Removing CO2 From the Air Efficiently

Canadian scientists have created a device that efficiently removes CO2 from the atmosphere. "The proposed air capture system differs from existing carbon capture and storage technology ... while CCS involves installing equipment at, say, a coal-fired power plant to capture CO2 produced during the coal-burning process, ... air capture machines will be able to literally remove the CO2 present in ambient air everywhere. [The team used] ... a custom-built tower to capture CO2 directly from the air while requiring less than 100 kilowatt-hours of electricity per tonne of carbon dioxide."

Comments

Reference point to CO2 emissions

[Hays]

Assuming that 1 tonne = 1000kg, this machine requires approximately 1 kilowatt hour of electricity to remove 10kg of Carbon Dioxide from the atmosphere. How efficient is this?

From http://www.glumac.com/section.asp?catid=140&subid=152&pageid=564

"For home energy use, carbon dioxide emissions vary widely from state-to-state and from day-to-day. The national average is about 1.3 pounds of carbon dioxide for every kilowatt-hour of electricity used in your home."

Not bad. If it really works, you can redirect 10 to 15% of your electricity to achieve Carbon neutrality.

Re:it this

[compro01]

Only a lot more efficient. An average tree will use roughly 22kg of CO2 per year. These things are estimated to remove 20 tonnes per year per square metre, so it's in excess of 1000 times more effective. Even after you factor in the CO2 produced to provide the power needed for these things, you're still likely coming out way ahead.

Cow Farts... wrong end!

[Enter the Shoggoth]

Actually, it's a common misconception that "cow emissions" are from cow's farting, it's actually the way a ruminant will burp during the processing of a cud that produces large volumes of methane (which is of course more troubling than CO2 emissions)

They won't be making a pile of cash out of trees.

Can't resist:

1) Identify a possible source of trouble 2) Invent a fix, no matter how convoluted it is 3) Patent it and market it 4) Profit

Just wonder how much do we have to wait for a fart capture device (cow farts are actually a major source of trouble)

Re:Natural device?

[Markspark]

The scrubber uses Sodiumhydroxide and Calciumhydroxide that are circulated and regenerated in the process. The power demand comes from separating the CO2 from the CaCO3 back into Ca(OH)2.
But you are correct in the fact that this would require maintenance, since there's no such thing as maintenance free pumps.
However i still feel if this could be a good solution, if it's cost and energy efficient, and being financed by carbon-taxing, and last but not least, F/OSH (free/opensource hardware).