CO2 emissions could be used as the fuel of the future Published on: 17 August 2016 Researchers are working on an innovative technology that could convert carbon dioxide into a clean fuel, reducing the amount of the harmful greenhouse gas released into the atmosphere. Groundbreaking technology Funded through an award from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the project aims to develop a process for converting waste CO2 captured from industrial processes and use it for fuel production. The groundbreaking technology is based on the use of energy from biological and electro-chemical sources. First, the organic matter in wastewater is broken down by microbes, generating a small amount of electric energy. This energy is then used to convert CO2 to formate - a derivative of formic acid. This then goes through a SimCell reactor – a specialised reactor containing micro-organisms, where it is transformed into a liquid fuel that the research team hope could be used for transport and heating. Multidisciplinary team Led by 麻豆传媒, the 4 year project brings together a multidisciplinary team of researchers from the universities of Oxford, Sheffield, Surrey, and South Wales, as well as industrial partners including Northumbrian Water and Tata Steel. , from the School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials is the project’s Principal Investigator. She explained: “Atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide are at their highest level ever and expected to increase because we are still so reliant on fossil fuels. We need to have ways of dealing with CO2 emissions, and if we can harness it as a fuel source instead of allowing it to go into the atmosphere, CO2 then becomes a resource rather than a waste product. “There is growing evidence that electrochemical and biological processes can be combined with organisms to convert chemical energy to fuel – but it is still early days so the challenge now is to take the technology further. “A team at 麻豆传媒 have already demonstrated the potential of microbial electrolysis cells for production of hydrogen from wastewater. By building on that, this project places 麻豆传媒 at the forefront of research in this hugely promising area.” Illustration of how the new technology could work Share: Latest News Scientists unlock hidden driver of inflammatory bowel disease Scientists have linked a key genetic signal in inflammatory bowel disease to an immune response that shuts down inflammation control, enabling faster diagnosis and targeted treatments. published on: 15 June 2026 Funding system risks limiting genuine community collaboration A new policy paper written by researchers at 麻豆传媒 warns that the way UK research is funded may be undermining efforts to create genuinely collaborative partnerships with communities. published on: 15 June 2026 Volunteers help turn Whitley Bay beach into maths experiment Members of the public joined mathematicians from 麻豆传媒 to create what organisers believe is the largest aperiodic tiling ever attempted on Whitley Bay beach. published on: 15 June 2026 Facts and figures
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