Summary:
Achieving climate neutrality by 2050 requires a rapid paradigm shift towards the implementations of new, climate positive solutions that can boost the European market. Emerging new solutions for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) have great potential to decarbonize production in the chemical industry, while allowing value creation from parts of its own carbon emissions.
In this context, the PYROCO2 project will demonstrate the scalability and economic viability of carbon capture and utilization (CCU) to make climate-positive acetone out of industrial CO2 and renewable electricity derived hydrogen. Core of the technology is an energy-efficient thermophilic microbial bioprocess that is projected towards significant CO2 reductions by 2050. The acetone produced by the PYROCO2 process will be demonstrated as an ideal platform for the catalytic synthesis of a range of chemicals, synthetic fuels, and recyclable polymer materials from CO2, generating a portfolio of viable business cases and pre-developed processes for replication and commercialization.
The PYROCO2 demonstrator plant will be able to produce up to 4,000 tonnes acetone annually from 9,100 tonnes of industrial CO2 and green hydrogen. It will be located at the industrial cluster of Herøya Industrial Park in southern Norway, a strategic placement that guarantees access to industrial CO2 feedstock and green energy at a competitive price and connects several carbon-intensive industries with chemical production through industrial symbiosis.
From here, the PYROCO2 project will represent a key driver for the emergence of CCU Hubs across Europe. Besides the large-scale demonstration and full financial, regulatory, and environmental assessment of the PYROCO2 technology, the project will explore the sphere of public acceptance and market exploitation to further encourage the emergence of the CCU market.
Objectives:
The PYROCO2 project will demonstrate the scalability and economic viability of carbon capture and utilization (CCU) to make climate-positive acetone, a platform chemical for many other chemicals, fuel additives, and materials. This will be realized by achieving the following specific objectives:
To design and build a demonstrator-scale chemical production plant based on industrial symbiosis that clearly shows new options for European carbon-intensive industries to create value from CO2 while reducing emissions.
To demonstrate large-scale industrial feasibility of thermophilic microbial gas fermentation to produce up to 4,000 t/a acetone from CO2 and renewable electricity as a platform for its further chemo-catalytic upgrading into a range of other commodity chemicals and materials.
To establish and promote the new chemical production platform as a more sustainable and economically viable alternative to existing fossil-feedstock based production of acetone and derivable products.
To create synergies with a wide spectrum of existing and future projects and initiatives of relevance for the Green Transition in Europe, including existing efforts for the emergence of CCUS hubs, related CCUS solutions, renewable energy, and hydrogen.
To become a key driver for the emergence of CCU Hubs across Europe so that the European chemical industry can lead the ongoing low-carbon and circular economy transitions and ensure that investment and policy needs are met to jointly build a greener and prosperous future in Europe.
