A new study has found that adding copper to atmospheric air filters improves their ability to capture carbon dioxide (CO2), potentially expanding the use of carbon capture technology in the fight against climate change.
By adding copper to atmospheric air filters, scientists have found that the filters can capture three times more carbon dioxide than before. Not only that, but the copper also converts the captured CO2 into a harmless baking soda that can be stored in oceans or sold as a product.
The ocean is one of Earth’s three major carbon storehouses, but too much CO2 causes it to acidify. However, the copper-ammine-based filter devices on large ambient carbon-capture machines can capture CO2 at a capacity unheard of in other absorbing materials. By converting captured CO2 into baking soda, this new method could allow carbon-capture facilities to store carbon in the ocean, making the placement of carbon-capture facilities more flexible.
This breakthrough has the potential to impact the fight against climate change significantly, as it could allow carbon capture facilities to be placed anywhere with a coastline rather than just where there is significant underground storage capacity and drilling infrastructure.