[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/10742\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EThe push to turn climate culprit CO2 into a green force \u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELaura Martinelli has bittersweet recollections about a clean-fuels project that she managed. It was interrupted by the sudden death of a leading researcher but ended up breaking important ground in the field.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EMartinelli says the project\u2019s ultimate success would have been impossible without the contribution of the late researcher, Arren Bar-Even, an Israeli biochemist who died at the age of 40 in September 2020 little more than halfway through the four-year initiative.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETribute and achievement\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EBar-Even worked at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Plant Physiology in Germany and pioneered the project, which was called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/763911\u0022\u003EeForFuel\u003C\/a\u003E and received EU funding to develop biofuels from CO2. Specifically, it experimented with E coli bacteria to produce propane and isobutene, which can be converted into fuel substitutes.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027He obtained some of the pathways for turning CO2 into useful compounds,\u0027 said Martinelli, who is chief executive officer of an Italian technological research firm called INsociety. \u0027Without him, it wouldn\u0027t have been possible. He contributed to our chances of decarbonising our society.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe idea of turning CO2, the main greenhouse gas blamed for global warming, into an ally in the battle to green the European economy is gaining momentum as research into biofuels expands.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EBiofuels, a form of renewable energy, can be used to power cars, planes and ships. Depending on the production process and mixture, they can emit less CO2 than petrol, diesel, kerosene and other conventional fuels.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EMost biofuels are currently produced from crops such as sunflowers and soybeans, causing strains on food supply. That\u2019s why the EU limits the amount of such first-generation biofuels and promotes research on alternatives that are not derived from food crops.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECleaner transport\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAs for propane and isobutene, they could be used to reduce emissions from shipping and aviation. Those two industries are each responsible for around 2.5% of global CO2 discharges.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EParticularly heavier vehicles, like airplanes or ships, will in the short-term need biofuels.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003ELaura Martinelli, eForFuel\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027Not all forms of transport can be electrified,\u0027 said Martinelli. \u0027Particularly heavier vehicles, like airplanes or ships, will in the short-term need biofuels.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe eForFuel team showed that E coli bacteria could produce propane and isobutene in a process that involves the use of electricity.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EE coli is commonly found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals and helps their digestion. The bacteria can also be grown in laboratories.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA team under the leadership of Bar-Even managed in 2020 to reprogramme E coli to feed on CO2.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe project, which ended in April 2022, also found that the potential energy generated would outweigh the amount put in.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027We proved that the reaction was possible,\u0027 said Martinelli. \u0027We proved that we could create these fuels from CO2.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EEven after the breakthrough, research in this area will continue for the foreseeable future in an effort to make large-scale output possible.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027We need to make the process efficient enough to use it at an industrial scale, which can take years,\u0027 said Martinelli.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETesting steel\u2019s mettle\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAnother EU-funded research project \u2013 \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/id\/656437\u0022\u003ESTEELANOL\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 is seeking to recycle emissions from the steel industry, eventually turning them into biofuels.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EOutside the Belgian city of Ghent, far away from the tourists in the medieval centre, is one of Belgium\u0027s biggest CO2 emitters: a steel plant belonging to ArcelorMittal, the world\u2019s second-largest producer of the metal.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Ghent factory belches out more than 9 million tonnes of the pollutant a year \u2013 equal to around 8% of the greenhouse-gas emissions from all of Belgium.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn a process known as carbon capture and utilisation (CCU), some of that carbon-rich gas \u2013 a combination of CO and CO2 \u2013 is captured and pumped into four reactors that are each 34 metres high. Inside, microbes eat the carbon and transform it into ethanol, a fuel that can reduce emissions in everything from planes to cosmetics.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027The steel industry is a hard industry to decarbonise,\u0027 said Wim Van der Stricht, responsible for CO2 technology strategy at ArcelorMittal. \u0027It will take years at the least. This new technology allows us to do something useful with these emissions in the meantime.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBig bioreactors\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe gas fermentation reactors now converting carbon emissions in Ghent were built as part of STEELANOL and were only recently completed. They produced their first ethanol from carbon emissions in June 2023.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003EThis new technology allows us to do something useful with these emissions.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EWim Van der Stricht, STEELANOL\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EInside the reactors, a carefully calibrated environment supports living microbes that are fed the CO2.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027These microbes have existed for a long time and you can find them everywhere in nature,\u0027 said Van der Stricht. \u0027We, however, stimulated them to convert carbon emissions into ethanol.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe process, developed by a US-based company called LanzaTech, is similar to the fermentation certain foodstuffs such as beer or cheese go through.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EWhile the resulting ethanol can serve as transport fuel, the uses are potentially broader and extend to industries including cosmetics and plastics.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027We\u0027re also talking to cosmetics companies because they want to sustainably source solvents,\u2019 said Van der Stricht. \u0027But our ethanol can just as well help make plastic production greener.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EExpansion goals\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe industrial site in Ghent took several years to build and STEELANOL itself is a near decade-long initiative due to run until end-March 2024.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EEven though the first ethanol under the project has been produced, scaled-up production will take time. By the end of STEELANOL, the site should produce around 80 million litres of ethanol a year.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EScaling up, however, will be a challenge, according to Van der Stricht.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027We need to maintain the ideal environment for the microbes,\u0027 he said. \u0027They want temperatures of around 37 \u00b0C. And just like humans they need vitamins and minerals, which we need to add to the process. We\u0027re continually monitoring and optimising the bioreactors.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to technological questions, regulatory ones will play a role in the development of fuels from CO2.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EDetermining whether fuels produced by CCU processes qualify as sustainable has often fallen into a grey zone, hindering companies developing the technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027The past few years there was significant uncertainty around this,\u0027 said Van der Stricht.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA forthcoming update of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.europarl.europa.eu%2Flegislative-train%2Fpackage-fit-for-55%2Ffile-revision-of-the-renewable-energy-directive\u0026amp;data=05%7C01%7CCecilie.JENSEN%40netcompany-intrasoft.com%7Ccc607458d15b4ced0e7308db9d7872b3%7Cb4c2ce7d100a41cb905c1931371a58d5%7C0%7C0%7C638276912871401638%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C\u0026amp;sdata=%2F5pYT0sNjC9ITwBVbfNIFsv8acXa3HjSeBKDP8a7CJY%3D\u0026amp;reserved=0\u0022\u003Erenewable-energy legislation\u003C\/a\u003E will bring more clarity to the industry. If the EU co-legislators agree to strengthen provisions on CCU-fuels and their role in reducing emissions, they will be ready for another leap ahead in Europe.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0027We\u0027re going forward at rapid speed,\u0027 said Martinelli. \u0027Ten years ago we didn\u0027t know whether this was feasible at such a scale. Today we\u0027re seeing the first factories become a reality.\u0027\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EResearch in this article was funded by the EU. 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