About

Heavy industries, such as steel production and cement manufacturing, emit very large quantities of CO2, contributing significantly to the GH effect and the resulting climate change. To reduce such GHG emissions, energy and process raw materials should be based on affordable and clean, CO2-free H2. Electrolytic H2 is difficult to be produced at the very large quantities required and certainly it is very expensive. Catalytic pyrolysis of methane (natural gas) can produce CO2-free H2 at very large quantities and at a low cost because of the co-current production of high quality carbon materials of high commercial value which offsets part or all of the cost of H2 production. The same process can be used to produce clean H2 for energy production for energy-intensive activities, such as data centers, transportation, AI, ammonia and methanol production, etc. and carbon materials for manufacture of electrodes, bateries, fuel cells, tires, composite materials, etc.

Solution & Product

Goal of CPTech is to commercialize an innovative process for the catalytic pyrolysis of methane (natural gas or biogas), producing H2 of zero or negative CO2 emissions and high quality carbon materials of significant commercial value. CPtech has developed a pyrolysis process which utilizes waste materials from the iron and steel industry as pyrolysis catalysts. From the economic point of view, the near-zero cost of the catalyst results in substantial reduction of the H2 production cost (by about 30%) due to the fact that the catalyst is rapidly deactivated because of the accumulation of carbon. The spent catalytic material is recycled back to the steel manufacturing process, contributing to environmental benefits and to the circular economy. Most importantly, the economic benefits of the produced carbon offset significantly the cost of H2 production, to the level of it being negative, under certain circumstances.

Innovation & Scalability

The technology which is being developed by CPTech offers two technical advantages which result in H2 and carbon production at significantly (> 30%) reduced cost. Primary advantage is the use of zero value waste materials as catalysts for the process. These waste materials are primarily mill scales produced in the process of steel manufacture.They consist almost exclusively of iron and are used as received. Since the iron is magnetic, the separation of the spent catalyst from the produced carbon is easy. Because the catalyst is deactivated rapidly during the pyrolysis process, the quantities of catalyst required per unit mass of H2 produced are high and, as a result, the relative cost of the catalyst in the operating cost of the process is significant. A second advantge of the CPTech pyrolysis process is the use of an electrochemical devise for the separation and compression of H2, instead of the clasical separation devise which is the Pressure Swing Adsorption. The electrochemical devise, developed within the framework of an ESA sponsored project, offers economic advantages, primarily in H2 compression and subsequent storage.

Traction & achievements

The following have been achieved over the past two years: Various waste materials from the metallurgical industries have been tested under conditions of methane pyrolysis. Two international patents have been submitted and both have been approved in the U.S.A., while they are pending in other countries such as Europe, China, India and Japan. The best catalytic material has been identified and the optimal process conditions have also been identified. An advanced reactor for carrying out the pyrolysis reaction has been designed and is in the process of being constructed. The process flow diagram and process and instrumentation diagram have been finalized in an optimized form. The electrochemical devise for hydrogen separation and compression has been tested. The separation of the produced carbon from spent catalyst is being investigated using magnetic and ultrasonic concepts.

Team & Why Us

The team of CPTech consists of: The invenors of the technology, Prof. Xenophon Verykios and Dr. Stylianos Neophytides. Dr. Verykios has long experience in the field of hydrogen production by catalytic processes and is the founder of HELBIO S.A. (currently Metacon S.A.) which is listed in the First Nasdaq Nord. Dr. Neophytides is Research Director at ICEHT/FORTH. He is experienced in catalytic and electrocatalytic processes and fuel cells. He is one of the founders of Advent Tecnologies, listed at the Nasdaq stock exchange. The team also includes: Melissa Verykiou, holder of MBA and past chairperson of the board of Green Hydrogen Partnership of Hydrogen Europe. Very experienced in development and business issues of renewable energies, especially H2. Leonidas Carellis, Mechanical Engineer with vast experience in design and construction of units for H2 production. Other members are Dr. Ramandani and Ch. Neophytides, both Chemical Engineers, and F. Tasoulas, Metallurgical Engineer.

Funding Needs

The next step in the development of the process and technology for catalytic pyrolysis of methane is to build a pilot plant producing approximately 3 kg of H2 per hour.Funding needs for the design, constructiuon and operation of the pilot plant are approximately 1 MEuro.