A techno-economic and life cycle assessment for the production of green methanol from CO_(2): catalyst and process bottlenecks

The success of catalytic schemes for the large-scale valorization of CO_(2) does not only depend on the development of active,selective and stable catalytic materials but also on the overall process design.Here we present a multidisciplinary study(from catalyst to plant and techno-economic/lifecycle analysis)for the production of green methanol from renewable H2 and CO_(2).We combine an in-depth kinetic analysis of one of the most promising recently reported methanol-synthesis catalysts(InCo)with a thorough process simulation and techno-economic assessment.We then perform a life cycle assessment of the simulated process to gauge the real environmental impact of green methanol production from CO_(2).Our results indicate that up to 1.75 ton of CO_(2) can be abated per ton of produced methanol only if renewable energy is used to run the process,while the sensitivity analysis suggest that either rock-bottom H2 prices(1.5$kg1)or severe CO_(2) taxation(300$per ton)are needed for a profitable methanol plant.Besides,we herein highlight and analyze some critical bottlenecks of the process.Especial attention has been paid to the contribution of H2 to the overall plant costs,CH4 trace formation,and purity and costs of raw gases.In addition to providing important information for policy makers and industrialists,directions for catalyst(and therefore process)improvements are outlined.

2020 roadmap on pore materials for energy and environmental applications

Porous materials have attracted great attention in energy and environment applications,such as metal organic frameworks(MOFs),metal aerogels,carbon aerogels,porous metal oxides.These materials could be also hybridized with other materials into functional composites with superior properties.The high specific area of porous materials offer them the advantage as hosts to conduct catalytic and electrochemical reactions.On one hand,catalytic reactions include photocatalytic,p ho toe lectrocatalytic and electrocatalytic reactions over some gases.On the other hand,they can be used as electrodes in various batteries,such as alkaline metal ion batteries and electrochemical capacitors.So far,both catalysis and batteries are extremely attractive topics.There are also many obstacles to overcome in the exploration of these porous materials.The research related to porous materials for energy and environment applications is at extremely active stage,and this has motivated us to contribute with a roadmap on ’porous materials for energy and environment applications’.

Toward Liquid Phase Processable Metal Organic Frameworks:Dream or Reality?

CONSPECTUS:Conventionally,the virtue of porosity is only given to porous solids.Metal Organic Frameworks(MOFs),carbon materials,or zeolites are some examples.However,processing these solids is not a straightforward task.Here,we discuss how to endow porous solids(MOFs)with liquid phase processability.More specifically,we show that surface modification of MOF crystals can lead to the formation of porous liquids(PLs)that can be further processed in the liquid phase.For instance,when placed in mesitylene,ZIF-67 predictably sediments.In contrast,with the adequate surface modification,stable dispersion of ZIF-67 can be achieved.Our proposed surface modification is facile and rapid.N-Heterocyclic carbenes are chosen as modifying agents as they are similar to imidazole linkers present on ZIFs.A simple stirring of a MOF and carbene mixture results in a modified solid.The morphology and textural properties of the modified MOF do not change from the ones of its parent.Since the porosity in solution remains unoccupied,the obtained stable colloids behave as porous liquids.Research into porous liquids is an emerging field that has already shown great promise in gases storage.Our breakthrough experiments show that these particular PLs have large potential for the separation of CO_(2)/CH_(4)mixtures.