Researchers from top universities in the US have come together to work toward a sustainable future where CO2 is used to make fuel using sunlight.
Researchers at the Center for Hybrid Approaches in Solar Energy to Liquid Fuels in the US have determined that using three-dimensional silicon scaffolds on photoelectrodes improves the yield of products when sunlight is used to turn carbon dioxide into fuel.
With humanity looking to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, renewable energy sources such as wind and solar have stepped up to meet the electricity demands in many parts of the world. However, heavy industries and applications such as long-haul transport can not function with energy from battery packs and need an energy-dense fuel that can replace diesel and petrol.
Doing so with a gas like CO2 is doubly advantageous since it reduces the concentration of the greenhouse gas in the atmosphere while also providing a reliableTo date, scientists have successfully generated liquid solar fuels using silicon photoelectrodes. The process works by incorporating catalysts on the surface of the silicon, which can absorb light and start the necessary chemical reaction.
While scientists have known about high-surface-area silicon for decades, it has never been used in photoelectrodes for liquid solar fuel generation. The research team at CHASE attempted this for the first time, with promising results. The team at CHASE built the photoelectrodes using high-surface-area silicon material. This allowed them to study the catalysts at a molecular level and better understand their role in carrying out the chemical reactions.
Energy &Amp Environment Fuels Solar Sunlight
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