Opportunity for chemicals and fuels from carbon dioxide: Researchers assess roadblocks for industrial deployment of CO2 electrolysis

Read the full story from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Zero-emission energy systems have a gigaton-sized challenge: Waste carbon dioxide (CO₂) will continue to flow into the atmosphere as long as steel, cement, and chemical plants exist. These and related industries are hard to decarbonize, but with upcoming technologies, waste CO₂ could potentially be captured and converted into petrochemical products and fuels. In a perspective published in Joule titled Barriers and opportunities for the deployment of CO₂ electrolysis in net-zero emissions energy systems, the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and collaborating authors holistically review the status of CO₂ electrolysis technology and its potential to reduce carbon emissions in future energy systems.