Press releases

Carbon dioxide as an inert molecule needs an energy source, as hydrogen and appropriate catalysts to be converted into the targeted product. Today, long established processes for fossil carbon processing as Fischer-Tropsch for syngas production, as well as direct CO₂ hydrogenation for methane and methanol synthesis are at commercial scale for CO₂-based fuels and chemical production. CO₂-based methanol and CO₂-based hydrocarbons have a current total production capacity of ca. 1.3 Mt/a and are expected to strongly increase by 2027. Besides these chemical conversion processes, also the use of biotechnological systems have established itself as promising and relevant technologies for CO₂ conversions. Big installations are also already in place in China to biotechnologically produce ethanol using emissions from the steel industry – and aiming to increase.