New Technologies for Selective Carbon Dioxide Reduction

大气中二氧化碳浓度的上升和全球能源需求的不断增长是人类面临的两个最大问题。解决这个问题的办法是将二氧化碳转化为一种有用的化学物质，理想情况下可以用作燃料。在这项研究中，通过使用一种新的催化剂，将开发一种新的途径来完成这一具有挑战性的转化。催化剂是一种加速反应，使反应在经济上和实际中可行的物质。鉴于之前的研究使用的催化剂是基于稀有和昂贵的金属，如钌，该项目将开发的催化剂将使用铁，一种丰富而廉价的金属，从而为碳危机提供可持续的解决方案。

EPSRC : Leah Webster : EP/R513052/1The rise of carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere and the increasing global energy demand are two of the greatest problems facing humanity. A solution to this would be to convert carbon dioxide into a useful chemical, ideally one that could be used as a fuel. In this research a new route to perform this challenging transformation will be developed, by using a new catalysts. Catalysts are species that speed up reactions to make them economically and practically viable. Whereas previous research has used catalysts based on rare and expensive metals such as Ruthenium, the catalyst this project will develop will use iron, an abundant and cheap metal, thereby giving a sustainable solution to the carbon crisis.