Electrochemical conversion of CO2 to methanol – towards development of a 2 kW stack

Abstract

CO2 can be considered as one of the main drivers for the anthropogenic climate change and political restriction on its emission is increasing. Around 97 million tons are emitted daily [1]. Hence, use of renewable energy sources for production of fuels and chemicals based on CO2 is a profitable and green business strategy, explaining the immense research that has begun in this field. In an electrochemical process CO2 is reduced on the cathode leading to a large product diversity [2] . So far, high selectivity towards methanol has only been demonstrated at rather low current densities and for short time [3–5]. Main challenges in this process are the concurrent hydrogen evolution reaction caused by the inevitable presence of water, slow kinetics, the reduction of oxides on the catalyst surface which function as the catalytically active species, and crossover of methanol to the anode side. The aim of the LOTER.CO2M project, funded within the Horizon 2020 program by the European Union, is to design and realize an improved process consisting of low-cost electrocatalysts, smart membrane design, and optimized stack operation. Using selective catalyst materials in an MEA are with gasphase reaction a high selectivita of > 90 % and conversion rate of > 60% is targeted. With the help of this poster we would like to present and discuss the activities in the LOTER.CO2M project,Smart design of catalyst, membrane development to avoid methanol crossover and operation of the stack to guarantee a gas phase reaction. should lead to a demonstrator of scale up 2 kW running at RWE.