University of California Team decompose Carbon Dioxide to Oxygen using a UV Laser - How Gas Pyrolysis can create lighter Spacesuits and Life on other Planets

Today, Saturday October 4^th 2014, I’m at the MICO University College doing some research for my Projects in my various courses in The Learning Commons at the MICO Library. Being as I’m an evening student, my four (4) courses in my Professional Diploma in Teaching, valued at 3 Credits each as shown in the table below.

Already I’m feeling pissed. Not at the MICO University College mind you. Rather it’s with this article on the discovery of a non-biological way by a Research team of University of California to produce Oxygen (O_2(g)) from Carbon Dioxide using a VUV Laser as stated in the article “Researchers discover a way to tease oxygen molecules from carbon dioxide”, published Oct 03, 2014 by Bob Yirka, Phys.org

Personally this is no surprise, as SOLAR-JET Project had already demonstrate that it's possible to decompose Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) and Water Vapour (H₂O_(g)) using concentrated sunlight from a Fresnel Lens or Parabolic Reflector to produce Syngas made up of Hydrogen (H_2(g)) and Carbon Monoxide (CO_(g)) and then Kerosene via the  Fischer–Tropsch Process as described in my blog article entitled “SOLAR-JET Project create Kerosene from Syngas - How Fresnel Lens in SynGas for Fischer–Tropsch Process means Fossil Fuel a Renewable Resource by 2017”.

Based on their paper published in the Journal Science, it presents an alternative non-biological pathway for the production of Oxygen (O_2(g)) on the Earth. This as the current theory posits that during a Great Oxidation Event about 2.7 billion years ago, early plants such as Cyanobacteria aka Blue-Green Algae developed and converted Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) via photosynthesis into simple sugars like glucose and Oxygen (O_2(g)), making life on Earth possible. 

This alternative method involves exposing Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g))  to VUV (Vacuum Ultraviolet light) Laser, which is basically Vacuum Pyrolysis with a Laser, Vacuum pyrolysis being a process anyone can achieve using a Vacuum Pyrolysis Foundry whose construction I've described in my blog article entitled “How to upgrade your Solar Desalinator to a Solar Cooker and make a Solar Foundry for Vacuum Pyrolysis”.

This “discovery” of a non-biological alternative to producing Oxygen (O_2(g)) from Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) thus implies several things:

1.      You don't need organic life that's capable of photosynthesis to produce Oxygen (O_2(g)) on a planet

2.      This paves the way for Rebreather technology that literally decomposes Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) breathed out by Divers and even astronauts into Oxygen (O_2(g))

Already I can see how this will affect manned mission to Mars and other planets or just snorkeling underwater. No need to carry Oxygen (O_2(g)) tanks; just a unit on hip or a mini backpack that pyrolyzes exhaled Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) into Oxygen (O_2(g)) using a UV Laser in a mini-Vacuum Chamber. 

The other implication is that there may be more planets with life than we imagined that fit the ESI (Earth Similarity Index) as suggested in my blog article entitled “Dr. Robert Wittenmyer Team discovers Gliese 832 c – Supersize my Exoplanet Please with a Serving of Super-Venus”, since Bacteria isn't needed to produce Oxygen (O_2(g)), just a vacuum, ionizing radiation in the planet's upper atmosphere and Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)).

University of California and UV Ionization of Diatomic Gases - Oxygen doesn’t need Photosyngthetic organisms

Albeit their findings made into the Journal Science, I can't help but thinking, “like, duh-h, didn't you PhD's know that radiation ionizes Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) and Diatomic Gases into their constituent atoms”?

Reason being?

In the early Earth, there was no atmosphere as we have today with Ozone to shield us from deadly Cosmic Rays and High Energy UltraVoilet Radiation from the Sun. 

The only shield that existed back in the early Earth had was the Earth's Magnetic field, a field which currently is set to under a Pole Reversal and result in some pretty catastrophic weather patterns pretty soon, with some initial effects manifesting this Christmas 2014 as predicted in my blog article entitled “ESA's Swarm Says the Earth's Magnetic Field is Weakening - How Weakening Magnetic Field results in hotter Summer Days and Hurricanes in Christmas 2014”.

The Earth's atmosphere is composed of the following increasingly thinner layers:

1.      Troposphere: 0 to 12 km (0 to 7 miles)

2.      Stratosphere: 12 to 50 km (7 to 31 miles)

3.      Mesosphere: 50 to 80 km (31 to 50 miles)

4.      Thermosphere: 80 to 700 km (50 to 440 miles)

5.      Exosphere: >700 km (>440 miles)

At around the Thermosphere or above, any diatomic gas present would be exposed to the extremes of Outer Space. Thus if Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) or any Diatomic gas were to float up into the Thermosphere, it would be strongly ionized into its constituent atoms, Carbon (C) and Oxygen (O_2(g)). In this manner, Oxygen (O_2(g)) and Ozone (O_3(g)) may be formed in the upper Atmosphere of many an exoplanet.

ATLAST (Advanced Technologies Large Aperture Space Telescope),  E-ELT (European Extremely Large Telescope) and the James Webb Space Telescope once constructed and operational in outer space as described in my blog article entitled “ATLAST, James Webb Telescope and E-ELT - Bigger Space and Ground-based Telescopes for the Planet Hunters” would be able to spot using Gas Spectrophotometry in the upper atmosphere of planets.

Thus planets can have Oxygen (O_2(g)) and Ozone (O_3(g)) to form a Ozone Layer without the need for Oxygen (O_2(g)) producing plants or other biological organism on the planet.

How to ionize Gases with a Vacuum Pyrolysis Chamber - More Practical to make Diesel fuel from Vehicle Tyres

The same thing can be simulated on the ground by using a vacuum chamber and a gigantic Fresnel Lens in a contraption I like to call a Vacuum Pyrolysis chamber.

A Vacuum Pyrolysis chamber can be used for more than just rapid desalination of Water or even converting Bamboo (bambusa vulgaris) to activated Charcoal as noted in my blog article entitled “Jamaica's Bamboo Charcoal exports stalled by lack of Bamboo Furnaces – How to build a Fresnel Lens Solar Powered Bamboo Furnace and produce Activated Charcoal byproduct”.

It can be used to decompose virtually anything, including hydrocarbons in Car Tyres into Diesel and eventually gasoline, making fuel from the Tyres dumped in the Riverton City Dump as described in my blog article entitled “How to make Diesel and Gasoline from the Pyrolysis of Car Tyres and Plastics - Jamaican Riverton City Dump Fire Ecological Disaster solution that reduces Jamaica's Oil Bill”.

This is something St. Lucia is currently considering and which the US of A has been doing for some time now as explained in my blog article entitled “St. Lucia’s SLSWMA to make Fuel from Tyres - Why is Jamaica not converting Tyres at Riverton City Dump into Fuel”.

So to me, this is just yet ANOTHER use of Vacuum Pyrolysis; the decomposition of Air itself.

Still I’m a bit curious as since this process converts Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g)) back to Carbon (C) and Oxygen (O_2(g)), what happens to all that Carbon? Possibly during decomposition, it falls out of the reactor chamber as Carbon Dust, which can be used in other industries such as making steel or even Paint.

Please note my “Like Duh” moment doesn’t diminish the importance of the discovery by the Research team of University of California. I just wish they'd realized this sooner and began patenting a practical use for this, as aside from Astronaut and Deep Sea Divers, this Vacuum Pyrolysis is a great way to make Oxygen (O_2(g)) from Carbon Dioxide (CO_2(g))!