As the global green and low-carbon transition enters deep waters, CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage) has emerged as a critical technological pathway for traditional energy and industrial sectors to achieve carbon neutrality goals. Recently, an official announcement regarding a major science and technology award in Qingyang, Gansu, has once again pushed the localization and low-energy evolution of million-ton "post-combustion carbon capture" turnkey technology into the industry spotlight.

Accelerating the Localization of CCUS: Million-Ton Demonstration Project Nominated for Provincial Science & Technology Award

On June 3, 2026, the Science and Technology Bureau of Qingyang City, Gansu Province, released the Publicity of Projects Nominated for the 2026 Gansu Provincial Science and Technology Award. Among a shortlist covering key areas such as shale oil exploration, ecological restoration, and digital governance, the low-carbon breakthrough project "Next-Generation Low-Energy Post-Combustion 1.5 Million Tons/Year Carbon Capture Key Technologies and Engineering Applications" stood out prominently.

Led by Zhengning Power Plant of Huaneng Longdong Energy Co., Ltd., in collaborative alignment with domestic industry leaders and research institutions including the China Huaneng Group Clean Energy Research Institute and Lanzhou Lanshi Heavy Equipment Co., Ltd., the project builds upon the Zhengning Power Plant to construct the world’s largest single-body post-combustion carbon capture industrialization project for coal-fired power.

The project’s core data highlights China’s robust engineering capabilities in carbon capture:

• Scale & Capacity: Built a CCUS industrial demonstration facility with an annual capture capacity of 1.5 million tons of CO₂.
• Capture Benchmarks: Achieved a flue gas CO₂ capture rate exceeding 90% with a product gas purity surpassing 99.5%.
• Autonomous Control: Realized 100% localization of the complete process and core equipment, filling the domestic gap in commercializing million-ton, low-energy carbon capture turnkey technologies for large-scale coal-fired units.

The Ultimate Pain Point of Post-Combustion Carbon Capture: Breaking the High Energy and High Corrosion Deadlock

Among traditional carbon capture pathways, chemical absorption (specifically utilizing organic amine solvents to scrub CO₂ from flue gas) is currently the most technologically mature and widely adopted industrial route. However, first-generation amine absorbents such as Monoethanolamine (MEA) face three severe "high energy" and "high maintenance" bottlenecks during commercial operations:

• Excessive Regeneration Energy Consumption: The carbamate formed by the reaction of traditional MEA with CO₂ is exceptionally stable. Releasing the CO₂ requires a massive amount of low-pressure steam to heat the stripping column (typically between 110℃ and 120℃). This regeneration energy often accounts for over 70% of the total energy loss of the entire carbon capture plant.
• Solvent Degradation and Equipment Corrosion: Under prolonged high temperatures and exposure to residual oxygen in flue gas, traditional alkyl alkanolamines are highly prone to oxidative and thermal degradation. This produces acidic byproducts that cause severe chemical corrosion to ultra-large absorber and stripper columns.
• Massive Volatilization Loss: Traditional amine solvents possess high vapor pressure, making them highly susceptible to volatilization and carryover with the treated clean flue gas at the top of the absorption tower, incurring steep chemical replenishment costs.

Consequently, identifying a next-generation chemical absorption solvent featuring a low heat of reaction, low volatility, and high degradation resistance has become the defining technical requirement for million-ton breakthroughs like Huaneng's Zhengning project.

Frontier Chemistry: The Core Value of 2-Amino-2-methyl-1-propanol in Low-Energy Carbon Capture

As the global industry shifts toward energy-efficient CCUS technologies, 2-Amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, a core component of novel blended amine solutions classified as Sterically Hindered Amines, is demonstrating game-changing performance advantages:

1. Unique "Sterically Hindered" Structure Drastically Lowers Regeneration Energy

Unlike the straight-chain molecular structure of traditional MEA, 2-Amino-2-methyl-1-propanol features two bulky methyl groups attached to the carbon atom adjacent to the amino group. This sterically hindered spatial configuration alters the reaction pathway with CO₂. Instead of forming a highly stable carbamate, the reaction predominantly yields bicarbonates, which possess much lower thermal stability.

Consequently, complete desorption can be achieved at significantly lower temperatures (80℃~90℃), reducing stripping column steam energy consumption by 25% to 35%. This molecular shift represents the foundational secret behind the project's "low-energy" designation.

2. High CO₂ Loading (Superior Absorption Capacity)

The theoretical reaction molar ratio of traditional MEA is 2:1 (meaning 2 moles of amine are required to capture just 1 mole of CO₂). In contrast, due to the unique reaction mechanism of 2-Amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, the theoretical molar ratio of its aqueous solution for CO₂ capture can approach nearly 1:1. Lower amine consumption translates directly to a reduced solvent circulation rate, optimizing the operational load on pumping and heat exchange systems throughout the facility.

3. Exceptional Chemical Stability and Corrosion Resistance

Thanks to its heavily hindered molecular architecture, this amino alcohol exhibits degradation resistance vastly superior to traditional MEA against oxidative degradation triggered by oxygen (O₂), sulfur oxides (SO₂), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) present in flue gas. Within the long-term fluid circulation of million-ton ultra-large columns, its degradation rate remains far below that of first-generation alkyl alkanolamines. This suppresses electrochemical corrosion at its chemical source and significantly extends the service life of high-value capital equipment.

From Capture to Utilization: The CCUS Closed-Loop Fosters Diverse Industrial Synergy

Carbon capture is merely the first phase of the green ecological loop. Effectively monetizing high-purity captured CO₂ is what dictates whether a CCUS project can achieve a sustainable, positive commercial cycle.

Taking the nominated million-ton demonstration project as an example, its output of commercial-grade CO₂ (purity >99.5%) seamlessly links to three high-value downstream utilization avenues:

• Geo-sequestration in Deep Saline Aquifers: Utilizing energy-efficient supercritical compression technology, CO₂ is transformed into a supercritical state and injected deep into underground saline aquifers, achieving permanent physical isolation and storage for centuries.
• Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR): Injecting high-pressure CO₂ into adjacent oil fields not only drives out residual crude to drastically enhance shale oil recovery rates, but simultaneously achieves reliable geological storage.
• Advanced Building Materials (Carbon-Cured Concrete): Channelling carbon dioxide into construction waste or concrete curing kilns induces mineral carbonation, permanently locking the carbon inside the building matrices and turning waste into valuable assets.

Conclusion and Industry Outlook

The nomination of the million-ton low-energy carbon capture project in Qingyang, Gansu, represents more than a victory for localized industrial equipment manufacturing; it serves as a definitive case study on the deep convergence of advanced chemical engineering and modern energy industries. From the microscopic tuning of solvent molecular bonds using sterically hindered amino alcohols to the macroscopic 100% autonomous engineering of ultra-large columns and diversified resource utilization, China's CCUS industry is officially leaving behind the "high-energy, high-cost" experimental phase, charting a bold path into a new era of large-scale, value-driven industrialization.