INFEWS: U.S. - CHINA: Solar-driven Carbon Dioxide Utilization for Environmental Sustainability

从全球角度来看，粮食-能源-水（FEW）关系可以被描述为粮食、能源和水的相互关联的资源系统。随着世界人口到2050年预计将增至90亿，将需要平衡这三个系统的不同资源，以实现不同的用户目标，同时又不对提供这些资源的生态系统造成过度压力。粮食和水部门都严重依赖廉价能源的供应。 因此，水处理和运输、农业实践以及食品加工、储存、包装和运输产生的二氧化碳排放是缓解相互关联的食品、能源和水系统压力的一个切入点。通过与中国天津大学的研究人员合作，焦裕禄研究实验室将设计一种电解系统，该系统使用铜催化剂将二氧化碳和水转化为碳基燃料。该装置一旦扩大规模，就有可能通过使用碳中性太阳能电力来减少温室气体排放。这样的系统可以降低化石燃料工业对环境的影响，减少对水和土地密集型替代品（如生物燃料作物）的需求，从而提高国家的能源、粮食和水安全。粮食-能源-水（FEW）关系是氮、碳、磷和水循环在平衡状态下相互作用的汇编。由于对少数系统的各个组成部分进行了优化，这些循环很快就被推到了自然平衡的极限之外。应对这一挑战的一个办法是通过开发新的、可再生能源驱动的高效技术，使四个主要周期恢复平衡。通过与天津大学的中国研究伙伴密切合作，特拉华州大学的焦研究小组将设计一个太阳能驱动的催化系统，能够从CO2和H2O生产液体碳燃料。本研究的主要目标是：（1）合理设计和合成具有高选择性的CO2电化学还原催化剂，（2）开发和评估一体化PV/CO2电解反应器原型，（3）进行技术经济分析，找出实施的关键技术差距，（4）开发和评估PV/CO2电解反应器原型。及（4）进行生命周期分析，以确定减少二氧化碳排放量及环境影响。从计算驱动的铜催化剂设计开始，美国和中国的研究人员将合成和分析用于太阳能电解装置的纳米结构二氧化碳催化剂。为了测试多种设计，中国研究人员将3D打印不同的电化学电池进行性能筛选，以优化二氧化碳减排的设计。Jiao实验室将使用建模方法评估这些不同的原型，以获得最佳性能，从而减少设计迭代的次数。拟议的研究有可能是变革性的，并影响到许多方面。具体而言，该研究将开发一种计算驱动的方法，以实现和加速用于二氧化碳转化及其他转化的先进电催化剂的合理设计;（2）创造一种新的反应和工艺设计策略，以克服与电化学CO2转化相关的基本挑战，这可以扩展到其他重要的化学工艺，如二氮还原为氨和甲烷部分氧化反应;（3）在设备和系统层面上对设计和工程太阳能CO2电解过程产生见解;（4）为研究界提供可靠的模型，以评估CO2电解技术的潜在经济和环境影响。这种合作将带来新的知识，帮助美国和中国大大减少温室气体排放，从而提供一种有效的工具来关闭碳循环，缓解FEW Nexus的主要压力。此外，通过美国和中国团队之间的合作努力建立的联系将增进对另一个国家研究人员的了解？该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus, from a global perspective, can be described as interconnected resource systems of food, energy, and water. As the world's population expands to the expected 9 billion by 2050, there will be a need to balance different resources across these three systems to obtain different user goals without putting undue strain on the ecosystems that provide these resources. Both food and water sectors rely heavily on the availability of inexpensive energy. As a consequence, carbon dioxide emissions resulting from water treatment and transport, agricultural practices, and food processing, storage, packaging, and transportation represent an entry point to relieve some of the stresses of interrelated food, energy, and water systems. In collaboration with researchers at Tianjin University in China, the Jiao research laboratory will design an electorlysis system that uses a copper catalyst to convert carbon dioxide and water to carbon-based fuels. This device, once scaled up, could potentially reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the use of the carbon-neutral solar electricity. Such a system could lower the environmental impact of the fossil-fuel industry and reduce the need for water and land-intensive alternatives such as biofuel crops, and thus, increase the nation's energy, food, and water security. The Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus is the compilation of the nitrogen, carbon, phosphorous, and water cycles interacting in equilibrium. Due to optimization of individual components of FEW systems in isolation, these cycles are quickly being pushed beyond the limit of their natural equilibria. One remedy to this challenge is to bring the four major cycles back into equilibrium by developing novel, renewable energy powered and efficient technologies. Through close collaboration with the Chinese research partners at Tianjin University, the Jiao research group at the University of Delaware will design a solar-driven catalysis system capable of producing liquid carbon fuels from CO2 and H2O. The key objectives of the proposed work are to: (1) rationally design and synthesize catalysts for electrochemical CO2 reduction with a high selectivity for liquid C2/C3 products; (2) develop and evaluate an integrated PV/CO2 electrolysis reactor prototype; (3) perform techno-economic analysis to identify the key technical gaps for implementation; and (4) conduct life-cycle analysis to determine the reduction in CO2 emissions and environmental impacts. Starting with a computationally-driven Cu-catalyst design, the US and Chinese researchers will synthesize and analyze nanostructured CO2 catalysts for a solar-powered electrolyzer device. To test multiple designs, the Chinese researchers will 3D print different electrochemical cells for performance screening to optimize the design for CO2 reduction. The Jiao laboratory, using modeling methods, will evaluate these different prototypes for optimal performance to reduce the number of design iterations. The proposed research has the potential to be transformative and impact many fronts. Specifically, the research will develop a computation-driven approach to enable and accelerate the rational design of advanced electrocatalysts for CO2 conversion and beyond; (2) create a new strategy of reaction and process design to overcome the fundamental challenges associated with electrochemical CO2 conversion, which could be extended to other important chemical processes, such as dinitrogen reduction to ammonia and methane partial oxidation reaction; (3) generate insights into design and engineering solar-powered CO2 electrolysis processes at the device and system level; (4) provide the research community with reliable models to assess the potential economic and environmental impacts of CO2 electrolysis technology. This collaboration will lead to new knowledge that will help both the US and China greatly reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, thereby providing an effective tool to close the carbon cycle and relieve a major stress on the FEW Nexus. Further, the ties fostered via this collaborative effort between the US and the Chinese teams will enhance the understanding of researchers of the other country?s academic/research environment and lead to shared future endeavors.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.