Production of Carbon Monoxide

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This invention describes a method and apparatus for producing carbon monoxide (CO) from carbon dioxide (CO2) via electrolysis. The core innovation is that before electrolysis, the CO2-containing feed gas is humidified with water, resulting in a significant increase in the efficiency of the process. The humidified gas is then sent to a high-temperature electrolytic cell where CO is generated. The process can recover waste heat and optimize water content for maximum yield.

Use CasesContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Production of carbon monoxide as an industrial feedstock for chemicals such as methanol, formaldehyde, and synthetic fuels
• Integration into power-to-X systems to convert renewable electricity and captured CO2 into valuable chemicals
• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by converting CO2 from flue gases or other industrial processes into useful CO
• Production of syngas (CO and H2) for petrochemical and energy industries
• Decentralized or modular CO production units using captured CO2 from local sources

BenefitsContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Higher efficiency for CO production compared to existing CO2 electrolysis methods
• Utilizes captured CO2, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address climate change
• Enables recycling of industrial CO2 emissions into valuable chemicals and fuels
• Facilitates integration with renewable energy sources for sustainable chemical production (power-to-X)
• Optimized water content reduces unwanted byproducts and increases CO yield
• Heat recovery options further improve energy efficiency of the process
• Potentially simplifies purification of product streams by design

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Inventors & Applicants

Patent Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing carbon monoxide, comprising the following steps: a) humidifying an educt gas containing carbon dioxide with water; b) supplying the humidified educt gas from step a) into an electrolytic cell (1); and c) electrolysing the humidified educt gas supplied according to step b) in the electrolytic cell (1) such that the carbon monoxide is obtained. With the described method and with the described device (12), carbon monoxide can be produced via CO2 electrolysis with particularly high efficiency. This is achieved with the educt gas containing carbon dioxide being humidified before the electrolysis.