Scientists develop technology that turns factory exhaust carbon dioxide into useful chemicals; new study reveals |– timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Industrial plants release vast amounts of carbon dioxide every day, yet much of the conversation around cutting those emissions has focused on capturing the gas and storing it underground. Turning it into something useful has always been a more attractive idea, but one that has struggled outside laboratory conditions. Factory exhaust is not made up of carbon dioxide alone. It also contains oxygen, nitrogen and other gases that interfere with chemical conversion processes, making direct use difficult and expensive. According to the new study published in Nature, titled “Hydrogen bond network disruption enables efficient direct reactive capture of CO2 from flue gas”, this obstacle may not be as fixed as previously thought. By redesigning the liquid environment where the reaction takes place, scientists have shown it is possible to convert carbon dioxide from untreated industrial exhaust into a valuable chemical feedstock without first separating and purifying the gas.