Over 45 million euros for sustainable industry with green hydrogen
Large national project granted with major role for 色中色 scientist Marta Costa Figueiredo
NWO and the National Growth Fund program GroenvermogenNL are awarding 45 million to the HyCARB project led by TNO. This project is the result of the call 鈥淗ydrogen and green electrons for carbon-based chemistry鈥�. Marta Costa Figueiredo from the department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry and Bert Weckhuysen from Utrecht University will have the role of technical leaders, managing the scientific content of the project. Martijn de Graaff is project lead for TNO.
The chemical industry is one of the largest users of fossil raw materials such as oil and natural gas and accounts for a significant share of global CO2 emissions. To help the Dutch chemical industry become more sustainable and thus remain competitive in the future, a more sustainable form of energy is needed. This involves sustainably produced hydrogen and electrons. The partners in the project aim to deliver internationally renowned results, such as new integrated hydrogenation processes, CO2 electrolysers and electrified high-temperature reactors. In addition, a great deal of attention is being paid to analytical equipment and skills, as well as to building knowledge and experience among the next generation. Ultimately, their ambition is to ensure that the Netherlands achieves a leading global position in the field of circular carbon and hydrogen technology.
The research project HyCARB brings together Dutch clean-tech companies, universities and research institutes to develop the technology base for industrial end users worldwide for carbon-based chemicals production using hydrogen, green electrons and captured carbon dioxide. New scientific approaches will be pursued to achieve breakthroughs for cost- and energy-efficient sustainable production of fuels and chemicals by identifying, developing and testing improved catalysts, key components such as reactors, electrolysers and innovative approaches for electrified heating. Laboratory work using the latest generation analytical equipment will be combined with techno-economic and lifecycle assessments of a range of technologies to help industry decarbonise.
Marta Costa Figueiredo states: "In HyCARB, we will address some of the most critical challenges of our century in the chemical industry, specifically, how to produce fuels and bulk chemicals sustainably and using green energy sources. The outcomes can significantly contribute to the development of new technologies that will accelerate the energy transition in the carbon-based chemical industry.鈥�
Several researchers from the departments of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering will contribute to this project with their extensive expertise: Marta Costa Figueiredo, Antoni Forner Cuenca, Nikolay Kosinov, Emiel Hensen, Ivo Filot, Martin van Sint Annaland, Fernanda Neira d'Angelo, Fausto Gallucci, Niels Deen, Theo Hofman, and Dongsheng Yang.