Thursday, July 21, 2011

Nanotube chemical factories

The factory we want is nanoscale, but a somewhat complex plumbing system. A huge Bucky Ball that contains an electron catalyst, embedded in a light transparent substrate. Some sections of the Bucky Ball structured to admit CO2 and H2O, and one that pumps out CH3OH.

How do we make a nanotube chemical factory? Trained bacteria will build them. Or we lay the factories out on the substrate on sheets, but do it in three or four layers.
This catalyst is acting like a bucket brigade switch, shifting among positions so the ions jump on board. It can assemble the alcohol near the exit port, where the alcohol is sucked out. More likely this will be a two step process, hence two large chemical Bucky chambers connected, each having a separate catalyst molecule, exchanging assemblies.

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