Climate breakthrough as Cambridge scientists develop solar-powered device that turns CO2 into fuel

Image credit: University of Cambridge

Scientists from the University of Cambridge have created a solar-powered device that converts carbon dioxide (CO2) into sustainable fuel.

The breakthrough reactor works by capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and converts it into syngas: a key intermediate in the production of many chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Until now, similar carbon capture technologies have needed fossil fuels to power them, unlike the Cambridge device which harnesses the power of the Sun.

“Aside from the expense and the energy intensity, Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) provides an excuse to carry on burning fossil fuels, which is what caused the climate crisis in the first place,” said Professor Erwin Reisner, who led the research. “CCS is also a non-circular process, since the pressurised CO2 is, at best, stored underground indefinitely, where it’s of no use to anyone.”

The researchers are currently working on converting the solar syngas into liquid fuels, which could be used to power cars, planes and more – without adding more CO2 to the atmosphere.

The team says its device is much easier to scale up than earlier solar-powered devices.

“Instead of continuing to dig up and burn fossil fuels to produce the products we have come to rely on, we can get all the CO2 we need directly from the air and reuse it,” said Reisner. “We can build a circular, sustainable economy – if we have the political will to do it.”

CCS has been touted as a possible solution to the climate crisis, and has recently received £22bn in funding from the UK government.

The results of the Cambridge team’s solar-powered device are reported in the journal Nature Energy.

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