Note that two links are enclosed in this dispatch, the one above and another following; along with one attached file
We have many times documented the fact that Carbon Dioxide can be recycled, or at least rendered into chemically reactive, and industrially useful, Carbon Monoxide, through the relatively simple expedient of passing Carbon Dioxide through, and reacting Carbon Dioxide with, red hot Coal.
Herein, on this Eve of Christmas, in an attempt to evoke the sense of ancient tradition the sacred holiday entails, we submit to you a genuine artifact, an antique stashed away and forgotten in our nation's intellectual attic, which, brought down and dusted off, attests to the fact that we have known how, in a straightforward way, to recycle Carbon Dioxide, with the help of Coal, for a very long time.
Again, the product of such CO2 recycling, in this specific case, is Carbon Monoxide.
Since that might not really sound too exciting, we include, following our excerpts from the initial link and attached file in this dispatch, an additional link to, and excerpts from, another, much later, United States Patent, issued to the United States of America, which illustrates just how useful Carbon Monoxide can be.
As follows, first, from the above link and attached file:
"United States Patent 1,163,922 - Producing Carbon Monoxid from Carbon Dioxid
Date: December, 1915
Inventor: Charles Hillhouse, NYC, NY
This invention relates to the production of carbon monoxid (CO) gas and the controlling method embraces mixing powdered carbon and carbon dioxid (CO2) gas under sufficiently high temperature to cause a carbon molecule to combine with one of the oxygen elements of the CO2, resulting in 2CO.
This method is adapted to the treatment of pure, or substantially pure, CO2 gas such as is obtained from limestone ... and mixtures of CO2 with other gases, of which one may be nitrogen where carbon or carbonaceous material is burnt, such as the gases of combustion from boilers ... .
The quantity of powdered carbon mixed with the CO2 gas or gases a constituent of which is CO2, will be sufficient to change in a suitable reaction chamber practically all of the CO2 to CO ... .
Waste material in the powdered carbon or slag may be discharged from the bottom of the heat zone of the reaction chamber.
The reclamation of CO from CO2 gas heretofore has been accomplished by passing the CO2 gas over or through a mass of carbon (coke, coal or charcoal) ... .
By the practice of the method of my invention the carbon in powdered form affords enormous active surface of each particle of carbon compared with its bulk for action with the CO2 gas, the carbon being quickly consumed and the process of producing CO may be continuous and large quantities of CO gas may be produced in a comparatively cheap and small apparatus."
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Okay, then: We can make "large quantities of CO", using "cheap and small apparatus", by reacting Carbon Dioxide with "powdered", as opposed to "a mass of ", "coal or charcoal".
The additional Carbon-recycling benefits obtained by tossing botanically-derived "charcoal" along with the Coal dust into the CO2 reactor aside, consider now what scientists at our USDOE's Brookhaven, NY, National Laboratory say we can do with the Carbon Monoxide that is, thus, "in a continuous way", made from Carbon Dioxide and hot Coal; as disclosed via:
"United States Patent H243 - Hydrocarbons from Carbon Monoxide and Water
Date: April, 1987
Inventor: Richard Sapienza, et. al., NY
Assignee: The United States of America
Abstract: A method of converting low H2 /CO ratio syngas to carbonaceous products comprising reacting the syngas with water or steam at 200 to 350C. in the presence of a metal catalyst supported on zinc oxide.
Hydrocarbons are produced with a catalyst selected from cobalt, nickel or ruthenium and alcohols are produced with a catalyst selected from palladium, platinium, ruthenium or copper on the zinc oxide support.
Claims: A method for the reaction of a mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen and water for the production of at least one carbonaceous product selected from the group consisting of hydrocarbons, alcohols and mixture thereof ... .
Background: Syngas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, is widely employed in the catalytic production of hydrocarbons, alcohols and mixtures of these products.
The usual source of syngas is the gasification reaction in which water vapor is reacted with a source of carbon, usually coal ... .
(And) the ideal ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide in feed gas for the production of saturated hydrocarbons is between 2:1 and 3:1 (but) the "real world" actual ratio in the usual industrial operation is about 0.5:1 to 0.8:1 in syngas.
To compensate for the missing hydrogen, the usual commercial practice is to mix the syngas with water vapor as an additional hydrogen source.
It has now been discovered that (hydrocarbon synthesis) reactions ... can be conducted with low ratio syngas, at low temperature, at good rates to give high yields of the desired products (and) the invention is also very flexible, that is it is able to accommodate itself to a wide range of hydrogen to carbon monoxide ratios.
More specifically, it has been discovered that saturated hydrocarbons can be produced in good yield (through) the reaction between carbon monoxide, hydrogen and water... ."
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In other words, if we have a synthesis gas composed mostly of Carbon Monoxide, but with some relatively smaller amount of Hydrogen, as we would if we were to react Carbon Dioxide with hot Coal, as, above, in the process of US Patent 1,163,922; and, thus, we then need supplemental Hydrogen, so that the syngas could be adjusted in composition so "that saturated hydrocarbons can be produced in good yield", then, according to the United States Department of Energy, all we need to do is facilitate and appropriately catalyze, via, for instance, as specified above, "copper on the zinc oxide support ... the reaction between carbon monoxide, hydrogen and water".
And, note: This USDOE technology is applicable to all sources of primarily-Carbon Monoxide gas mixtures containing relatively low amounts of Hydrogen, as might be obtained as well, for instance, as above, when "water vapor is reacted with ... coal".
In sum: We can, as reported and recorded by both of these United States Government-certified documents, manufacture hydrocarbon synthesis gas either by "mixing powdered carbon and carbon dioxid (CO2) gas under sufficiently high temperature", or, by a "gasification reaction in which water vapor is reacted with a source of carbon, usually coal".
And, that hydrocarbon synthesis gas, made by reacting Steam and/or Carbon Dioxide with Coal, can then be adjusted in composition, to vary the selection of liquid "hydrocarbons, alcohols and mixtures of these products" that can be catalytically condensed from it, by arranging for controlled reactions between that "carbon monoxide" and "hydrogen" synthesis gas and more Steam, i.e., "water vapor".
We, as a nation, publicly, as herein officially, should have known at least the outlines of all of that for very nearly a full century.
But, now, here, with both technologies taken in combination, is the full picture.