US firm seeks to upscale method of making chems from CO2

By Jessie Waldheim

HOUSTON (ICIS)–US firm Liquid Light has unveiled a catalytic process to make industrial chemicals from carbon dioxide and now will work on scaling the process up to commercial levels, the CEO said on Wednesday.

“We look at something that’s currently a waste as an opportunity,” CEO Kyle Teamey said.

Liquid Light‘s process can create one unit of monoethylene glycol (MEG) out of a unit and a half of carbon dioxide, he said.

At current prices, that can turn about $125 worth of carbon dioxide into 1 tonne of MEG. Other processes require $617-1,113 in feedstocks derived from oil, natural gas or corn, the company estimated.

Licencees using the technology at a 400,000 tonne/year MEG plant could save $250m/year in feedstock costs at today’s prices, Liquid Light said.

The company’s approach will be to partner with chemical makers for which this technology can save costs and help reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

“We’re just looking for win-win opportunities to create chemicals out of carbon dioxide,” Teamey said.

The process is still at a laboratory scale, but it has met targets for cost-advantaged production, including energy needed per unit of output, rate of production, yield and stability of components. Now the focus turns to scaling the process up, Liquid Light said.

Liquid Light will be working over the next few years to create a tonne/day or larger demonstration facility to prove the technology for large-scale commercialisation, Teamey said.

The process uses reaction cells, hydrogenation and purification operations. By adjusting the catalyst, the process can produce a range of chemicals, including propylene, isopropanol, methyl-methacrylate (MMA) and acetic acid, the company said.

In a single reaction step, Liquid Light has been able to produce one-, two-, three- and four-carbon chemicals. With multiple steps, the company has been able to produce up to six-carbon chemicals, Teamey said.

While it has been able to produce MEG, one half of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Liquid Light has not been working yet to create terephthalic acid, an eight-carbon molecule, Teamey said.

Since 2009, the company has developed a broad portfolio of catalysts, including long-lasting varieties that can run continuously for extended times. Liquid Light has now turned its focus on developing large-scale production technology, Teamey said.