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Liquid Solar Fuel From Carbon Dioxide

Many approaches are being investigated to reduce carbon dioxide, one of the gases that is suspected to be a cause of climate change. One of these involves processing this suspected greenhouse gas to obtain the carbon, which can be turned into carbon-based fuel.

That is what researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Sandia National Laboratories are attempting to accomplish. If the idea pans out, it could be much better than sequestering carbon dioxide, that is essentially burying the gas. The technology could bring two benefits - get rid of carbon dioxide and provide a source of carbon based fuels that don't require imported petroleum. However, it will probably be 15 or 20 years before the technology could be available commercially.

Scientists have believed that it might be possible to recycle carbon dioxide in to carbon fuels for a long time. The problem was finding a technically and economically practical way to do it. The Sandia scientists have already shown proof of concept for their technique in a program they call the "Sunshine to Petrol" (S2P) project.

Now, they are building a Counter Rotating Ring Receiver Reactor Recuperator in which concentrated solar energy would be used to chemically "reenergize" carbon dioxide to turn it into carbon monoxide. The carbon monoxide could then be used to make liquid combustible fuels, such as methanol, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Quite appropriately, the scientists call the fuel "Liquid Solar Fuel" The same basic technology would be used to produce hydrogen, the fuel of the future, from water.

The prototype CR5 device should be completed by early next year. Initial tests will break down water into hydrogen and oxygen. That will be followed by tests that similarly break down carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide and oxygen.