Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel • Hacker News Board

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#51

Post by HillaryBriss » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 9:44 PM UTC

evgen wrote: post #39

twic wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As it says in the article: "the artificial leaf delivers syngas, or synthesis gas, a mixture of hydrogen gas and carbon monoxide. Syngas can be burned directly, or converted into diesel or other hydrocarbon fuels." Hydrogen and carbon dioxide are the feedstocks for the Fischer-Tropsch process, which produces conventional hydrocarbon fuel: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fischer%E2%80%93Tropsch_proces... In other words,…

Probably also worth noting that syngas is the primary input for the Haber-Bosch method used to generate the ammonia feedstock for most of our synthetic fertilizers. If you just take the CO and pump it underground then you are actually producing fertilizer for agriculture using a carbon negative process.

> ... take the CO and pump it underground then you are actually producing fertilizer for agriculture

Interesting. How does the CO fertilize the plants?

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#52

Post by mattashii » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 9:59 PM UTC

lorenzhs wrote: post #47

callesgg wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes it would, sun rays only hit the ground once.

There are plenty of areas of this planet where plants don't grow because the climate is too harsh (not enough water and/or extreme temperatures)

I understand your point, but this system also requires water, and therefore does compete at that point as well. Higher temperatures also have a negative effect at the efficiency of solar panels, but they are indeed a lot more resistant (typically lower temperature=better efficiency for solar panels).

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#53

Post by ckcortright » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 9:59 PM UTC

One way to make a system like this one more efficient/cost effective would be to draw the CO2 from ocean surface water which has a much higher concentration than the atmosphere, depending where you are in the world.

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#54

Post by CoryG89 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:03 PM UTC

jrapdx3 wrote: post #42

sevenless wrote: post #34

> Authors: Mohammad Asadi, Kibum Kim, Cong Liu, Aditya Venkata Addepalli, Pedram Abbasi, Poya Yasaei, Patrick Phillips, Amirhossein Behranginia, José M. Cerrato, Richard Haasch, Peter Zapol, Bijandra Kumar, Robert F. Klie, Jeremiah Abiade, Larry A. Curtiss, Amin Salehi-Khojin I wonder how many of the scientists who made this discovery would be banned from entering the United States by Donald Trump and the Republican…

Don't know of course, though it appears to be a "diverse" group who worked on the project. The salient point is Trump has made it clear he was talking about illegal entrants and delaying entry for individuals coming from areas where terrorism is endemic, until a vetting process is established. There are a great number of professionals from Muslim countries regularly admitted who contribute to American society and cul…

> and delaying entry for individuals coming from areas where terrorism is endemic, until a vetting process is established.

I hate to even further the discussion on this off-topic subject, but the above is simply not true. Here is the official statement (still published in it's original form) directly from Donald Trump's website:

> Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on.

This is a far cry from "individuals coming from areas where terrorism is endemic". Regardless of your stance on politics, what that statement suggests is blanket discrimination based on religious belief.

https://www.donaldjtrump.com/press-releases/donald-j.-trump-...

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#55

Post by karma_vaccum123 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:07 PM UTC

I am Jack's middlebrow dismissal. Why not just type "pffft" and save us the tedium of pouring through your "references"? This is every comment you post.

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#56

Post by loeg » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:10 PM UTC

willvarfar wrote: post #31

loeg wrote: post #22

So it's 20x cheaper than the noble gas version — what's the absolute cost? I assume it's not cheaper than pumping fossil fuels yet, but I'm curious to know how far away it is.

Yeah, this sentence in the middle of the article: > The ability to turn CO2 into fuel at a cost comparable to a gallon of gasoline would render fossil fuels obsolete. Doesn't actually say that this is at a cost comparable to a gallon of gasoline :) Sly words.

It would be pretty shocking if it was already cost comparable, of course :-).

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#57

Post by B1FF_PSUVM » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:11 PM UTC

One of these days, some cleverclogs is going to present to the press a black box that stores electrical charge (and even gives back almost all of it when asked politely) with an energy density almost as good as liquid fuels.

If he can shut up about it containing liquid fuels that are synthesized on the spot, they'll eat it up and hail the finding of the battery holy grail.

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#58

Post by azernik » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:11 PM UTC

karma_vaccum123 wrote: post #55

I am Jack's middlebrow dismissal. Why not just type "pffft" and save us the tedium of pouring through your "references"? This is every comment you post.

Because we care about rigor and accuracy in this forum, and would prefer to be aware if and how the article title and content don't reflect reality. If these comments bore you, skip them.

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#59

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:12 PM UTC

runeks wrote: post #9

This is wonderful! We're surrounded by life forms that turn water, CO2 and sunlight into energy. I figure there must be some way to harness this process. I wonder how much power a large tree takes in from its leaves. If we could interface with its root system, perhaps we could extract newly created starch, and either store it or burn it off. Image a huge concrete power plant with large trees growing out of it.

[deleted]

Re: Breakthrough solar cell captures CO2 and sunlight, produces burnable fuel

#60

Post by karma_vaccum123 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 10:14 PM UTC

azernik wrote: post #58

karma_vaccum123 wrote: post #55

I am Jack's middlebrow dismissal. Why not just type "pffft" and save us the tedium of pouring through your "references"? This is every comment you post.

Because we care about rigor and accuracy in this forum, and would prefer to be aware if and how the article title and content don't reflect reality. If these comments bore you, skip them.

There is nothing rigorous about the ongoing fantasy that random HN commenters know things that no one else does.