Carbon Dioxide

Using principles from rocket science, researchers have created carbon with a record-breaking surface area. The material can soak up about twice the amount of CO2 as current activated carbon materials and has impressive energy-storage capabilities.

Researchers at UC Berkeley have invented a material in powder form that adsorbs carbon dioxide with astonishing performance. Just 200 g (a little under 0.5 lb) can suck up 44 lb (20 kg) of CO2, the same as a tree does in a year.

Researchers at UCLA have successfully devised a way to produce cement with 98% less CO2 emissions than traditional methods. The team achieved this by decomposing limestone to access calcium oxide (aka lime) without releasing carbon dioxide.

ExxonMobil just signed a lease for 271,068 acres of undersea land off the coast of Galveston, Texas to capture and permanently inject carbon emissions into the underwater rock bed, making it what will be the largest CO2 dump in the United States.

A technique originally developed to combat acid rain has the potential to pull an enormous amount of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere – while helping to deacidify oceans, restore rivers and boost biodiversity and fish populations.

Back in 2021, researchers came up with a recipe for greener concrete that had building waste and CO2 among its ingredients. Now the same team has used rubble from a demolished school and the greenhouse gas to produce bricks to build new structures.

Tulip trees have been around for millions of years, but a new analysis of their structure has revealed a previously unknown type of wood. The finding could explain why the trees are great at sequestering carbon and help our efforts to do the same.

A new solution from Cambridge University could recycle both concrete and steel at the same time, by throwing old concrete into steel-recycling furnaces. If done using renewable energy, the process could make for completely carbon-zero cement.

Carbon dioxide is key to how long airborne viruses hang around in the air and, therefore, their likelihood of spreading. Opening a window may be a more scientific way to avoid the spread of respiratory viruses than first anticipated.

The world’s largest ocean-based carbon dioxide removal plant is being built in Singapore, and will be capable of capturing 8 million lb of CO2 per year while also producing 231,000 lb of carbon-negative hydrogen.

Geologists have shed new light on Earth's built-in thermostat. They say shifting tectonic plates that slowed volcanic activity is likely what caused the extreme ice age that turned the planet into a giant snowball over 700 million years ago.

The industrial sector is responsible for about 25% of global CO2 emissions – or about 9.3 billion metric tonnes per year and growing. But a team at the University of Leeds says we don't need to wait for magical new tech to clean most of it up.