A new chemical breakthrough published in the journal Nature Communications on the 26th: Scientists have developed a liquid metal electrocatalyst that can convert gaseous carbon dioxide (CO2) into a solid carbon material at room temperature and used for energy storage. This method will contribute to the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and become a viable "negative carbon emission" technology.

Any human activity is likely to cause carbon emissions, and the most important greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide. Therefore, "negative carbon emission" technology is essential to maintain the stability of the future climate, but the carbon dioxide gas form makes the long-term storage of greenhouse gases difficult. While much current research focuses on reducing carbon dioxide into higher-value products, such as chemicals and fuels, these methods cannot achieve permanent carbon capture (because synthetic fuels are simply burned).

The University of New South Wales researchers Krosh Kalant-Zadeh, Dona Esrafizadeh team developed a liquid metal electrocatalyst that can directly convert gaseous carbon dioxide into a carbon-containing solid at room temperature. The liquid metal catalyst is based on a non-toxic gallium alloy, which prevents coking, in which carbon is trapped on the surface and reduces the activity of the catalyst.

The research team then turned the collected solid products into supercapacitors, which are expected to become lightweight battery materials in the future.

The researchers point out that previous carbon nanomaterial preparation methods typically require high temperatures of several hundred degrees Celsius, and their technology could help reduce the high energy requirements of carbon dioxide conversion. Scientists believe that this research has important applications for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.