Marl, August 26, 2024—Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the Evonik Industries AG site at the Marl Chemical Park. The German television show “WDR Lokalzeit” reports on the visit, which highlighted the innovative technologies being developed for the energy transition, particularly the utilization of carbon dioxide (CO2) as a valuable raw material for the chemical industry.
During the visit, Chancellor Scholz was introduced to the Rheticus research facility, which is pioneering methods to process climate-damaging CO2 on a larger scale. Using electricity from renewable sources, water, and bacteria, the facility transforms CO2 in a reaction cascade into speciality chemicals. These chemicals are then used in the production of lubricants and cosmetics, among other applications. This showcases the significance of sustainable technologies and the pivotal role of the chemical industry in meeting climate objectives. CO2 utilization represents a significant step towards a more sustainable future.
A notable innovation was the decarboxylating ketonization as the third step of the Rheticus reaction cascade, conceived and developed by the research group of the RESOLV Scientist Prof. Dr. Lukas Gooßen and scaled up to kilogram levels. The development to ton-scale production was made possible by Nardana Sivendran, a former employee from the Gooßen group, who joined Evonik after completing her PhD.
Related publications:
N. Sivendran, F. Belitz, D. S. Prendes, Á. M. Martínez, R. Schmid, L. J. Gooßen,
Photochemical Sandmeyer-type Halogenation of Arenediazonium Salts, Chem. Eur. J., 2022, 28, e202103669,DOI: doi.org/10.1002/chem.202103669
N. Sivendran, N. Pirkl, Z. Hu, A. Doppiu, L. J. Gooßen,
Halogen-Bridged Methylnaphthyl Palladium Dimers as Versatile Catalyst Precursors in Coupling Reactions, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2021, 60, 25151, DOI: doi.org/10.1002/anie.202110450