Are We Chasing After Windmills? Barriers to Carbon Dioxide Utilization.

Area of Science:

• Chemical Engineering
• Environmental Science
• Energy Policy

Background:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2) conversion into valuable fuels and chemicals demands substantial energy for bond manipulation.
• Significant energy and capital investments are required to overcome the inherent stability of CO2's C-O bonds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the energy and capital barriers associated with CO2 utilization.
• To compare the economic viability and efficiency of CO2 electroreduction for ethylene production against alternative decarbonization strategies.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of CO2 electroreduction with other carbon mitigation options.
• Case study focusing on ethylene production.
• Economic assessment of energy and capital resource allocation for decarbonization pathways.

Main Results:

• CO2 electroreduction faces considerable energy and capital hurdles.
• Alternative decarbonization strategies, such as carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), demonstrate higher mitigation efficiencies.
• The economic principle of opportunity cost highlights the significant implications of resource allocation choices.

Conclusions:

• Society should prioritize decarbonization methods with higher mitigation efficiencies and better capital efficiency.
• Carbon capture and sequestration, advanced process/catalyst technologies, and efficient hydrogen production are more effective uses of limited resources than CO2 electroreduction for fuels.
• Strategic allocation of energy and capital resources is crucial for impactful climate change mitigation.