#CauseForOptimism: CO2-2-Ethanol!

Here's another cause for optimism that is both encouraging and wicked cool. (Man, I love science! ;-) Yet another potential technological breakthrough for which to give thanks during this holiday season!

In a new twist to waste-to-fuel technology, scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed an electrochemical process that uses tiny spikes of carbon and copper to turn carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into ethanol. Their finding, which involves nanofabrication and catalysis science, was serendipitous.

According to ORNL’s Adam Rondinone, lead author of the team’s study published in ChemistrySelect:

“We discovered somewhat by accident that this material worked. We were trying to study the first step of a proposed reaction when we realized that the catalyst was doing the entire reaction on its own.”

Okay, so effectively reversing the combustion process to turn CO2 back into a clean, combustible fuel like ethanol isn't a magic bullet or a miracle cure for global warming. Still, it's an impressive achievement and, if it scales, could be invaluable in making a renewables-based energy grid more practical. Here is the team's insight in that regard:

“A process like this would allow you to consume extra electricity when it’s available to make and store as ethanol. This could help to balance a grid supplied by intermittent renewable sources.”

Here's to the role of luck, perceptiveness, and serendipitous discovery in the world of scientific research. May it fill all of us with hope and #CauseForOptimism! The full article can be viewed here:

Nano-spike catalysts convert carbon dioxide directly into ethanol

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