Carbon Sequestration

Battalions of carbon dioxide-grabbing stratospheric balloons operating higher than airliners are far and away the cheapest path to direct air carbon capture, according to Israel's High Hopes

Environment

High Hopes claims stratospheric breakthrough in direct air CO2 capture

An ambitious Israeli startup claims it can pull carbon dioxide out of the air vastly cheaper than anyone else, using massive high-altitude balloons to take advantage of stratospheric temperatures and freeze CO2 out of the air with minimal energy.

A new metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) nanocomposite is claimed to capture carbon with unprecedented energy efficiency

Environment

"Magnetic sponge" MOF captures carbon with record energy efficiency

One area where metal organic frameworks have real potential is in the field of carbon capture, which a team of researchers has demonstrated with a sponge-like device that adsorbs CO2 using just a third of the energy required by other methods.

Technologies that capture carbon dioxide before it reaches the atmosphere are seen as a potential tool in the fight against climate change

Materials

Carbon capture membrane assembles its own silver structures

Scientists at Newcastle University have happened upon a particularly promising example if a carbon capture technology, developing a low-cost membrane that assembles one of its own key components as it absorbs CO2.

Restoring whale populations could help fight the climate crisis, according to the IMF

Environment

Climate change: Whales "worth a thousand trees" not the whole story

As far as fighting climate change is concerned, "one whale is worth thousands of trees," the IMF has said. But reports suggesting that trees therefore pale into insignificance compared to whales are missing the point.

A diagram detailing the new device from MIT. Air or flue gas can be pumped into the device (bottom), which captures carbon dioxide (red) from it, leaving only fresh air (blue) to come out. When the device is full, it can be flushed out and captured as pure CO2 for industrial use

Environment

"Electro-swing" battery captures CO2 from power plants or ambient air

Researchers at MIT have developed a new method for pulling carbon dioxide out of a chimney flue at a power plant or even just ambient air. The new device is a specialized battery that absorbs CO2 while charging, then releases it for industrial use.

Researchers have developed a new way to turn captured carbon dioxide gas into solid "coal"

Environment

Scientists use liquid metals to turn carbon dioxide gas back into coal

Capturing carbon from the air and sequestering it is emerging as a viable strategy, and now scientists have developed a new method to turn CO2 gas back into solid coal, that can then be buried, or even used for electronic components.

A new powder developed in Canada has the potential to give carbon capture technologies a huge boost

Environment

Holier-than-thou: Highly porous powder captures double the carbon

A promising new technology developed at Canada’s University of Waterloo hinges on a special kind of powder that could be applied as a filter at power plants to gather CO2 molecules at the source, and is claimed to offer double the efficiency of the materials that are currently available.

Climeworks recently carried out a carbon capture pilot project at the Hellisheidi geothermal power plant in Iceland

Environment

Climeworks: The ambitious startup out to reverse climate change by capturing carbon from the air

Climeworks is a Swiss company at the vanguard of carbon capture technology, and having just completed a year-long pilot project collecting C02 at the world’s first negative emissions power plant, is rather optimistic about the way things are headed.

The fuel was used in a 747 flying from Florida to London

Aircraft

"Recycled-carbon" jet fuel gets its first commercial use

It was back in 2011 that we first heard how Virgin Atlantic Airways was planning to use an eco-friendly aviation fuel made from captured steel mill waste gases. A successful test flight followed in 2016, and the fuel has now been utilized in a commercial flight for the first time.

This geothermal power plant in Iceland has become the world's first negative emission power plant

Environment

World's first "negative emission" power plant turns CO2 into stone

After opening the world’s first commercial Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant designed to pull CO2 out of the air, Swiss company Climeworks is now joining forces with a geothermal power plant in Iceland to create the world’s first “negative emission” power plant.

Climeworks has opened its first Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant, which captures CO2 from a waste recovery facility in Zurich, Switzerland

Environment

Rooftop CO2 capture system pipes greenhouse emissions to a greenhouse

To reduce the severity of climate change, it’s not enough to just curb the rise in emissions –technologies that actively pull more CO2 out of the atmosphere will also be vital. To that end, a new CO2-filtering plant has just opened up near Zurich.

If the approach can be replicated on a large scale, it would be a game-changer

Science

Tweaked titanium turns CO2 into solar fuel

Dcientists at the University of Central Florida have come up with synthetic material that draws on visible light from the sun to produce solar fuels, sucking harmful CO2 out of the air in the process.