• Bookstore

Clifford Kubiak, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of California, and his graduate student Aaron Sathrum have developed a prototype device that can capture energy from the sun, convert it to electrical energy and "split" carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide (CO) and oxygen.

They stress that their work is still in the early stages, and that their system is not fully "optimised". At TenBees, we think this kind of technology, along with electricity from hydrogen, is exactly the kind of energy we need.

Though carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas, it is used a great deal in manufacturing, and is usually produced from natural gas, "So with CO₂ splitting you can save fuel, produce a useful chemical and reduce a greenhouse gas.", said Kubiak.

The device designed by Kubiak and Sathrum to split carbon dioxide utilises a semiconductor and two thin layers of catalysts. It splits carbon dioxide to generate carbon monoxide and oxygen in a three-step process. The first step is the capture of solar energy photons by the semiconductor. The second step is the conversion of optical energy into electrical energy by the semiconductor. The third step is the deployment of electrical energy to the catalysts. The catalysts convert carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide on one side of the device and to oxygen on the other side.