ERC: Electroreduction of Carbon Dioxide

In November 2007, Mantra acquired its flagship technology, a chemical process developed at the University of British Columbia’s Clean Energy Research Center. The reactor at the heart of the process, referred to as the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide, or ERC, has been successfully proven through small scale prototype trials. ERC offers an innovative solution to reduce the impact of carbon dioxide (CO2) on Earth’s environment by converting CO2 into materials with a broad range of commercial applications, including a fuel for a next generation of fuel cells.

Powered by electricity, the ERC process combines captured carbon dioxide with water to produce high value materials, such as formic acid, formate salts, ammonium formate, oxalic acid and methanol, that are conventionally obtained from the thermochemical processing of fossil fuels. However, ERC has an advantage over the established thermochemical methods for converting carbon dioxide to liquid fuels. While thermochemical reactions must be driven at relatively high temperatures that are normally obtained by burning fossil fuels, ERC operates at near ambient conditions and is driven by electric energy that can be taken from an electric power grid supplied by hydro, wind, solar or nuclear energy.

In fuel cells liquid fuels are indirectly combined with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and water, while generating electricity. This process is known as electro-oxidation. The complimentary nature of ERC and electro-oxidation makes it possible to use ERC in a regenerative fuel cell cycle, where carbon dioxide is converted to a fuel that is consumed in a fuel cell to regenerate carbon dioxide. As shown in the figure, the net energy input required in this cycle could be supplied from a renewable or non-fossil fuel source.