The Technology Development Centre of the City of Energy Foundation (CIUDEN) in Cubillos del Sil and the Eurecat technology centre have successfully completed the first phase of a project to develop a pilot plant aimed at using green hydrogen and captured carbon dioxide to produce high-purity methanol more efficiently.
The first phase, with a budget of €218,000, focused on research and the development of advanced chemical technologies, including the design and experimental validation of more efficient reactors and catalysts. The second phase, budgeted at €756,000, will now focus on the procurement and commissioning of the pilot plant.
The initial R&D&I phase took place in Eurecat’s laboratories in Tarragona, while the engineering and validation phase will be carried out at Eurecat’s facilities in Amposta in collaboration with the engineering firm CIRAUQUI. Subsequently, the plant will be moved to CIUDEN’s facilities in Cubillos del Sil (León), where its operation will be verified under continuous, real industrial operating conditions.
According to CIUDEN’s Technical Director for R&D&I, Alberto Gómez-Barea, “once the conceptual design of the reactor type, the installation and the plant performance have been validated, the next step is to carry out the final design of the pilot-scale plant, its construction and commissioning. The plant’s approximate production will be a quarter of a ton per day of methanol with a purity above 90%. This plant will make it possible to fine-tune an advanced technological option for the production of green methanol from green hydrogen and captured CO₂. Ultimately, this project will make a significant contribution to decarbonization solutions for the chemical and energy industries in particular, within the energy transition process, fully aligned with the climate neutrality objectives set out in European and national plans.”
In the second phase of the project, “plant simulation will be launched for its design and sizing, a key step to ensure technical feasibility,” highlights the Eurecat project director and head of the centre’s CO₂ Capture and Conversion Line, Aitor Gual. This process, he explains, “makes it possible to anticipate complexities and minimize risks during construction, ensuring that innovation can be successfully transferred to real-world environments.”
According to Gual, “the design has been conceived by integrating sustainability from the outset of the design phase,” an approach that is “essential to reduce environmental impact and ensure that today’s technological solutions do not become tomorrow’s environmental problems.” This interdisciplinary approach “reflects Eurecat’s working philosophy, where experts from different technologies and sectors collaborate transversally to ensure the success of a benchmark project in the field of industrial decarbonization,” he adds.
Towards a new generation of methanol reactors
The pilot plant will enable emissions to be transformed into resources and will advance the transition towards a clean, zero-emissions industry in key sectors of the economy. The project is funded by Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) with resources from the European Union’s Next Generation program.
The pilot plant for methanol production from green hydrogen and captured CO₂ will enable the development of a new generation of methanol reactors by applying sorption-enhanced conversion through the use of catalysts and sorbents. With this innovative technology for the direct production of 9 kg/h of methanol with a purity above 90%, along with other infrastructures, CIUDEN will be equipped with the necessary capabilities for the synthesis of synthetic fuels (e-fuels).
This initiative is based on a carbon circular economy model, using green hydrogen to convert captured CO₂ into high value-added green methanol. Its contribution to the energy transition is aligned with the climate neutrality objectives established in European and national plans.
In this context, the development of the pilot plant represents a step forward in the real implementation of decarbonization technologies, making it possible for strategic sectors to transform their emissions into high value-added products such as green methanol.
Innovation Partnership: a driving mechanism for scientific and technological knowledge
The project forms part of CIUDEN’s strategy to promote the energy transition towards decarbonization and has been tendered through the Innovation Partnership procurement procedure, aimed at fostering the industrial scalability of scientific and technological knowledge and facilitating its transfer to the market.
This procurement model helps reduce the gap between research and industrial application, boosting the development of transformative solutions that address specific challenges of the low-carbon economy.
