PROGRAM - Future Chemistry

EIRES program

PROGRAM - Future Chemistry

One of the main goals of EIRES is to stimulate interdisciplinary research in the field of energy technology. To this end, the institute launched a dedicated, large-scale research program on the topic of the Future Chemistry. The program is funded by a 1,5 million euro investment from EIRES, supplemented by contributions from industry.

Within the Future Chemistry program, research is conducted into the development of various materials, components and/or systems in relation to chemistry and chemical engineering for energy systems.The focus is not only on physical materials, components and systems, but also on dynamic models. To increase the impact of the research, a systems integration approach is taken, and technology is seen in relation to the user.

Cutting edge scientists are working on future chemistry solutions to accelerate the energy transition. We are setting the foundation of green chemical energy transition in projects varying from sustainabile H₂ production, membraneless elektrolyzers and system integration. Scientists, industrial partners and EIRES aim to implement the outcome in sustainable future proof green chemistry plants.

Projects within Future Chemistry

H2 & E- FOR N-CHEMISTRY

H2 & E- FOR C-CHEMISTRY

SUSTAINABLE H2 PRODUCTION

H2 & E- FOR FE-CHEMISTRY

SUSTAINABLE H2 PRODUCTION

Hydrogen will be the primary energy carrier of the future. Large-scale infrastructure will be required to produce hydrogen from water. The biggest challenges for low-cost production of hydrogen are in the durability and robustness of electrolyzers, especially when these are operated with a highly variable load from renewable energy sources. These energy sources can consist of large fields of wind turbines or solar panels in the GW range or are more distributed in nature in the 10 to 100 MW range.

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Project H2 & E- FOR N-CHEMISTRY

The use of hydrogen for activation of nitrogen is generally carried out in large scale Haber-Bosch which require very high pressures and relatively high temperatures. The use of renewable hydrogen and otherwise curtailed excess electricity require new reactor types that can handle fast variation of inputs and relatively lower pressures to operate. In this program we will look at two types of reactors: (DLTC) separation enhanced reactor where reaction and separation occur at the same time to shift the equilibrium and allow working at lower pressures and temperatures, and (CMSM) plasma based ammonia production to cope with fast variation of availability of electricity/hydrogen.

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Project H2 & E- FOR C-CHEMISTRY

Project MEME (Metal Electrocatalysts & Membranes/Electrodes)

Project 1: This project would deal with CO2/CO electrolysis at elevated pressure/temperature to overcome the current limitations of this technology, i.e. (i) the relatively low yield of multicarbon products and (ii) Cu being the only metal with reasonable yields of such products. For Cu, it is thought that the initial C-C bond is formed by the dimerization of two CO intermediates (followed by hydrogenative removal of the O atoms). This is reasonable as the non-Faradaic direct C-O dissociation is prohibited on Cu at low temperature. To achieve a high rate of C-C coupling, we would need to operate metal electrodes at elevated temperatures, where direct C-O dissociation barriers can be overcome 鈥� typically temperatures in the 125-200C range, which also requires operating at elevated pressure. For this explorative project, we propose the postdoc works on (i) testing potential metal electrocatalysts in an elevated-pressure/temperature electrochemical reactor and (ii) developing membranes/electrodes suitable for operation under demanding conditions. We hope to culminate the explorative research with a laboratory-scale demonstration device which leverages a silica-based composite membrane with the transition metal catalyst(s) deposited/integrated onto a three-dimensional electrode scaffold, implemented into a gas-fed electrochemical cell. The project could lead to breakthroughs in e-fuels production through COx electrolysis (e.g., direct formation of long chain hydrocarbons in a kind of electrochemical Fischer-Tropsch synthesis).

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Project H2 & E- FOR FE-CHEMISTRY

Green hydrogen is an essential building block of the metal fuel cycle (see figure 1). To enhance the knowledge and application of metal fuels we define two work packages, each concentrating at a different scale:

Small scale material characterization, i.e., what powder specifications are needed for optimal operation of the metal fuel cycle
Lab-scale experimental and numerical study of the fluidized bed thermochemical reduction of fine iron oxide powder

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Project HyFFeR (Hydrogen Flash Reactor for Iron (Fe) Powder Regeneration)

The intrinsic materials properties of iron powders influence their circular-fuel performance, i.e., combustibility, circularity, and safety. A standardization procedure is desired to examine the circular-fuel performance of iron powders on the market. Such standard will directly answer the pressing questions posed by the industrial producers鈥攚hich types of iron powders on the market can be used as a circular fuel and how to improve the current technologies to produce more and/or cheaper combustion-suitable powders.

The proposed study aims to discover the fundamental links between the intrinsic materials properties of iron powders and their circular-fuel performance (CFP), i.e., combustibility, circularity, and safety. Based on this scientific finding, a standardization procedure will be developed to examine the circular-fuel performance (CFP), i.e., combustibility, circularity, and safety, of iron powders on the market. The expected findings from this study will directly answer the pressing questions posed by the industrial producers鈥攚hich types of iron powders on the market can be used as a circular fuel and how to improve the current technologies to produce more and/or cheaper combustion-suitable powders.

Project IRES (Iron reduction experiments and simulations)

The goal of this project is to investigate the reduction of iron oxides to iron in a fluidized bed reactor both experimentally and numerically. A fluidized bed for the reduction of iron oxides by hydrogen is currently present at the Mechanical Engineering Department of 在线黑料门. The reactor includes a furnace that can heat the metal oxide powder to 500-800 掳C. An inert gas flow may be mixed with the hydrogen flow to meet the requirements for fluidization and at the same time the requirements for reduction. Fundamental aspects on high-temperature fluidization and inter-particle forces will be integrated here to operate the fluidized bed for the reduction of iron oxides.

To characterize the fluidization and reduction of particles we will investigate different types of gas, gas pressure and gas density, as well as solids characteristics, such as bed porosity, particle size and particle density. The material morphology and composition of the particles will be analysed during reduction/oxidation cycles to determine the effects on the reactivity and flow properties. The reduction of iron oxides at high temperature is characterized by particle sticking and, if temperature and gas flow are not optimized, consequent defluidization of the bed. Optimal operating conditions in terms of fluidization and reduction will be determined, which will be an input for upscaled operation.

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SYSTEM INTEGRATION

In this work, we focus on high-temperature Joule heating using green electricity for industrially important chemical reactions. Reverse Water-Gas Shift (RWGS) to activate captured CO2 with H2 obtained from H2O electrolysis, carried out above 350 graden Celcius. Particularly, the holistic design and optimization of electrical and chemical parts of Joule heating system will be thoroughly investigated to achieve extremely high energy efficiencies for large-scale applications.

The overall objective of this project is to provide the holistic design and optimization of electrical and chemical parts of the Joule heating system for Reverse Water-Gas Shift, achieving extremely high energy efficiencies at low cost.

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Background

Industrial heat makes up two-thirds of the industrial energy demand and almost one-fifth of the global energy consumption [1], while one-third of the total energy use of the Netherlands is related to thermal heating installations in the chemical industries. As the majority of industrial heat is generated by burning fossil fuel, it contributes to most of the direct industrial CO₂ emitted each year. Therefore, it is essential to develop new technologies for direct electrification of these processes with green electricity and it is projected that before 2050 more than 80-130 TWh of the industrial energy demands need to be electrified [2].

Challenges

Direct electrification of chemical reactors for highly endothermic reactions is particularly challenging because of 1) the required accurate temperature control at high temperatures to achieve the desired optimal product selectivity and/or thermal stability of catalysts and other materials (especially at reducing conditions) and 2) because of the required extremely large and non-uniform heat exchange at these high temperatures.

Moreover, to enable this heating technology for large-scale productions, more efficient and control-flexible electrical power conversion is required to handle a higher power rating (>10MW) and higher voltage level (>10kV). To design and develop such a power conversion system is also very challenging because of 1) the lack of circuit topologies of power electronics converters to achieve high efficiency and low cost, and 2) the lack of mature design and control methodologies to meet specific dielectric and galvanic isolation and the dynamic control performance required from Joule heating of the reactor side.

Therefore, how to integrate Joule heating in this type of reactor for large-scale production and achieve optimal temperature control with an optimal heat supply distribution throughout the reactor but with maximal energy and electrical efficiency is the challenge that is investigated.

Objectives

Optimal geometric design of the SiC-based elements (shape, thickness, pitch, etc.) immersed in the packed-bed reactor, for optimal temperature control and heat supply.
Experimental proof-of-concept of the designed structures for the selected reaction systems (RWGS-E and RWGS-C) and experimental investigation on the tunability/flexibility of the temperature and heat supply control.
Explore new topologies, design rules, and control of medium voltage power electronics converters, resulting in high energy efficiency, control flexibility, and cost reduction for high-power applications.

Project RWGS-E (Reverse Water-Gas Shift - Electrical Engineering viewpoint)

Project RWGS-C (Reverse Water-Gas Shift - Chemical Engineering viewpoint)

Results

The expected results of the project are as follows:

With detailed 3D CFD-modelling (using OpenFOAM) the temperature distributions in the packed-bed will be studied to design optimal geometric structures for the SiC-based elements in the packed-bed reactor (considering both AC and DC), investigating whether optimal performance is reached via locally varying distributions of the SiC elements or via locally varying current densities through the SiC elements.
Some of these structures will be experimentally tested in the lab, first without chemical reactions and later for RWGS reactions. Of particular interest is the controllability and tunability of the temperature profiles and heat supply to the bed.
Novel cost-effective topologies of MV power electronics converters with modularity, scalability and high efficiency will be developed, that meet specific dielectric and galvanic isolation criteria and achieve the dynamic control performance required from the chemical reactor.
Down-scaled experiment prototype of the MV power electronics converters for design validation and integration with the Joule heating system.

References

[1] IEA (2018), Clean and efficient heat for industry, IEA, Paris

[2] Routekaart Elektrificatie in de Industrie,

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Contact

Future chemistry Program Manager

Diana van der Sloot | d.v.d.sloot@tue.nl