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IMAGE: An electron microscope images shows copper nanocubes used by Rice University engineers to catalyze the transformation of carbon monoxide into acetic acid. view more
Credit: Wang Group/Senftle Group/Rice University
HOUSTON - (Jan. 11, 2021) - A sweet new process is making sour more practical.
Rice University engineers are turning carbon monoxide directly into acetic acid the widely used chemical agent that gives vinegar its tang with a continuous catalytic reactor that can use renewable electricity efficiently to turn out a highly purified product.
The electrochemical process by the labs of chemical and biomolecular engineers Haotian Wang and Thomas Senftle of Rice s Brown School of Engineering resolves issues with previous attempts to reduce carbon monoxide (CO) into acetic acid. Those processes required additional steps to purify the product.