The author Following his research for this article technology journalist and engineer Denis Dilba may opt for a CO2 model when purchasing his next mattress He would also have a use for CO2 based synthetic diesel The only question is whether his old VW van will hold up until the green fuel hits the filling stations top yet in the production of such synthetic fuels says Georg Kobiela from the Wuppertal Institute for Climate Environment and Energy However the expert in future energy and industrial systems cau tions that without additional supporting actions relevant production quantities will not be achieved for a long time whether in the area of fuel produc tion from CO2 or with most other CCU technologies in the chemical industry At this juncture we re talking about a decade and longer the scientist admits and therefore proposes instruments such as funding support purchasing guarantees for the products and opportunities for faster tax depre ciation of the requisite equipment in order to ac celerate the development of CCU technologies Because clearly we need it as one component among many other actions that are required for cli mate protection Perpetual motion through genetic engineering Meanwhile scientists like Daniel Nocera from Har vard University in the United States are working on the really big solution artificial photosynthe sis His bionic leaf initially converts sunlight car bon dioxide and water into hydrogen and oxygen Genetically engineered bacteria subsequently ab sorb the hydrogen and together with carbon di oxide process it into biomass or other CO2 based base chemicals In this way an artificial carbon cycle might actually become a reality If and when it does the carbon dioxide emitted by automo biles aircraft ships and factories could just be captured by artificial leaves and transformed into fuel However we should not yet depend on this to happen Advantages of Iceland The Icelandic company Carbon Recycling International CRI has been using the advantages of the island in the North Atlantic for more than seven years A geothermal power station delivers free waste heat and low cost electricity as well as the climate gas in suitable concentrations It rises there from the Earth s crust CRI produces 4 000 metric tons 4 400 short tons of methanol per year in this way The Icelandic company has now developed the process to a level at which it also runs with CO2 captured from the waste gases of chemical steel and cement plants Their next plant will be at least ten to twenty times larger and produce up to one hundred thousand metric tons 110 000 short tons of methanol per year according to Benedikt Stefánsson Head of Business Development at CRI In two years the first large scale production facility of this kind is planned to be launched in China 17 Global

Hinweis: Dies ist eine maschinenlesbare No-Flash Ansicht.
Klicken Sie hier um zur Online-Version zu gelangen.