Scientists have learned how to clean the air by artificial photosynthesis
A Life / / December 19, 2019
The scientists were able to run the process in an artificial photosynthetic synthetic material, in which energy is produced, and the carbon dioxide is converted to pure air. This process can form the basis for techniques for reducing greenhouse gases and the production of clean energy.
Scientist Fernando Uribe-Romo (Fernando Uribe-Romo) from the University of Central Florida with his students found a way to run chemical reaction in synthetic materials (organometallic frames), during which the carbon dioxide is split into safe organic materialsSystematic variation of the optical bandgap in titanium based isoreticular metal-organic frameworks for photocatalytic reduction of CO2 under blue light.. This artificial process is similar to natural photosynthesis, during which plants recycle carbon dioxide and sunlight into nutrients. Only the method Uribe-Romo is for the production of solar fuels.
Scientists around the world have long been looking for a way to use visible light to launch a chemical transformation. Previous experiments were with ultraviolet radiation. It has enough energy to such a reaction has occurred in the inorganic material, such as titanium dioxide. But ultraviolet light - is not more than 4% of the light that reaches us from the sun.
Most of the solar radiation amount to the electromagnetic waves of the visible spectrum. However, substances capable of catching the waves to run a chemical reaction for conversion of carbon dioxide into fuel bit. Scientists have experimented with platinum, rhenium and iridium, but they are too rare and expensive, so the technology based on them would be unprofitable.
Experiment Uribe-Romo
Uribe-Romo decided to use quite common nontoxic titanium, adding the organic molecule (N-alkyl-2-aminotereftalaty) which were collected light like antennas. By embedding these molecules in the metal-organic frameworks, they can be configured to capture light of a certain color range, in this case - blue.
To test the hypothesis, researchers collected photoreactor with blue LED lighting that simulates waves of the blue region of the visible spectrum. Then photoreactor chamber slowly fed carbon dioxide portion. The experiment proved successful: during the reaction, carbon dioxide is evolved in reconstructed two forms of carbon - formate and formamide (types of solar fuel), and more in purified air.
"Now we need to fine-tune the process to produce large quantities of reduced carbon" - says Uribe-Romo. He is going to check whether to launch a similar response wave to other regions of the visible spectrum.
If it works, the scientists make significant progress in the fight against greenhouse gases. Sam Romo-Uribe dreams of plants that will be built next to the power, to seize large carbon dioxide and recycle it, resulting in supplying energy to the process back to power.
Perhaps someday even roofs will be made from a material that cleans the air and produces energy.
"This will require new technologies and infrastructure, - says Uribe-Romo. - But it's not impossible. "