Braskem and the University of São Paulo to jointly research CO2 conversion into other chemicals

In Brazil, Braskem and the University of São Paulo (USP) have announced a partnership to develop lines of research for converting CO2 into other chemical products. CO­2 is one of the greenhouse gases and among the biggest contributors to climate change. The project’s mission is to deploy the technologies resulting from these lines of research to reuse CO2 to obtain chemical products such as olefins and alcohols, thus mitigating its emissions into the environment and using it as a raw material for the production of polyolefins.

The partnership with USP, through the Research Center for Greenhouse Gas Innovation (RCGI), which also includes the participation of the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), focuses on studying innovative routes for CO2 conversion through both catalytic and electrocatalytic processes. While in conventional processes in the chemical industry, catalysts (materials that trigger chemical reactions) are thermally activated, electrocatalysis uses electricity to activate them. As such, renewable energy can be used partially or fully for CO2 conversion. 

The project, which started one year ago, considers a total period of five years for developments on a laboratory scale, with the possibility of extension based on the progress of research.

Braskem will contribute with investments and its expertise in industrial processes, and will also monitor and guide the studies. The research groups from USP and UFSCar will coordinate and conduct the studies using state-of-the-art infrastructure at the laboratories and with assistance from multidisciplinary teams consisting of chemists, physicists, and engineers, among others, with various levels of academic qualifications.