Hitachi Zosen's Hitz CO2 capture skid: Modular carbon capture for hard-to-abate industrial plants

Hitachi Zosen has developed a compact, modular CO2 capture skid called Hitz Decarbonization Technology that targets industrial flue-gas exhaust from cement kilns, waste-to-energy plants, steel furnaces, and older gas turbines. The skid packs a full amine-based capture system onto a steel frame that can be craned next to an existing smokestack, reducing the civil work needed compared to building a greenfield capture plant. The skid uses standard post-combustion capture: flue gas enters an absorber where solvent binds CO2, then a regeneration section uses heat to strip out concentrated CO2 for compression or storage. Multiple skids can run in parallel for larger sites, letting operators phase in capacity. However, the energy cost of solvent regeneration and CO2 compression remains a practical constraint, and operators need to balance capture rates against operating expenses. Hitachi Zosen positions this as a pragmatic retrofit option for sites that cannot easily electrify or switch fuels. The main open questions are what happens to the captured CO2 after separation, and whether very large emitters would need too many skids for the modular approach to remain practical.