The NSF Sustainable Energy pathways (SEP) Program, under the umbrella of the NSF Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability (SEES) initiative, will support the research program of Prof. Stuart Licht and co-workers at the George Washington University to develop a new method for the co-synthesis of cement and fuels. To produce cement in a green electrochemical process, "solar cement," the research team will take advantage of the unexpected low solubility of lime in carbonate molten salts, and form cement without any CO2 emission. The latter co-product, when combined with a parallel process for solar hydrogen generation, will be used to form syngas fuels. The objectives of the project are: (i) fundamental reaction optimization of the co-generation of cement and fuels, (ii) studying geological resource availability/non-carbonate mineral effects for solar cement, (iii) behavioral study of a paradigm shift to a green technology, (iv) life cycle assessment, (v) component and system modeling, and (vi) solar cement outdoor optimization. The research program will be conducted in George Washington University's state-of-the-art solar/electrochemical research laboratories, and modelled with our on-site NSF supercomputer "George." The cement will be produced at 50% solar energy conversion efficiency. Marketable graphite and carbon monoxide products will be co-produced. This could potentially decrease the cost of solar cement to below that of conventional cement.
The project combines advance the topical areas of (i) Energy Harvesting (ii) Energy Storage, (iii) Critical Materials for Sustainable Energy (iv) Reducing Carbon Intensity by combining George Washington University expertise in solar chemistry (Licht), life cycle assessment (LaPuma), computational science (El-Ghazawi), sociology/cinematography (McCormick) and geochemistry (Teng). This research project will advance a new solar synthesis process, which can yield 30-50% solar chemical energy conversion efficiencies, and store this energy as transportable, energetic chemicals. This represents a paradigm shift over existing processes to distribute electricity and convert solar energy. The project will expedite a path to bring forward a transformative process for green production of the staple, cement and eliminate a major source of anthropogenic atmospheric CO2. After power production, cement production is the largest single contributor to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Solar cement can produce lime at less cost than that of conventional industry cement processes and without CO2 emission. Videos will be produced to expedite this green shift in the cement industry. Videos will contrast the traditional scientific process of cement production with the proposed innovations and communicate the science and potential impacts of the new solar synthesis process for general consumption. The project will contribute to training the next diverse generation of renewable energy scientists. Two postdoctoral fellows, as well as 4 graduate and 10 undergraduate students will be trained in state-of-the-art electrochemistry, renewable energy and CO2-free industrial processes. The project will expand the knowledge base of energy conversion as a path towards a "Sustainable Chemical Economy."
The cement industry releases 9 lbs of CO2 for each 10 lbs of cement produced. Today cement production accounts for 5-6% of all anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. An alternative to this CO2 intensive process is needed and has been introduced by researchers at the George Washington University. Rising carbon dioxide levels, and the associated climate consequences, provide one the most daunting challenges of our time. If successful, this four year NSF funded research program will produce cement and fuels in a green electrochemical solar process without any CO2 emission.
