Descripción del proyecto
La producción de combustible mira al Sol
El Sol está creando nuevas oportunidades para utilizar el gas de efecto invernadero CO2 en el desarrollo de combustibles como el etanol o el etileno. El proceso es fundamental para acelerar la descarbonización de la industria del transporte y frenar el cambio climático. Con esta idea, en el proyecto SOREC2, financiado con fondos europeos, se aunarán conocimientos sobre el diseño de estructuras fotónicas y la catálisis para garantizar una captación óptima de la luz solar. El equipo de SOREC2 desarrollará un nuevo sistema basado en nanoconfiguraciones que atrapan la luz. Permitirá perfeccionar la energía potencial necesaria para las reacciones de reducción. En el proyecto también se identificarán los obstáculos no técnicos (políticos, económicos y sociales) que pueda encontrar y se comprometerá a las partes interesadas y a los ciudadanos en el camino hacia su comercialización.
Objetivo
SOREC2 aims at developing a breakthrough technology for a direct transformation of sunlight and CO2 into chemicals, such as ethanol or ethylene, for a safe energy storage. SOREC2 brings expertise in photonic structure design (for optimal sunlight harvesting) together with expertise in catalysis (to reduce CO2 into products that can store chemical energy or with a high economical interest). On the light harvesting side, ICFO will develop a system composed of three complementary light-absorbing elements in order to obtain the largest possible broadband sunlight harvesting. This system will rely on newly developed light trapping nano-configurations and will enable fine tuning of the potential energy needed for the reduction reactions via an innovative arrangement of the low, middle and high bandgap materials. CALTECH will develop a hybrid catalyst system, exploiting a novel combination of CO2 reduction catalysts with a redox/proton mediator to lower overpotentials and enhance selectivity towards C2 products such as ethanol or ethylene. For the photoanode, where the chemistry and the optics in a photoelectrochemical cell (PEC) are interwoven, UAB and ICFO will design a multilayer configuration to achieve an optimal electro-chemistry, while not undermining the optical performance of such PEC. To ensure a transformation of the scientific research into a technology breakthrough with substantial economical and societal impacts, SOREC2 incorporates UNIFE to define the PEC upscaling roadmap and the companies GEM, SAULE, and VITSOLC for the creation of new markets. Finally, to identify non-technical barriers (such as political, economic, and societal) that SOREC2 may encounter, and to engage relevant stakeholders and citizens on the route towards market uptake, SOREC2 incorporates DBT, a non-profit organization whose mission is to ensure that technology development is shaped and informed by cooperation between citizens, experts, stakeholders, and decision-makers.
Ámbito científico
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsrenewable energysolar energy
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesoptics
- natural scienceschemical sciencesorganic chemistryalcohols
- natural scienceschemical sciencescatalysis
- natural scienceschemical sciencesorganic chemistryaliphatic compounds
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Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
HORIZON-RIA - HORIZON Research and Innovation ActionsCoordinador
08860 Castelldefels
España