AGA 2020 Fourth Annual Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) Workshop

September 22, 2020

Brandon Iglesias, CTO / Founder,

Chemical Engineer / ECS

brandon.iglesias@reactwell.com

+01 (504) 495-5998 cell

+01 (504) 598-5229 lab

www.reactwell.com

Focus area(s) in order of relevance:

1: Chem Chips technology introduction, a

practical nanotechnology future “net zero”

carbon gas system for utilities

2: Convert CO2 Liability into asset with

Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 with

carbon nanospike, provides grid scale energy

storage solution.

3: Integration Cases & Ways To Work Together

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 1

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Organization Background

• Reactwell, L.L.C. was founded in 2011

• Since 2011 we have expanded our

operational capabilities with prototyping

(TRL 3,4,5) as well as field scale pilots

(TRL 6,7,8) and field deployed assets at

TRL-9

• Our team’s footprint comprises:

Chemical Technology Prototyping

Laboratory Field Prototype & Test Site

Advanced Prototyping Center (APC)

Materials Science Laboratory at Joint

Institute for Advanced Materials (JIAM) at

UT-Research Park with ORNL

Awards & Notable Achievements

• Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) 2020

National Impact Awardee

• 2020 Sir Edmund Hillary Fellowship

• R&D100 2019 Awardee

• U.S. Small Business of the Week in Federal

Register S5169 July 16, 2015

• 2013 Kauffman Foundation Scholar

• 2012 DOE:EERE:NGA Scholarship

• 2011 1st Place Awardee Tulane University

Business Plan Competition

• 11 patents, 2 CRADAs, 2 DOE:TCF Awards

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 2

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Partnerships, Teaming Agreements and Collaborators

Industry & Select Agency Agreements intentionally NOT disclosed due to confidentiality.

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 3

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Introduction to Catalysis & Chemistry

• What is a Catalyst?

Chemical reactions need energy to get

started (e.g. combustion)

A catalyst lowers the energy needed for a

chemical reaction to occur.

Example:

Catalytic converters on automobiles

combustion of carbon monoxide

CO + O → CO2

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 4

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

• Produces Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

• Releases Energy Stored

from the methane molecule’s chemical bonds

• Reaction Type: Oxidization

input molecules are methane and oxygen

releases energy

Methane Combustion

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 5

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Converting CO2 back to Methane

• Converts and Stores

Carbon Dioxide’s (CO2) Elements

• Stores Energy within the methane

molecule’s chemical bonds

• Reaction Type: Reduction

input molecules are carbon

dioxide and water takes energy

• Due to rapid growth in renewable electricity,

generation demand is poorly matched to supply.

Opportunity for AGA members of a grid scale energy

storage with renewable natural gas, enabled by

electrochemical based technologies.

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 6

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

What is a Chem Chip?

• An electrochemical catalyst,

comprised of carbon nanospikes.

“Chemical Plant on a Chip”

Converts carbon dioxide and

water, in a single step, to

methane (e.g. renewable natural

gas).

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 7

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Background on Carbon Nanospikes

• Graphene, single layer, hexagonal carbon

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 8

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Background on Carbon Nanospikes

50 nm

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 9

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Background on Carbon Nanospikes

50 nm 50 nm5 nm

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 10

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Background on Carbon Nanospikes

50 nm

50 nm200 nm

A human hair is approximately 80,000- 100,000 nanometers (nm) wide.

There are 25,400,000 nanometers in one inch.

4 in.

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 11

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

5 nm

Background on Carbon Nanospikes

50 nm

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 12

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

How do the Carbon Nanospikes Work?

50 nm

• Carbon nanospikes are dense and numerous

• Approximately 1 x 10^13 spikes per sheet of letter paper

nearly equivalent to number of dollars in national debt

• Each nanospike concentrates electric field

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 13

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Electrochemical ~ Charging a Battery

50 nm

• In this case, the battery being charged

is the natural gas grid

• Electrochemical reactions on carbon

nanospike can make many types of

molecules, in addition to methane

• Example ethanol and chlorine are two

widely utilized chemicals that can be

produced via electrochemical pathway

• Chlorine production is the industrially

mature electrochemical process that has

been in operation for decades.

Example: Chlorine electrochemical at industrial scale

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 14

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Results: Products from CO2 Conversion

50 nm

• Demonstrated stable operation, 300 hrs+

• SOx (e.g. sulfur species) have been

identified as a catalyst poison. This is

typical of most catalysis processes.

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 15

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Convert CO2 Liability into Asset

50 nm

• Convert carbon dioxide liabilities into energy

storage assets to enable “net zero” carbon gas future.

• Consider avoided cost market mechanism, such

that when excess electricity is available on the grid,

it can be put into electrochemical storage system at

the avoided cost price point by gas utilities.

• That’s me 10 years ago doing spark spread trading

via simulation on an energy floor, while obtaining a

double MFIN/MBA after Chemical Engineering &

ECS studies and working full time as a process

engineer at an oil & gas refinery.

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 16

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Integration Cases

50 nm

• Point Source Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT)

• Point Source Process Heaters

• Point Source Boilers for HVAC

• Point Source Fermentation

• Point Source Anerobic Digestion Facilities

• Dilute Atmospheric CO2 Capture

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 17

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

50 nm

Modified Renewable Energy Enabled Carbon Optimized Flow – Original: David Baboson (ARPAe), Modified for RNG Brandon Iglesias (Reactwell)

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 18

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

Conclusions

1: Chem Chips are a practical nanotechnology

future “net zero” carbon gas system for

utilities.

2: Chem Chips Convert CO2 Liability into asset

with Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 via

carbon nanospike, provides grid scale energy

storage solution for utilities.

3: AGA Utility Members Start Collaborating with

Reactwell on Chem Chip

Reactwell, L.L.C. 1441 Canal Street

New Orleans, LA 70112-2714 USASlide # 19

Chem ChipTM

CO2 Electrochemical Conversion

AGA 2020 Fourth Annual Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) Workshop

September 22, 2020

Brandon Iglesias, CTO / Founder,

Chemical Engineer / ECS

brandon.iglesias@reactwell.com

+01 (504) 495-5998 cell

+01 (504) 598-5229 lab

www.reactwell.com