The foundation stone of India’s first-of-its-kind CO2-to-Methanol pilot plant has been laid at Thermax Ltd.’s Research, Technology, and Innovation Center (RTIC) in Pune. Supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, the pioneering project holds national significance as it aims to demonstrate CO2 capture and utilization (CCU) technologies, playing a crucial role in India’s journey towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions.
The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) and Thermax Ltd. will collaborate to develop the CCU technology. The plant with an overall capacity of 1.4 Tons Per Day (TPD) has been designed considering CO2 emissions from a diverse range of sources, including power plants, cement and steel plants, fertiliser plants, and refineries.
A team of faculty members from the Department of Chemical Engineering at IIT Delhi will carry out the project-aligned R&D work, complementing the pilot plant activities and engaging in R&D for future developments.
The RTIC team at Thermax will scale up the laboratory-developed processes and demonstrate the technology at the pilot plant scale. This plant aims to leverage the industry-academia partnership, with novel products and processes evaluated in an industrial setting and feedback used for further optimization.
Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST, who virtually laid the foundation stone of the pilot plant on September 14, 2024, highlighted the project’s role in showcasing the development of indigenous technologies through a public-private partnership (PPP) model.
