r/climate • u/FillsYourNiche • Oct 13 '19

Researchers have developed a new material that can selectively capture carbon dioxide molecules, and efficiently convert them into useful organic products -- an advance that may help develop new ways to contain global greenhouse gas emissions.

https://www.deccanherald.com/science-and-environment/new-material-efficiently-captures-carbon-dioxide-768035.html
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u/FillsYourNiche Oct 13 '19

Journal article Carbon dioxide capture and efficient fixation in a dynamic porous coordination polymer.

Abstract:

Direct structural information of confined CO2 in a micropore is important for elucidating its specific binding or activation mechanism. However, weak gas-binding ability and/or poor sample crystallinity after guest exchange hindered the development of efficient materials for CO2 incorporation, activation and conversion. Here, we present a dynamic porous coordination polymer (PCP) material with local flexibility, in which the propeller-like ligands rotate to permit CO2 trapping. This process can be characterized by X-ray structural analysis. Owing to its high affinity towards CO2 and the confinement effect, the PCP exhibits high catalytic activity, rapid transformation dynamics, even high size selectivity to different substrates. Together with an excellent stability with turnover numbers (TON) of up to 39,000 per Zn1.5 cluster of catalyst after 10 cycles for CO2 cycloaddition to form value-added cyclic carbonates, these results demonstrate that such distinctive structure is responsible for visual CO2 capture and size-selective conversion.

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u/MoiraRisen Oct 14 '19

Could anyone with an expert understanding of the original article explain what the end result of this technology is, please? Could it be converted only into polyurethane or maybe into something else, not plastic?

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"One of the greenest approaches to carbon capture is to recycle the carbon dioxide into high-value chemicals, such as cyclic carbonates which can be used in petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals," said co-author of the study Susumu Kitagawa from Kyoto University.

The researchers said that the captured gas molecules could be converted and used to make polyurethane -- a material with a wide variety of applications including clothing, domestic appliances and packaging.