(2)/g, values which were higher than those of zinc stearate/H2O2. The AA-fly ash composite was crushed and applied as the CO2 gas absorbent. The absorption rate was 0.12 g CO2 per gram of porous AA-fly ash composite, suggesting that the porous AA-fly ash composite can be used as a solid absorbent. In addition, the production process is simple and cost effective.