Can produce gasoline from CO2

Carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) is the biggest " contributor " to climate change. But chemists are hoping that they can turn it into a useful fuel, with the help of the sun.

Oil will no longer be a concern for economies when it is made from CO ₂ (Photo: polarsat).

Chemists have long wanted to find a way to turn CO ₂ back into its original form - useful hydrocarbons. If they can do it, the cycles of the internal combustion engine will become a closed cycle: gasoline turns into CO ₂ , then CO ₂ turns into gasoline. Thus, we will only have to refuel the car once. The demand for gasoline is falling sharply, and the cost of gasoline will not become a burden for economies.

Chemical experts at the University of Messina (Italy) use sunlight and a thin piece of titanium dioxide as an optical catalyst to " split " water into oxygen, protons and electrons. They then used proton filters and wires to separate each type. Next, oxygen, protons and electrons are combined with CO ₂ to create 8 or 9 types of hydrocarbons (CO2 reduction reaction). Carbon nanotubes containing platinum and palladium molecules are used to catalyze the reaction. One can synthesize those hydrocarbons into gasoline and diesel.

" Turning CO2 into fuel is no longer a dream, but has become something that can be done in the near future," said Gabriele Centi, the lead researcher.

Centi says platinum and palladium molecules can produce two to three times more hydrocarbons than catalysts that are widely sold today. But CO ₂ removal only turns about 1% of this gas into hydrocarbons at laboratory temperatures. The team believes that the rate of CO ₂ reaction will increase if the reaction occurs at higher temperatures. It is also necessary to increase the efficiency level of sunlight separation. If done properly, experts believe that within a decade, they could produce a solar-powered reactor capable of converting CO2 into fuel.

If scientists succeed, the recycling of gases causing the greenhouse effect - generated by the burning of fossil fuels - will become a reality. This achievement can also lead to a new perspective in the field of Mars exploration. Accordingly, spacecraft, satellites and probes can generate fuel from carbon dioxide in the planet's atmosphere when returning.

Viet Linh