CLIMATEWIRE | The Department of Energy announced up to $100 million in funding for carbon removal pilot projects Monday in an effort to advance technologies designed to suck CO2 directly out of the atmosphere.
While there are a variety of strategies that can be used to remove carbon from the air, both natural and technological, applicants are invited to focus on three specific kinds of pathways.
The first, biomass carbon removal, uses organic materials — including trees, other plants, algae or even animal products — that naturally draw carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. The biomass can then be harvested and used to produce energy, paired with carbon capture and storage technology to snatch the emissions it produces before they go back into the atmosphere. Or it could be harvested and stored to keep the emissions contained.
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The second pathway, mineralization projects, typically involve the use of crushed-up alkaline materials, like calcium or magnesium. When sprinkled over rocks, mixed into soil or incorporated into other kinds of chemical reactions, these minerals can help absorb carbon dioxide from the air.
The third opportunity calls for test bed facilities involving multiple carbon removal pathways combined. These could include both biomass and mineralization removal projects, but could also involve other strategies like direct air capture — machines that suck carbon dioxide straight out of the atmosphere.
DOE notes that a fourth funding opportunity, involving marine carbon removal projects, may also move forward in the future. Marine carbon removal also often uses crushed alkaline materials — but instead of being used on land, they’re sprinkled directly into the ocean.
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