Advertisement
Grab your lab coat. Let's get started
Welcome!
Welcome!
Create an account below to get 6 C&EN articles per month, receive newsletters and more - all free.
It seems this is your first time logging in online. Please enter the following information to continue.
As an ACS member you automatically get access to this site. All we need is few more details to create your reading experience.
Not you? Sign in with a different account.
Not you? Sign in with a different account.
ERROR 1
ERROR 1
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
Password and Confirm password must match.
If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)
ERROR 2
ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.
Climate Change
UN suggests path to carbon-neutral chemical industry
Report points to carbon capture, electrochemistry, and biofuels as key technologies
by Cheryl Hogue
November 17, 2022
| A version of this story appeared in
Volume 100, Issue 41
Credit: BASF
Chemical comapnies Air Liquide, BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, INEOS, and Total are investigating the feasibility of a carbon capture, use, and storage venture at the Port of Antwerp, Belgium.
A suite of technologies can help the global chemical industry reduce the nearly 1 gigaton of carbon dioxide it emits annually while maintaining or improving its competitiveness, according to a United Nations report.
Carbon dioxide capture, use, and storage (CCUS) will play a key role, says the technology brief from the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia. CCUS can reduce nearly 40% of this sector’s CO2 emissions. Several widely used commercial chemical processes produce relatively pure streams of CO2 that are relatively inexpensive to capture, the brief adds.
In particular, the industry can turn to electrochemical reactors to combine CO2 and water to produce two major basic building block chemicals—methane and ethylene—instead of relying on fossil fuels for feedstock. Converting biomass into biofuels can also provide feedstocks, the report says.
Chemical manufacturers can also move to electricity generated from low-carbon and renewable energy sources to run their plants. Improved energy efficiency is also important and includes innovative chemistry that replaces high-temperature processes, the brief says.
The report focuses on technology to achieve no net release of CO2 in three major industrial sources of this greenhouse gas worldwide: chemicals and petrochemicals, cement, and iron and steel.
“Adopting circular economy approaches to help reduce needs for new materials will be crucial,” Olga Algayerova, UNECE executive secretary says in a statement.
The report was presented at UN climate talks in Egypt that concluded in mid-November.
Chemical & Engineering News
ISSN 0009-2347
Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society
You might also like...
Advertisement
The power is now in your (nitrile gloved) hands
Sign up for a free account to get more articles. Or choose the ACS option that’s right for you.
Already have an ACS ID? Log in
Join the conversation
Contact the reporter
Submit a Letter to the Editor for publication
Engage with us on Twitter