Calcium looping is a high-temperature solid-looping process for CO2 capture, exploiting cyclical carbonation of CaO. Previous work investigating the effects of steam on the carbonation reaction has produced conflicting results, with the majority of work conducted using thermogravimetric analyzers (TGA). Here, pressurized carbonation kinetics in the presence of steam in a 3 kWe pressurized spout-fluidized bed reactor, gives a rigorous insight into the effects of steam. Pseudo-intrinsic kinetics were determined using an effectiveness factor model along with activation energies and kinetic expressions. The mechanism in which steam promotes CO2 adsorption on the surface of CaO was investigated using density functional theory (DFT). The molecular-scale changes on the CaO surface owing to the presence of steam compared to the base case of CO2 adsorption on a ‘clean’ (without steam) surface were simulated with the Cambridge Serial Total Energy Package (CASTEP) software. The results suggest that steam promotes CO2 adsorption via the formation of surface OH groups on the CaO surface.