The electrically-powered synthesis of ethylene for the chemical industry

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Reducing carbon dioxide emissions is an urgent global challenge. There is currently a lack of economic**incentive to capture industrial emissions as there is little value in the captured CO2. However, as renewable**electricity capacity continues to increase in scale while dropping in price, there exists an enormous opportunity**to use clean electricity to convert CO2 into products of value using electrocatalysis. Electrocatalysis enables the**synthesis of conventionally fossil-derived chemicals from CO2 feedstock; however, existing systems exhibit**poor performance and are not competitive with incumbent technologies.**We will develop new catalyst materials and systems to achieve high selectivity and efficiency for renewable**ethylene production. Ethylene is one of the most important petrochemicals in the world and has a market size**of approximately $200B.**This project will result in a process for the renewable electricity-powered synthesis of ethylene that is**economically competitive with conventional fossil-derived methods. This will help Canada reach its**greenhouse gas emission goals by providing a path towards decarbonization of the petrochemicals industry and**enabling the uptake of renewable electricity and carbon capture technologies.**This proposal was developed jointly with the industrial partners: TOTAL, a major integrated oil and gas**company headquartered in Paris, France having significant operations in Montreal; and also with its subsidiary,**Hutchinson, an aerospace and materials company based in Montreal. Our goal was to ensure relevance of the**project to Canadian industry, and specifically to ensure that the technology is compatible with**TOTAL/Hutchinson's petrochemical operations.