Plasma Processing for Recycling Co2: An Examination of Co2 Non-Thermal Plasma Generated at Atmospheric Pressure

Recycling of carbon dioxide (CO2) into reusable materials is imperative as CO2 levels climb unabated in our atmosphere. Plasma processing offers a pathway to reuse CO2 by overcoming the energetic stability of the molecules and disrupting intramolecular bonds while generating reactive species. Reacting these species with gases, liquids, and surfaces produces carbon-containing molecules, which can then be “recycled” to produce fuels and additional chemicals that have intrinsic industrial value. A plasma cell was constructed for CO2 plasma generation and as a reaction cell for other gases. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and residual gas analyzer (RGA) measurements were performed on the plasma exhaust from a pure CO2 gas stream and a 1:1 CO2/N2. Preliminary results show the following compounds formed from the plasma: carbon monoxide (CO), nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4), and oxygen.