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Rethinking solvent regeneration pathways for maritime carbon capture
Zhenrong Shi1, Xiang Cao1, Yongxin Hu1
1Sustainable Energy and Environment Thrust, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), Nansha, Guangzhou, China.
Nature Communications
|June 30, 2026
Summary
Shifting carbon capture regeneration from ships to shore improves maritime decarbonization practicality and cost-effectiveness. Onshore regeneration is more economical by 2030 and widely applicable by 2050.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Marine Engineering
Background:
- Maritime transport faces significant decarbonization challenges.
- Onboard carbon capture is a potential solution, but faces space, energy, and weight constraints.
- Adapting land-based systems directly to ships is often impractical.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of shifting solvent regeneration from onboard ships to onshore facilities for maritime carbon capture.
- To compare onboard versus onshore regeneration strategies across various shipping routes and capture solvents.
- To determine optimal system design parameters based on practical load limits.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of onboard and onshore regeneration strategies.
- Modeling across 16 shipping routes with four different capture solvents.
- Evaluation under varying onboard load limits, focusing on practical ~20% limits.
- Economic assessment including carbon tax implications for 2030 and 2050.
Main Results:
- Practical load limits are more suitable for system design than fixed capture rates.
- Solvent selection depends on regeneration location: low regeneration energy for onboard, high CO2 capacity for onshore.
- Onshore regeneration is generally more cost-effective by 2030 and 2050 when carbon taxes are considered.
Conclusions:
- Shifting solvent regeneration to shore enhances the practicality and economic viability of maritime carbon capture.
- Onshore regeneration becomes economically viable by 2040 and broadly applicable by 2050.
- This approach offers a scalable solution for decarbonizing the shipping industry.
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