Audi has created a so-called 'green' diesel fuel made using a combination of water and carbon dioxide.

The car manufacturer described its breakthrough as the 'fuel of the future' and claims it could provide a carbon neutral way of powering vehicles.

Experts used renewable energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into a form of crude oil known as 'blue crude', which was then refined into diesel.

And this was how the synthetic fuel was made

Audi's fuel was developed with Sunfire, a Dresden-based energy technology company.

To make the fuel, water is first heated to form steam which is then broken down into its constituent hydrogen and oxygen using high-temperature electrolysis.

By performing this process at temperatures above 800°C (1,472°F), the water breaks down with greater efficiency than at room temperature.

The hydrogen is then pumped into a reactor with carbon dioxide at high pressure and high temperatures. This causes them to react to produce long-chained liquid hydrocarbons.

Hydrocarbons are the basic building block of all fossil fuels, but the compounds produced in the reactor are known as 'blue crude'.

Audi claims the whole process can be powered using renewable energy and can be achieved with an efficiency of around 70%. The blue crude can then be refined in a similar way to standard crude oil to produce e-diesel.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3059025/Audi-creates-DIESEL-air-water-fuel-future-powering-car-driven-German-minister.html

Oyinbo

I do not believe that the process is as easy or as viable as the article portrayed it to be otherwise Audi would have exited the car business to make tones of money as an energy company.