(Invited) Commercialization of CO2 Electrolysis

The atmospheric accumulation of greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide (CO2) is the primary cause of global climate irregularities. Over three trillion tons of greenhouse gasses have been emitted since the start of the industrial revolution, and natural disasters such as heatwaves, wildfires, and hurricanes have only increased in regularity. Decarbonization has become an important strategic priority for nations and industries worldwide. Numerous technologies have been developed to capture and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. However, most of these approaches do not address the ubiquitous demand for fossil fuel derivatives and their associated petroleum-based infrastructure, nor are these approaches capable of extracting value from the captured CO2. Our company, Twelve, is developing a highly efficient and scalable electrochemical reactor that converts CO2 into valuable building blocks for chemicals and fuels such as carbon monoxide (CO). The resulting CO can be blended with green hydrogen from water electrolyzers to form syngas, enabling an ultra-low carbon pathway to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) via the Fischer-Tropsch process. Twelve has previously produced SAF for the Air Force, where we demonstrated the first ever SAF pathway based on CO2 electrolysis. Beyond SAF, Twelve has completed commercial projects for chemicals and materials made from CO2 with global brands that include Procter & Gamble and Mercedes Benz. At scale, this technology can enable a closed loop ecosystem wherein CO2, water, and electricity are converted into manufacturing inputs that are currently derived from fossil fuels. We are presently translating the performance of our lab-scale prototypes to the industrial scale, focusing on SAF as our beachhead market. In this talk, Twelve’s CO2 electrolysis technology will be used as a model to describe the commercialization challenges and market opportunities of industrial CO2 electrolysis. Key performance metrics and areas of active collaborative research between Twelve and academic institutions will be discussed. Finally, commercial demonstrations of our technology in the automobile, aviation, consumer chemicals, and apparel industries, as well as our company’s long-term vision and goals will be presented.