(CONNCET) Researchers from the Materials for Energy Conversion laboratory at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) in Dübendorf in the canton of Zurich are working on the development of an electrolysis process that enables the production of ethylene on the basis of carbon dioxide emissions, as detailed in a statement. The research is being conducted as part of the EU-funded REACT (Renewable Electrochemical Advanced Conversion of CO2 to Target products) project. Under the aegis of Horizon Europe, the program is running for 48 months, from May 2026 to April 2030.
“The goal of the REACT project is to create a working prototype electrolyser for the CO2 to ethylene conversion, bringing it to a much higher technology readiness level”, as Corsin Battaglia, head of the Materials for Energy Conversion lab at Empa, explains in the statement. In its work, the research group focuses on recycling carbon dioxide from sectors where emissions are difficult to abate, such as the steel, cement and chemical industries. Empa employs a tandem electrochemical process that allows low-purity carbon dioxide to be converted into valuable chemical products without costly pretreatment. This process is powered by renewable energy. Among other aspects, the researchers are investigating the impact of impurities on the lifespan of the catalysts used in the electrolyzer. To this end, they use a parallel CO2 electrolysis reactor, which was actually developed at Empa.
REACT aims to advance circular carbon value chains. “What we learn and develop during REACT will also help advance other CO2 conversion technologies, for example into synthetic fuels”, Battaglia states. ce/ww