November 22, 2024

Reimagining Carbon: A New Roadmap to a Zero-Emissions Future

The diverse method includes developing non-carbon fuels, discovering non-fossil sources of carbon, and keeping carbon in play once it goes into the cycle, preferably resulting in multiple uses of each carbon atom.Single-use carbon can no longer be prevalent, the roadmap authors assert. “Our vision is to transform the function of carbon in our economy by recycling each carbon atom numerous times in a circular economy. Bringing sustainable sources of carbon into the carbon-circle economy is important to this future.Reference: “A United States viewpoint on closing the carbon cycle to defossilize difficult-to-electrify sections of our economy” by Wendy J. Shaw, Michelle K. Kidder, Simon R. Bare, Massimiliano Delferro, James R. Morris, Francesca M. Toma, Sanjaya D. Senanayake, Tom Autrey, Elizabeth J. Biddinger, Shannon Boettcher, Mark E. Bowden, Phillip F. Britt, Robert C. Brown, R. Morris Bullock, Jingguang G. Chen, Claus Daniel, Peter K. Dorhout, Rebecca A. Efroymson, Kelly J. Gaffney, Laura Gagliardi, Aaron S. Harper, David J. Heldebrant, Oana R. Luca, Maxim Lyubovsky, Jonathan L. Male, Daniel J. Miller, Tanya Prozorov, Robert Rallo, Rachita Rana, Robert M. Rioux, Aaron D. Sadow, Joshua A. Schaidle, Lisa A. Schulte, William A. Tarpeh, Dionisios G. Vlachos, Bryan D. Vogt, Robert S. Weber, Jenny Y. Yang, Elke Arenholz, Brett A. Helms, Wenyu Huang, James L. Jordahl, Canan Karakaya, Kourosh (Cyrus) Kian, Jotheeswari Kothandaraman, Johannes Lercher, Ping Liu, Deepika Malhotra, Karl T. Mueller, Casey P. OBrien, Robert M. Palomino, Long Qi, José A. Rodriguez, Roger Rousseau, Jake C. Russell, Michele L. Sarazen, David S. Sholl, Emily A. Smith, Michaela Burke Stevens, Yogesh Surendranath, Christopher J. Tassone, Bachelors Degree Tran, William Tumas and Krista S. Walton, 31 April 2024, Nature Reviews Chemistry.DOI: 10.1038/ s41570-024-00587-1This roadmap is the result of a workshop entitled “Closing the Carbon Cycle: Opportunities in Energy Science,” organized by 7 Department of Energy national laboratories on July 18 and 19, 2022.

Pacific Northwest National LaboratoryA holistic approach to reach net-zero carbon emissions throughout the economy.A secret strategy for reaching net-zero carbon emissions involves transitioning substantial sectors of the economy, like personal transportation and home heating, to rely on electrical energy produced from sustainable energy. The diverse method consists of developing non-carbon fuels, discovering non-fossil sources of carbon, and keeping carbon in play once it enters the cycle, ideally resulting in numerous uses of each carbon atom.Single-use carbon can no longer be extensive, the roadmap authors assert. These sectors are prospects for circular carbon cycling through recycling and incorporating numerous carbon sources. “Our vision is to change the role of carbon in our economy by reusing each carbon atom numerous times in a circular economy. Bringing sustainable sources of carbon into the carbon-circle economy is essential to this future.Reference: “A United States viewpoint on closing the carbon cycle to defossilize difficult-to-electrify sectors of our economy” by Wendy J. Shaw, Michelle K. Kidder, Simon R. Bare, Massimiliano Delferro, James R. Morris, Francesca M. Toma, Sanjaya D. Senanayake, Tom Autrey, Elizabeth J. Biddinger, Shannon Boettcher, Mark E. Bowden, Phillip F. Britt, Robert C. Brown, R. Morris Bullock, Jingguang G. Chen, Claus Daniel, Peter K. Dorhout, Rebecca A. Efroymson, Kelly J. Gaffney, Laura Gagliardi, Aaron S. Harper, David J. Heldebrant, Oana R. Luca, Maxim Lyubovsky, Jonathan L. Male, Daniel J. Miller, Tanya Prozorov, Robert Rallo, Rachita Rana, Robert M. Rioux, Aaron D. Sadow, Joshua A. Schaidle, Lisa A. Schulte, William A. Tarpeh, Dionisios G. Vlachos, Bryan D. Vogt, Robert S. Weber, Jenny Y. Yang, Elke Arenholz, Brett A. Helms, Wenyu Huang, James L. Jordahl, Canan Karakaya, Kourosh (Cyrus) Kian, Jotheeswari Kothandaraman, Johannes Lercher, Ping Liu, Deepika Malhotra, Karl T. Mueller, Casey P. OBrien, Robert M. Palomino, Long Qi, José A. Rodriguez, Roger Rousseau, Jake C. Russell, Michele L. Sarazen, David S. Sholl, Emily A. Smith, Michaela Burke Stevens, Yogesh Surendranath, Christopher J. Tassone, Ba Tran, William Tumas and Krista S. Walton, 31 April 2024, Nature Reviews Chemistry.DOI: 10.1038/ s41570-024-00587-1This roadmap is the outcome of a workshop entitled “Closing the Carbon Cycle: Opportunities in Energy Science,” arranged by seven Department of Energy national laboratories on July 18 and 19, 2022.