Two-Step Conversion of CO2 to Light Olefins: Laboratory-Scale Demonstration and Scale-Up Considerations
Open accessAbstract
The highly selective production of light olefins from CO2 was demonstrated for the first time with a laboratory-scale process comprising consecutive reverse water gas shift (RWGS) and Fischer–Tropsch (FT) reactors. The RWGS reaction, catalyzed by rhodium washcoated catalyst at 850 °C yielded good quality syngas with conversion values close to the thermodynamic equilibrium and without experiencing catalyst deactivation from carbon formation or sintering. For the FT synthesis, a packed bed Fe-Na-S/α-Al2O3 catalyst was used. The highest light olefin selectivity observed for the FT-synthesis was 52% at 310 °C, GHSV of 2250 h−1 and H2/CO ratio of 1. However, the optimal conditions for the light olefin production were determined to be at 340 °C, a GHSV of 3400 h−1 and a H2/CO ratio of 2, as the CO conversion was markedly higher, while the light olefin selectivity remained at a suitably high level. In addition to the experimental results, considerations for the further optimization and development of the system are presented. The combined RWGS–FT process seems to work reasonably well, and initial data for basic process design and modeling were produced.
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Conversion of CO2 to liquid fuels can occur via one-step (direct CO2 hydrogenation) or two-step processes; the latter typically involve an intermediate reverse water-gas shift to produce CO, which is then hydrogenated in a subsequent step like Fischer-Tropsch synthesis.
“The conversion of CO 2 to liquid fuels can occur via one-step (direct CO 2 hydrogenation) or two-step processes [286,287]; the latter typically involve an intermediate reaction such as the reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) expressed by Equation (4) to produce CO, which is then hydrogenated in a subsequent step like F-T synthesis [288,289].”
From Biofuels, E-Fuels, and Waste-Derived Fuels: Advances, Challenges, and Future Directions (2025) · cites this paper as [289]
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Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredA critical factor for the efficiency of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis coupled with an RWGS reactor is the precise management of the H2/CO ratio in the syngas and effective process integration.
“A critical factor for the efficiency of F-T synthesis coupled with an RWGS reactor is the precise management of the H 2 /CO ratio in the syngas and effective process integration [288,289].”
From Biofuels, E-Fuels, and Waste-Derived Fuels: Advances, Challenges, and Future Directions (2025) · cites this paper as [289]
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Biofuels, E-Fuels, and Waste-Derived Fuels: Advances, Challenges, and Future Directions
Yılbaşı, Z. (2025) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su17136145 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
- Authors
- Reinikainen, M., Braunschweiler, A., Korpilo, S., Simell, P., & Alopaeus, V.
- Affiliations
- VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (FI)
- Aalto University (FI)
- Corresponding author
- Reinikainen, Matti
- Venue
- ChemEngineering
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2022-12-06
- Volume
- 6
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 96
- ISSN
- 2305-7084 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4311808983
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 55
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 4 · 2023: 1
- FWCI
- 0.23
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- ChemEngineering (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Aaltodoc (Aalto University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- Business Finland (3834/31/2019)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Chemical Engineering › Catalysis › Catalysts for Methane Reforming
- Physical Sciences › Energy › Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment › CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
- Physical Sciences › Chemical Engineering › Process Chemistry and Technology › Carbon dioxide utilization in catalysis
- Keywords
- CO2 conversion, light olefins, reverse water-gas shift reaction, Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, syngas production, rhodium catalysts, two-stage process, scale-up, process design, process modeling, H2/CO ratio, catalyst deactivation
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