How Chinese scientists made petrol building blocks with CO2, water and sunlight

Chinese scientists have developed a plant-inspired method to convert carbon dioxide and water into valuable chemicals, such as the building blocks for petrol, by using solar energy.

The process – inspired by photosynthesis, where plants harness sunlight, carbon dioxide and water to generate energy – could help produce a sustainable source of fuel, the researchers said.

The team, from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said they had developed a material able to store small amounts of electrical energy to help efficiently drive chemical reactions.

When paired with catalysts that converted carbon dioxide into various chemicals, it enabled the solar-driven production of carbon monoxide.

This could be further converted into fuel, offering a possible alternative for hard-to-electrify sectors such as aviation and shipping.

“This work establishes a bioinspired charge reservoir strategy for efficient carbon dioxide photoreduction, providing a universal approach to solar fuel production,” the team wrote in a paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications last week.

South China Morning Post