Moving ahead from Hydrogen to Methanol Economy: Scope and challenges

Energy is the driver in the economic development of any country. It is expected that the developing countries like India will account for 25% hike in world-wide energy demand by 2040 due to the increase in the per capita income and rapid industrialization. Most of the developing countries do not have sufficient oil reserves and imports nearly all of their crude oil requirement. The perturbations in the crude oil price, sanctions on Iran and adverse environmental impacts from fossil fuel usage are some of the concern. Therefore, developing countries have started investing heavily in solar and wind power and are considering hydrogen as a future energy resource. Hydrogen is possibly the cleanest fuel and produces only water vapour upon combustion. However, to tap the potential of hydrogen as a fuel, an entirely new infrastructure will be needed for transporting, storing and dispensing it safely, which would be expensive. In the transportation sector, a liquid alternate to fossil fuels will be highly desirable as the existing infrastructure can be used with minor modifications. Amongst the possible liquid fuels, methanol is very promising. Methanol is a single carbon atom compound and can be produced from wide variety of sources such as natural gas, coal, and biomass. The properties of methanol are conducive for use in gasoline engines since it has high octane number and flame speed. Other possible uses of methanol are: as a cooking fuel in rural areas, and as a fuel for running the fuel cells. The present study reviews the limitations in the hydrogen economy and why moving towards methanol economy is more beneficial.

Pyroelectric nanoplates for reduction of CO2 to methanol driven by temperature-variation

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a problematic greenhouse gas, although its conversion to alternative fuels represents a promising approach to limit its long-term effects. Here, pyroelectric nanostructured materials are shown to utilize temperature-variations and to reduce CO2 for methanol. Layered perovskite bismuth tungstate nanoplates harvest heat energy from temperature-variation, driving pyroelectric catalytic CO2 reduction for methanol at temperatures between 15 °C and 70 °C. The methanol yield can be as high as 55.0 μmol⋅g−1 after experiencing 20 cycles of temperature-variation. This efficient, cost-effective, and environmental-friendly pyroelectric catalytic CO2 reduction route provides an avenue towards utilizing natural diurnal temperature-variation for future methanol economy.

METHANOL ECONOMY AND NET ZERO EMISSIONS: Critical Analysis of Catalytic Processes, Reactors and Technologies

The overuse of fossil fuels has led to the disruption of balance of the carbon cycle: transportation and electricity generation sectors are the most contributors. Among other greenhouse gases, CO2...

Charting the Metabolic Landscape of the Facultative Methylotroph Bacillus methanolicus

Methanol is inexpensive, is easy to transport, and can be produced both from renewable and from fossil resources without mobilizing arable lands. As such, it is regarded as a potential carbon source to transition toward a greener industrial chemistry. Metabolic engineering of bacteria and yeast able to efficiently consume methanol is expected to provide cell factories that will transform methanol into higher-value chemicals in the so-called methanol economy. Toward that goal, the study of natural methylotrophs such as Bacillus methanolicus is critical to understand the origin of their efficient methylotrophy. This knowledge will then be leveraged to transform such natural strains into new cell factories or to design methylotrophic capability in other strains already used by the industry.

Pyroelectrocatalytic CO2 reduction for methanol driven by temperature-variation

Taking the advantages of pyroelectric nanostructured materials, we use the temperature-variation, a ubiquitous phenomenon in our daily life, to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) for methanol through pyroelectrocatalytic process. Layered-perovskite bismuth tungstate nanoplates harvest heat energy from temperature-variation, driving pyroelectrocatalytic CO2 reduction for methanol at temperatures between 15 °C and 70 °C. The methanol yield can be as high as 55.0 µmol·g−1 after experiencing 20 cycles of temperature-variation. This efficient, cost-effective, and environmental-friendly pyroelectrocatalytic CO2 reduction route provides a new thought towards utilizing natural diurnal temperature-variation for future methanol economy.

Copper–Zirconia Catalysts: Powerful Multifunctional Catalytic Tools to Approach Sustainable Processes

Copper–zirconia catalysts find many applications in different reactions owing to their unique surface properties and relatively easy manufacture. The so-called methanol economy, which includes the CO2 and CO valorization and the hydrogen production, and the emerging (bio)alcohol upgrading via dehydrogenative coupling reaction, are two critical fields for a truly sustainable development in which copper–zirconia has a relevant role. In this review, we provide a systematic view on the factors most impacting the catalytic activity and try to clarify some of the discrepancies that can be found in the literature. We will show that contrarily to the large number of studies focusing on the zirconia crystallographic phase, in the last years, it has turned out that the degree of surface hydroxylation and the copper–zirconia interphase are in fact the two mostly determining factors to be controlled to achieve high catalytic performances.

A Review of The Methanol Economy: The Fuel Cell Route

This review presents methanol as a potential renewable alternative to fossil fuels in the fight against climate change. It explores the renewable ways of obtaining methanol and its use in efficient energy systems for a net zero-emission carbon cycle, with a special focus on fuel cells. It investigates the different parts of the carbon cycle from a methanol and fuel cell perspective. In recent years, the potential for a methanol economy has been shown and there has been significant technological advancement of its renewable production and utilization. Even though its full adoption will require further development, it can be produced from renewable electricity and biomass or CO2 capture and can be used in several industrial sectors, which make it an excellent liquid electrofuel for the transition to a sustainable economy. By converting CO2 into liquid fuels, the harmful effects of CO2 emissions from existing industries that still rely on fossil fuels are reduced. The methanol can then be used both in the energy sector and the chemical industry, and become an all-around substitute for petroleum. The scope of this review is to put together the different aspects of methanol as an energy carrier of the future, with particular focus on its renewable production and its use in high-temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cells (HT-PEMFCs) via methanol steam reforming.

The Connection of the Methanol Economy to the Concept of the Circular Economy and Its Impact on Sustainability

The idea of the circular economy is gaining ground as one of the means to realize a sustainable future. The concept of a circular economy is an innovative alternative model to society‘s current “linear” mode of operation. An alternative to fossil fuels is a cycle in which carbon and methanol play a major role. Carbon use plays a major role in mitigating global climate change, while methanol as a renewable fuel can also mitigate the negative e~ects of climate change and bridge the problems of scarcity of ecosystem resources and rising levels of consumption. Despite the fact that a circular economy reduces the environmental burden while providing business bene˚ts, not all circular solutions have a positive impact on sustainability. The use of CO2 as a feedstock can be a very e~ective tool for reducing global carbon dioxide concentration as well as reducing dependence on fossil fuels. At the same time, the environmental impacts of the technologies developed need to be accounted for in order to highlight that the technology pathway actually contributes to the sustainability goals.