Fri, 09 December, 2022
We recently held a webinar for the CoCaCo2La project, of which TWI is a partner.
The online event, which was held on 1 December 2022, saw 125 registrants from 21 countries as Dr Magdalena Ramirez-Corredores from the Idaho National Laboratory gave a presentation on the topic of, ‘Decarbonisation vis-à-vis Carbon Management.’
The webinar included a discussion of how to close the gap between current CO2 emissions (Gton scale) and capture and utilisation (Mton scale), using strategies based on multiple technologies.
Certain gases present in the Earth’s atmosphere exhibit an ability to absorb energy (radiative efficiency), during their lifetime, i.e., greenhouse gases (GHGs), which cause a warming effect, known as Global Warming Potential (GWP).
The COP26 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) ratified the goals of the “Net-Zero” initiative to achieve a temperature increase not exceeding 1.5 °C by 2050. Since carbon is an essential element for life, a steady atmospheric CO2 concentration is required and therefore the Net-Zero Initiative establishes that emissions and removal should be balanced to maintain global temperature rise, at no more than 1.5°C.
Decarbonisation is the removal or avoidance of CO2 accumulation in the atmosphere. While decarbonisation will play a fundamental role in reaching Net Zero, the need to close the carbon cycle sustainably passes through the identification of potential chemical routes that create value from the emissions.
These routes should keep in mind economic, energy and environmental boundary conditions. New concepts of eco-design, ecoefficiency and eco-effectiveness will help in closing the cycle sustainably and achieve carbon management aligned with a sustainable circular economy.
The CoCaCo2La project aims to assist this drive towards Net Zero by converting CO2 to ethylene on demand using flexible, tuneable CO2 electrolysers. This converted ethylene can then be used for other processes, such as polyethylene production.
Of course, in the midst of this innovation we should not rule out supporting changes in culture and social behaviour, which will warrant the better future that we all aspire to.
You can see a recording of the webinar in full, below:
The CoCaCo2la project has received £518,777.19 in funding from BEIS under the UK ACT ERA-NET EC GA 691712. This funding has been made available from the Government’s £1 Billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio.to provide key innovation to develop technologies needed to tackle climate change