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janrinok [soylentnews.org] writes:

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Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story [scitechdaily.com]:

A team of researchers at the University of Ottawa has found a way to use visible light to transform carbon dioxide gas, or CO₂, into solid carbon forms that emit light. This development creates a new, low-energy CO₂ reduction pathway to solid carbon that will have implications across many fields.

We talked to lead author Dr. Jaspreet Walia, Post-Doctoral Fellow in the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Ottawa, and research lead Dr. Pierre Berini, uOttawa Distinguished Professor and University Research Chair in Surface Plasmon Photonics, to learn more. 

This image shows light emission, a process known as photoluminescence, from solid carbon which has formed on a silver nanostructure, illuminated by green light. Credit: University of Ottawa, OSA Optica

“More specifically, with respect to the creation of carbon directly from CO₂ gas, our findings will have an impact on research involving plasmon assisted reactions and I would expect the emergence of applications in the oil and gas industries, where catalytic transformations involving carbon-based compounds is a key focus area.”

“Next-generation reactions involving CO₂ and light could also lead to other useful outcomes, such as the potential for artificial photosynthesis. Our findings could be used for light control and manipulation at the nanoscale, or to possibility realize flat light sources due to the light-emitting aspect of our discovery. The nanostructured carbon itself could also be used in catalysis.”

“Finally, the wavelength (color) of the light emitted from carbon dots on a silver surface could be very sensitive to the local environment, making it an attractive sensing platform for pollutants, for example.”

Reference: “Reconfigurable carbon quantum emitters from CO₂ gas reduced via surface plasmons” by Jaspreet Walia, Sabaa Rashid, Graham Killaire, Fabio Variola, Arnaud Weck, and Pierre Berini, 14 May 2021, Optica.
DOI: 10.1364/OPTICA.424170 [doi.org]

The research took place at the uOttawa Centre for Research in Photonics, from January 2020 to present. The paper is published in the journal Optica as a memorandum.

Original Submission