r/science • u/Wagamaga • Aug 06 '20

Chemistry 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/MarshallStack666 Aug 07 '20

I have a 1937 Caterpillar tractor that will run on both gasoline and kerosene (basically slightly more refined diesel oil). It has two fuel tanks. The procedure is to fire it up on gasoline and then when it's warm, switch over to kerosene. (much cheaper at the time, like half the price)

This is very old and very low compression engine, but it will run on pretty much any liquid that will catch on fire. Internal combustion engines are a lot more resilient than most people think.

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u/cherbug Aug 07 '20

That’s fascinating. And how cool to have such an old tractor still with OEM.

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u/[deleted] Aug 07 '20

So it has a pony motor to spin the main engine to build compression. Gotcha

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u/MarshallStack666 Aug 07 '20

No, not at all. The engine itself starts and runs on gasoline, then the fuel line is switched from the gas tank to the kerosene tank. It's not a diesel, it's a spark ignition engine. (4 cylinder 250 CID) There's no pony motor.

An electric starter would possibly let it start on kerosene, but this particular beast is started with a hand crank like a Model T Ford. It's low compression (like 7:1), but still powerful enough to rip your arm off if the engine kicks back when you are cranking it.