Intensification of Catalytic Reactors by Electrification and Solid-State Membrane Integration
Abstract:
Solid-state ionic materials play a crucial role in chemical reactors and energy conversion devices like fuel cells, electrolysis and batteries. Their emerging application in industrial processes is key to reducing CO2 emissions through electrification. Electrochemical solid-electrolyte cells enable catalytic reactor designs that shift chemical equilibria and enhance product separation, improving efficiency. This talk explores electrochemically-driven catalytic reactors based on ceramic ion-conducting cells, where selective electrocatalysts direct reactions toward desired gas products. Protonic membrane reactors, utilizing proton-conducting, facilitate equilibrium-limited reactions involving H2. Beyond equilibrium shifts, additional mechanisms enhance efficiency and stability. Micro-thermal integration optimizes heat distribution across the conductor by coupling exothermic and endothermic reactions. The process electrification by using microwave-driven redox activation of solid-state ionic-conducting materials, as doped CeO2 and ZrO2. These materials can be chemically reduced at unprecedented low temperatures (<220 °C) by the sole application of microwave radiation, leading to an instantaneous outstanding rise in electrical conductivity. The ability of microwave radiation to evolve O2 and transmute the redox catalytic behaviour in oxides can be used in the electrification of several catalytic processes, such as the partial oxidation of methane to produce olefins or syngas, and as a new tool for the formation of catalytic nanoparticles via exsolution. Direct formation of molecular energy carriers, such as H2 and CO, is possible through further reaction of the redox-activated solid material and low-energy molecules via a deoxygenation mechanism.
Bio
Dr. José M. Serra (1976) is a leading Spanish scientist specializing in energy materials and chemical engineering. He became a Full Professor in 2015 and has served as Director of the Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ) since 2022. His career began with a Ph.D. at ITQ under Prof. Avelino Corma, in collaboration with the Institut Français du Pétrole, where he developed tools for combinatorial catalysis and industrial catalyst optimization. His research has since evolved to address decarbonization and energy applications, including reaction kinetics, mass transfer, membranes, and fuel cells. Then, Dr. Serra worked at Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZJ) in Germany, a leading energy research center, where he gained expertise in carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), as well as nano-structured electrocatalysts for solid oxide cells. Upon returning to ITQ, he assumed leadership roles, becoming a key figure in fuel cell research by 2006. He also served as Deputy Coordinator for the Materials Science Program within the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) in 2011, representing the Spanish Research Council (CSIC), and in 2023 became the CSIC national representative in Hydrogen Europe Research. Dr. Serra heads the Energy Conversion and Storage Group at ITQ-UPV and has authored over 230 scientific articles and 30 patents. His innovations have been licensed to companies like AMTECH GmbH, TotalEnergies, and CoorsTek. He also co-founded Kerionics SL, a spin-off focused on solid-oxide technologies for sustainable hydrogen and oxygen production.
Selected Honours and Awards
• UPV Innovation and Research Transference Award (2024)
• Air Liquide Grand Challenge (2019) - Lower-CO2 H2
• Royal Spanish Engineering Academy Medal 2016 (Juan López de Peñalver)
• European Ceramic Society Young Scientist Award (ECerS) in 2015
• Christian Friedrich Schonbein Contribution to Science Medal by the European Fuel Cell Forum (Luzern, Switzerland) in 2009
• Exxon Mobil Chemical European Science and Engineering award (2005)
• Best PhD thesis awarded by the Spanish Catalysis Society (SECAT) in 2005
