Lizardite’s capacity for carbon dioxide sequestration through a mineral process

This study explores the potential use of magnesium clay from the structural domain of the Rif, near the Tetouan city in Morocco, as a means of mineral sequestration of carbon dioxide, thus providing a solution to the rising levels of carbon dioxide emissions resulting from human activities. Although lizardite are abundant in the northern regions of the Rif in Morocco, their utilization has primarily been focused on ceramic production, thereby limiting their exploration to the realm of research. Investigating their potential in the innovative process of mineral carbonation of carbon dioxide could pave the way for various studies on gas capture by this material. The selected clay material was comprehensively characterized before and after the mineral carbonation process to verify the formation of stable carbonate compounds. When exposed to a 15-min pure CO 2 flow at a temperature of 80 °C, magnesium carbonates (MgCO 3 ) were formed, with a sequestration rate of approximately 84.6%. Advanced physicochemical analysis techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed to validate these results. The findings confirm the effectiveness of the chosen magnesian clay in capturing CO 2 and transforming it into a stable compound. This research suggests a promising avenue for valorizing natural resources to address urgent environmental concerns such as greenhouse gas emissions.