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SpaceX on the march towards sustainable rockets
SpaceX is one of the companies competing in the aerospace race, owned by tycoon Elon Musk. This company has a project to make its rockets "sustainable" and that they would use carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to turn it into fuel.
Undoubtedly, it is a risky move, but if it materializes, we would be facing a great advance in ecological matters.
Remember that these rockets use liquid or solid fuels of different types. What these have in common in the pollution they leave in the atmosphere at each launch.
SpaceX wants to make a difference and contribute in some way to reducing pollution. That is why they are developing this new initiative that was announced by Elon Musk himself through his official Twitter account.
Rockets and pollution
The amount of pollutants that a rocket ship can generate is no secret to anyone. These rockets handle different types of fuel, the most common being liquid fuels and solid fuels.
When a rocket launches its way into outer space, it leaves behind a large quantity of pollutants in the atmosphere, which is produced by combustion inside the engine.
These fuels are made from mostly propellant, which can generate great pollution. SpaceX's rockets are powered by kerosene, a fuel derived from petroleum that during its combustion releases different types of chemicals directly into the atmosphere.
How does SpaceX plan to use carbon dioxide as fuel?
In order to do this, the company will need to be able to collect carbon dioxide directly from the air. This is a technology that already exists today, however it is still under development and testing.
The technology in question is known as "direct air capture", but it still has some time until it is fully operational. In Iceland there is a plant of this type that collects greenhouse gases and is the closest thing to what SpaceX is looking for. This plant has the capacity to collect 4.00 tons of gases per year.
Presumably this will be the same technology the aerospace company intends to use. This would mean that they should build one of these plants and then use these gases as fuel.
Is this the future in aerospace companies?
Without a doubt, this technology would be very good not only for the industry, but for the planet.
However, to this day, this technology is still in its infancy and is quite expensive. That is why it is unlikely that we will see it in action very soon.
