2023: CO2 Conversion Reactor: Designing, Building, Testing, Adopting
An interdisciplinary team will design, additively manufacture, and operate novel reactors that catalyze the conversion of CO2 into valuable industrial chemicals such as ethanol and methanol. The innovative approach of this project stems from the integration of additive manufacturing and advanced vapor deposition coatings to create durable and highly efficient reactors. Using Cornell’s synchrotron, the team aims to understand the mechanisms of reactor failure and apply those insights to iterate the printing and coating processes. That will be followed by a climate impact assessment and stakeholder engagement with industry partner TOTALEnergies, who will guide the project to accelerate the transition of the new reactor designs and operating protocols to the industry. The project directly addresses the “U.S. Innovation to Meet 2050 Climate Goals” and results will be shared with stakeholders including the U.S. climate negotiation team.
Investigators: Sadaf Sobhani, Rong Yang, Tobias Hanrath, Allison Chatrchyan