Researchers
from Wetsus, the center for excellence for sustainable water technology in
Leeuwarden, the Netherlands, established a method to create an electrical
current from carbon dioxide (CO2) using a combination of
membranes and water.
The study, published in the Journal Environmental Science & Technology
Letters, provides a mean for handling the greenhouse gas from electric
power-generating plants, and prevents it from being released in the atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide is one of the main causes for global
warming. Annually, billions of tons of the gas are released in the atmosphere
from electricity generating power plants, home and commercial heating, and
other smokestacks.
The new technology is designed to initiate a chemical reaction between CO2
and water or other liquids in order to produce electricity.
Under laboratory conditions, the scientists were able to estimate that around
1,570 kilowatts of additional electricity can be generated annually, if the
method is used to harvest the wasted CO2. This amount was
found to be around 400 times the power generated by the Hoover Dam.
The laboratory testing was conducted using filled water tanks. One side of
the tanks was equipped with a membrane, which allows positive ions to pass
through, while on the other side of the tank, the researchers placed another
membrane to allow penetration of only the negative ions. Electrodes were placed
beyond the membranes.
Pumping carbon dioxide through the water resulted in
separation of the CO2 molecule into positive hydrogen ions, and negative
bicarbonate ions. The membranes then controlled which ions can pass through,
creating a net flow of electrons from one side of the tank to the other.
The team, led by Bert Hamelers, is now
exploring the possibility of expanding the process from laboratory to
industrial scale. If successful, the study would provide an efficient way to
generate electricity from what is considered one of the most dangerous gases to
the environment.
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