ggr technologies

 

current greenhouse gas removal technologies

Removal is achieved through a wide variety of approaches, involving either biology, accelerating natural inorganic reactions with rocks, or engineered chemical processes. 

While some GGR methods are already operating somewhere in the world, others require significant development and demonstration before they can remove emissions at scale.

GGR methods also require resources, like land, energy or water, placing limits on the scale and location of their application, and leading to resource competition between them and with other human activities, such as food production.

Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) technologies which recapture already emitted greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and ocean, can play a significant role in achieving net zero. 

Current examples on GGR technologies include Climeworks, Carbon Engineering, Drax and Project Vesta.

Carbon Cure and Charm Industrial are also examples of carbon storage technologies.

While some GGR methods are already operating somewhere in the world, others require significant development and demonstration before they can remove emissions at scale.

Types of greenhouse gas removal

Forestry

Growing new trees and improving the management of existing forests. As forests grow they absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and store it in living biomass, dead organic matter and soils.

Habitat Restoration

Restoring peatlands and coastal wetlands to increase their ability to store carbon. This also prevents carbon release through further degradation, often providing a number of other co-benefits.

Ocean fertilisation

Applying nutrients to the ocean to increase photosynthesis and remove atmospheric CO2.

Ocean alkalinity

Increasing ocean concentration of ions like calcium to increase uptake of CO2 into the ocean, and reverse acidification.

Enhanced terrestrial weathering

Spreading ground-down rocks on agricultural land, which react with CO2 in the air.

Biochar

 Burning biomass in the absence of oxygen (pyrolysis) to create a charcoal-like product which can stabilise organic matter when added to the soil.

Soil carbon sequestration

Changing agricultural practices such as tillage or crop rotations to increase the soil carbon content.

Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS)

Using biomass for energy, capturing the CO2 emissions and storing them to provide lifecycle GGR.

Direct air capture and carbon storage (DACCS)

Using engineered processes to capture atmospheric CO2 for subsequent geological storage.

Low-carbon concrete

Altering the constituents, the manufacture, or the recycling method of concrete to increase its storage of CO2

Building with biomass

Using forestry materials in buildings extends the time of carbon storage of natural biomass and enables additional forestry growth.

Mineral carbonation

Accelerating the conversion of silicate rocks to carbonates either above or below the surface to provide permanent storage for CO2.

greenhouse gas removal case studies

 

carbon engineering

Carbon Engineering uses Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology to capture carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere.

Climeworks

Climeworks develops, builds and operates direct air capture machines to capture carbon dioxide directly from the air.

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