Solar-powered systems convert CO₂ into methanol
In India, Scienmag reports a new review in Ionics examines photoelectrochemical (PEC) systems that use sunlight to convert captured carbon dioxide into liquid methanol, a fuel and chemical feedstock. Researchers highlight recent advances in engineered semiconductor photocathodes, copper-based catalysts and tandem architectures, with some systems achieving methanol Faradaic efficiencies of roughly 90–95%. Bias-free designs can operate without external electrical input. However, the technology remains at the laboratory stage, with photocorrosion, competing hydrogen production, low overall solar-to-fuel efficiency and difficulty scaling from small electrodes identified as major challenges.
Category: Research
