British company claims 'gasoline from air'

A small British company says it has developed a technology that can produce gasoline from air that can then be used in any regular gas tank. The company, Air Fuel Synthesis, says the technology uses electricity to remove carbon dioxide and hydrogen from the atmosphere, and then combines them to produce methanol, which in turn is passed through a fuel reactor to create gasoline. Company officials say they produced more than a gallon of petrol in less than three months in a small test refinery, The Daily Telegraph reported Thursday. The technology was presented at a London engineering conference this week. Company executives said they hope to build a larger plant within two years to produce more than a ton of petrol every day, and said a refinery-size operation could be possible within the next 15 years. The $1.75 million project has the backing of Britain's Institution of Mechanical Engineers but has yet to attract any interest from major oil companies, the Daily Telegraph said.