Carbon Utilization

Carbon dioxide is a byproduct of numerous industrial processes, from cement and steel production to chemical manufacturing and power generation. Often, this byproduct is released to the environment and not efficiently captured, leading to waste. Effective carbon utilization technologies can help industries effectively operate and manage this byproduct, providing pathways to repurpose this carbon and benefiting sectors that are difficult to fully electrify.

RASEI researchers are developing new approaches to carbon utilization across multiple technologies. Work includes bio-catalytic systems that harness natural organisms' carbon-processing capabilities, electrocatalytic methods that use electricity to drive carbon utilization reactions, chemical recycling of hydrocarbons in plastics, and monitoring and tracking how carbon travels through the environment. 

By working across disciplines and scales, RASEI teams aim to develop carbon utilization technologies that are energy-efficient, cost-effective, and practical for real-world deployment in industrial settings.