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This leaf isn't generating oxygen though. It's generating alcohols. I wonder what it would take to generate oxygen out of the alcohol.
by pavanky 10y ago
This leaf isn't generating oxygen though. It's generating alcohols. I wonder what it would take to generate oxygen out of the alcohol.
- yincrash 10y agoCO2 scrubbers in spacecraft don't generate oxygen either. They only absorb CO2. https://www.quora.com/How-do-the-CDRA-and-Vozdukh-systems-scrub-carbon-dioxide-from-the-air-on-the-International-Space-Station-ISS https://www.quora.com/How-do-the-CDRA-and-Vozdukh-systems-sc...
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- dTal 10y agoIt does actually. The alcohols are mainly made from the carbon in CO2 and the hydrogen in H2O. Isobutanol is (CH3)2CHCH2OH, and isopropanol is C3H8O. So that's a lot of O left over. Roughly speaking, energy + CO2 = carbon + oxygen. Left to right is photosynthesis. Right to left is fire. [edit: do be careful when applying this equation in practice! Often, hitting CO2 with a big hammer just yields CO, or carbon monoxide. It's poisonous!]
- simonebrunozzi 10y agoI bet this could be a great unintended outcome for those astronauts :)