Solar-powered device captures carbon dioxide from air to make sustainable fuel
www.cam.ac.uk
Researchers have developed a reactor that pulls carbon dioxide directly from the air and converts it into sustainable fuel, using sunlight as the power source.

Here is the link to the study.

The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, say their solar-powered reactor could be used to make fuel to power cars and planes, or the many chemicals and pharmaceuticals products we rely on. It could also be used to generate fuel in remote or off-grid locations.

Unlike most carbon capture technologies, the reactor developed by the Cambridge researchers does not require fossil-fuel-based power, or the transport and storage of carbon dioxide, but instead converts atmospheric CO2 into something useful using sunlight. The results are reported in the journal Nature Energy.

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) has been touted as a possible solution to the climate crisis, and has recently received £22bn in funding from the UK government. However, CCS is energy-intensive and there are concerns about the long-term safety of storing pressurised CO2 deep underground, although safety studies are currently being carried out.

  • @MothmanDelorian
    2•6 days ago

    No, tress die and when they rot they release the carbon. You cannot plant enough trees to stop climate change unless you wipe most of humanity off the planet at the same time. We must remove the carbon we introduced into the cycle when we started using fossil fuels.

    This is why carbon sequestration is important to pursue.

    • @[email protected]English
      9•6 days ago

      You might be interested in taking a look at the following articles:

      Reality check on technologies to remove carbon dioxide from the air | MIT, Nov 2024

      Study finds many climate-stabilization plans are based on questionable assumptions about the future cost and deployment of “direct air capture” and therefore may not bring about promised reductions.

      Guide to Investigating Fossil Fuels: Greenwashing | Global Investigative Journalism Network, Feb 2025

      The fossil fuel industry promotes solutions such as carbon capture and storage, liquefied natural gas, hydrogen, and renewable natural gas, which critics argue are far more focused on preserving industry profits than significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The tactics they use include funding university research that skews public discourse and policymaking in the direction of their preferred solutions. They have hired management consultancies to conduct skewed analysis supporting those solutions and funded lobbyists, and advertising and public relations firms to promote them.

    • @baldingpudenda
      5•6 days ago

      biochar

      You charcoal all trees and brush and put it back into the soil. Helps with water retention and promotes healthy soil. You can put it in cattle feed and reduce methane production. Plus, all that carbon is stable for hundreds of years. I have a small cone pit where I do small batches. My tomatoes and flowers seem to like it.

    • @[email protected]
      2•5 days ago

      Well, you could always:

      1. Chop down the tree
      2. Turn it into charcoal
      3. Bury the charcoal deep under ground

      That way, the carbon in the tree is removed from the cycle and no longer re-emitted.

      • @MothmanDelorian
        2•6 days ago

        pre-industrial examples aren’t going to be relevant just due to the concentration of carbon consumed continuously over that time.

          • @MothmanDelorian
            1•6 days ago

            Just killing a lot of people and letting the trees naturally return womt reverse it because we have put so much carbon into the cycle. Everyone burning fires is nothing compared to an industrialized nation