Electrochemical Approach for CO2 Management

The ocean is one of the largest reservoirs for CO2 capture and storage. Enhancing its CO2 capture capacity without causing acidification requires increasing both alkalinity and the concentration of alkaline earth metal ions.

Electrochemical production of acidic and basic solutions offers a promising route to reduce the CO2 footprint of manufacturing processes related to ocean alkalinity enhancement. However, this approach is still in its infancy. Improving the efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and durability is necessary for this process and demands interdisciplinary collaboration across chemistry, engineering, and materials science.

This project will investigate the design and synthesis of membrane materials, as well as the engineering of electrochemical devices, to enable continuous electrochemical production of acidic and basic solutions. The overarching goal is to establish a closed-loop system that converts minerals into solid bases for sustainable, ocean-based CO₂ capture.