Tohoku University Technology: Electrochemical CO₂ reduction method: T23-091

High-efficiency CO₂ electroreduction under hydrothermal conditions

The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO2RR) process, in which CO₂ is electrochemically converted, is attracting attention as a promising CO₂ reduction method. However, the conventional method has a problem of low energy efficiency. The inventor has found that it is possible to improve the efficiency of the CO2RR process by utilizing a high-temperature high-pressure water environment called a hydrothermal conditions. When electrolysis is carried out in high-temperature high-pressure water at 150℃ and 100 atm pressurized with CO₂ , the high diffusion coefficient and solubility of CO₂ in the water facilitating efficient CO₂ supply to the electrode, and the energy efficiency is significantly enhanced. Additional assessment has shown that it is possible to synthesize "carbon-negative" basic chemical product (methanol), in which the amount of CO₂ absorbed exceeds the amount of CO₂ emitted, by leveraging low-temperature waste heat from industrial sources and renewable electricity.

others