Lotus flower inspires new carbon capture technology

Led by Yang Yang, an associate professor at the University of Central Florida’s NanoScience Technology Center, the researchers developed a device that captures carbon dioxide with a microsurface comprised of a tin oxide film and fluorine layer. The device then extracts gaseous carbon dioxide via a bubbling electrode, converting the gases into useful chemicals such as carbon monoxide and formic acid.

To maximise the system’s efficiency, the team needed to minimise the amount of water spread out on the surface of the catalytic materials. It was here that the lotus flower inspiration came into play, with Prof Yang and his colleagues adopting a hydrophobic surface to separate water from the carbon dioxide conversion reaction. The work is published in the Journal of American Chemical Society. 

“We know that the lotus has a really hydrophobic surface, which means when you drop water on the surface, the water will go quickly away from the surface,” Prof Yang said in a statement. 

“If you have too much water surrounding your materials, you may produce hydrogen instead of converting carbon dioxide to chemicals. That will decrease the energy efficiency of the overall process. The materials we use can repel the water from the surface, so we can avoid the formation of hydrogen, and we can greatly enhance the carbon dioxide reduction efficiency. So that means eventually we can use almost all of the electricity for our reaction.”

The technology is built off Yang’s previous energy efforts at UCF nearly three years ago, where he developed new materials for fuel cells that used fluorine-enhanced carbon. He believes the latest research could help pave the way for more large-scale carbon dioxide capture methods located at power plants, industrial facilities or chemical production sites.

“We want to create a better technology to make our world better and cleaner,” said Yang.

“Too much carbon dioxide will have a greenhouse effect on the Earth and will heat it up very quickly. It’s the motivation for why we want to develop this new material to grab and convert it into chemicals we can use.”