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The University of Houston and SRI have been awarded $3.6 million by the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy to develop a microreactor aimed at converting carbon dioxide into methanol using renewable energy. The project, named "Printed Microreactor for Renewable Energy Enabled Fuel Production" or PRIME-Fuel, is part of ARPA-E’s GREENWELLS program which supports technologies that use renewable energy sources like wind and solar to produce sustainable liquid fuels.
Key contributors to this initiative include Rahul Pandey from SRI and Praveen Bollini from the University of Houston's chemical engineering faculty. "Renewables-to-liquids fuel production has the potential to boost the utility of renewable energy all while helping to lay the groundwork for the Biden-Harris Administration’s goals of creating a clean energy economy," said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm in an ARPA-E press release.
The PRIME-Fuel project aims to lower production costs of low-carbon fuels by utilizing cheaper electricity from renewable sources, providing smaller communities with opportunities for affordable long-term energy storage solutions. "We believe that PRIME-Fuel will play a critical role in the transition to sustainable energy solutions," stated Pandey.
Faculty members Vemuri Balakotaiah and Praveen Bollini are co-investigators on this project, leveraging their expertise in mathematical modeling and catalyst development respectively. Pandey, who graduated from UH in 2015, emphasized his connection with UH's chemical engineering program as pivotal in forming this collaboration.
Methanol produced sustainably can replace fossil fuels across various applications and serve as a valuable chemical feedstock. Bollini remarked on its significance: “Methanol is a platform chemical, meaning a lot of the chemicals and products you see in your everyday life could actually be produced starting from methanol.”
The technology behind PRIME-Fuel includes advanced mathematical modeling and Co-Extrusion printing technology developed by SRI. This ensures continuous methanol production even with reduced renewable energy supply, optimizing output through advanced control algorithms.
“Right now, we are aiming to produce methanol, but this technology can actually be applied to a much broader set of energy carriers and chemicals,” noted Pandey regarding future possibilities.
Balakotaiah will employ mathematical models for designing microreactors while Bollini focuses on enhancing catalytic processes essential for carbon dioxide conversion into methanol.