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Energy storage via carbon-neutral fuels made from CO2, water, and renewable energy

Energy storage via carbon-neutral fuels made from CO2, water, and renewable energy
Energy storage via carbon-neutral fuels made from CO2, water, and renewable energy
Fossil fuels are renewable only over geological time scales. The oxidation, via combustion, of considerable amounts of carbonaceous fuels since the dawn of the industrial revolution has led to a rapid accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere leading to an anthropogenic influence on the Earth's climate. We highlight here that a versatile energy carrier can be produced by recycling CO2 and combining it chemically with a substance of high chemical bond energy created from renewable energy. If CO2 is taken from the atmosphere, a closed-loop production process for carbon-neutral fuels is possible providing an energy-dense and easily distributed storage medium for renewable energy. The rationale for reduced carbon or carbon-neutral energy carriers made from recycled CO2 is described, focusing on, for transport applications, their manifestation as energy-dense carbonaceous liquid fuels. Techniques for the separation of CO2 directly from the atmosphere are reviewed, and the challenges and advantages relative to flue-gas capture are discussed. Pathways for the production of carbonaceous fuels from CO2 are discussed. An integrated system is proposed where renewable energy is stored in the form of synthetic methane in the gas grid for supply to the power generation and heat sectors while methanol and drop-in hydrocarbon fuels are supplied to the transport sector. The use of atmospheric CO2 and water as feed stocks for renewable energy carriers raises the important prospect of alleviating a dependency on imported fossil energy with the associated large financial transfers. Their application in the transport sector yields a high-value end product. The synthesis and storage of carbon-neutral liquid fuels offers the possibility of decarbonizing transport without the paradigm shifts required by either electrification of the vehicle fleet or conversion to a hydrogen economy. They can be supplied either as dr- p-in hydrocarbon fuels for existing reciprocating and turbine-powered combustion engines or, at lower energetic cost and using simpler chemical plant, in the form of low-carbon-number alcohols which can be burned at high efficiency levels in optimized internal combustion engines. The suitability of these fuels for conventional engines enables the continued provision of globally compatible, affordable vehicles.
0018-9219
440-460
Pearson, Richard J.
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Eisaman, Matthew D.
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Turner, James W.G.
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Edwards, Peter P.
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Jiang, Zheng
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Kuznetsov, Vladimir L.
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Littau, Karl A.
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Di Marco, Leon
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Taylor, S.R. Gordon
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Pearson, Richard J.
ab90ab05-1eaf-4d0d-9435-81bf1e929bfd
Eisaman, Matthew D.
54f642dd-8c3f-471b-94c8-ffa0cc8d361c
Turner, James W.G.
fcaca728-b377-49fc-8bb6-d704b21c9f28
Edwards, Peter P.
1c8ab595-549c-4dca-b911-a46a94183e2b
Jiang, Zheng
bcf19e78-f5c3-48e6-802b-fe77bd12deab
Kuznetsov, Vladimir L.
274631c4-ec2c-4b0f-ac24-15948d5d8fe8
Littau, Karl A.
d59ba4fa-b711-4807-96d0-69937259fafe
Di Marco, Leon
cb40d319-234e-4323-821b-5b1d072e597b
Taylor, S.R. Gordon
6a275a8c-c0ce-44b5-9bf8-c3a6b61ea24a

Pearson, Richard J., Eisaman, Matthew D., Turner, James W.G., Edwards, Peter P., Jiang, Zheng, Kuznetsov, Vladimir L., Littau, Karl A., Di Marco, Leon and Taylor, S.R. Gordon (2012) Energy storage via carbon-neutral fuels made from CO2, water, and renewable energy. Proceedings of the IEEE, 100 (2), 440-460. (doi:10.1109/JPROC.2011.2168369).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Fossil fuels are renewable only over geological time scales. The oxidation, via combustion, of considerable amounts of carbonaceous fuels since the dawn of the industrial revolution has led to a rapid accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere leading to an anthropogenic influence on the Earth's climate. We highlight here that a versatile energy carrier can be produced by recycling CO2 and combining it chemically with a substance of high chemical bond energy created from renewable energy. If CO2 is taken from the atmosphere, a closed-loop production process for carbon-neutral fuels is possible providing an energy-dense and easily distributed storage medium for renewable energy. The rationale for reduced carbon or carbon-neutral energy carriers made from recycled CO2 is described, focusing on, for transport applications, their manifestation as energy-dense carbonaceous liquid fuels. Techniques for the separation of CO2 directly from the atmosphere are reviewed, and the challenges and advantages relative to flue-gas capture are discussed. Pathways for the production of carbonaceous fuels from CO2 are discussed. An integrated system is proposed where renewable energy is stored in the form of synthetic methane in the gas grid for supply to the power generation and heat sectors while methanol and drop-in hydrocarbon fuels are supplied to the transport sector. The use of atmospheric CO2 and water as feed stocks for renewable energy carriers raises the important prospect of alleviating a dependency on imported fossil energy with the associated large financial transfers. Their application in the transport sector yields a high-value end product. The synthesis and storage of carbon-neutral liquid fuels offers the possibility of decarbonizing transport without the paradigm shifts required by either electrification of the vehicle fleet or conversion to a hydrogen economy. They can be supplied either as dr- p-in hydrocarbon fuels for existing reciprocating and turbine-powered combustion engines or, at lower energetic cost and using simpler chemical plant, in the form of low-carbon-number alcohols which can be burned at high efficiency levels in optimized internal combustion engines. The suitability of these fuels for conventional engines enables the continued provision of globally compatible, affordable vehicles.

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Published date: February 2012
Organisations: Faculty of Engineering and the Environment

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 352799
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/352799
ISSN: 0018-9219
PURE UUID: ad4dd80c-6a5d-43d7-b10c-8bf3c9347e43
ORCID for Zheng Jiang: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-7972-6175

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Date deposited: 21 May 2013 11:59
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:47

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Contributors

Author: Richard J. Pearson
Author: Matthew D. Eisaman
Author: James W.G. Turner
Author: Peter P. Edwards
Author: Zheng Jiang ORCID iD
Author: Vladimir L. Kuznetsov
Author: Karl A. Littau
Author: Leon Di Marco
Author: S.R. Gordon Taylor

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