How Much Energy Would It Take to Pull Carbon Dioxide out of the Air?

jeffw@lemmy.world to Technology@lemmy.world – 151 points –
How Much Energy Would It Take to Pull Carbon Dioxide out of the Air?
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In order for that we need more renewable energy, otherwise we're just burning fossil fuel, producing carbon dioxide, and then capturing it. Solar, wind, algae biofuel, renewable diesel, green hydrogen, etc. We have to be careful how we use energy otherwise we're just producing carbon dioxide to capture carbon dioxide.

People keep complaining that solar and wind give us “too much electricity at the wrong time”, causing power prices to go negative (as if this is a problem). Having a beneficial process like co2 removal that you can do at any time of day (the co2 isn’t going anywhere) that would soak up all that energy seems like a win win.

Yea, and one of the best ways to sequester carbon dioxide is by using algae. Algae biofuels are a great way out of the climate crisis. Use excess energy to produce algae biofuel, net negative emissions.

But if it's used as fuel, wouldn't that typically return the CO~2~? Just about all fuels are burned, which creates the CO~2~, and you have to make sure the energy you use to make and transport the fuel is clean, too.

Yes, but overall it would be net negative carbon dioxide emissions.

How does it stay net negative? Carbon goes into the fuel, which is good, but doesn't like all of it come back out when burned for fuel? My understanding is that these fuels can only really achieve neutrality, and that assumes clean energy used to make the fuel.

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