E-fuels for the energy transition

The climate-neutrality targets set by at an international level impose a rethinking of the main industrial sectors responsible of pollution, such to drive the third-millennium society to a sustainable transition to renewable sources, and to circular energy concepts with net-zero emissions. In this direction, the shift towards electrofuels (e-fuels) is potentially able to revolutionize the energy sector, as it would ensure the storage of the intermittent energy obtained by renewable sources (e.g. wind or sun), releasing it on demand, thus “closing” the circular economy concept. Several compounds have been identified as promising candidates: ammonia, methanol, oxymethylene ethers. Yet, significant research efforts are needed to allow a safe replacement of conventional (fossil) fuels with such fuels, or fuel blends, in the combustion devices. This thesis aims at obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the chemistry behind e-fuels pyrolysis and oxidation, providing a kinetic framework, able to represent the behavior of e-fuels in ideal systems, then in real devices. The analysis will then be extended to binary and ternary mixtures, such to tailor-make the desired combustion features, and to obtain optimal fuel blends with the desired physico-chemical features.