Energy Department: More funds for CO2

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WASHINGTON, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. Energy Department announced it will give $36 million to carbon-capture projects.

Fifteen projects aimed at developing cost-effective carbon-capture technologies for coal-fired power plants will receive funds.

The selected projects focus on five areas: membranes, solvents, sorbents, flue gas purification and boiler development, and chemical looping.

The Membrane Technology and Research Inc. in California will get $3.4 million for its commercial-scale membrane modules. Membrane-based carbon dioxide capture uses permeable materials to selectively separate carbon from flue gas.

The Research Triangle Institute in North Carolina will get $1.9 million for its membrane research project.

Atlanta-based Georgia Tech Research Corp. will get $1.6 million for its solvent-based carbon-capture technique in which chemicals are used to absorb the carbon from flue gas. GE Global Research, the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois and the Illinois State Geological Survey will get funding for similar projects.

Three projects focusing on solid particle absorption of carbon in flue gas will get a total of nearly $5 million for their research, and seven combustion projects will get $21 million.