A new report on CDR was released last month by the US Department of Energy. The following summaries of this report have been generated by Notebook LM:

Podcast

To listen to an accessible and entertaining 40-minute podcast of this report, click here.

Summary

This report from the U.S. Department of Energy assesses technological innovation opportunities to reduce the cost of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) to under $100 per ton. It examines four CDR pathways—direct air capture and storage (DACS), mineralization, biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS), and marine CDR (mCDR)—analyzing both incremental and disruptive innovations within each. The analysis incorporates techno-economic modeling and life cycle assessments to evaluate the cost-reduction potential of specific innovations, using illustrative case studies of DACS coupled with mineralization in California and Washington. The report also includes a survey of subject matter experts to gauge industry perspectives on various aspects of CDR technologies. Finally, the document emphasizes the need for rigorous impact assessment to guide future research, development, and demonstration efforts.

Briefing Doc

Key Findings:

1. Significant Innovation Opportunities: The report identifies a range of incremental and disruptive innovation opportunities across all four CDR pathways. Examples include:

  • DACS: Developing long-lived, high-capacity, inexpensive chemical adsorbents and coupling DACS with valuable noble gas harvesting.
  • Mineralization: Valorizing co-products through CO2-enhanced critical mineral recovery and developing microbial-enhanced mineralization.
  • BiCRS: Utilizing bio-oil for geologic injection or blending with asphalt and improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of biochar production.
  • mCDR: Designing low-cost, high-sensitivity carbon flux sensors and developing durable system components to eliminate the need for seawater pretreatment.

2. Cost Reduction Potential: The report emphasizes the potential for technological innovation to significantly reduce the cost of CDR. For example, Figure ES-1 illustrates that specific innovations in DAC coupled with in-situ mineralization could reduce costs by over 50%.

3. Need for Targeted R&D: The report highlights the need for targeted research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) efforts to advance these innovations and drive down the cost curve for CDR. Table ES-1 provides a comprehensive summary of the identified innovation opportunities and their potential impact on cost reduction.

4. Focus on Scalability: The report emphasizes the need to identify and develop CDR technologies with the potential for large-scale deployment.

Next Steps:

  • Further analysis of the specific innovation opportunities identified in the report.
  • Development of a roadmap for prioritizing and pursuing these opportunities.
  • Collaboration with stakeholders from industry, academia, and government to accelerate the development and deployment of CDR technologies.