What Companies Should Know About Carbon Removal Technology

Swish Goswami, building the next big sci-fi franchise at Parallel Studios.

Companies in the technology industry are looking at reducing their overall carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. To do so, it’s important for them not only to consider how to reduce their emissions but also how to work with companies that are removing carbon from the atmosphere and selling carbon removal credits.

In my previous article, I explained how carbon removal technology could help address climate change. In this article, I want to dive deeper and explore several different technologies that can remove carbon from the atmosphere.

Technological Methods For Carbon Removal

While natural methods like reforestation and soil carbon sequestration have their place, the reality is we’ll need technology to help us solve the problem of climate change at scale. (We need to remove seven to nine billion tons of carbon from the atmosphere every year by 2050.)

Right now, there are some really interesting technologies in development, including:

Direct Air Capture

One of the most exciting innovations in carbon removal is direct air capture (DAC), or the process of using machines to extract carbon directly from the atmosphere.

DAC technology is still in its early stages and faces challenges, especially in terms of energy consumption and cost. But if DAC can become affordable and scalable, it could be one of the most effective tools in the fight against climate change.

Biomass

Biomass is another promising method, where organic material (like plant waste or even animal waste) is used to remove CO2. Charm Industrial is taking this one step further by converting biomass into bio-oil, which can then be injected into the ground, locking away the carbon for centuries.

Biomass has strong potential, but it’s not a perfect solution. The process of growing, harvesting and converting biomass can require a lot of land, water and energy. Plus, transporting and processing biomass can still lead to emissions if not done efficiently. But it’s still an area worth exploring, especially if we can optimize the process.

Enhanced Weathering

Enhanced weathering works by accelerating the natural process in which CO2 reacts with rocks to form stable carbonates. By spreading useful ground-up minerals, like olivine, across large areas of land, CO2 can be captured in a much faster and more efficient way.

Right now, this method is also still in its early experimental phase. Mining, grinding and transporting rock also takes a lot of energy, most of it from climate-polluting fossil fuels. For this method to achieve its potential, it will need to remove more CO2 than it creates.

Carbon Mineralization

Carbon mineralization is, essentially, a natural process where CO2 reacts with minerals to form carbonates. Certain types of rock, like basalt, work best, and researchers are working on ways to accelerate the process so that we can capture more CO2 and lock it away more quickly.

This is another area where the technology is still evolving. The challenge is scaling it up, as increased mining can have negative social and environmental impacts. But carbon mineralization could still be a key player in the future of carbon removal, especially if we can assess potential uncertainties, reduce risks and find the right methods to speed up the process.

Ocean-Based Approaches

Since bodies of water cover about 71% of Earth’s surface, they offer one of the most powerful avenues in the fight against climate change. In fact, the oceans have absorbed around 25% of human CO2 emissions in recent decades.

Here are a couple of ways that the ocean can play a larger role in carbon removal:

• Direct Ocean Capture (DOC) is a method that removes dissolved CO2 from seawater for carbon storage or reuse, meaning the treated seawater will be returned to the ocean to absorb more carbon. That said, DOC has several issues that will need to be addressed, the biggest of which include the potential impacts on marine ecosystems like changes to water chemistry and disruption of habitats. There are also concerns about the scalability and economic feasibility of the technology.

• Ocean Fertilization is where nutrients like iron are added to specific areas of the ocean to boost phytoplankton growth. These tiny plants absorb CO2 during photosynthesis. When they die, they sink to the ocean floor, helping to store the carbon. With this method, though, it will be crucial to avoid disrupting global nutrient distribution, as some areas could experience a reduction in nutrient supply, negatively affecting economic activities like fisheries.

Conclusion

Tech companies creating their sustainability plans should have a strong understanding of these technologies and how companies working in this space can help mitigate their environmental impact. Companies like 1PointFive, Deep Sky, Frontier Carbon Solutions and Climeworks, for example, are all noteworthy players in the carbon removal space, actively working with companies to remove carbon from the atmosphere.

When working with carbon removal companies, it's important to ask the right questions to determine how the carbon removal of these companies aligns with their and your sustainability goals. For instance, ask about how they are addressing the challenges with the solutions mentioned in this article.

Right now, we’re at a critical juncture in the fight against climate change. I firmly believe these technological methods could reverse climate change and set us on a more hopeful path. The key is figuring out which of these methods can scale to meet the enormous challenge we have ahead of us.

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