■ Chapter 4: Energy & sustainable industry

4.

Energy & sustainable industry

3ME

Direct Air Capture

prof. dr. ir. Earl Goetheer

prof. dr. ir. Wiebren de Jong

TRL

Summary

Society needs to recarbonize. The researcher is developing new ways to be able to capture & convert CO2 out of the air we breathe. This will create circular carbon. The technology is based on by flowing air containing CO2 through a special washer. The washing liquid will capture the CO2. The CO2 loaded washing liquid is subsequently used as an electrolyte in an electrochemical CO2 conversion process into valuable chemicals. These chemicals could be commodity chemicals such as ethylene and carbon monoxide. The researcher is developing equipment that can execute both steps - capturing & converting – at the same time. Next to the development of this special equipment another challenge is to design it in such a way that the electrolyte remains stable and the machinery is durable and sustainable.

What’s next?

The first system under development start from capturing and conversion of CO2 derived from flue gases. But initial research is going on the extrapolate towards air capture. The capture media is made more selective, due to the much lower concentration of CO2 in air (400 parts per million (ppm); 0,04%) compared with flue gases (4 to 20%). By first focusing on flue gas application creates a clear pathway forwards for implementation on the midterm, while air capture implementation is foreseen for the long term.

Contribution to the Energy Transition

The energy transition is linked to many other transitions. One of the important aspects has to do with the question how we can create energy as cheaply as possible – not only economy wise but also taking people and planet into account. This can be achieved if we can capture energy where is its widely available. The electrochemical based conversion process depends strongly on the availability of cost effective green energy. This technology will help in transforming renewable energy (for instance in sun rich countries) into useful high value products that can transported to be used elsewhere. 43

TRL

3ME

Electrocatalysis for Energy Storage & Conversion

dr. Ruud Kortlever

Summary

The researcher focusses on electrocatalysts that are involved in electrochemical conversions that are relevant for renewable fuel production and the electrification of the chemical industry. Current catalysts exhibit high over potentials; meaning you have to invest more energy for the reaction to take place than theoretically needed. He tries to get a better understanding of how electrocatalyst work in order to develop novel catalysts He aims to develop novel stable, selective and cheap catalysts by manipulating the various atoms in catalytic particles. Besides designing catalysts he also aims to develop sequential catalytic processes to produce chemicals for which we currently don’t have an electrochemical process. The major advantage of turning thermochemical conversions into electrochemical ones is that you would only need electricity to run the process at an ambient pressure and temperature, leading to possibly smaller, more energy efficient and safer factories.

What’s next?

The next step for this research is to find the optimal process conditions for the developed catalysts and to subsequently integrate them into an (industrial) reactor for it. For a further scale-up of these reactors the research would benefit from more contacts with industry so they can be applied in a relevant environment.

Contribution to the Energy Transition

With the help of mechanistical insights, modelling and theory predictions the researcher contributes to solving contemporary energy problems by developing new electrocatalytic systems and devices.

3ME TPM

RELEASE- Reversible Large Scale Energy Storage

TRL

dr. Ruud Kortlever, prof. dr. ir. Andrea Ramirez Ramirez, prof. dr. ir. Wiebren de Jong

Summary

The energy transition is not only a technological challenge. It is also a societal challenges as the way we produce, transport, store and use energy has to transform. The researchers aim to take the whole value chain into account spurring innovation at different levels at the same time enhancing performance whilst reducing costs of large-scale energy storage systems, based on electrochemical conversion of electricity into molecules for short and long term energy storage. The project focusses on hydrogen production via water electrolysis, hydrocarbon production from CO2 electrolysis and redox flow batteries. With these technologies the project emphasizes that the energy transition is interwoven with the resource transition. It focuses on development of electrodes and membranes, reactor designs, process control and intermittency to integration with industrial processes, and social innovations such as feasible business models and fair governance arrangements.

What’s next?

Everybody feels the urgency of the energy transition. However, since a shift of an entire system is required nobody knows exactly how to do this. RELEASE takes a complete value chain into account, developing technologies, business models and societal implementation is parallel. The goal is to accelerate innovation.

Contribution to the Energy Transition

This research contributes to the energy transition as it questions how we can make the transformation that is needed. By taking the whole value chain into account it tries to accelerate technical and social innovation at the same time.

TRL

AS

Understanding Electrochemical Flow Cells

dr. ir. David Vermaas

Rose Sharifian MSc, Lorenz Baumgartner MSc, Jorrit Bleeker MSc, Nathalie Ligthart MSc, Andrey Goryachev

Summary

With a growing demand for green energy carriers it becomes more important to develop electrochemical systems that convert renewable electricity into useful products and fuels. For that, we need to understand the processes that occur in electrochemical flow cells in order increase the speed of the energy conversions that take place in such cells. The researcher is looking how liquid and gas bubbles can be transported quickly through flow cells such as electrolysers, flow batteries and methods for capturing and converting CO2. He develops new electrolyzers that rely on suspensions, and finding clever ways how the produced energy carriers can be (re)moved or separated. The challenge is to find such clever ways that are not only feasible but also interesting to the market.

What’s next?

With this new knowledge on the production rate in electrochemical flow cells can be enhanced, the next step is to see if these processes can be scaled to practical implementation of the innovation. The research expects to further advance the conversion steps making that process more efficient.

Contribution to the Energy Transition

This research will enhance our understanding of the processes in electrochemical flow cells such as electrolysers, for capturing and converting CO2,and storing energy in flow batteries. With this new knowledge such processes can be further optimized and be made more efficient.