CARBON REMOVAL WEEKLY SUMMARY (18 SEPTEMBER - 24 SEPTEMBER 2023)-WEEK#31
Links to recent scientific papers, web posts, upcoming events, job opportunities, podcasts, and event recordings, etc. on Carbon Dioxide Removal Technology.
💸COMMERCIAL NEWS
HSBC Commits $1B to Climate Tech Startups Going to Net Zero (Carbon Credits)
Indigo Ag which sells microbes to farmers to boost yields and sequester carbon gets $250 million in funds to scale up carbon capture (Indigo Ag)
DRAFT** announce-two-new-funds-v.3-with-sacca-edits-docx.pdf.nft (Lowercarbon)
Northern Gritstone invests in C-Capture, a leading designer of chemical processes for carbon dioxide removal (C-Capture)
Minnesota startup aims to remove 1B tons of carbon dioxide by 2035 (StarTribune)
Holcim Invests in Neustark to Remove 1 Million Tons of CO2 by 2030 (Clayton County Register)
Pachama Announces Major New Forest Carbon Purchase From Mercado Libre (Carbon Herald)
CO2 Lock Corp. Closes $1.1M Financing and Provides Technical Update on Activities at Carbon Capture and Storage Site in Canada (Newsfile)
📄RESEARCH PAPERS
Structure and fracture characterization of the Jizan group: Implications for subsurface CO2 basalt mineralization
Fedorik, J., Delaunay, A., Losi, G., Panara, Y., Menegoni, N., Afifi, A. M., ... & Kunnummal, N. (2023). Structure and fracture characterization of the Jizan group: Implications for subsurface CO2 basalt mineralization. Frontiers in Earth Science, 10, 946532.
Optimization of an electrochemical direct air capture process with decreased CO2 desorption pressure and the addition of background electrolyte
Shu, Q., Sin, C. S., Tedesco, M., Hamelers, H. V., & Kuntke, P. (2023). Optimization of an electrochemical direct air capture process with decreased CO2 desorption pressure and addition of background electrolyte. Chemical Engineering Journal, 144251.
Vertical transport of anthropogenic mercury in the ocean
Strode, S., Jaeglé, L., & Emerson, S. (2010). Vertical transport of anthropogenic mercury in the ocean. Global biogeochemical cycles, 24(4).
The biological carbon pump, diel vertical migration, and carbon dioxide removal
Hernández-León, S. (2023). The biological carbon pump, diel vertical migration, and carbon dioxide removal. iScience.
Improving food security and farmland carbon sequestration in China through enhanced rock weathering: Field evidence and potential assessment in different humid regions
Guo, F., Sun, H., Yang, J., Zhang, L., Mu, Y., Wang, Y., & Wu, F. (2023). Improving food security and farmland carbon sequestration in China through enhanced rock weathering: Field evidence and potential assessment in different humid regions. Science of The Total Environment, 903, 166118.
Application of biochar cement-based materials for carbon sequestration
Song, S., Liu, Z., Liu, G., Cui, X., & Sun, J. (2023). Application of biochar cement-based materials for carbon sequestration. Construction and Building Materials, 405, 133373.
Enhancing Aqueous Carbonation of Calcium Silicate through Acid and Base Pretreatments with Implications for Efficient Carbon Mineralization
Zhai, H., Chen, Q., Yilmaz, M., & Wang, B. (2023). Enhancing Aqueous Carbonation of Calcium Silicate through Acid and Base Pretreatments with Implications for Efficient Carbon Mineralization. Environmental Science & Technology.
Cold-bonded biochar-rich lightweight aggregates for net-zero concrete
Wyrzykowski, M., Toropovs, N., Winnefeld, F., & Lura, P. (2023). Cold-bonded biochar-rich lightweight aggregates for net-zero concrete.
A Study of the Mechanical, Thermal, and Environmental Properties of Cementitious Materials with Added Biochar
Maddala, P., Chandra, S., & Ramesh, K. V. A Study of the Mechanical, Thermal, and Environmental Properties of Cementitious Materials with Added Biochar.
Direct air capture of CO2: from insights into the current and emerging approaches to future opportunities
Zeeshan, M., Kidder, M. K., Pentzer, E., Getman, R. B., & Gurkan, B. (2023). Direct air capture of CO2: from insights into the current and emerging approaches to future opportunities. Frontiers in Sustainability, 4, 1167713.
Amine-Functionalized Mil-101(Cr) Fibers for Direct Air Capture at Cold Temperatures Using Rapid Temperature Vacuum Swing Adsorption
Song, M., Rim, G., Wang, Y., Borne, I., Jones, C. W., & Lively, R. Amine-Functionalized Mil-101 (Cr) Fibers for Direct Air Capture at Cold Temperatures Using Rapid Temperature Vacuum Swing Adsorption. Available at SSRN 4528138.
Bioenergy with carbon capture, storage and utilization: Potential technologies to mitigate climate change
Ganeshan, P., Vigneswaran, V. S., Gowd, S. C., Mishra, R., Singh, E., Kumar, A., ... & Rajendran, K. (2023). Bioenergy with carbon capture, storage and utilization: Potential technologies to mitigate climate change. Biomass and Bioenergy, 177, 106941.
Biochar carbon sequestration potential rectification in soils: Synthesis effects of biochar on soil CO2, CH4 and N2O emissions
Wang, L., Chen, D., & Zhu, L. (2023). Biochar carbon sequestration potential rectification in soils: Synthesis effects of biochar on soil CO2, CH4 and N2O emissions. Science of The Total Environment, 167047.
A pathway to negative CO2 emissions by 2050: The contribution of the lime industry to a carbon-neutral Europe
Nicolle, R. (2023). A pathway to negative CO2 emissions by 2050: The contribution of the lime industry to a carbon‐neutral Europe. ce/papers, 6(2), 442-442.
Bioenergy crop Miscanthus x giganteus acts as an ecosystem engineer to increase bacterial diversity and soil organic matter on marginal land
Kane, J. L., Schartiger, R. G., Daniels, N. K., Freedman, Z. B., McDonald, L. M., Skousen, J. G., & Morrissey, E. M. (2023). Bioenergy crop Miscanthus x giganteus acts as an ecosystem engineer to increase bacterial diversity and soil organic matter on marginal land. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 109178.
Development of bioenergy technologies: A scientometric analysis
Jahanshahi, A., Lopes, M., Brandão, M., & De Castro, E. A. (2023). Development of Bioenergy Technologies: A Scientometric Analysis. Heliyon, e20000.
Simulated responses of soil carbon to climate change in CMIP6 Earth system models: the role of false priming
Varney, R. M., Chadburn, S. E., Burke, E. J., Jones, S., Wiltshire, A. J., & Cox, P. M. (2023). Simulated responses of soil carbon to climate change in CMIP6 Earth system models: the role of false priming. Biogeosciences, 20(18), 3767-3790.
Near-Term Suitability Assessment of Deploying DAC System at Airport: A Case Study of 52 Large Airports in China
Wang, F., Wang, P., Xu, M., Li, X., Tan, W., & Li, H. (2023). Near-Term Suitability Assessment of Deploying DAC System at Airport: A Case Study of 52 Large Airports in China. Atmosphere, 14(7), 1099.
Non-mycorrhizal root-associated fungi increase soil C stocks and stability via diverse mechanisms
Stuart, E. K., Castañeda-Gómez, L., Buss, W., Powell, J. R., & Carrillo, Y. (2023). Non-mycorrhizal root-associated fungi increase soil C stocks and stability via diverse mechanisms. EGUsphere, 2023, 1-39.
Influence of Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement with Olivine or Steel Slag on a Coastal Plankton Community in Tasmania
Guo, J. A., Strzepek, R. F., Swadling, K. M., Townsend, A. T., & Bach, L. T. (2023). Influence of Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement with Olivine or Steel Slag on a Coastal Plankton Community in Tasmania. EGUsphere, 2023, 1-27.
Soils as Carbon Stores and Sinks: Expectations, Patterns, Processes, and Prospects of Transitions
van Noordwijk, M., Aynekulu, E., Hijbeek, R., Milne, E., Minasny, B., & Dwi Saputra, D. (2023). Soils as Carbon Stores and Sinks: Expectations, Patterns, Processes, and Prospects of Transitions. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 48.
Downdraft energy tower for negative emissions: Analysis on methane removal and other co-benefits
Tao, T., Wang, Y., Ming, T., Mu, L., de Richter, R., & Li, W. (2023). Downdraft energy tower for negative emissions: Analysis on methane removal and other co‐benefits. Greenhouse Gases: Science and Technology.
Specialty grand challenge: renaming our section to “Carbon Dioxide Removal”
Renforth, P., Bellamy, R., Beerling, D., Boettcher, M., Bonalumi, D., Brandão, M., ... & Wilcox, J. Speciality Grand Challenge: Renaming our section to'Carbon Dioxide Removal'. Frontiers in Climate, 5, 1279109.
Inverse design of metal-organic frameworks for direct air capture of CO2 via deep reinforcement learning
Park, H., Majumdar, S., Zhang, X., Kim, J., & Smit, B. (2023). Inverse design of metal-organic frameworks for direct air capture of CO2 via deep reinforcement learning.
Modelling the regional potential for reaching carbon neutrality in Finland: Sustainable forestry, energy use and biodiversity protection
Forsius, M., Holmberg, M., Junttila, V., Kujala, H., Schulz, T., Paunu, V. V., ... & Virkkala, R. (2023). Modelling the regional potential for reaching carbon neutrality in Finland: Sustainable forestry, energy use and biodiversity protection. Ambio, 1-20.
📰WEB POSTS
70 Gigatonnes – Steel Plant Upgrades Could Save Equivalent of Two Years of Global Carbon Emissions (ScienceTech Daily)
Only 0.5% of Companies with SBTi Targets Have Purchased Carbon Removal (Marginal Carbon)
BeZero Carbon publishes industry-first engineered carbon removal credit rating (BeZero)
Climeworks selects Puro.earth to work toward certification under the Puro Standard, in collaboration with storage partner Carbfix (Climeworks)
Weyerhaeuser Announces Approval of First Forest Carbon Project (PR Newswire)
A set of supplier best practices to responsibly grow the nature-deployed credit industry, to reduce uncertainties, and to clarify conflicts of interest (Reykjavik Protocol)
Drax joins the Carbon Business Council (Drax)
Climeworks and Great Carbon Valley chart path to large-scale direct air capture and storage deployment in Kenya (Climeowoks)
New Partnership To Bring Transparency To Forest Carbon Projects (Carbon Herald)
Carbon Streaming To Provide Microsoft With Biochar Carbon Removal (Carbon Streaming)
Spotnana Announces Carbon Removal Offering (Spotnana)
Announcing the Watershed Ecosystem: Driving exponential climate action (Watershed)
Mapping CDR funding – Where is carbon removal in Horizon Europe? (Carbon Gap)
Truly, swiftly and massively decarbonizing cement requires defining its by performance, not by chemistry (Sublime Systems)
Open letter: necessary inclusion of CDR technologies in the NZIA (Negative Emissions Platform)
We should not let the Earth overheat! (Casey Hanmer’s Blog)
Food companies aren’t all walking the talk on regenerative agriculture, says FAIRR investor network (AFN)
Castex, and Carbonvert plan to develop carbon capture and storage hub offshore Louisiana (Houston Business Journal)
DOE official: EPA backlog on CO2 wells puts climate goals at risk (Energy Wire)
Startups | DroneSeed (Coral Carbon)
Dark Earth made by Amazon farmers stores for centuries (NewScientist)
Climeworks eyes Kenya project to capture carbon dioxide from air (Reuters)
Quality isn’t binary in the voluntary carbon market (BeZero)
Carbon removal: why ambitious ‘no nonsense’ plans are vital to limit global heating to 2℃ (The Conversation)
Wildfires turn Canada’s vast forests from carbon sink into super-emitter (The Guardian)
3M Highlights Net Positive Water Impact Pilot, Direct Air Capture Technology During Climate Week NYC (CSR WIRE)
📝REPORTS
Removing carbon responsibly: A guide for business on carbon removal adoption (WBCSD)
Accelerating the Carbon Removal Market Through Responsible Corporate Leadership (Carbon Business Council)
The Ocean as a Solution to Climate Change: Updated Opportunities for Action (Ocean Panel)
🗣️DISCUSSIONS
Lighting the Night to Enhance the Diel Migration
Tropopause overshoot as a source of stratospheric greenhouse H2O
Blue carbon gives multiple CDR benefits at the lowest cost
🧰CDR FIRMS
VyCarb
Airhive
Holocene
📆UPCOMING EVENTS
Third Annual Carbon Dioxide Removal Law & Policy Conference, Carbon Removal Deployment: Law and Policy from Planning to Project by the Institute for Carbon Removal Law & Policy | 26 September 2023
Workshop: ERW23 by University of Edinburgh - Edinburgh Climate Change Institute | 26 September 2023
Eve Tamme on Paris Agreement Article 6 Markets and Implications for CDR by OpenAir | 26 September 2023
How Buyers Can Scale High-Quality Carbon Dioxide Removal for Climate Impact by Carbon Direct | 26 September 2023
(NEW) What is mitigation deterrence? | 27 September 2023
(NEW) Communicating Trust and Integrity in Voluntary Carbon Markets by AirMiners & Debra | 27 September 2023
Making credible claims by NetZero Carbon | 28 September 2023
Loam's Soil Carbon Field Day - soil carbon projects for cropping and mixed farms | 29 September 2023
(NEW) Carbon Crowd: Epiphyte Build #1 Ep. 3: Sorbent Week! by OpenAir | 29 September 2023
CCS/CDR (IVL & Tyrsky Consulting) | 03 October 2023
(NEW) An Invite-Only After-Work Event: Buyers' Guide to Carbon Removal by Dominic & Megan | 04 October 2023
The Carbon Removal Business Summit Comes to London by Carbon Unbound London | 03 & 04 October 2023
First educational conference on CO₂ removal by CDRterra | 10-11 October 2023
Onshore CO2 storage in the UK: What's the state of knowledge? by Oxford Net Zero | 11 October 2023
(NEW) Investor Academy - Fall 2023 by Airminers | 12 October 2023
Global Direct Air Capture Conference | 16-17 October 2023
CCUS 2023 Springboard to Net Zero | 17-18 October 2023
Beyond Net Zero: The Role of the Ocean in Climate Repair by Institute of Physics London and Remote Participation Worldwide | 18 October 2023
Northern Israel Climate Tech Excursion By RepAir Carbon including the launch of RepAir's First Direct Air Capture (DAC) system | 19 October 2023
The Role of Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) in UK Net Zero by CO₂RE - The Greenhouse Gas Removal Hub | 07 November 2023
International Biochar Initiative's Annual Symposium | 7-9 November 2023
Third Annual Carbon Dioxide Removal Law & Policy Conference by Institute of Carbon Removal Law and Policy | 09 November 2023
Direct Air Capture Panel Discussion by the University of California, Davis, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas | 15 November 2023
Negative CO₂ Emissions hosted at the University of Oxford by CO₂RE - The Greenhouse Gas Removal Hub, with financial support from UKRI | 18-21 June 2024
💼JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Funded Ph.D. positions in Direct Air Capture and CO2 Utilization for 2024 at UCLA
Senior Associate, US Policy and Advocacy at Breakthrough | Washington DC
“Breakthrough Energy is a network of entities and initiatives, including investment funds, nonprofit and philanthropic programs, and policy efforts linked by a common commitment to scale the technologies we need to achieve a path to net zero emissions by 2050. We are encouraging the development of new net-zero energy technologies, championing policies that speed innovation from lab to market, and bringing together governments, research institutions, private companies, and investors to expand and enhance clean-energy investment. Breakthrough Energy celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all.”
Carbon Atlantis is currently hiring for various positions:
“Carbon Atlantis captures CO2 from the atmosphere, turning it into rock carbonates for safe and permanent storage.”
Process Engineer at ReCarbn | Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands
“ReCarbn aims to accelerate the development of Direct Air Capture with the potential to remove gigatons of CO₂ from the atmosphere, thereby helping to limit global warming to 1.5 °C. We aim to filter CO₂ out of the air in an affordable and easily scalable way.”
VP Sales & Business Development at Nori | New York
“Nori believe that humanity can stop and even reverse climate change by removing over 1 trillion tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere. How do we get people to remove that much carbon at scale? Pay them! Nori’s marketplace is the infrastructure that creates the financial incentive for people and companies to remove massive amounts of CO2 from the air.”
Executive assistant at DeepSky | Remote, Full Time
“Deep Sky is the world’s first gigaton-scale carbon removal project developer. We’re looking for an experienced Executive Assistant to join our Deep Sky team. This role is an opportunity to join a fast-growing company aiming to solve the climate crisis by removing CO2 from the atmosphere and putting it back underground, where it belongs. Join us as we not only slow climate change, but reverse it.”
🎙️PODCASTS
Making carbon-negative chemicals and biofuels at scale w/ Sean Simpson | EBRC in Translation
“In this episode, we speak with Dr. Sean Simpson, strategic advisor and former CSO of LanzaTech. We talk with Sean about using biology to convert greenhouse gases into ethanol, how to scale up and sell a novel biological process, and the economic and policy requirements of engineering biology for global challenges.”
Tipping Point for Carbon Markets? | Carbon Removal Newsroom
“The voluntary carbon market (VCM) has a total value of over $2 billion, and some predictions show it growing to $10 billion in just a few years.
But the integrity of the carbon offsets available has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years, causing demand to slow and prices to go down.
According to a new report from Morgan Stanley the market is approaching a ‘tipping point’, as more and more companies hesitate to stake their environmental claims on offsets that may be debunked in the newspaper the next day.
If the market does hit a tipping point, what’s next? And what does it mean for the companies and governments hoping that “carbon removal” can fill the gap with a more reliable type of offset?
Our panel will take a look at implications of the oil company Oxy purchasing Carbon Engineering. Is big oil good for DAC?
Whether or not oil and gas should be involved in carbon removal is healthy debate within the CDR community, and this announcement made headlines in the broader environmental media too.
Listen to hear what our policy panel, Holly Buck and Wil Burns, think about this news and its aftermath.”
Episode 30 - Shannon Sterling, Environmental Scientist | The Sciographies Podcast
“Dr. Sterling is an associate professor at Dalhousie University. When she’s not teaching her students about the science behind climate change, she’s leading the charge as Chief Scientific Officer at CarbonRun, the carbon-dioxide removal startup she founded in 2022. By increasing the alkalinity of rivers, CarbonRun technology captures carbon from the atmosphere while restoring acidified river habitats at the same time.
Dr. Sterling talks to us about growing up in North Vancouver, her research career, grappling with the idea of geoengineering as a necessity in the fight against climate change, and founding her company.”
Seaweed fertilizers (and a kelp violin) - Sheppard | Reviewer 2 does geoengineering
“Emily Sheppard talks about how the nutrients used by seaweed affect its usefulness for CDR. She then plays a violin made of seaweed.
Paper: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpy.13381”
Building Commodity Scale Infrastructure for Carbon Removal—w/ Matt Trudeau, Nori's new CEO | Reversing Climate Change
“Is buying carbon credits like buying real estate? What would a tradable commodity market for the carbon removal industry look like?
In today's episode, Ross sits down with Matt Trudeau, Nori’s new CEO, to get a glimpse of how a veteran market builder thinks about building carbon markets that meet the challenges of a rapidly scaling industry.
Matt talks about the balance between standardization and innovation within carbon market development, discusses the evolution of financial markets, and explores the impact of high-frequency trading on fairness and efficiency.
Listen in to get a sense of where the burgeoning carbon market is encountering hurdles and what we can learn from the historical transition to electronic trading systems.
If you've ever pondered the transformation of bespoke carbon credit transactions into a full-fledged commodities market, this episode is a must-listen.”
Why is Prime Minister Rishi Sunak rowing back on climate pledges? | BBC Radio 4
“David Ho talked to Gaia Vince on the radio about their upcoming ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR) experiment in San Francisco Bay here. He also said other things about CDR and MRV. Starts at 21:45.”
🎥YOUTUBE VIDEOS
Carbon Crowd: Epiphyte Build 1 Ep.2 - Assembly Report | OpenAir
“In this our second epsiode, Team Epiphyte reports on the last two weeks of construction progress at UPenn, focusing on lessons learned from the first stages of housing fabrication and assembly, and results from David's successful sorbent heating system prototype completion.”
This Is CDR Ep. 82: The NextGen CDR Facility with Philip Moss, South Pole | OpenAir
“In this episode, we are pleased to welcome South Pole Global Director of Tech Removals, and NextGen Chairman Philip Moss to discuss South Pole's work on CDR and the NextGen CDR Facility, a joint venture of South Pole and Mitsubishi.”
CDR Webinar Series: The Technological Pathway | Climate Vault
“CDR projects in the Technological pathway include highly engineered solutions that function in collaboration with, or completely independent of, natural environmental processes. Panelists Bryan Eagle (Glanris), Andrew Jones (Carba), and Nuno Pereira (Holy Grail) discuss the policy landscape for Technological solutions and how they see this pathway developing over the next decade.”
Real Solutions or Expensive Distractions? Proving or Disproving Ocean-Based CDR in the Next 5 Years | Ocean Visions
“Part of Climate Week NYC 2023, this event co-hosted by Ocean Visions and Sabin Center for Climate Change Law provides an overview of what we know, and don't yet know, about ocean-based carbon dioxide removal and what we need to do to get actionable information. Speakers include Brad Ack (Ocean Visions), Antonius Gagern (Carbon to Sea Initiative), Sarah Kapnick (NOAA), Peter de Menocal (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), Sara Nawaz (Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy), and Romany Webb (Sabin Center for Climate Change Law).”