Carbon Sciences achieves breakthrough in CO2-to-fuel process
Carbon Sciences’ technology involves capturing CO2 and putting it through a biocatalytic reactor. Image courtesy of Carbon SciencesCO2-to-fuel technology company Carbon Sciences announced on June 17 that the company has achieved a breakthrough in its biocatalytic process that can turn carbon dioxide into gasoline and other fuels.
The latest breakthrough involves extending the useful life of key enzymes used in the biocatalytic process that turns carbon dioxide (CO2) to usable fuel. The organic enzymes used in the process are very costly, so extending the life of these enzymes so they can be reused will bring down the total cost of fuel being produced by the process. The number of cycles an enzyme can be used is referred to as total turnover number (TTN). The higher the TTN number, the lower the cost per gallon of gasoline and other fuels created by the process.
Carbon Sciences’ technology involves capturing CO2 and putting it through a biocatalytic reactor. The reactor uses organic biocatalysts to turn large quantities of CO2 into gaseous and liquid fuels. The process basically bonds hydrocarbon molecules together, forming the fuels. The process operates at low pressure and at low temperature, making the entire process low energy. The process uses renewable biomolecules instead of expensive catalysts like zinc, gold, or zeolite. The process itself is highly scalable. The technology can produce gasoline diesel, jet fuel, and other portable fuels from the waste emissions of power plants, oil refineries, and other CO2-producing industries. The technology not only makes fuel out of waste emissions, but also reduces the amount of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere.
Carbon Sciences chief technology officer Dr. Naveed Aslam said, “We continue to increase the TTN of our CO2 to fuel process through a proprietary technology that encapsulates the enzymes in a protective shell. This protective shell significantly increases the activity and functional life of the enzymes. Our enzyme encapsulation technology gives us great confidence in the cost effectiveness of our CO2 to fuel process and moves us closer to commercial viability.”
Carbon Sciences Inc. is based in Santa Barbara, California. The company is listed on the OTCBB as CABN. Its stock was down 4.35% on the June 17 trading day, closing at $0.22.
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Mike R. Lopez
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