Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT
Facts and figures | Carbon2Chem® subprojects | Carbon2Chem® image film
Since 2016, Carbon2Chem® has been developing modular concepts and building blocks for the capture and utilization of carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) from various industrial process gases as a contribution to climate protection. The joint research project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space, is a technology platform for carbon dioxide capture and utilization (CCU) solutions. A consortium of companies and research institutions is working on solutions to support society, industry and politics in planning, designing and implementing the energy transition.
A key objective of Carbon2Chem® is to develop concepts, technologies and processes that enable 100% substitution of carbon from fossil raw materials. The carbon is separated from fossil or biogenic processes in the form of CO and CO2 and fed into a chemical synthesis. The aim is to use industrial point sources such as steelworks, lime works or thermal waste treatment plants as a source of carbon instead of fossil raw materials.
The process gases from the point sources have fluctuating compositions and impurities. The research and development in Carbon2Chem® provide solutions that ensure a stable synthesis under these conditions. The central building block here is gas cleaning and conditioning. Only with suitable gas pre-treatment can the catalysts used – e.g. in methanol synthesis – be protected from harmful impurities.
The third and final phase of Carbon2Chem® (2025 to 2028) will focus on the following work:
- Supporting the energy transition and the defossilization of industry
- Enabling a carbon cycle within the technosphere
- Designing and verifying different concepts for carbon utilization from industrial point sources (steel/lime production and thermal waste treatment)
- Verification of the results so far at the pilot scale in the Carbon2Chem® pilot plant
- Deriving sustainable business models based on the developed and verified technology building blocks
- Analysis and evaluation of the regulatory framework for carbon management
Fraunhofer UMSICHT is supporting the project in many areas as it moves from pilot application to industrial application.
