Research Notes Energy- CO2 catalysts, C02 eating bugs, H2 storage)
Graphene catalysts break apart CO2… CNTs or graphene sheets?…
‘Scanning notes’ related to energy issues seem to attract the most eyes to this site. More so than the potential social change of Richard Branson sending Oprah into low earth orbit.!! So I will continue to post research and business news on subjects that I believe have a real impact on the future of energy.
For new readers: I DO NOT write about peak oil, climate change, or ethanol. I tend to focus on fundamental / structural changes in energy technologies that have true disruptive potential. This was a big week for energy… here are a few gems!
Carbon related innovations…
I am fascinated by carbon and the rate at which researchers are uncovering new layers of knowledge and engineering capabilities. One of the things that you will see again and again in this blog is that the nanoscale design of catalysts is capable of transforming the energy industry.
1) New graphene/nitrogen based catalyst splits carbon dioxide…mimics plant bio pathways!!!!! Link from Newscientisttech.com
“Breaking open the very stable bonds in CO2 is one of the biggest challenges in synthetic chemistry,” says Frederic Goettmann, a chemist at the Max Planck Institute for Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam, Germany. “But plants have been doing it for millions of years.” Plants use the energy of sunlight to cleave the relatively stable chemical bonds between the carbon and oxygen atoms in a carbon dioxide molecule. In photosynthesis, the CO2 molecule is initially bonded to nitrogen atoms, making reactive compounds called carbamates. These less stable compounds can then be broken down, allowing the carbon to be used in the synthesis of other plant products, such as sugars and proteins…. The graphite-like compound is made from flat layers of carbon and nitrogen atoms arranged in hexagons…. “Carbon monoxide can be used to build new carbon-carbon bonds,” explains Goettmann. “We have taken the first step towards using carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as a source for chemical synthesis.” Future refinements could allow chemists to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels as sources for making chemicals. Liquid fuel could also be made from CO split from CO2, says Goettmann. “It was common in Second World War Germany and in South Africa in the 1980s to make fuel from CO derived from coal,” he adds. The researchers are now trying to bring their method even closer to photosynthesis. “The benzene reaction currently supplies the energy that splits the CO2,” Goettmann says, “but in plants it is light.” The new catalyst absorbs ultraviolet radiation, so the team is experimenting to see if light can provide the energy instead. … The Max Planck technique has only been demonstrated on a small scale and it has a low yield of 20%, he points out. “But it looks quite promising,” he adds. “The catalyst can be made cheaply and it works at a relatively low temperature.”
Why I blog about this:
I love carbon. And I enjoy seeing researchers overcome challenges that seemed impossible only a decade ago. Last week – I attended a lecture by MIT’s Physics/EE Professor Mildred Dresselhaus. She gave a fantastic overview of carbon nanotubes- and really pushed the audience of students/researchers to consider the very real ‘near term’ applications of single layer graphene sheets. (Which were just synthesized in 2004…) Granted most of these applications are related to the information technology/semiconductor industry- but there is no doubt that single layer graphene could help evolve the energy industry.
This research is unrelated to Professor Dresselhaus- but goes a long way in showing the potential of nanoscale science and engineering. Master our ability to manipulate carbon – and we enter a new era for humanity. It offers a new path for the ‘greening’ of hydrocarbons, artificial photosynthesis, carbon sequestration/neutralization, and materials synthesis based on carbon.
2) Carbon eating enzymes for a bioreactor - !!!!! Link from Nanoarchitecture.net
“…Capturing carbon-dioxide from the exhaust of power plants and manufacturing facilities involves using energy to separate carbon-dioxide from other gases and pollutants. Now a Canadian company, CO2 Solution, has created a technology that uses carbonic anhydrase enzymes to process the carbon dioxide. Gases from a smokestack enter a water solution in their bioreactor cylinder. The solution flows around a packing material in the cylinder that has the enzymes secured to its surface. The enzymes extract the carbon dioxide so that it can be stored or converted into bicarbonate, an environmentally safe product, or other useful bi-products….”
Why I blog about this:
I generally avoid conversations related to carbon sequestration solutions because today’s techniques seem so brutish – ‘pump it back into the ground’?! We can sit around talking ourselves blue in the face dealing with near term political/market issues. Or we can have a very serious conversation about the fundamental science needed to make carbon neutralization solutions effective and affordable. Rather than try ‘sequestration’– we must find a way to integrate carbon back into the planet’s ecosystems. Bacteria can show us the way…
Enter bio related energy technologies… I think ‘carbon neutralization’ will be the first ‘killer app’ for bio-energy. We will find a way to leverage microorganisms with enzymes that absorb and transform carbon dioxide (CO2) it into a neutral compound.
This topic of bio-energy is worthy of its own post or book. So I won’t try to fit it in here… But we must recognize the (overwhelmingly) primary role of bacteria in the global carbon cycling system. Mother Nature does not ‘pump’ it back into the ground – it uses plants and bacteria to absorb the carbon. Why shouldn’t we follow this model…? There are a number of researchers involved with this research, hundreds of potential candidates from the bacteria (enzyme) world… and only time will tell which combination will work best. I’d be happy to talk in more detail over email… or in the comment section.
3) Researchers create artificial enzyme that mimics the body’s internal engine
“…The protein cytochrome c oxidase (CcO) is the ultimate enzyme responsible for all aerobic life on Earth, from bacteria to people. It is also a crucial component of the cellular machinery that generates energy in our body. With such impressive credentials, you might expect that scientists would have a clear understanding of how CcO works. But they don’t, according to James P. Collman, professor emeritus of chemistry at Stanford University. To help scientists achieve a better understanding of how CcO works, Collman and his colleagues have built a new model of the enzyme’s active site-a region on the protein’s surface where chemical reactions occur. According to Collman, this new model might eventually help researchers gain insights into the causes of cancer and other major diseases, and might even prove useful in the development of new forms of alternative energy. The team’s findings appear in the March 16 issue of the journal Science. [….Continue reading for an overview of CcO’s role in cellular energy processes…!!] Link from News.com
Why I blog about this:
This has less to do with the near term energy industry- but could be an enabling foundation of knowledge for the fields of synthetic biology, synthetic chemistry- and beyond. I just thought it was a fascinating article – and showed us (again) how little we know of basic cellular processes.
More news on solid state hydrogen storage
[First, a few random notes - to cut off skeptics who jump out of their pants when they see the word ‘hydrogen’. Electricity powers the future – and hydrogen helps to extend this realm of electron based energy. Hydrogen is important in the ‘greening’ of fossil fuels (esp. coal) and bringing renewables into the market of transportation fuels. H2 is not a silver bullet solution to issues related to climate change. It is revolutionary as a tool for decentralizing the production and distribution of electron based energy. Our ability to produce and storage H2 molecules is improving and will make it effective and affordable. So sketpics- start learning more about nanoscale science and engineering! Remember when we didn’t know what an ‘electron’ was- and now we have a electron based semiconductor industry?! We will learn to master hydrogen molecules!] Now that I have that off my chest…!
You will here me say again and again – hydrogen is to be stored as a solid. (Not as a liquid or gas.) And we are only at the beginning of the learning curve in understanding solid state hydrogen storage systems. We cannot yet model theoretical energy storage densities – but it is clear that it will be far higher than storage by compression or as a liquid….
When we look at a future of solid state hydrogen storage- we open up new business models for remote production (great for renewables) and retail based distribution of energy. [I’ve written about the global implications of retail based distribution of ‘packets’ vs grid based ‘streams’ of electrons—and will be posting more again soon…]
1) HSM Systems Inc. (HSM) announced a breakthrough in … new solid materials for the purpose of storing and transporting hydrogen… via hydrogenated aluminum under modest pressures and temperatures by using a supercritical fluid.
Link from Fuelcellsworks.com
2)University of New Brunswick in Fredericton have made a breakthrough in hydrogen storage. They have successfully condensed hydrogen gas into a usable solid under mild conditions Link from Sciencedaily.com
Solar
1) Quantum Dots and the future of solar energy…
“….When a single photon of light hits silicon, it liberates one electron and produces a current. However, when a single high-energy photon from ultraviolet light (UV) strikes quantum dots made of semiconductor materials, many electrons are jolted from their atomic orbit. Arthur Nozik and his team, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, CO, have demonstrated (seven electrons per photon) this to be the case by using Qdots made of semiconductors such as lead sulfide and lead telluride. Their experiments suggest that quantum dots could someday increase the efficiency of converting sunlight into electricity, at costs similar to those associated with electricity generation via the burning of fossil fuels.”
Sourced / Link from Nanoarchitecture.com / Original from MIT Technology Review (Link)
2) “…Applied Materials will install solar panels that will be capable of generating 1.9 megawatts of power on the roofs of the buildings of its Sunnyvale, Calif.-based campus. That’s bigger than the 1.6 megawatt facility search giant Google announced to great fanfare last year. When it’s fully operational in 2008, Applied’s system will provide about the same amount of electricity that would be consumed by 1,400 homes, according to the company. It also will be one of the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) installations in North America… Last year Applied Materials… bought Germany’s Applied Films and announced plans to greatly expand into the growing solar market. Solar PV panels are made of crystalline silicon, so much of Applied’s know-how transfers directly to the solar industry. The company also hopes to produce equipment for thin-film solar panels, which are largely made with processes that were first honed in computer component manufacturing. ….? “ … [Lost my link/Source… it came through my Google reader- sorry!]
Wind
1) Windtech/Sinovel move towards growing China’s wind power market…
Link from Azom.com
“…The goal for wind power in China by the end of 2010 is 5,000 MW, which according to our estimations will already be reached well ahead of time.”