#methane
Infrared lasers reveal unprecedented details in surface scattering of methane
When molecules interact with solid surfaces, a whole range of dynamic processes can take place. These are of enormous interest in the context of catalytic reactions, e.g. the conversion of natural gas into hydrogen that can then be used to generate clean electricity.
Specifically, the interaction of methanemolecules with catalyst surface such as nickel is of interest if we are to gain a detailed and meaningful understanding of the process on a molecular level. But studying scattering dynamics of polyatomic molecules such as methane has been challenging because current detection techniques are unable to resolve all the quantum states of the scattered molecules.
The lab of Rainer Beck at EPFL has now used novel infrared laser techniques to study methane scattering on a nickel surface for the first time with full quantum-state resolution. Quantum-state resolved techniques have contributed much to our understanding of surface-scattering dynamics, but the innovation here was that the EPFL team was able to extend such studies to methane by combining infrared lasers with a cryogenic bolometer: a highly sensitive heat detector cooled to 1.8 K that can pick up the kinetic and internal energy of the incoming methane molecules.
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Converting carbon dioxide into methane or ethane selectively
A research team led by Professor Su-Il In from Department of Energy Science and Engineering had succeeded in developing photo catalysts that can convert carbon dioxide into usable energy such as methane or ethane.
As carbon dioxide emissions increase, the Earth’s temperature rises and interest in reducing carbon dioxide, the main culprit of global warming, has been increasing. In addition, the shift to reusable fuel for existing resources due to energy depletion is also drawing attention. In order to solve trans-national environmental problems, research on photocatalysts, which are essential in converting carbon dioxide and water into hydrocarbon fuels, is gaining attention.
Although many semiconductor materials with large band gaps are often used in photocatalyst studies, they are limited in absorbing solar energy in various areas. Thus, photocatalyst studies focusing on improving the photocatalyst structure and surface to increase solar energy absorption areas or utilizing two-dimensional materials with excellent electron transmission are under way.
Professor In’s research team developed a high-efficiency photocatalyst that can convert carbon dioxide into methane (CH4) or ethane (C2H6) by placing graphene on reduced titanium dioxide in a stable and efficient way.
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Tweaking the structure of metal-organic frameworks could transform the capacity to use methane as a fuel
A hybrid material that could lead to cheaper and more effective methane storage has been created by a globally prominent research team at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, with collaborators at the University of Crete, Greece.
Natural gas, which is almost 95 percent methane, is a good candidate for replacing gasoline and coal. It can provide the same amount of energy as these fossil fuels, while releasing much less of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and the toxic pollutants carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. Methane is more environmentally friendly in several ways, but its widespread adoption for powering vehicles and other local and mobile applications is limited by shortcomings of existing storage and transport technologies.
Professor Mohamed Eddaoudi of KAUST’s Advanced Membranes and Porous Materials Research Center leads a wide range of research projects involving metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs. These hybrid materials contain single metal ions or metal clusters held together by carbon-based ‘organic’ chemical groups known as linkers. Rearranging different linker and inorganic molecular building blocks allows scientists to fine-tune the size and chemical properties of the pore system in MOFs to perform useful functions. These include highly selective gas adsorption and catalysis.
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Even though methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas, it remains in the atmosphere for (only) about 10 years, making it a more approachable target in the short-term fight against climate change.
While CO2 does remain the more prevalent culprit, its effects are to be evaluated in the long-term. Because it lasts for hundreds of years once in the atmosphere consequences are to be expected in the second half of our century.
The research, supported by the National Geographic Society and published today in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, estimates that atmospheric warming from all of these sources combined now appears to swamp the forest’s natural cooling effect.
The effect can still be combated and reversed through the halting of deforestation as well as rebuilding the destroyed ecosystems.
It is a dark day for the climate.
#eternalflame #methane #naturalwonder #chestnutridgepark #chestnutridge #february #newyork #saturday #ny #waterfall #beautyinnature #familyhike #roadtrip #worththedrive #worththehype #justgo #mustsee (at Chestnut Ridge, New York)
https://www.ecowatch.com/new-zealand-livestock-methane-emissions.html
New Zealand Considers Charging Farmers for Livestock Emissions - EcoWatch
In New Zealand, sheep and cattle outnumber people. All that livestock passes gas, which means emitting more methane into the atmosphere. As such, the country has proposed to tax farmers for their livestock’s emissions.
New Zealand’s agriculture makes up almost half of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. According to the BBC, there are about 5 million people in New Zealand, but there are 10 million cattle and more than 26 million sheep. Although New Zealand has an emissions trading scheme in place to minimize climate change, the agriculture industry was not included.
“We need to urgently cut emissions across all sectors of the economy – and that includes agriculture,” Climate Change Minister James Shaw said in a statement. “There is no question that we need to cut the amount of methane we are putting into the atmosphere, and an effective emissions pricing system for agriculture will play a key part in how we achieve that.”
The proposal includes incentives for farmers to cut emissions. For example, they may add seaweed to livestock feed to help reduce the amount of methane the livestock produce. Farmers can also plant trees to help offset their emissions.
New Zealand currently has a goal to reduce methane emissions from agriculture by 24% to 27% by 2050 and is set to decide on the proposal in December 2022. In the meantime, the government and farmers have more details to hammer out if they plan to move forward with this scheme. The agriculture industry and the public will also have opportunities to share their views on the proposal.
