AGC Begins Research On Ethylene Production Using CO₂ As Raw Material

Promoting Research on CCU Technology to Achieve “Carbon Net Zero”

AGC (AGC Inc., Headquarters: Tokyo; President: Yoshinori Hirai), a world-leading manufacturer of glass, chemicals and other high-tech materials, has agreed to a joint research contract with Canada-based climate tech startup company, CERT Systems Inc. (hereafter CERT) to conduct research on the production of ethylene using CO₂ as a raw material through electrolysis technology. In this joint research, the AGC Group will begin examining the introduction of CCU technology in order to replace ethylene, which is used as a raw material for products such as polyvinyl chloride and fluoropolymer resin, with ethylene derived from CO₂.

As an innovative technology for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, CO₂ capture and utilization (CCU^*1) technology has been attracting attention in recent years. Three main reaction methods for producing CO₂-derived ethylene are being considered: hydrogen-based reactions, electrolysis reactions, and photosynthesis-based reactions. In particular, the electrolysis method, which is the subject of this study, is attracting a great deal of attention worldwide due to the high convenience of its raw materials, which are renewable energy-derived electricity and water, in addition to CO₂.

In this joint research, CERT and the AGC Group will leverage the knowledge gained from CERT’s successful pilot demonstration experiment in 2020, which was the world’s first^*2 to produce ethylene from industrial emissions using CO₂ electrolysis technology, and will conduct research towards the practical application of CO₂ electrolysis plants. The AGC Group plans to work with its manufacturing bases to verify the process and assess the feasibility of this technology.

In its medium-term management plan, AGC plus-2026 , the AGC Group has set “promotion of sustainability management” as one of its main strategies, and has set a target of achieving “carbon net zero^*3” by 2050. Through this joint research, the AGC Group aims to achieve CCU technology using CO₂ electrolysis.

^*1 Carbon dioxide Capture and Utilization

^*2 Estimated by CERT

^*3 Scope 1 + 2