High-Temperature Nanoporous Graphene Membranes for Integrated Haber–Bosch Reactors

Projektbeschreibung

Skalierbare Herstellungsverfahren für effiziente Produktion von grünem Ammoniak entwickeln

Das Haber-Bosch-Verfahren leistet zwar weiterhin durch die Herstellung von Ammoniakdüngern einen Beitrag zur weltweiten Nahrungsmittelversorgung, entwickelt sich aber auch zu einer sauberen Alternative zur Speicherung von grünem Wasserstoff. Es handelt sich dabei jedoch um einen äußerst energieintensiven Prozess, der etwa 2 % der weltweiten Energie verbraucht und zu 1,6 % der weltweiten Emissionen beiträgt. Die Arbeit im Rahmen des innerhalb der Marie-Skłodowska-Curie-Maßnahmen unterstützten Projekts NPG membrane for H-B zielt darauf ab, die industrielle Ammoniakproduktion zu revolutionieren, indem traditionelle, energieintensive Trennverfahren durch hochselektive, thermisch stabile nanoporöse Graphenmembranen ersetzt werden. Mit der direkten Integration dieser Membranen in Haber-Bosch-Reaktoren verfolgt das Projektteam das Ziel, eine nachhaltige, effiziente und kostengünstige Ammoniakproduktion zu realisieren.

Ziel

The Haber–Bosch (H–B) process sustains global food supply through ammonia fertiliser production and is increasingly recognised as a carbon-free energy carrier. However, it operates under harsh conditions (150–300 bar, 400–500 °C), consuming ~2% of global energy and emitting 1.6% of CO2 worldwide. Reducing its energy and carbon footprint remains a major scientific and technological challenge. Integrating membranes directly into the H–B reactor offers a promising route to energy-efficient ammonia production by enabling in-situ ammonia removal, shifting the thermodynamic equilibrium towards higher conversion under milder conditions (30 bar, 350 °C). Nanoporous graphene (NPG) membranes hold great potential for this application: their atomic thickness, tunable Å-scale pores, and pore-edge functionalities allow ultrahigh permeance with strong potential for NH₃ selectivity; while graphene’s intrinsic thermal stability makes them highly promising for high-temperature separations in reactive environments. Yet, the integration of NPG membranes has been hindered by the absence of scalable fabrication of NPG membranes on thermally robust inorganic substrates, and the lack of experimental validation of NH₃ separation under realistic H–B conditions.
The project will (i) develop a scalable method for fabricating NPG membranes on robust mesoporous-SiO2 substrates; (ii) investigate the pore structure, edge functionalisation, and thermal stability of NPG membranes up to 350 °C under reactive atmospheres; and (iii) evaluate their temperature-dependent NH₃ separation performance and demonstrate the first proof-of-concept of an NPG membrane-integrated H–B reactor. Beyond its scientific impact, the fellow will gain cutting-edge expertise in materials chemistry and chemical process engineering, together with transferable skills and networks across academia and industry, consolidating her transition to independence as a future PI in sustainable membrane technologies.