Electrochemical CO2 Conversion with Packed Bed Membraneless Electrolyzers

Monday, 10 October 2022: 13:40
Room 215 (The Hilton Atlanta)
X. Pang (Columbia University), S. Verma, C. Liu (Shell International Exploration and Production Inc.), and D. V. Esposito (Columbia University)
(Bi)carbonate electrolysis offers an attractive opportunity for integrated carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and conversion whereby a carbonate-laden aqueous capture solution can be directly fed to an electrolyzer before being recycled to the CO2 capture unit(s). Among the previous studies that have demonstrated the viability of (bi)carbonate electrolysis, bipolar membranes are commonly used to deliver protons to the cathode where they convert (bi)carbonate into CO2 that is subsequently reduced at the cathode. However, these membranes can be susceptible to fouling or degradation, which may lead to device failure. Here, we present a scalable and potentially low-cost packed bed membraneless electrolyzer (PBME) concept for the conversion of bicarbonate into CO based on train of porous flow-through electrodes. At the anode, hydrogen oxidation reaction is used to produce protons, which rapidly react with bicarbonate to generate CO2 for electrochemical CO2 reduction at the downstream cathode in this membrane-free electrolyzer design. This study highlights the ability of the PBME design to minimize the magnitude of pH swings within the electrolyzer and enable high CO2 utilization rates. Tests of multi-cell PBMEs show enhanced performance compared to single-cell PBMEs and demonstrate the scalability of this PBME design.