Assessment of costs and environmental impacts for direct air carbon capture and storage system
The direct removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere using direct air carbon capture systems is a rapidly growing and partly controversial part of climate protection. The costs and environmental impact of the technology play an important role. Against this background, our scientific work brings clarity. By developing a method for simultaneously assessing costs and environmental impact, it becomes possible to comprehensively evaluate the potential of direct air capture systems and guide technological development. For every ton of CO2 removed from the atmosphere along the value chain, CO2 emissions of around 150 kg are created using photovoltaics as energy source. We show that the cost of $880 for the permanent removal of one net ton of CO2 is still high given the current state of the art. On the other hand, by reducing energy input and improving the life of the adsorbent, there is a plausible path to move the net cost towards $220 per ton. Environmental pollution arises mainly from the need for minerals.
Read the full story: