r/environment • u/BlondFaith • Aug 06 '20

Turning carbon dioxide into liquid fuel. Scientists have discovered a new electrocatalyst that converts carbon dioxide (CO2) and water into ethanol with very high energy efficiency, high selectivity for the desired final product and low cost.

https://www.anl.gov/article/turning-carbon-dioxide-into-liquid-fuel
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u/UnCommonSense99 Aug 06 '20

Don't get too excited by this. Think of it as a kind of battery. You take electricity that you don't need right now, and store it in the form of ethanol which could be used to heat a home, power a car or get someone drunk. It doesn't solve the GHG problem because the CO2 is only temporarily turned into alcohol, once the alcohol is burned it turns back into CO2 and water again.

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u/[deleted] Aug 06 '20

It does serve as energy / carbon sequestration, which is very exciting. However, it does not help the cumulative CO2 production and also, these "new technologies" are often announced but never seem to materialize.