France, Dec. 17 -- A team at the College de France in Paris, led by Professor Marc Fontecave, has created a special catalyst - a material that speeds up chemical reactions - that can convert carbon into alcohols like ethanol and propanol. These alcohols can be used as vehicle fuels or to make plastics and other products.
The process works by first capturing carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas warming our planet, from factories or even directly from the air.
Record surge in CO2 puts world on track for more long-term warming
This CO2 is then converted into carbon monoxide, which the new catalyst transforms into useful fuels using electricity. When this electricity comes from renewable sources like wind or solar power, the entire proces...