Artificial Photosynthesis

[leejames04]

Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico have found a way of using sunlight to recycle carbon dioxide and produce fuels like methanol or gasoline.

The Sunlight to Petrol, or S2P, project essentially reverses the combustion process, recovering the building blocks of hydrocarbons. They can then be used to synthesize liquid fuels like methanol or gasoline. Researchers said the technology already works and could help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, although large-scale implementation could be a decade or more away.

From Windows X Shrine who got it from Wired.


I was talkign to my Physics teacher as I am not doing Chemistry at the moment who gave me the "Artificial Photosynthesis" name

[Da_MerV]

Interesting but useful? Why would we want the same polluting fuels as we already have?

<offtopic> avy = WIN

[leejames04]

Well I guess its like Biomass just you'd be putting them back in so whilst we might not reduce a lot it still slows it down slowing down climate change a bit meaning that we can adapt a bit better as well as other species

[EminentJonFrost]

Other technology with better climate tolerance will come before that does. Interesting though.

[Sturmeh]

Sunlight to Fuel is less interesting than CO2 to fuel, that would be a partial SOLUTION to our carbon emission problems.

[Da_MerV]

But this is CO2 to fuel to CO2. What I am saying is it should be CO2 to fuel to [insert non harmful byproduct].

[illegal machine]

But this is CO2 to fuel to CO2. What I am saying is it should be CO2 to fuel to [insert non harmful byproduct].

this IS C02 to fuel... is it the fact that it gets burned again that's pissing you off? Im failing to understand your qualm

[leejames04]

^ no its like Da_MerV said it is CO2 to CO2 but you have to think it is better than fossil fuel to CO2, SO2 and other harmful gases. It will help prolong the life of fossil fuels and keep the blanket of CO2 to a medium which will extremely slowly lower.
Also it doesn't say the efficiency of the process it might be really low like wind and wave.

[Soulphalanx]

fossil fuels were originally made from organic plant material
so if you have photosynthesis, it's basically like a plant, so converting to fuel would be easy

and besides, if that tech were to pick up, gasoline would be an easily renewable resource and prices would drop like crazy