Creating more environmentally friendly fuels is not only viable, but we can also learn from Nature to take important steps in this direction. This is illustrated by the recent work carried out by a team of researchers at Cambridge University, in the United Kingdom, who have developed an autonomous device that produces a carbon-neutral fuel using a combination of sunlight, carbon dioxide and water.
Published in the journal Nature Energy, the results of this research reveal that this device does not depend on other components or on a connection to electricity to operate, and represents a milestone on the path to obtaining artificial photosynthesis, a process that imitates the capacity plants have to convert sunlight into energy.
The device, whose creators argue that it could be used in power plants such as solar facilities, makes it possible to transform sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into formic acid, a storable product that can be used directly or converted to hydrogen.
In addition, and from an environmental point of view, this innovative discovery provides dual benefits, according to the research team, in that converting carbon dioxide into fuel not only reduces greenhouse gas emissions, but can also serve as an alternative to fossil fuels.
The device created by the Cambridge University researchers uses sunlight, carbon dioxide and water to ensure the production of a carbon-neutral fuel
Qian Wang, from the Department of Chemistry at Cambridge University and one of the researchers responsible for this work, praises the fact that the process in question makes it possible to transform sunlight into fuel without generating any excessive waste. Furthermore, adds Erwin Reisner, another of the authors of the article, this enables us to produce a clean fuel capable of being stored and transported.
The device is based on a photocatalytic film made from semiconductor particles transformed into powder, which can be manufactured in large amounts at a reasonable cost, and can be produced on an industrial scale.