Designing and demonstrating a master student project to explore carbon dioxide capture technology

The rise in carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in the Earth's atmosphere, and the associated strengthening of the greenhouse effect, requires the development of low carbon technologies. New carbon capture processes are being developed to remove CO2 that would otherwise. be emitted from industrial processes and fossil fuel power stations. Given the increasing importance of this technology, we report on a new educational project, which is aimed to instill greater awareness of the role of CO2 in climate change while stimulating student interest in science, technology, engineering, and the environment. The project was carried out by master students, that is, Cool(L)Cap team, who contributed to the design and manufacture of a pilot plant that demonstrates the basic operation of an amine scrubbing plant. The main goal of. the project was to develop educational material and presentations for a range of audiences, from primary school to university students and academics. In this article, we present the project team's approach to design, commission, and deliver the pilot plant and educational material as well as the feedback received from 267 students from a primary school and a university. We provide additional information to enable other educators to recreate our pilot plant design.