CO₂ utilization via methanol synthesis can be an effective approach to mitigate the issue of global warming. This study developed an innovative process to produce methanol by combining water electrolysis with tri-reforming of methane (TRM). The proposed design utilized carbon-free electricity to split water into O₂ and H₂; O₂ is collected for partial oxidation reaction in the TRM and H₂ is collected for stoichiometric number (SN) optimization. This process configuration eliminates the typical problems of H₂ surplus or deficit associated with methanol synthesis and allows a substantial amount of CO₂ to be converted. The main process flowsheet was developed with Aspen HYSYS process simulator and then the feasibility of this project was evaluated based on its technical, environmental, and economic performances. The estimated capital expenditure (CAPEX), operating expenditure (OPEX) and GHG emissions of the baseline plant are US$774 million, US$263 million/yr. and −0.14 kgCO₂eq/kgMeOH, respectively. In particular, water electrolysis process accounted for 34 % of CAPEX and 51 % of OPEX. A discounted cash flow (DCF) model combined with sensitivity analyses showed that a breakeven point could be reached with a methanol price of US$491/ton. The results demonstrated that combining water electrolysis with TRM could achieve a sustainable carbon-sink process for methanol production.

通过甲醇合成来利用CO ₂可以是减轻全球变暖问题的有效方法。这项研究开发了一种通过将水电解与甲烷三重整（TRM）相结合来生产甲醇的创新工艺。拟议的设计利用无碳电力将水分解为O ₂和H ₂。收集O ₂进行TRM中的部分氧化反应，收集H ₂进行化学计量数（SN）优化。这种工艺配置消除了与甲醇合成相关的H ₂过剩或不足的典型问题，并允许大量的CO ₂被转换。使用Aspen HYSYS过程模拟器开发了主要的工艺流程图，然后根据其技术，环境和经济表现评估了该项目的可行性。基准工厂的估计资本支出（CAPEX），运营支出（OPEX）和温室气体排放为7.74亿美元，每年2.63亿美元。和-0.14 kgCO ₂ eq / kgMeOH。特别地，水电解过程占CAPEX的34％和OPEX的51％。折现现金流（DCF）模型结合敏感性分析表明，甲醇价格为491美元/吨，可以达到收支平衡点。结果表明，将水电解与TRM结合可以实现甲醇生产的可持续碳汇过程。