Building Artificial Trees to Capture Carbon Dioxide

April 20, 2022

A prototype mechanical tree that captures carbon dioxide directly from the air is sprouting at Arizona State University. Its developers envision a future when forests of the trees are busy 24/7 capturing carbon dioxide, a driver of climate change, and redirecting it to permanent storage or practical applications. In Issues, Klaus S. Lackner, who designed the tree, and Christophe Jospe examine the broad landscape of direct air capture technologies. The methods work, but are expensive. The authors call on government or philanthropies to fund their continued development and demonstration until they are so affordable that their widespread use gains public approval.

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