SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (President and Representative Director: Keita Kato; “SEKISUI CHEMICAL”) and TOKAI CARBON CO., LTD. (President and Chief Executive Officer: Hajime Nagasaka; "TOKAI CARBON") have entered into a partnership for a practical application of the technology for manufacturing various carbon materials and products (Carbon Capture and Utilization technology, "CCU") and technology for capturing and storing carbon dioxide (CO₂) as solid carbon (Carbon Capture and Storage technology, "CCS") using carbon monoxide (CO) produced by technology that efficiently convert CO₂ into CO ("chemical looping reaction technology") on April 18.
  The realization of this scheme provides a new method of CCS, reduce dependence on fossil resources and contribute to the de-carbonization in producing various carbon products.

1．Background

   As climate change issues become more serious, there is a worldwide need to drastically reduce CO₂, a greenhouse gas. In this context, CCU, which converts CO₂ into fuels and chemical products, and CCS, which captures and stores CO₂, are gathering attention as technologies that can reduce CO₂ emissions.
  Carbon products are materials that enrich daily life, used in a variety of applications such as automobiles, construction, machinery, and electronic components. However, most of the raw materials in carbon products are fossil-derived substances, and large amounts of CO₂ are emitted during the manufacturing process, making greening a major issue. There are already technologies that directly convert CO₂ into carbon, but their conversion efficiency is low, and thus further technological development is required to achieve CCU.
  In addition, current CCS methods generally store CO₂ directly in the ground or on the seafloor, but this storage method requires pressure, which limits the location of storage facilities. In light of the growing demand for CCS going forward, it is desirable to develop a storage method such as solid carbon storage that is not constrained by location or reliant on pressure.

  SEKISUI CHEMICAL is currently developing an innovative chemical looping reaction technology that converts CO₂ to CO at a high yield 90% using a proprietary catalyst and reaction process. TOKAI CARBON is developing products using raw materials in various forms (solid, liquid, gaseous) considering the suitable compositions and manufacturing methods for each forms. The manufacturing and evaluation technologies backed by more than 100 years endeavor are supporting its development. We believe the innovative CCUS process would be achieved by gathering the technologies owned by both companies.

2. Target of this partnership

  This partnership aims to achieve CCU technology, which converts CO₂ in exhaust gas derived from the carbon manufacturing process to CO, using chemical looping reaction technology, and then further converts CO to carbon for manufacturing carbon products. CO₂ will be stored as a solid carbon and not directly in this CCS technology. These methods result in a lower amount of CO₂ generated from the carbon manufacturing process, as well as a higher conversion efficiency by the two-step conversion method (CO₂→CO→Carbon) compare to the direct conversion method (CO₂→Carbon) and broaden the potential storage location by eliminating the need to use pressure to stock chemical materials and energies.

3. Outlook

  If superior environmental impact and economic feasibility are recognized through this partnership, the companies will proceed with a pilot project and aim to commercialize the technology by 2030. This partnership will contribute to global decarbonization and circular economy, by reducing CO₂ during manufacturing carbon and its products, enriching daily lives with carbon through CCU and reducing CO₂ emission through CCS which not limits the CO₂ source to carbon manufacturing but from much wider CO₂ sources.

  SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group set its vision statement as “Innovation for the Earth” in Vision 2030, its long-term vision. We announced to support the basis of LIFE and will continue to create “peace of mind for the future” in order to realize a sustainable society. We are working on new technologies and businesses that contribute to decarbonization.
  Going forward, SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group aims to realize both a sustainable society and sustainable growth of the Group itself, contribute to further solving social issues, and promote initiatives to remain as a company that continues to be trusted by all of our stakeholders.
  https://www.sekisuichemical.com/

  TOKAI CARBON Group's long-term vision for 2030 is to “contribute to a sustainable society through advanced materials and solutions” and working on various measures aiming carbon net-zero by 2050. The achievement of technologies such as CCU and CCS is a long-cherished dream of the company, which has been engaged in the carbon industry for more than 100 years. While there are limits to what TOKAI CARBON can do on its own, the company will work to strengthen ties of reliability with its stakeholders to enable meaningful co-creation.
  https://www.tokaicarbon.co.jp/en/

About SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group

Headquartered in Japan, SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (TSE: 4204) and its subsidiaries make up the SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group. 27,000 employees in over 200 companies throughout 21 countries and regions aim to contribute to improving the lives of the people of the world and the earth’s environment. Thanks to a history of innovation, dedication and a pioneering spirit, SEKISUI CHEMICAL now holds leading positions in its three diverse business divisions as well as top global market share in interlayer film, foam products, conductive particles and more.
Since its foundation in 1947, the SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group has dedicated itself to social and environmental contribution and is now an internationally recognized leader in sustainability and environmental initiatives, having recently been selected as one of the Global 100 most sustainable companies. SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group will continue to maintain a strong corporate presence for 100 years and beyond.