PNNL researchers develop electrocatalytic oxidation fuel recovery system

In Washington state, the holy grail of bio-fuel researchers is to develop a self-sustaining process that converts waste from sewage, food crops, algae and other renewable carbon sources into fuels, while keeping waste carbon out of our atmosphere and water. Much progress has been made in converting such waste to useful fuel but completing the cycle using clean energy has proved a tough nut to crack. 

Now, a research team at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has developed a system that does just that. PNNL’s electrocatalytic oxidation fuel recovery system simultaneously turns what has been considered unrecoverable, diluted “waste” carbon into valuable chemicals, while simultaneously generating useful hydrogen. Being powered by renewables makes the process carbon-neutral or even potentially carbon-negative.