Preparation of Quaternized Bamboo Cellulose and Its Implication in Direct Air Capture of CO2

The substantial increase of the atmospheric CO2 concentration over the last few decades has steered toward research on direct air capture (DAC). DAC is one of the mobile-source carbon capture and storage (CCS) processes that is variant from the conventional point-source CCS in terms of easing the CO2 concentration levels and promoting negative carbon emission. We propose here a sustainable material based on the quaternization of bamboo fiber and the implication in DAC. The quaternized bamboo cellulose could adsorb CO2 at a medium relative humidity (RH) of 60–80%, with the efficiency of quaternary ammonium groups over 0.65. The CO2 capacity at higher RH strikingly decreased, which indicates the moisture-swing characteristics, and that was further validated by a desorption ratio of 0.70 under humid gas purge. The unique phenomenon that a dry atmosphere (e.g., RH < 20%) is not favored by adsorption was revealed and could be attributed to the hydrophobic feature of the sorbent inherited from natural lignocellulose. The results suggest that quaternized cellulose with a low cost may open up new possibilities for the utilization of moisture-swing CO2 adsorbents in damp circumstances.