Electrochemical Opportunities for Sustainable Chemical Synthesis

Ongoing changes in fuel and chemical feedstocks as well as the need for more sustainable practices are challenges that demand radical changes to some well-established processes. Among these challenges are those driven by more diffuse resources and lower-grade feedstocks (both conventional and renewable). Both short and long-term research and technology goals present many fascinating science problems for chemists to contribute to. There is a substantial opportunity to innovate in this landscape driven by advances in new catalysts and new engineering of intensified and modular chemical manufacturing practices. The growing availability of renewable electrochemical energy and associated challenges of pure electrical storage (i.e. batteries) leads to the possibility of excess electrical energy as a feedstock to replace heat as part or all the driving force for chemical transformations. Furthermore, electrocatalysis provides another ‘knob’ by which reactivity can be tuned when conducted in concert with control over other reaction variables.

This talk will outline some of the evolving boundary conditions that we believe define new research space for incorporation of electrocatalysis for the conversion of light hydrocarbons (e.g. methane, ethane, propane). The use of electrical energy to drive various reaction processes can maximize system flexibility and use of renewable electricity can offset CO2 emissions in several scenarios. The potential for electrochemically driven alkane conversion will be illustrated by discussing the challenges we have overcome in integrating propane dehydrogenation catalysts into electrochemically driven systems. These include catalyst performance and selectivity, coking resistance, longevity, catalyst compatibility with electrodes, and integration onto electrode materials. While many of the challenges are similar to conventional thermal catalysis, the complexity of electrochemical systems provides unique opportunities along with the challenges. Finally, the outlook for other challenging reactions such as nonoxidative methane coupling will be discussed.