Renewable synthetic fuels by thermocatalytic conversion of methane and carbon dioxide

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The world's energy market mainly relies on fossil fuel combustion, a low efficiency process that leads to large CO2 emissions. Heavy dependence on fossil fuels has economic, environmental, and geopolitical consequences, while renewables cannot provide sufficient energy supply to meet growing demands. More efficient utilization of fossil fuels is required, preferably via the incorporation of renewable energy and waste streams. The proposed research program is aimed at developing sustainable routes for the production of synthetic renewable fuels from methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), abundant but very stable compounds, whose conversion is limited kinetically and thermodynamically. To address these challenges, novel routes of thermocatalytic conversion will be designed via a multi-scale approach based on integration of catalyst development, reactor design, and system optimization. The objective is to combine CO2 capture (from biogas, flue gas etc.) with the use of renewable energy via thermocatalytic conversion. The methodology relies on the use of heterogeneous catalysis and highly-integrated reactors. One approach is CO2 hydrogenation via reverse water gas shift reaction or methanation using H2 generated by electrolysis driven by solar and wind electricity, to produce renewable syngas or renewable natural gas. Another approach is CH4 dry reforming, in which CO2 is utilized as an oxidant, while concentrated solar power can be used as a source of heat. Each of these processes either consumes or releases large amounts of heat, and heat removal and supply are among major obstacles, as well as catalyst activity and stability. The emphasis will be on the application of emerging catalytic materials (e.g. transition metal carbides and alloys) and nano-structuring (e.g. core-shell nanoparticles, nanorods etc.) to develop highly active and stable, low-cost catalysts. Another focus will be on reactor thermal management, including advanced reactor designs (e.g. molten salt-cooled) and the use of low-cost concentrated solar energy (parabolic troughs). Optimization will rely on modeling and numerical simulations. Advances in chemical fixation of CO2 are very important to the field of Reaction Engineering and will have important practical implications for Canada and other countries seeking ways to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The production of renewable natural gas via methanation could be a basis for power-to-gas technology, allowing renewable energy storage and electrical grid load balancing (the grid is not well-suited to transient sources such as wind and solar). The conversion of CO2-reach waste streams into syngas will establish a waste-to-fuel chain to produce methanol or paraffins (from syngas). An important part of the proposed research program is HQP training, through a combination of mentorship, exposure to the research environment, and environmental education.