A groundbreaking invention that produces fuel from thin air could transform atmospheric carbon dioxide from a threat into a potentially valuable resource.
Developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge, this solar-powered device operates without an external power source, making it ideal for remote, off-grid locations with limited energy access. Beyond fuel production, the technology can also generate hydrocarbon-based materials typically derived from fossil fuels, offering a sustainable alternative that reduces environmental harm.
“Instead of continuing to dig up and burn fossil fuels to produce the products we have come to rely on, we can get all the CO2 we need directly from the air and reuse it,” said lead researcher, Professor Erwin Reisner, in a statement.
Behind the Technology for Making Fuel out of Thin Air
As the need for energy and the costs of using traditional fuels to generate that energy continue to increase, scientists are looking for innovative, more sustainable solutions.
Several novel approaches have emerged in recent years, including generating energy from “extreme” chemical enzymes, harboring electricity from Wi-Fi signals, or even a patented new process for capturing energy in space and transporting it to Earth, although many of these methods, though promising, are not yet available on a commercial basis.
The Cambridge team is taking a different approach. Inspired by how a plant makes fuel out of sunlight and water, the team has now developed a device that creates fuel out of thin air. The team’s prototype device works in two distinct stages in their prototype model.
The first stage occurs at night when specialized filters capture CO2 from the air, much like a plant does in the first stages of photosynthesis. The second stage of the solar-powered flow reactor occurs when sunlight strikes the device’s concentration mirror. According to the researchers, a semiconductor powder “absorbs the ultraviolet radiation to start a chemical reaction” that converts the captured CO2 into a synthesis gas (or “syngas”). A combination of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, syngas can be used as a precursor to traditional fuels or as its own combustible fuel.
Several scientists have begun to favor similar approaches because of the dual benefits of power generation and carbon capture. MIT and Harvard University engineers have unveiled an innovative process to transform atmospheric carbon dioxide into formate, which can also serve as a stand-alone, non-toxic fuel. Another artificial photosynthesis effort uses solar power to make fuel out of thin air by converting CO2 to methane. More recently, Cambridge researchers joined the University of California at Berkeley researchers to develop tiny copper flowers that convert CO2 into hydrocarbons that can make materials or fuel.
Why Solar-Powered Flow Reactor is Superior to Carbon Capture and Storage
In the study outlining the technology, the researchers emphasized the significant benefits of their process over energy generation using fossil fuels. The team also notes that by capturing atmospheric CO2 without added energy input beyond the power of the sun, their device offers a powerful new approach to reducing the increasing levels of CO2 in Earth’s atmosphere that doesn’t involve simply storing away the CO2 for future generations.
“Aside from the expense and the energy intensity, CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) provides an excuse to carry on burning fossil fuels, which is what caused the climate crisis in the first place,” said Reisner. “CCS is also a non-circular process, since the pressurized CO2 is, at best, stored underground indefinitely, where it’s of no use to anyone.”
“What if instead of pumping the carbon dioxide underground, we made something useful from it?” asks the study’s first author, Dr. Sayan Kar from Cambridge’s Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry. “CO2 is a harmful greenhouse gas, but it can also be turned into useful chemicals without contributing to global warming.”
The researchers say they are encouraged by their progress and are now working on converting the solar syngas created by their device into liquid fuels. They also hope to show the ease and benefits of scaling these devices since they are exclusively solar-powered.
“If we made these devices at scale, they could solve two problems at once: removing CO2 from the atmosphere and creating a clean alternative to fossil fuels,” said Kar. “CO2 is seen as a harmful waste product, but it is also an opportunity.”
The team is currently building a larger-scale version of the device that makes fuel out of thin air, with the first round of tests slated for the spring. If successful, the team believes there are no insurmountable technological barriers to implementing devices using their technology, only political ones.
“We can build a circular, sustainable economy – if we have the political will to do it,” Reisner said.
The study “Direct air capture of CO2 for solar fuel production in flow” was published in Nature Energy.
Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.