SBIR-STTR Award

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will develop a mathematical model of the Solid Oxide Membrane (SOM) electrolysis process for producing magnesium metal from its oxide. This model will simulate fluid flow and heat and mass transfer in the SOM process in order to provide a design tool for an industrial-scale SOM reactor for magnesium production. Experiments performed by the subcontractor at Boston University will validate the model and help to tune its parameters. The mathematical model will also couple to a cost model in order to predict various costs including energy, capital and raw materials and determine the most cost-effective size and configuration of the industrial-scale process. If successful, this will be the first industrial process to produce metal and oxygen from metal oxides in one step with no carbon or chlorine anywhere in the process. This model will also be useful for assessing the fitness of the SOM process to producing other metals. Magnesium is the lowest-density engineering metal and third most abundant metal in the earth's crust with good strength and stiffness. But high and fluctuating prices have prevented its broad utilization in motor vehicles and other applications. Auto makers led by the U.S. Big Three are seeking to increase the magnesium alloy content of vehicles from 10-15 lbs/vehicle to 350 lbs/vehicle by 2020, replacing 650 lbs/vehicle of steel and aluminum parts. This will increase fleet fuel economy by 1.5-2 miles per gallon, reducing annual petroleum import expenditures by about $20 billion. In addition to magnesium's impact on vehicle efficiency, the straightforward and efficient SOM process will likely use much less energy than is used to produce aluminum, and its magnesium product may rival the raw material cost of the steel and aluminum which it replaces. This could lead to a new magnesium economy taking full advantage of its light weight and ease of manufacturing in products from bicycles to refrigerators to trucks. Furthermore, the SOM process can likely reduce the cost and environmental impact of producing other metals such as titanium, copper, and tantalum leading to a new primary metals industrial ecology. This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project aims to develop a new method for primary production of magnesium from its oxide ore using Solid Oxide Membrane Electrolysis. Unlike other primary metal processes, this approach emits no direct CO2, has no chlorine, and is fully continuous and automated. Published third party cost modeling has indicated that its costs are lower than all existing and proposed new processes. Building on an earlier feasibility demonstration using experiments and mathematical and cost modeling to show that the approach can produce oxygen as well as magnesium at high current efficiency and at costs close to the published cost model, this Phase II project will develop new anode tubes to further reduce energy costs, and build and test the first self-heating electrolysis cell. If successful, the self-heating cell will not require energy beyond that needed for electrolysis and will be the smallest possible pre-production modular unit capable of producing magnesium. The broader/commercial impact of this project begins with substantial reduction of the cost and environmental impact of magnesium metal production. Magnesium is the lowest-density engineering metal and third most abundant metal in the earth's crust, and its stiffness-to-weight, castability, and recyclability make it the best material for motor vehicle weight reduction. Automobile makers are seeking to increase the magnesium alloy content of vehicles from 10-15 lbs/vehicle to 350 lbs/vehicle by 2020, replacing 650 lbs/vehicle of steel and aluminum parts. This will increase fleet fuel economy by 1.5-2 miles per gallon, reducing annual petroleum import expenditures by about $20 billion. If successful, this project will address the biggest barrier to widespread magnesium use in vehicles, which is its price stability and availability. This could lead to a new magnesium economy taking full advantage of its light weight and ease of manufacturing in products from cellphones to laptops to trucks. With broader usage, the versatile process resulting from this development project can likely reduce the cost and environmental impact of reducing metal oxides, leading to a new industrial ecology of primary metals production