Daraboina’s quest for clean, sustainable energy production

Exponential population growth and rapid industrialization are exerting immense stress on the planet’s environment. Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering Nagu Daraboina is a major figure in the global effort to develop methods for generating energy while avoiding air and water contamination. “Sustainable development is the key to environmental protection and economic growth,” said Daraboina. “My investigations pivot on a holistic approach to dealing with carbon, water, and power. Through this work, I aspire to advance technologies that help to achieve the climate goals set by the United Nations.”

One of the Daraboina Research Group’s major investigations entails carbon dioxide capture using an environmentally benign clathrate hydrate process. The main focus here is capturing CO2 produced by power plants by deploying ice-like crystals called gas hydrates. At present, Daraboina, with the help of a chemical engineering doctoral student Raghav Dadhich and undergraduate Tristan Parrington, is striving to identify a suitable hydrate former, improve the efficiency of the carbon capture processes, and minimize the energy they require. In 2023, Daraboina was honored for his groundbreaking research in the field of gas hydrates with the Donald W. Davidson Award at the 10th International Conference on Gas Hydrates.

Another of Daraboina’s energy-sustainability projects examines the desalination of produced water. This naturally occurring water is a byproduct of oil and gas extraction and is one of the petrochemical industry’s major waste products. “Developing low-cost desalination technology for recycling and reusing produced water is an absolutely essential element of the sustainable-energy future,” remarked Daraboina. On this project, he is being assisted by chemical engineering doctoral student Dakkumalla Manas Rehan.

The two streams of inquiry – hydrate technology to capture CO2 from power plants and the desalination of produced water – actually come together in Daraboina’s research program. “We’re still at the concept stage,” he noted, “but my postdoctoral student, Ponnivalavan Babu, and I believe it’s possible to someday use hydrate technology to simultaneously capture CO2 and desalinate produced water. From an environmental perspective, combining two energy-intensive processes into one would be highly attractive and beneficial.”

Adding propulsive energy to Daraboina’s research is a recently signed five-year Pacific Rim International Co-operation framework letter of intent with colleagues at the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, National University of Singapore, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and Chinese Academy of Sciences. Focused on practical research on gas hydrates and their many potential applications, members of the consortium plan to share technical information and specialists, including graduate student exchanges, as well as collaborate in seminars and symposia.