Who Won the U.S. Presidential Debate?

A key step toward reusing CO 2 to make sustainable fuels is chaining carbon atoms together, and an artificial photosynthesis system developed at the University of Michigan can bind two of them into hydrocarbons with field-leading performance.

The system produces ethylene with efficiency, yield and longevity well above other artificial photosynthesis systems. Ethylene is a hydrocarbon typically used in plastics, so one direct application of the system would be to harvest carbon dioxide that would otherwise be vented into the atmosphere for making plastics.

"The performance, or the activity and stability, is about five to six times better than what is typically reported for solar energy or light-driven carbon dioxide reduction to ethylene," said Zetian Mi, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Michigan and corresponding author of the study in Nature Synthesis.

"Ethylene is actually the most produced organic compound in the world. But it is typically produced with oil and gas, under high temperatures and pressures, all of which emits CO 2 ."

The long-term goal is to string longer chains of carbon and hydrogen atoms together to produce liquid fuels that can be easily transported. Part of the challenge is removing all of the oxygen from the CO 2 as the carbon source and water, H 2 O, as the hydrogen source.

• Read More