Utilising CO2 in Synthesis and Transforming the Chemicals Industry

该网络将汇集广泛学科的学者、实业家和决策者，以考虑利用二氧化碳作为生产增值产品的单一碳化学原料。我们将与其他“大挑战”项目紧密合作，如碳捕集与封存项目和纳米技术项目，考虑一种综合解决方案，使化工行业实现转型，并最大限度地减少我们对化石燃料原料的依赖。这个特别的大挑战工作组的积极利益相关者最初来自工程和化学科学，但我们已经扩大到包括社会科学家、工业最终用户和政治领导人/决策者。网络活动将面向建立强有力的跨学科研究集群，这些集群将在这一日益重要的领域引领研究。我们将收集有关网络成员提供的兴趣和技能集的数据，这些数据将用于协调技术会议、网络会议和协作讲习班，以促进集群的形成。该网络将考虑免费（废物和大气）和固定（生物质）的二氧化碳来源，并将在开发商业应用的新合成方法的同时寻求关闭碳循环。人们认识到，催化（包括生物催化）将在开发新技术中发挥重要作用，我们需要考虑一种综合的、可持续的能源解决方案，以促进商业上可行的工艺。这对于技术和整个社会来说都是一个重大的挑战。为了维持我们目前对生活水平的高期望，我们必须解决气候变化的原因，并需要提供一个不依赖于不断减少的石化资源的安全化学品供应链。虽然只有一个Co-I （Mike North）可以添加到应用程序中，但我们希望承认所有Co-I， Peter Licence， Ian Metcalf和Panagiota Angeli在开发此网络提案中发挥了重要作用。因此，如果能在适当的时候在小组和网上赠款问题上对此表示感谢，我们将不胜感激。

This Network will bring together academics, industrialists and policy makers over a wide range of disciplines to consider the utilisation of carbon dioxide as a single carbon chemical feedstock for the production of value added products. We will work closely with other Grand Challenges and programmes, such as Carbon Capture and Storage and Nanotechnology to consider an integrated solution that will enable the transformation of the chemicals industry and minimise our reliance on fossil fuel based feedstocks. Active stakeholders in this particular Grand Challenge Working Group were originally drawn from Engineering and Chemical Sciences, however we have already expanded to include Social Scientists, industrial end users and political leaders / policy makers. Network activities will be geared towards the founding of strong cross-disciplinary research clusters that will lead research in this increasingly important area. We will collect data on the interest and skill-sets offered by network members, this data will be used to coordinate technical meetings, networking sessions and collaborative workshops to facilitate cluster formation. The Network will consider free (waste and atmospheric) and fixed (biomass) sources of CO2 and will look to close the carbon cycle while developing new synthetic methods for commercial applications. It is recognised that catalysis (including biocatalysis) will play a major role in developing new technologies and that we will need to consider an integrated and sustainable energy solution to promote commercially viable processes.This is seen as an important Grand Challenge both technically and for sociary as a whole. In order to maintatin our current high expectations for standards of living we must address the causes of climate change and the need to provide a secure chemicals supply chain that is not reliant on ever decreasing petrochemical resources.While only a single Co-I (Mike North) could be added to the application we wish to acknowledge that all the Co-Is, Peter Licence, Ian Metcalf and Panagiota Angeli, played an important role in developing this Network Proposal. Consequently we would be grateful if this could be acknowledged both at the Panel and on Grants on the Web at the appropriate time.