Layered Double Hydroxide for Carbon dioxide mitigation from Bitumen and formation of Carbonic acid: A Step toward Achieving Greener Pavements

ABSTRACT

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission in light of global climate change has become a burgeoning issue across several disciplines. In the transportation sector, which is a leading cause of global emissions, greenhouse gases emitted from bitumen are a significant issue. This paper aims to add to the existing literature on the use of nanoparticles in reducing CO₂ emissions from bitumen. The use of layered double hydroxides (LDHs) has been investigated in this paper to evaluate the degree of their impact in reducing carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from bitumen. To reduce the emission of CO₂ from bitumen (VG 20), Calcium Aluminum Nitrate layered double hydroxide (Ca−Al−NO₃ LDH) nanocomposite was synthesized, and characterized by powder XRD, FTIR, SEM, and TEM. The synthesized LDH was then checked for its efficiency for the reduction of CO₂ emission in the laboratory by a simple experiment. To minimize the CO₂ emission from bitumen, the LDH was applied to VG 20 grade of bitumen. Remarkably, the synthesized LDH derivatives due to their lamellar structure showed high potential for CO₂ reduction at 120–160°C from bitumen at the hour of adaptable asphalt development. This was accomplished by converting the emitted carbon dioxide (CO₂) into carbonic acid (H₂CO₃) due to the proton transfer from hydroxyl (-OH) group of the LDH. From this study, it was observed that the best reduction of CO₂ without altering the fundamental properties of the bitumen was achieved at a 6% dosage of the additive (LDH) in bitumen. This alluring property of Ca−Al−NO₃ layered double hydroxide (LDH) for CO₂ removal from bitumen (VG 20) at high temperatures (up to 160°C) during the manufacture of flexible pavement has been reported in this study. This article, therefore, presents a novel approach of utilizing the CO₂ adsorption capacity of LDHs to reduce the CO₂ emissions from bitumen and addresses the worldwide challenge, to decrease the emission of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels or their derivatives.

KEYWORDS:

• LDH
• co₂ reduction
• bitumen
• greener pavements
• nano-composite

Abbreviations

LDH= Layered double hydroxides

VG 20= Viscosity Grade 20

Ca-Al-NO₃ LDH= Calcium aluminum nitrate layered double hydroxide

GHG= Greenhouse gas emissions

MWNTs= Multiwalled carbon nanotubes

Mg-Al LDH= Magnesium aluminum layered double hydroxide

SEM= Scanning electron microscope

TEM= Transmission electron microscope

FTIR= Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

XRD= X-ray diffraction

Acknowledgments

The author acknowledges the MHRD Govt. of India for financial support, Professor T.K. Paine (IACS Kolkata) for providing the laboratory facility for conducting the work. IACS Kolkata, India for the spectroscopic analysis of the material.

Availability of data and materials

The data analyzed (gas quantification) with the help of orsat gas analyzer (the working procedure) during this study are included in the supplementary information files copy of the published article “Iron-polyphenol complex nanoparticles for removal of greenhouse gas emission from bitumen and formation of paraffins” (10.1007/s11356-019-05867-8).

Author’s contributions

All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation, characterization studies, and analysis were performed by Priyam Nath Bhowmik, the chemistry part was looked after by Dr. Pranjit Barman and Anmol Singh. The material properties and the engineering test results were analyzed by Dr. M. Ali Ahmed. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Priyam Nath Bhowmik and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Declaration of competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the MHRD Govt. of India;Ministry of Human Resource Development, India.

Notes on contributors

Priyam Nath Bhowmik

Priyam Nath Bhowmik is working as a Research Scholar, in the is working as a Research Scholar, in the Department of Civil Engineering, NIT Silchar, Assam, India. His research fields are-  Reduction of carbon dioxide from pavements, Design of pavements by adopting green methodology, Synthesis and Application of nanoparticles.

Anmol Singh

Anmol Singh is working as a Research Scholar,  in the Department of Chemistry, NIT Silchar, Assam, India. Her research field includes- Synthesis of Schiff bases, Green Chemistry.

Pranjit Barman

Dr. Pranjit Barman is working as an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry, NIT Silchar, Assam, India. His research field includes- Green Chemistry, Synthesis of organic and inorganic compounds.

Mokaddes Ali Ahmed

Dr. Mokaddes Ali Ahmed is working as a Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, NIT Silchar, Assam, India. His research field includes- Town planning, Traffic design, Design of pavements.