Mobility transition: Whether e-cars can clean the air?

Today, it is undeniable that the key to a cleaner, more sustainable future lies, among other things, in reducing air pollutants - starting with the transport sector. After all, it is considered one of the main contributors to air and environmental pollution. It is precisely against this background that scientists from Vanderbild University in Nashville and the University of Washington are working on a prototype car that not only produces no emissions, but also absorbs carbon dioxide from the air. 

The key to this? A CO2-negative battery - also called "carbon nanotubes". This is supposed to draw carbon dioxide from the air and use it both during production and operation. The carbon electrodes for the batteries, for example, would be produced from recycled CO2 with the help of solar power. This could make it possible to manufacture at least 40% of the battery components in a climate-neutral way. However, the new technology would make an even bigger difference if it were used in electric cars on the road. Thus, electric cars would become even more sustainable, as they would not only emit no CO2, but also consume - and thus reduce - the amount already in the air.  

Similar approaches are currently being explored for internal combustion vehicles. Here, the so-called "power-to-liquid technology" could make it possible to produce synthetic petrol or diesel fuel from renewable electricity. It could still be a while before both green prototypes are suitable for mass production. CO2-negative batteries and climate-negative electric cars are not yet ready to hit the roads - and pave the way to a clean future.  

But the question can already be asked: What impact would they have on conventional climate-friendly vehicles? Compared to an ordinary e-car, their environmental potential would be much higher. Negative emissions are certainly better than no emissions. Especially when the world is constantly looking for ways to mitigate pollution in terms of fighting climate change. Would electric cars then have to comply with emission-related traffic restrictions, as internal combustion vehicles already do in low emission zones, for example? Special environmental zones could perhaps be set up, for example, where only cars with negative emissions are allowed to enter. 

But it is clear that such a technical development, if made available to the general public, would change the mobility world - and thus revolutionise all climate-protecting transport measures currently underway.