A University of Cambridge scientists team, led by professor Erwin Reisner, has created a solar-powered flow reactor that can capture C02 from the air at night a
Professor Erwin Reisner (left) and his team managed to create a reactor that captures CO2 from the air and convert it into synthetic fuels to power cars, ships or planes /Cambridge University nd convert it into fuels like diesel, methanol, or ammonia during the day with the help of the sun. If scaled up, it would theoretically allow people to generate their carbon-neutral fuel anywhere in remote places and make synthetic fuel affordable. Reisner said, "We can build a circular, sustainable economy—if we have the political will to do it." Absorbing CO2 at night like trees The solar flow reactor uses filters at night to absorb CO2 from the air. This is somewhat comparable to what trees do naturally. As trees grow, they take in carbon from the air and store it in wood, plant matter, and soil, making them what scientists call 'carbon sinks.' Plants use water, sunlight, and carbon dioxide to create food and oxygen during photosynthesis. But in the reactor at Cambridge, when the sun heats up the captured gas, it absorbs infrared and ultraviolet radiation, leading to a chemical reaction that creates solar syngas. Syngas, or 'synthesis gas,' is a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, which can be…