Vision: “Technical Photosynthesis”

Abstract

In his book Methanol - Chemie- und Energierohstoff [1], published in 1986, Friedrich Asinger already expressed his concern for the excessive exploitation of the valuable raw materials of crude oil and natural gas. He saw a “methanol economy” as the only visionary way out of this situation: “If hydrogen were cheaply available, this readily optainable pure, sulphur-free carbonic acid easily could serve as the starting point for the synthesis of methanol.” And “If fossil raw material sources one day become increasingly short in supply and more expensive, or even totally exhausted... there remains apart from biomass only carbonic acid as the source of raw material for the organic chemical industry”. In methanol, Asinger saw a chemical raw material that could spare the limited crude oil and natural gas resources. Apart from its importance as a chemical raw material, however, methanol could be of greatest importance as an energy carrier. Methanol itself or hydrocarbon derivatives thereof (fuels, olefins, etc.) could serve as a source of energy that can be easily stored and transported. At that time, Asinger evidently saw no danger of a shortage of carbon as a raw material.