Since the Industrial Revolution, the use of machines by humans has produced gases and chemicals that are released into the environment. Today, carbon dioxide, or CO2, is the most prevalent greenhouse gas emitted by human technology use as a result of the chemical process of combustion. Fuel in cars and airplanes releases copious amounts of carbon dioxide into the environment, as well as the use of electricity in homes and businesses.
As CO2 levels rise and threaten to endanger the lives of humans, plants and animals, there is more pressure than ever to reduce the carbon footprint you leave on the Earth. With recent breakthroughs in converting CO2 to ethanol, it is possible to not only reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released into the air, but also to remove the gas from the environment and repurpose it for safer energy use.
In a new twist for waste-to-fuel technology, scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed an electrochemical process that uses tiny spikes of carbon and copper to turn carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into ethanol.
Let us read a little more about it
Ethanol is technically an alcohol
Most often, in terms of energy, ethanol appears in a mixture with gasoline to fuel cars. Usually, ethanol makes up roughly 10% of the mixture. Ethanol is a renewable energy source because it is most often made from fermented corn. While it is renewable, ethanol made from corn is not necessarily sustainable.
Carbon dioxide is very dangerous to the environment and is one of the most significant man-made factors in climate change. As use of machines in everyday life emits carbon dioxide, the Earth is put more at risk for global warming, and the effects of temperature changes can lead to the extinction of wildlife species. The ability to convert CO2 to ethanol, a renewable energy source, provides many possibilities for the reduction of the greenhouse gas from the environment through removal and use of energy that does not harm the atmosphere.
Converting CO2 to ethanol is not only possible, but is also getting easier as technology and science progress. This is a wonderful way to reduce carbon dioxide in the environment without suggested efforts such as burying the greenhouse gas deep in the earth, which is a very expensive solution.
Producing ethanol from carbon dioxide always requires chemical reactions.
Mimicking photosyntheis, which is the process by which plants take in light and carbon dioxide to release oxygen. Like photosynthesis, this reaction depends on natural energy from sunlight. With this method, carbon dioxide is converted into ethanol and ethylene. Ethylene from this reaction can then be converted into ethanol
Using copper crystals and electrical currents to change carbon dioxide and water into ethanol and propanol, another valuable chemical product.
By using a catalyst made up of copper, nitrogen, and carbon, scientists were able to create a chemical reaction that significantly reduced side reactions, producing much more ethanol with much less energy than some others. This process is also less expensive than other methods of producing ethanol from carbon dioxide. Because it is efficient and cost-effective, the process can be increased in scale to an industrial level.
As methods for conversion of carbon dioxide to ethanol improve and become more readily available, they will be easier to use on an industrial scale. Because it is cost-efficient and produces renewable energy, this process of reversing combustion will be used more often and make a bigger positive impact on the environment. The more carbon dioxide is converted to ethanol, whether through artificial photosynthesis or copper catalysts, the more damage to the environment can be reduced, reversed, and prevented in the future.
" />Since the Industrial Revolution, the use of machines by humans has produced gases and chemicals that are released into the environment. Today, carbon dioxide, or CO2, is the most prevalent greenhouse gas emitted by human technology use as a result of the chemical process of combustion. Fuel in cars and airplanes releases copious amounts of carbon dioxide into the environment, as well as the use of electricity in homes and businesses.
As CO2 levels rise and threaten to endanger the lives of humans, plants and animals, there is more pressure than ever to reduce the carbon footprint you leave on the Earth. With recent breakthroughs in converting CO2 to ethanol, it is possible to not only reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released into the air, but also to remove the gas from the environment and repurpose it for safer energy use.
In a new twist for waste-to-fuel technology, scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed an electrochemical process that uses tiny spikes of carbon and copper to turn carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into ethanol.
Let us read a little more about it
Ethanol is technically an alcohol
Most often, in terms of energy, ethanol appears in a mixture with gasoline to fuel cars. Usually, ethanol makes up roughly 10% of the mixture. Ethanol is a renewable energy source because it is most often made from fermented corn. While it is renewable, ethanol made from corn is not necessarily sustainable.
Carbon dioxide is very dangerous to the environment and is one of the most significant man-made factors in climate change. As use of machines in everyday life emits carbon dioxide, the Earth is put more at risk for global warming, and the effects of temperature changes can lead to the extinction of wildlife species. The ability to convert CO2 to ethanol, a renewable energy source, provides many possibilities for the reduction of the greenhouse gas from the environment through removal and use of energy that does not harm the atmosphere.
Converting CO2 to ethanol is not only possible, but is also getting easier as technology and science progress. This is a wonderful way to reduce carbon dioxide in the environment without suggested efforts such as burying the greenhouse gas deep in the earth, which is a very expensive solution.
Producing ethanol from carbon dioxide always requires chemical reactions.
Mimicking photosyntheis, which is the process by which plants take in light and carbon dioxide to release oxygen. Like photosynthesis, this reaction depends on natural energy from sunlight. With this method, carbon dioxide is converted into ethanol and ethylene. Ethylene from this reaction can then be converted into ethanol
Using copper crystals and electrical currents to change carbon dioxide and water into ethanol and propanol, another valuable chemical product.
By using a catalyst made up of copper, nitrogen, and carbon, scientists were able to create a chemical reaction that significantly reduced side reactions, producing much more ethanol with much less energy than some others. This process is also less expensive than other methods of producing ethanol from carbon dioxide. Because it is efficient and cost-effective, the process can be increased in scale to an industrial level.
As methods for conversion of carbon dioxide to ethanol improve and become more readily available, they will be easier to use on an industrial scale. Because it is cost-efficient and produces renewable energy, this process of reversing combustion will be used more often and make a bigger positive impact on the environment. The more carbon dioxide is converted to ethanol, whether through artificial photosynthesis or copper catalysts, the more damage to the environment can be reduced, reversed, and prevented in the future.
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