Inspired by photosynthesis in nature, carbon dioxide is efficiently converted into methane fuel with
In general, converting carbon dioxide (CO₂) into methane-based fuel (CH₄) using a photocatalyst is thermodynamically challenging.The fact is that the process of chemical reduction involves the simultaneous transfer of eight electrons.
Copper oxide (Cu₂O), a semiconductor material, was used as both a photocatalyst and an electrocatalystto reduce carbon dioxide to other chemical products such as carbon monoxide and methane.However, its low stability and non-selective reduction, which causes the formation of many different products, has limited its application.Separating and purifying these mixture products can be very challenging.This creates a technological barrier for large-scale applications.In addition, copper oxide can easily corrode after short-term lighting.
To overcome these problems, the scientists synthesized a new photocatalyst by encasing copper oxide in copper-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs).In this way, they were able to control the transfer of electrons and selectively produce pure methane gas. Compared with MOF uncladed copper oxide, coated copper oxide has a stable reduction ofcarbon dioxide to methane when irradiated with visible light with almost twice the yield.In addition, MOF-coated copper oxide was more durable, and the maximum absorption of carbon dioxide was nearly seven times greater than that of uncoated copper oxide.
The study was conducted by Dr.Ng Yun-Hau (NgYun-hau, Assistant Professor at the School of Energy and Environment (SEE), in collaboration with researchers from Australia, Malaysia and the UK. The results are published in the scientific journal Angewandte Chemie.
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corrode - to corrode