GabyThe device, created by researchers at the University of Cambridge, runs on solar panels. Therefore, this invention will protect ecology the environment not only through the absorption of pollutants.
How does it work?
Cambridge scientists have developed a solar energy reactor that extracts harmful substances from the air. emissions CO2 and converts them directly into fuel for cars and airplanes. Researchers claim that this invention will also meet the energy needs of other industries.
Scientists have said that they were inspired by photosynthesis to create the device. No cables or batteries are needed to convert atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) into fuel.
As researchers emphasized, the reactor offers a new way to combat the climate crisis, which serves as an alternative to well-known carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies. These technologies are often criticized for requiring significant financial investments, relying on non-renewable energy sources, and being overall too energy-intensive. Moreover, CCS does not recycle the captured CO2. Consequently, environmentalists are concerned about the issue of its safe storage, for example, deep underground.
“What if, instead of pumping carbon dioxide underground, we made something useful out of it?” scientists from the Yusuf Hamid Chemical Faculty in Cambridge once asked themselves.
“CO2 is a harmful greenhouse gas, but it can also be converted into useful chemicals without contributing to global warming. If these devices could be produced on an industrial scale, they would simultaneously solve two problems – removing CO2 from the atmosphere and creating an alternative clean fuel,” said Dr. Sayan Kar, co-author of the study.
The device absorbs CO2 from the air at night through special filters, and then during the day uses sunlight to initiate a chemical reaction that converts it into syngas, which can be an alternative to gasoline.
This product can also be used for the production of chemicals and pharmaceutical products, the publication reported. Independent The simplicity of using the device will also allow residents of remote areas to create their own alternative fuel, scientists say.
Professor Erwin Reisner, the head of the research, noted: “Instead of continuing to extract and burn fossil fuels to produce the products we have come to rely on, we can obtain all the CO2 we need directly from…” air and use it again.”
According to Professor Reisner, the team’s invention will help build a circular, sustainable economy. The operation of the reactor has been detailed in an article published by the journal Nature Energy.
