SBIR Phase II: Low-Cost Low-Impact Magnesium Production by Solid Oxide Membrane Electrolysis

这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）二期项目旨在开发一种利用固体氧化膜电解从氧化矿石中初级生产镁的新方法。与其他原生金属工艺不同，这种方法不直接排放二氧化碳，不含氯，并且是完全连续和自动化的。已发布的第三方成本模型表明，其成本低于所有现有和拟议的新流程。在早期可行性论证的基础上，通过实验、数学和成本建模，表明该方法可以以高电流效率生产氧气和镁，成本接近公布的成本模型。该二期项目将开发新的阳极管，以进一步降低能源成本，并建立和测试第一个自热电解电池。如果成功，自热电池将不需要超出电解所需的能量，并且将成为能够生产镁的最小的预生产模块化单元。该项目的广泛/商业影响始于大幅降低镁金属生产的成本和对环境的影响。镁是密度最低的工程金属，也是地壳中含量第三丰富的金属，其重量比刚度、铸造性和可回收性使其成为汽车减重的最佳材料。汽车制造商正寻求到2020年将汽车的镁合金含量从每辆车10-15磅提高到每辆车350磅，取代每辆车650磅的钢和铝零件。这将使车队的燃油经济性每加仑提高1.5-2英里，每年减少约200亿美元的石油进口支出。如果成功，该项目将解决镁在汽车中广泛应用的最大障碍，即其价格稳定性和可用性。这可能会导致一种新的镁经济，充分利用其轻量化和易于制造的优势，从手机到笔记本电脑再到卡车。随着广泛的应用，该开发项目产生的多功能工艺可能会降低还原金属氧化物的成本和对环境的影响，从而形成一种新的原生金属生产工业生态。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project aims to develop a new method for primary production of magnesium from its oxide ore using Solid Oxide Membrane Electrolysis. Unlike other primary metal processes, this approach emits no direct CO2, has no chlorine, and is fully continuous and automated. Published third party cost modeling has indicated that its costs are lower than all existing and proposed new processes. Building on an earlier feasibility demonstration using experiments and mathematical and cost modeling to show that the approach can produce oxygen as well as magnesium at high current efficiency and at costs close to the published cost model, this Phase II project will develop new anode tubes to further reduce energy costs, and build and test the first self-heating electrolysis cell. If successful, the self-heating cell will not require energy beyond that needed for electrolysis and will be the smallest possible pre-production modular unit capable of producing magnesium.The broader/commercial impact of this project begins with substantial reduction of the cost and environmental impact of magnesium metal production. Magnesium is the lowest-density engineering metal and third most abundant metal in the earth's crust, and its stiffness-to-weight, castability, and recyclability make it the best material for motor vehicle weight reduction. Automobile makers are seeking to increase the magnesium alloy content of vehicles from 10-15 lbs/vehicle to 350 lbs/vehicle by 2020, replacing 650 lbs/vehicle of steel and aluminum parts. This will increase fleet fuel economy by 1.5-2 miles per gallon, reducing annual petroleum import expenditures by about $20 billion. If successful, this project will address the biggest barrier to widespread magnesium use in vehicles, which is its price stability and availability. This could lead to a new magnesium economy taking full advantage of its light weight and ease of manufacturing in products from cellphones to laptops to trucks. With broader usage, the versatile process resulting from this development project can likely reduce the cost and environmental impact of reducing metal oxides, leading to a new industrial ecology of primary metals production.