The new tech was inspired by the method plants use photosynthesis to turn carbon dioxide into oxygen and glucose. The synthetic leaf mimics this process, with the help of the cheap cuprous oxide powder, producing methanol and oxygen.
A paper published in Nature Energy reports how the resulting methanol can be collected and used as fuel by heating the solution so the water evaporates.
Lead researcher Professor Yimin Wu from the University of Waterloo told The Independent: “This technology has achieved the solar to fuel efficiency about 10 percent.
“This is already larger than the natural photosynthesis” (approximately one percent).
“The next step is to partner with industry companies to scale it up with a system engineering using flow cells for the production of liquid fuels.
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“As the process reduces emissions, it simultaneously reduces the need for more oil production.
“It helps fight climate change, reducing carbon dioxide emissions, but also provides sustainable energy.”
Professor Cameron Hepburn of Oxford University, who was not involved in the research, believes an artificial leaf could be a new method of reducing carbon dioxide levels from the atmosphere.
He said: “Key is cost, scalability and their impacts on other key social objectives like the Sustainable Development Goals.
“If valuable products can be made from carbon dioxide, this could lower the costs of climate change mitigation in the long run.”
