The scientists who turned fresh air into petrol

[purplepolarbear]

Saw this article about how the chemical reaction where hydrocarbons are burned yielding co2 and water and energy has been reversed.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/exclusiv...

In a few tens of years time, the current problems with nuclear power are likely to be resolved and nuclear fusion might be a possibility. Would this mean that given this energy, the co2 we have been putting into the atmosphere could be converted back to fuel and global warming reversed?

I'm naturally sceptical of things that sound too good to be true and im sure it isn't as simple as this but where does my logic fall apart?

[tuscaneer]

i heard this on radio 4 on the way into work this morning.my initial reaction was also "too good to be true".....solve the energy crisis AND control global warming all in one go?? if it's true the guy that came up with it is going to e a very rich gentleman!

[The Black Flash]

purplepolarbear said:

Saw this article about how the chemical reaction where hydrocarbons are burned yielding co2 and water and energy has been reversed.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/exclusiv...

In a few tens of years time, the current problems with nuclear power are likely to be resolved and nuclear fusion might be a possibility. Would this mean that given this energy, the co2 we have been putting into the atmosphere could be converted back to fuel and global warming reversed?

I'm naturally sceptical of things that sound too good to be true and im sure it isn't as simple as this but where does my logic fall apart?

I don't think it does, really. The downside of course is that it will use plenty of energy as you've pointed out.
This however is the kind of thing that has a chance of making sources such as wind workable - because you're storing the energy in a chemical form, variations in the power supply don't matter so much. I'm guessing, but I imagine that the reaction wouldn't need a constant rate of power supply, but will speed up/slow down depending on how much power it gets. Similar with electrolysis to produce hydrogen.

[The Wookie]

Yep, already been thought of, except Methanol is more efficient to produce from scrubbed CO2 than Gasoline:

http://www.powershow.com/view/1269d4-YzE0N/Synthet...

Or as a pretty picture:



Edit - Alternative link as that one wasn't happy. Alternatively just Google 'Lotus Methanol Cycle'

Edited by The Wookie on Friday 19th October 09:41

[cerbfan]

Well this is maybe going to blow the idea of carbon capture and pumping the CO2 into old oil reservoirs out of the water, seems little point in doing that now if the power stations can just all set up one of these plants next door and produce fuel with it instead. Does sound like an amazing technology, really could revolutionise the world.

[Simpo Two]

You can make anything by sticking atoms together. It's a question of cost, both financial and in energy terms. In this case, you're building a boat so you can smash it up and burn the wood. The one saving grace is that some of the energy is 'free'.

[The Black Flash]

Simpo Two said:

You can make anything by sticking atoms together. It's a question of cost, both financial and in energy terms. In this case, you're building a boat so you can smash it up and burn the wood. The one saving grace is that some of the energy is 'free'.

Don't think that's quite a fair analogy. It's more akin to what plants do, capture C02 and reduce it to produce fuel, using energy from the sun.

[Hugo a Gogo]

this is what these remote renewable sources etc should be doing, not fking about producing dribs and drabs of electricity for the grid hundreds of miles away

[Shaolin]

Independent said:

Although the process is still in the early developmental stages and needs to take electricity from the national grid to work, the company believes it will eventually be possible to use power from renewable sources such as wind farms or tidal barrages.

So really it's just changing electrical energy to chemical energy for convenience. Might be useful for air travel which has no real alternative to liquid fuels at the moment.

This would be more like it:

http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2008...

Though it's over 4 years since the article was published and it seems to have got nowhere since.

[davepoth]

I should think this will be successful. My guess is that Saudi Arabia will plaster the whole country with solar panels and remain the world's largest oil producer.

[annodomini2]

http://www.theengineer.co.uk/sectors/energy-and-en...

Seems much more practical to me.

[hidetheelephants]

They're very coy about telling us what the efficiency is like, which makes me think this will just be another way to make a small fortune out of a large one.

[GokTweed]

James May did something like this a couple of years back on one of his programmes. There are some blokes in the desert in America with a contraption that uses mirrors to focus the sun's energy to bind CO2 and H2O to make petrol again.

[Munter]

GokTweed said:

James May did something like this a couple of years back on one of his programmes. There are some blokes in the desert in America with a contraption that uses mirrors to focus the sun's energy to bind CO2 and H2O to make petrol again.

That's what I thought. He whittered on about being able to drive his 911 on the fuel.

[Blib]

Munter said:

GokTweed said:

James May did something like this a couple of years back on one of his programmes. There are some blokes in the desert in America with a contraption that uses mirrors to focus the sun's energy to bind CO2 and H2O to make petrol again.

That's what I thought. He whittered on about being able to drive his 911 on the fuel.

Video here....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJ5mpQqmZaM

I'm sure that those guys in the Independent or ones selling a similar concept had a stand at the Chelsea Car show recently.