Scientists have found that an item widely used in kitchens can absorb planet-heating carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, in what they hope will become a low-cost and efficient tool to slow climate change.Scientists from the University of Cambridge in England used activated charcoal — a sponge-like substance used in household water filters — and “charged” it like a battery to see if it would absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) directly from the air.While activated charcoal can filter impurities in water, it wouldn’t normally be able to capture CO2. But scientists discovered this changed when they mimicked the process of charging a battery — in which ions stick to a battery’s electrodes — using chemical compounds called hydroxides.Hydroxide ions accumulate in the tiny pores of the charcoal and start to form bonds with CO2, sucking it out of the atmosphere, according to the study published this week in the journal Nature.Once the CO2 is absorbed, it then needs to be purified and stored to stop it being released back into the air. Scientists were able to separate the CO2 from the charcoal by heating the sponge to between 90 and 100 degrees Celsius (194 to 212 degrees Fahrenheit), breaking the bonds between the CO2 and the hydroxide ions.It might seem like an energy-intensive process, especially for something designed to slow climate change, but some other methods to draw carbon directly from the atmosphere require temperatures as high as 900 degrees Celsius, often powered by natural gas, a fossil fuel.The scientists say their technique requires far less energy and can be powered by renewables alone.There ar …
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnScientists have found that an item widely used in kitchens can absorb planet-heating carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, in what they hope will become a low-cost and efficient tool to slow climate change.Scientists from the University of Cambridge in England used activated charcoal — a sponge-like substance used in household water filters — and “charged” it like a battery to see if it would absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) directly from the air.While activated charcoal can filter impurities in water, it wouldn’t normally be able to capture CO2. But scientists discovered this changed when they mimicked the process of charging a battery — in which ions stick to a battery’s electrodes — using chemical compounds called hydroxides.Hydroxide ions accumulate in the tiny pores of the charcoal and start to form bonds with CO2, sucking it out of the atmosphere, according to the study published this week in the journal Nature.Once the CO2 is absorbed, it then needs to be purified and stored to stop it being released back into the air. Scientists were able to separate the CO2 from the charcoal by heating the sponge to between 90 and 100 degrees Celsius (194 to 212 degrees Fahrenheit), breaking the bonds between the CO2 and the hydroxide ions.It might seem like an energy-intensive process, especially for something designed to slow climate change, but some other methods to draw carbon directly from the atmosphere require temperatures as high as 900 degrees Celsius, often powered by natural gas, a fossil fuel.The scientists say their technique requires far less energy and can be powered by renewables alone.There ar …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
