Computer simulations give insights into how carbon dioxide reacts with a sequestering liquid
(PhysOrg.com) -- Worse than toddlers on a sugar high, carbon dioxide molecules just don't like standing still. The tiny molecules, just three atoms, leap from place to place in less than a trillionth of a second. Yet, scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside found a way to get clear pictures. They used computer simulations to get detailed images of carbon dioxide reacting with an ionic liquid's surface. The images show that the surface's molecular strata increases the energy needed for the gas to move into the liquid. They also found that carbon dioxide and water molecules arrange themselves differently once these molecules get close to the surface, based on how the molecule's electrons are spaced.