Burning fossil fuels to power today's society introduces a new, rapid flux of CO 2 into the atmosphere that natural photosynthesis can no longer compensate ( Grace, 2004 Le Quéré et al., 2018). Historically, there has been an equilibrium between CO 2 sequestration via photosynthesis and CO 2 emissions by biodegradation and other natural mechanisms that gradually removed CO 2 from the atmosphere, transforming Earth's atmosphere into the habitable one that we now rely on ( Des Marais, 2000 Gonzalez Hernandez and Sheehan, 2020). The overwhelming majority of scientific evidence points to this increase in atmospheric GHGs, specifically carbon dioxide, being the cause of the changing global climate ( Oreskes, 2004 Hartmann et al., 2013). A rapid increase in utilization of fossil fuels since the industrial revolution has increased the concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere at a faster rate than has been observed previously ( Peng et al., 1983 Etheridge et al., 1996 Lacis et al., 2010). Lastly, we discuss the barriers that are present for economic scale-up of CO 2 capture and utilization technologies broadly.Īnthropogenic climate change is perhaps the most significant existential challenge that humanity faces today ( Mora et al., 2018 Gills and Morgan, 2020). The degree of reduction in atmospheric CO 2 depends on product alcohol usage for example, use as a fixed chemical feedstock provides longer term emissions reduction than as a fuel, which is eventually oxidized. To provide a real-world point of comparison, we analyze CO 2 sourcing for Air Company's CO 2-to-alcohols pilot and demonstration scale deployments in Brooklyn, New York, USA and Calgary, Alberta, Canada as case studies. Starting with incumbent methods, wherein CO 2 is recovered from a high concentration source, and moving toward CO 2 capture from more widely available dilute sources, we outline how CO 2 capture systems interface with downstream utilization in flow reactors. For NETs, there are unique research challenges faced by both CO 2 capture and utilization to scale in an economically feasible manner. ![]() To prevent the global average temperature from increasing more than 1.5☌ and lower the concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere, most emissions trajectories necessitate the implementation of strategies that include both GHG mitigation and negative emissions technologies (NETs). Air Company, Brooklyn, NY, United States.
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