Researchers from Australia, France and China have found a way to turn carbon dioxide (CO2) from dirty factory emissions directly into fuel without first cleaning or purifying the gas. The study, published in Nature Communications, overcomes one of the greatest challenges facing carbon capture technologies: the complex mix of gases found in industrial flue – a major source of global CO2 emissions, according to a statement released by Australia’s Adelaide University on Monday. Special organic liquidThe team, led by Adelaide University and the University of Montpellier in France, developed a system that uses a special organic liquid to efficiently convert CO2 from industrial emissions into carbon monoxide (CO), a key building block for producing fuels and chemicals, the statement said. In tests using simulated flue gas containing 15% CO2 and 8% oxygen, the system achieved nearly 100% conversion selectivity to CO and operated continuously for more than 100 hours while maintaining high performance. Subscribe To Our Newsletter