Grant: Alliance Grants

Ethylene, a fundamental chemical feedstock used for many consumer goods, including plastics, cosmetics, and textiles, is currently produced through petrochemical processes with an emission intensity of 1.5 tonnes of CO2-equivalent per tonne of ethylene. Direct electrochemical reduction of CO2 into ethylene, using renewable electricity, offers a means to avoid these emissions. This CO2 to ethylene project aims to address prior technological shortcomings in energy efficiency and stability while systematically studying the impact of scaling to further de-risk the path to industrial application and foster fundamental innovation. This collaborative effort brings together multidisciplinary expertise from the University of Toronto, Queen's University, Canadian clean tech innovator Ionomr Innovations, and global industrial partner TotalEnergies to address these challenges. The team aims to bridge knowledge gaps by further advancing CO2 to ethylene conversion with improvements at both the catalyst and system levels, implementing these improvements at scales relevant to industrial applications. The team will focus on reducing system energy input and improving stability - both are critical to industrial application of this approach. A membrane is at the heart of these systems and critical to this project are the contributions of Vancouver-based membrane material innovator Ionomr. In partnership with TotalEnergies and Ionomr Innovations, we will derisk this technology and prepare it for industrial-scale demonstration and, in so doing, develop a market for made-in-Canada membranes and systems, purpose-built for electrochemical CO2 to ethylene conversion.