(CBC) - Scientists have created metal-organic crystals capable of soaking up carbon dioxide gas like a sponge, which could be used to keep industrial emissions of the gas out of the atmosphere.

Chemists at the University of California Los Angeles said the crystals - which go by the name zeolitic imidazolate frameworks, or ZIFs - can be tailored to absorb and trap specific molecules.


"The technical challenge of selectively removing carbon dioxide has been overcome," said UCLA chemistry professor Omar Yaghi in a statement.

"Now we have structures that can be tailored precisely to capture carbon dioxide and store it like a reservoir, as we have demonstrated. No carbon dioxide escapes. Nothing escapes - unless you want it to do so. We believe this to be a turning point in capturing carbon dioxide before it reaches the atmosphere."

...He said the crystals are non-toxic and would require little extra energy from a power plant, making them an ideal alternative to current methods of CO2 filtering. The porous structures can be heated to high temperatures without decomposing and can be boiled in water or solvents for a week and remain stable, making them suitable for use in hot, energy-producing environments like power plants.

The team of scientists created 25 ZIF crystal structures in a laboratory, three of which showed a particular affinity for capturing carbon dioxide. The highly porous crystals also had what the researchers called "extraordinary capacity for storing CO2": one litre of the crystals could store about 83 litres of CO2.

The researchers created all 25 crystals by combining their raw materials in thousands of chemical reactions, which they say is similar to the high-throughput methods used in pharmaceutical research....

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That is pretty cool! Just think of the ways they could be used to cut down CO2!

Once we know how much it costs....

Ah, yes, of course, how could I forget that! The almighty dollar.

Depending on the cost of this, it could be installed as part of the muffler assembly and be used in all cars to filter CO2. That would really help in cutting down emissions as well.

Wouldn't that be awesome!? But, as Questionmark says, how expensive will it be? Could they actually have a heart and not charge and arm and a leg for it?

Another question is, Will it need to be replaced when the "filter" becomes "full"?

The point is that there are materials available that are perfectly capable of absorbing CO₂, like the classic soda lime I use in my diving equipment(Karcher rebreather). But while it is not too bad to pay for the soda lime I need for the 1/2 HP I can maximally bring as power. It is quite something else to do the same for 75-300 HP such as a common car has.

After a long check on it: Yes.

All well and good but where will you store those crystals when they have absorbed all the CO2. Wouldn't it be worrysome if it was all released by accident and then what. Perhaps they can send it into deep space and let the sun do its job.

Isn't there technology that can reclaim CO2 and turn it back into usuable fuel/oil? I believe this technology is high in energy usage, but if they get CO2 filters sent to them then perhaps it would help. Just a thought.

everyone is a business man, once you've invented something that could CHANGE the world. you'll ofcourse sell it.

Yes, it is called photosynthesis, happens in every plant you see. The problem starts when something emits more CO₂ then can be processed by plants... such as humans are doing.

The problem here is that you would need to put in at least as much energy as you have obtained by converting carbon into CO₂. In the case of the plants they get that energy from the sun.