New Research Pathway Uses Renewable Electricity to Produce Formic Acid from CO2
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) research scientist Dr. K.C. Neyerlin applies catalyst layers to a cell through a spray process that delivers a more even distribution of material, improving performance of the cell. Research like this helped inform the current study to generate formic acid from carbon dioxide. Photo by Dennis Schroeder / NREL
New research from U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories discovered a promising pathway to produce formic acid from carbon dioxide (CO2) with high energy efficiency and durability using renewable electricity. The study titled, A Scalable Membrane Electrode Assembly Architecture for Efficient Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 to Formic Acid, was published in Nature Communications.
Formic acid is a potential intermediate chemical which has a wide range of applications, especially as a feedstock for the chemical or biomanufacturing industries. Formic acid has also been identified as an input for biological upgrading into sustainable aviation fuel. Identifying routes to efficiently convert CO2 to an intermediate chemical which can be further upgraded to fuels or commercially valuable chemicals has been challenging.
The research team led by Dr. K.C. Neyerlin at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, with team members from Argonne National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, investigated several membrane electrode assembly (MEA) configurations in an electrolyzer cell to compare electrochemical reduction of CO2 to formic acid.
Funded by DOE’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), this technology aligns with the BETO-funded CO2 Reduction and Upgrading for e-Fuels Consortium (CO2RUe).
Read more about this novel research.
BETO supports technology research, development, and demonstration to accelerate greenhouse gas emissions reductions through the cost-effective and sustainable use of biomass and waste feedstocks across the U.S. economy. BETO is part of DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy.
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