Can carbon dioxide be used as an industrial feedstock? Large amounts of carbon dioxide are produced in industrial production, driving and even in daily life. According to incomplete statistics, billions of tons of carbon dioxide gas are released into the atmosphere every year. There is no doubt that these CO2 emissions will have a negative impact on the Earth's environment. Recent years have not been good for carbon dioxide, the main cause of global warming.

But does carbon dioxide really just cause trouble? Don't forget carbonated drinks, foam fire extinguishers and dry ice, not to mention photosynthesis, which is vital for plant growth. In sunlight, plants use photosynthetic pigments to convert carbon dioxide and water, which form the basis for the survival of the living world, into oxygen and carbohydrates, which directly provide energy and "building materials" for plant growth.

Carbon is an important element in the chemical industry, and the main component of a large number of chemical products is carbon. So, like plants, can carbon dioxide be used as a "carbon source" to produce plasticized "building materials"? Carbon dioxide was first proposed as a "dream material" by a Japanese scientist in 1969, converting carbon dioxide into a CO2-based polymer used to make plastics. "This is not only because of its low cost and abundant carbon dioxide reserves, but also because it can significantly reduce the plastics industry's dependence on fossil fuels such as oil, thereby expanding the supply of raw materials for basic chemicals and opening up new avenues for sustainable development.

However, the carbon dioxide at the end of the combustion chain has a very stable chemical property that is difficult to decompose under ordinary conditions. In addition, due to the low carbon dioxide content, the conversion of carbon dioxide can only be achieved by pumping high performance catalysts. Finding the right catalyst has been a challenge for more than 40 years.

Not long ago, manufacturers of advanced polymers and high-performance plastics succeeded in identifying "supercatalysts" that could turn carbon dioxide into a carbon source for industrial production. In the production process, carbon dioxide accounts for up to 20 percent of the raw material. The new technology allows carbon dioxide to be polymerized with the raw materials used to make conventional foam, introducing the carbon dioxide into the "industrial feedstock cycle" and improving product performance.

In the plastics industry, polyurethane foam is widely used as shock-proof packing material, sound absorbing material and water absorbing material due to its elasticity. The main components of polyurethane are polyols and isocyanate. With the help of a "super catalyst," carbon dioxide can open chemical bonds to form a carbon dioxide base, which is embedded in polyols, polymerized into polycarbonate polyols, and eventually formed into polyether carbonate polyurethanes with isocyanates. Polyurethane foam is superior to traditional polyurethane in mechanical properties, hydrolysis resistance, heat resistance, oxidation resistance and wear resistance.

In the past, the production of styrofoam was entirely petroleum-based. With this new technology, carbon dioxide could replace a quarter of oil consumption. In addition, the catalyst is not reduced during the production process and the production facility is used for a long time. Carbon dioxide can be obtained cheaply from upstream companies such as fossil power plants. In the long run, using carbon dioxide as an industrial feedstock is not only more environmentally friendly than conventional technologies, but also considerably economically competitive.