Global aviation and shipping produce about 8 percent of manmade CO2 emissions. A pilot-scale solar refinery now efficiently turns CO2 and water plucked from air into liquid fuels like gasoline, diesel and kerosene though an efficient process with a high fuel-production rate that involves using concentrated sunlight as a source of high-temperature heat. A direct air capture unit absorbs carbon dioxide and water from air using a sorbent bed. Then a solar unit uses solar heat to convert the CO2 and water into a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. This unit consists of a sun-tracking curved reflector that focuses the sun’s energy onto the chemical reactor. Finally, a third unit turns the syngas into a liquid hydrocarbon such as methanol or kerosene that is used as fuel. It’s a step closer to making carbon-neutral fuels for flying and shipping pretty much anywhere.
Source: Remo Schäppi et al. Drop-in fuels from sunlight and air. Nature, 2021.