Lets Recycle CO2!

December 6, 2017 | 3 Comments

Korea’s Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) research team has developed titanium dioxide-based photocatalyst with the highest efficiency in the world that converts carbon dioxide recycling it into methane. The result is expected to be applied to technologies to reduce and reuse carbon dioxide. The team’s titanium dioxide (TiO2) -based high efficiency photocatalyst converts carbon dioxide to methane using a simple reduction method.

Its asserted by some scientists that anthropogenic emission of greenhouse gases, particularly CO2, is a significant factor driving global climate change. The clamor is pushing for sustainable, low carbon, readily portable fuels. For that goal there has been a worldwide effort underway to find ways to convert carbon dioxide into a usable fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, ethanol, methanol, and butanol.

The study paper has been published in the online edition of Materials Today, the international journal of materials science.

A graphic methane photocatalyst comparison. Image Credit: Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology. Click image for the largest view.

In order to utilize carbon dioxide as a resource, it is essential to increase the conversion efficiency and light absorption efficiency when converting carbon dioxide into fuel, and to make photocatalyst help in preventing secondary harmful substances.

High-efficiency photocatalyst development technology that synthesizes materials such as titanium dioxide, copper oxide, and reduced graphene oxide, or controls the structure and surface of photocatalyst material is regarded as the core of carbon dioxide recycling technology.

Surprisingly, DGIST’s research team has discovered a synthesis method which rapidly reduces TiO2 at low temperatures using a strong reducing agent, sodium borohydride (NaBH4).

In the study, titanium dioxide-based photocatalysts using this synthesis method showed 12.49% conversion of methane to photochemical carbon dioxide on the gas phase, which represents the highest conversion rate among the introduced photocatalysts so far.

Additionally, the photocatalyst developed by the research team has the controlled band gap through the conversion of the oxidation number from 4 to 3 by breaking the oxygen atoms on the surface of titanium dioxide. This change increases the amount of light absorption and efficiently separates the charge, resulting in higher carbon conversion of carbon dioxide. Moreover, the experiment has also proved that the efficiency of methane conversion of carbon dioxide can be increased up to 29 times using platinum nanoparticles.

Professor In, the corresponding author stated, “The newly developed titanium dioxide photocatalyst is superior to the other photocatalysts reported so far as it has outstanding carbon dioxide conversion efficiency as well as excellent stability.” He also mentioned, “We would like to contribute to the development of carbon dioxide reduction and recycling technology by conducting further researches to improve conversion efficiency to the extent that it can be commercialized.”

The press release labors under the global warming banner with plenty of associations in a field that justifies its progress on its own. Recycling CO2, putting the human species in tune with the planet’s carbon cycle is easily reason enough with out the global warming thing burdening the effort.


Comments

3 Comments so far

  1. Nancy on December 8, 2017 2:40 AM

    Recycling CO2, putting the human species in tune with the planet’s carbon cycle is easily reason enough with out the global warming thing burdening the effort.

  2. Francis M. Kuhns on December 11, 2017 2:14 AM

    Recycling CO2, putting the human species in tune with the planet’s carbon cycle is easily reason enough with out the global warming thing burdening the effort.

  3. Bella Withers on December 11, 2017 2:15 AM

    The newly developed titanium dioxide photocatalyst is superior to the other photocatalysts reported so far as it has outstanding carbon dioxide conversion efficiency as well as excellent stability.

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