Taking cue from plants' ability to
photosynthesise, Chinese automaker Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation has
developed a car that could take in CO² and produce oxygen.
SAIC,
which has a partnership with General Motors in China, showed designs for the
photosynthesizing YeZ Concept Car, recently at Expo 2010 in Shanghai. YeZ
(pronounced "yea-zi") is Chinese for "leaf," and it is the apt title for the
open buggy-like vehicle, which has a roof shaped like a leaf.
The
technical details haven't been articulated, but YeZ designer Ma Zhengkun says
the roof "absorbs solar energy and transforms it into electricity."
According to CNET Asia blogger Juniper Foo, the two-seater car would
have a "metal-organic framework," which would work to absorb CO² and water,
turning them into electricity that would get stored in a lithium-ion
battery.
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