A high-efficiency photocatalyst for converting carbon dioxide into environmentally friendly energy using sunlight
March 29, 2024
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DGIST Professor In Su-il’s research team has developed a high-efficiency photocatalyst that utilizes sunlight to convert carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary cause of global warming, into methane (CH4) fuel. The research team expects that this environmentally friendly technology can be applied to Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) technology.
According to a US university research team, the current concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has reached its highest level in 14 million years, at 420 ppm. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) predicts that 2024 will be a hotter year than last year due to the influence of El Niño.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has identified climate change as the greatest global risk among 34 crises faced by the world in fields including economics, society, technology, and geopolitics, which could lead to international conflicts as a result of the depletion of resources and polarization. Therefore, reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is inevitable to overcome crises induced by climate change.
In this regard, research on photocatalysts, capable of reducing carbon dioxide emissions while simultaneously converting it into useful fuel, has been actively pursued. Photocatalyst research has garnered attention as a