Carbon dioxide removal: Direct Air CO2 Capture

November 2018: Direct Air Capture technology captures, pressurises, and stores CO2 from the atmosphere. The technology comes under the umbrella of highly controversial geoengineering technologies as endorsed by the IPCC report. It could help to create closed-loop supply chains, reduce CO2 emissions, and produce fuel for trucks and lorries.

Information

‘Direct Air Capture’ technology captures, pressurises, and stores CO₂ from the atmosphere with the view to mitigating climate change. The captured CO₂ could be used to produce methane, which can be used as a fuel. However, its effectiveness is currently limited due to the large size of facilities that would be needed to make a material impact on emission levels. This technology comes under the umbrella of controversial geo-engineering technologies, as described in the latest IPCC report. The IPCC report features several geo-engineering solutions as so-called “plan B options” and recommends exploration of these options, if other ways to halt climate change fail. 

Applicability

ClimeWorks is a Swiss-based company that invests into CO₂ Direct Air Capture technologies. They have launched their third global facility this October with the goal to filter more than 1,500 tonnes of ambient air. The removed CO₂ is fed into a greenhouse that boosts plant growth, and is injected underground with water where it reacts with basalt rocks, turns into rocks, and produces methane for biogas.

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