Mitico Declares Success at Thai Refinery Carbon Capture Demo

The California-based startup said it had successfully completed a demonstration project at a refinery in Thailand for its carbon capture system, which deploys a proprietary potassium-based chemical sorbent through custom designs.

Mitico Inc said it had successfully completed a demonstration project at a refinery in Thailand for its carbon capture system, which deploys a proprietary potassium-based chemical sorbent through custom designs.

The test, in partnership with Thai energy company Bangchak Corp PCL, "successfully captured 99 percent of the CO2 from varying flue gas composition for 400h", the Pasadena, California-based startup said in an online statement.

>> In Other News: IRS Expands 45Q Safe Harbor, But EPA Gap Remains

Mitico's system "is adaptable to three to 18 percent CO2 in flue gas, supporting small and large industrial emitters", it says on its website. "Mitico uses conventional Temperature Swing Absorption tower reactors, already available at scale with simple operation and automation. No stream process modification or interruptions, acting as a simple 'plug-and-play' system".

According to the company, its platform is based on a technology already "validated" at the California Institute of Technology, with potential to capture over 95 percent of carbon dioxide emissions from post-combustion sources including gas-run power plants, boilers and waste-to-energy and biomass-to-energy facilities.

"As industries across Southeast Asia seek pathways to reduce emissions while remaining competitive, practical carbon capture solutions are becoming increasingly important", chief executive Clement Cid said in the statement. "The Mitico-Bangchak collaboration reflects a shared commitment to exploring technologies that can help address climate challenges while supporting continued economic development".

Bundit Hansapaiboon, president of Bangchak's Refinery and Marketing Business Group, said, "This demonstration with Mitico has enabled us to evaluate the technology under actual refinery operating conditions and gain valuable insights into its potential application. The project reflects our shared commitment to exploring practical and scalable solutions that can contribute to industrial decarbonization while supporting Bangchak Group's commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050".

"Both organizations continue to explore ways to build on the knowledge gained during the demonstration and expand the collaboration in other areas of Bangchak Group's operations", Mitico added.

"Lessons learned from the project will support ongoing development efforts and inform future deployments in Thailand, Canada and other international markets", Mitico said. "Further updates on technical findings and future collaboration opportunities will be shared as development progresses".

Cid said July 13 in an update for the second quarter that another test project in Ottawa under the Canadian government's CanmetENERGY program "progressed through installation and is getting ready for commissioning".

"Our R&D team continued advancing Carbionik™ sorbent development, including additives optimization, durability testing and scale-up planning", Cid said. "Current breakthroughs have demonstrated a long cyclability and operational efficiency of Carbionik™, leading to a drastic reduction in the capture cost.

"Our engineering team continues development across fixed-bed systems and modeled, with the support of Johnston Engineering, the reactor beds of Denali, our commercial-scale system. This modeling work validated our scalability assumptions and cost basis, bringing us closer to the first-of-a-kind commercial-size Denali with the goal to capture between 10,000 and 50,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

"This quarter, Mitico continued strengthening relationships with industrial partners, research organizations, investors and technical collaborators. Engagements across North America, Europe and Asia are helping support technology validation, pilot planning and future commercial opportunities.

"Mitico's participation in programs such as the SNAM HyAccelerator also reflects growing recognition of our technology and its potential role in industrial decarbonization".