 | | | | Links to recent scientific papers, web posts, upcoming events, job opportunities, podcasts, and event recordings, etc. on Carbon Dioxide Removal TechnologyJUMP TO SECTIONTHIS WEEK’S TOP CDR HIGHLIGHTSMicrosoft Pauses All Carbon Removal Purchases: Microsoft has paused all new carbon removal purchases, signaling uncertainty for the nascent market it largely supports. The company gave no clear timeline or reason, though it cited portfolio and market reassessment. However, existing contracts remain intact. Analysts say the move could slow project development, tighten funding, and force developers to diversify buyers, while raising questions about market stability and future growth. Quarter 1 2026 CDR Market Report: ClimeFi’s Q1 2026 report shows carbon removal market momentum, with 1,860 ktCO₂ in new contracts, nearly 3× Q1 2025. Buyer base is broadening beyond top players, while biochar dominates ~94% of volumes via major deals (Liferaft, Empacar, AMP). EU CRCF methodologies and first structured deal mark key regulatory progress. Call for Consultations: Isometric has released a draft module for biochar production using mobile reactors for public consultation. Deadline: 30 April 2026 Environmental group asks EPA to block mCDR test: An environmental group, Friends of the Earth, is urging the Trump administration’s EPA to halt a proposed marine carbon removal pilot by startup Carboniferous. The group argues the project could cause “reckless and irreversible ecological damage” in the Gulf of Mexico and says the agency failed to properly assess environmental risks before issuing the permit. Sustaera Claims Breakthrough in DAC Efficiency: Sustaera reported improved DAC performance, saying its electro-thermal system can cut costs by up to 3×. Using nano-structured sorbents and electric heating, it achieves 3–4× higher efficiency than conventional methods. CTO Cory Sanderson discussed this on a podcast. Call for Input: ETH Zurich released a survey to identify opportunities and gaps to better support the emerging carbon removal ecosystem in Sub-Saharan Africa. Deadline to respond: 24 April 2026 Read on to unpack more updates: Donate < $10 Get 20% off a group subscription COMMERCIAL NEWS NOTE: If you’d like to submit CDR-related news for our next newsletter, please send it here: Message Andrew Lockley RESEARCH PAPERSAuthors: Eduardo Gorron Gomez, Kim J. Lee Chang, Matthew C. Taylor, Dion M.F. FramptonSynopsis: This review explores Carbon Dioxide Removal using algae and cyanobacteria, which can convert CO₂ into durable carbon compounds. A key focus is algaenan, a highly resistant biopolymer with strong potential for long-term carbon storage. Despite challenges in characterization, algal-based CDR offers a promising, underexplored pathway that could complement existing approaches while delivering added environmental and industrial benefits.
Authors: Htut San Hkaung, Naito Yamashita, Nono Kimotsuki, et al.Synopsis: This study explores acid mine drainage (AMD) systems as alternative sites for ERW using basaltic mining waste rock. Field trials in two AMD-impacted rivers in Japan show rapid mineral dissolution due to acidic, high-flow conditions, with substantial rock mass loss after one year. Weathering releases Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺, raises pH, and promotes schwertmannite precipitation without surface passivation, enabling continued dissolution and co-removal of contaminants like arsenic. The results demonstrate that AMD environments can enhance ERW-driven CO₂ removal while simultaneously treating mine water pollution, offering a dual pathway for carbon sequestration and environmental remediation through waste rock reuse.
Authors: Natalia Belkin, Josh Steinberg, Amit Grossman, Michal Grossowicz, Sapir Markus-AlfordSynopsis: This study introduces Microalgae Carbon Fixation and Sinking (MCFS), a marine approach to Carbon Dioxide Removal. It uses nutrient-rich substrates to boost phytoplankton growth, followed by rapid sinking to store carbon in the deep ocean for long periods. Designed with monitoring and safeguards, MCFS offers a scalable, controlled method for durable carbon sequestration while aiming to minimize ecological risks.
Authors: Maria Myridinas, katja Fennel, Arnaud Laurent, et al.Synopsis: This study assesses OAE via five pathways using a coupled ocean model and life cycle assessment. Under current energy systems, OAE shows little to no net climate benefit due to high fossil energy emissions, but by 2050 all pathways become net CO₂ removers (81–95% efficiency) with decarbonization. Environmental impacts vary widely, with bischofite-based Mg(OH)₂ performing best and NaOH/AS routes worst, highlighting strong dependence on energy and supply chains.
Authors: Loiy Al-Ghussain, Mohamed G. Gado, Mohammad Alrbai, Sameer Al-Dahidi, Zifeng LuSynopsis: This study conducts a geospatial techno-economic and life cycle assessment of solar- and wind-powered DAC systems across the Middle East and North Africa. It evaluates how regional renewable energy conditions and system sizing affect costs and emissions. Results show levelized CO₂ capture costs ranging from 200–650 USD/tCO₂ and emissions intensity of 30–115 kgCO₂e/tCO₂, with DAC capital costs and PV efficiency as key drivers. Future projections suggest costs could fall to 135–177 USD/tCO₂ and emissions to 30–47 kgCO₂e/tCO₂ by 2030, highlighting strong regional potential for renewable-powered DAC deployment.
Authors: Yingjia Su, Junyu Pu, Jing Huang et al.Synopsis: This study examines how plant diversity influences carbon storage in grassland ecosystems using four dominant forage species in northern China. Higher species richness increases vegetation carbon in leaves, litter, and roots through complementarity effects, though different species contribute unevenly to above- and belowground carbon pools. However, soil organic carbon, particularly particulate carbon, decreases under higher diversity, suggesting short-term trade-offs driven by faster decomposition. Overall, biodiversity enhances vegetation carbon capture but may temporarily reduce soil carbon storage, highlighting complex implications for ecosystem-based climate mitigation.
Authors: Maximilian Bernecker, Felix MüsgensSynopsis: This study evaluates how system design choices affect costs of Direct Air Carbon Capture and Storage within a fully decarbonised European energy system. Using a capacity expansion model, it finds that limiting CO₂ storage to North Sea sites increases costs by ~10%, while ignoring integration with the electricity system raises costs by up to 30%. Results highlight that infrastructure location and energy system coupling are key drivers of DACCS affordability.
Authors: Francois Rineau, Alexander H. Frank, et al.Synopsis: This study evaluates Enhanced Weathering in a controlled crop ecosystem using basalt application under future climate conditions. Results show that mineral dissolution increased soil alkalinity and boosted carbon flux into soils nearly threefold, exceeding expected sequestration from weathering alone. Findings suggest that enhanced weathering may also stimulate biogeochemical processes that further enhance carbon storage, indicating strong potential for scalable land-based carbon removal.
Authors: Lei Ma, Manyi Li, Hualian Zhang, Zheng Mao, Shuqing Zhang, Chen Wang, Cheng Li, Shiwei Liu, and Pujia YuSynopsis: Enhanced rock weathering (basalt application) increased both soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil inorganic carbon (SIC) in a one-year subtropical cropland experiment, raising total carbon stocks while significantly boosting SOC and SIC across application rates. However, it also reduced SOC stability, mainly affecting labile fractions and increasing very labile carbon, with minimal impact on stable carbon pools, suggesting enhanced sequestration but potential stability trade-offs.
Authors: Joo Yeon Han, Hayoung Jeong, Younghyu Ko, et al.Synopsis: This study examines butylene oxide (BO) functionalization of amine sorbents for DAC at low desorption temperatures. Modified polyethyleneimine and TREN-based materials achieve high cyclic CO₂ working capacities, with optimal sorbents operating at 40–45°C. They show strong stability under humid and oxygen-rich conditions. Results and simulations show that primary amine sites control CO₂ uptake, and BO modification reduces capacity by limiting their accessibility.
Authors: Se-Yong Song, Duo Chan & Sang-Wook YehSynopsis: This study develops a data-driven, three-layer energy balance emulator to assess temperature responses during CDR. Calibrated to observational temperature records, it finds that for the same CO₂ concentration, global temperatures during the CDR phase are about 0.7°C higher on average than during the CO₂ rising phase, indicating path-dependent warming. The model reduces inter-model uncertainty by over 70% and suggests that even stringent mitigation pathways may temporarily overshoot 1.5°C during net-zero transitions.
Authors: Zhuang Qi, Xiaoping Chen, Zelin Xu, Zi Liu, Jiliang Ma, Fengyuan Zhang, Cai LiangSynopsis: This study develops a TiO₂-doped K₂CO₃/ZrO₂ composite adsorbent to improve direct air capture (DAC) performance. The addition of Ti induces oxygen vacancies and lowers the energy barrier for KHCO₃ formation, enhancing CO₂ adsorption–desorption kinetics. The optimized material achieves a CO₂ capacity of 2.11 mmol/g and can be fully regenerated at ~150°C, with a 92.59% carbonization conversion rate and a 74.38% performance improvement over the undoped sample. It also maintains a stable working capacity of 1.15–1.32 mmol/g across 27 cycles, demonstrating strong durability and efficiency for DAC applications.
Authors: Quinn ZachariasSynopsis: This paper reframes ERW as a soil remediation strategy for immobilizing cationic metals in contaminated brownfield, mining-impacted, and urban soils. It proposes using controlled carbonate–silicate blends to accelerate natural soil aging processes such as acid neutralization, increased negative surface charge, base cation exchange, and secondary mineral formation, which shift metals like Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd, and Ni into less mobile forms. Grounded in field and literature evidence, including basalt deployment in Vermont, the framework outlines practical steps for site screening, feedstock selection, application design, and verification. Results suggest silicate remineralization can reduce metal mobility while improving soil buffering and health, with additional co-benefits including local material reuse and potential carbon sequestration.
Authors: Shan Qi, Xing JianSynopsis: This study builds a geochemical database of 7,037 mafic and ultramafic rock samples across South China to assess ERW potential using a multi-criteria framework. The evaluation integrates weathering potential, nutrient content, heavy metal risks, and climate suitability, with weighting determined by the CRITIC method. Results identify Fujian Province as the most suitable region for ERW deployment, with Guangdong, Jiangxi, Hainan, and parts of Guangxi also highly favorable, including both terrestrial and coastal sites. High-potential rocks include metamorphosed harzburgite, gabbro, and pyroxenite, though heavy metals require monitoring. The study provides a standardized regional assessment framework to guide ERW deployment and support future validation through field trials.
Authors: EEM (Emily) te PasSynopsis: This study examines ERW and biochar co-deployment as CDR strategies with agronomic co-benefits and risk mitigation. Experiments using soil columns, greenhouse pots, and a two-year field lysimeter show that wollastonite has high weathering and CDR potential, while olivine is limited by nickel release. Biochar helps reduce trace metal risks by binding weathering products. ERW increases soil pH as a key agronomic benefit, but actual carbon sequestration is constrained by soil retardation processes, limiting overall CDR efficiency despite strong theoretical potential.
Authors: Sheng Chen, Renyu Xie, Yuxuan Zhang, Ying Ji, Tao Wang, Long JiangSynopsis: This study examines moisture swing adsorption (MSA) kinetics for direct air capture using D290 ion-exchange resin, focusing on coupled CO₂–H₂O sorption behavior. Experiments show water strongly influences CO₂ uptake, causing phased kinetic changes driven by equilibrium constraints. Temperature, humidity, concentration, and flow rate control mass transfer. Among twelve models tested, MMO-n, LDF-n, Toth, and MMO best describe adsorption–desorption, improving MSA scale-up understanding.
Authors: Rebecca J. Hanes, Keju An, Wilson McNeil, et al.Synopsis: This study evaluates how emissions accounting choices affect the net carbon removal of DACS in the US voluntary carbon market. Using hourly, weather-dependent simulations of sorbent- and solvent-based systems across four states, it finds that the method used to estimate grid electricity emissions dominates results, causing net CO₂ removal estimates to vary from −1049% to +108%. In contrast, other factors introduce only minor variation (±14%). The study concludes that no single electricity accounting method is universally reliable, highlighting the urgent need for high-resolution, standardized emissions data to accurately assess DACS performance and support credible carbon markets.
Algae and cyanobacteria as agents for carbon dioxide removal: production of long-term carbon compounds (Source)WEB POSTSREPORTSShare Carbon Removal Updates UPCOMING EVENTSApril 2026(NEW) Alt Carbon Open House! | 15 April 2026 | Bengaluru, KarnatakaMay 2026We have curated a “Carbon Removal Events Calendar.” Explore and stay informed about upcoming events, conferences, and webinars on Carbon Dioxide Removal technology. Sync specific events / all events to your default calendar to ensure you never miss out on important CDR updates. Carbon Removal Events Calendar Add our Carbon Removal Events Calendar to your default calendar in 2 ways:Sync specific event: Click the event → menu (≡) → Share → choose your calendar → Save.Or sync all events: Menu (≡) → Preferences → iCalendar Feeds → Copy URL → Add to your calendar settings → Subscribe.JOB OPPORTUNITIES“Outlier Projects is a climate philanthropy advancing research on “climate stabilization,” a third pillar alongside mitigation and adaptation. It supports organizations studying Earth system risks like ice loss and carbon feedbacks, while promoting funding, policy engagement, and global research collaboration.”
“The Yale Applied Science Synthesis Program (YASSP) is a joint initiative of The Forest School at the Yale School of the Environment and the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture (YCNCC).The program connects academic researchers, policymakers, and those managing lands to answer applied questions about how land management decisions affect the services provided by forests, croplands, wetlands, rangelands, and grasslands.”
“Carbon Gap is a philanthropically-funded, expert non-profit established in 2021 to help Europe become a world leader in deploying carbon dioxide removal.”
“Offstream is the de facto dMRV and compliance platform for biochar project developers in the US.”
“Paebbl’s mission is to permanently sequester CO₂ and repurpose it into essential products.”
“Climate Impact Partners delivers solutions for climate action.”
“Loam Bio’s groundbreaking CarbonBuilder technology, convert CO2 into stable soil carbon.”
“Absolute Climate is building independent climate technology standards and quality assurance tools.”
“OCO Technology specialises in carbon capture, sustainable construction products and waste treatment.”
“Climeworks is a leading high-quality carbon removal provider, combining decades of expertise in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology with a holistic approach to carbon removal solutions.”
Looking for your dream job in CDR? There are 537 jobs available *right now*: check them all out at: CDRjobs Board PODCASTS“In this episode of What Goes Up Must Come Down, Simon is joined by Stacy Kauk, Chief Science Officer at Isometric, a carbon registry. Together, they explore the challenges of scaling a market where buyers do not fully trust what they are buying, suppliers struggle to finance what they are building, and the science is still catching up with the ambition.”
Size Matters | Grounded: A Climate Startup Journey | Episode 11: 'Size Matters' Grounded: A Climate Startup Journey 39:11 |
“Oh, hello there! Bet you thought you’d seen the back of Tom and his biochar… But this story’s far from over. Yes, the machine runs, the credits have sold, and the char is piling up. But if this pilot is ever going to be a real, profitable business - and if it’s ever going to have a scalable climate impact - it’s going to need to be bigger. A lot bigger. Cue: industrial-level kit, eye-watering funding gaps, and the creeping suspicion that saving the planet may require even more admin than previously feared.”
Quarterly catch up: CBAM, ETS, and AI | The CDR Policy Scoop | Quarterly catch up: CBAM, ETS, and AI The CDR Policy Scoop 27:07 |
“In this episode of The CDR Policy Scoop, co-hosts Sebastian Manhart and Eve Tamme sit down for their unscripted quarterly catch-up to discuss what’s top of mind in CDR policy.They open on the EU CBAM and the question of whether Article 6 credits could satisfy CBAM liabilities. They cut through social media hype to examine what has actually been decided, and whether this logic undermines the mechanism’s original purpose of incentivising domestic carbon pricing.The conversation turns to the EU’s broader reliance on international credits, including the 5% allowance under the 2040 target. Eve walks through the layered costs that make this look far less cheap than advertised, and the supply and infrastructure constraints that compound the problem.Sebastian flags three parallel EU processes: CBAM revision, international credits consultation, and ETS revisions, and the Negative Emissions Platform’s new ETS Needs Removals campaign. The price gap for DAC and BECCS, and how to bridge it through ETS revenues, closes out the policy discussion. Sebastian teases an upcoming paper with Rafael Cario on front-loading ETS revenues for carbon removals.The episode ends with AI as the wildcard: a force driving up CDR demand, and potentially if the energy buildout outlasts the hype, a future catalyst for cheap direct air capture energy.”
Australia’s CDR Roadmap - with Andrew Lenton | The CDR Policy Scoop | Australia's CDR Roadmap - with Andrew Lenton The CDR Policy Scoop 29:38 |
“In this episode, co-hosts Sebastian Manhart and Eve Tamme are joined by Dr Andrew Lenton, Director of CSIRO’s CarbonLock Future Science Platform, to discuss Australia’s newly published CDR roadmap and its first novel CDR workforce report.Andrew walks through what it took to build a credible national roadmap and why the coalition of partners, including Google as the sole private sector contributor, may matter as much as the findings themselves. He covers the technologies that surprised him most and what Australia’s unique geography means for the CDR opportunity.The conversation turns to early policy signals: a new Australia-Canada CDR agreement, fresh federal and state-level funding, and how Australia’s co-presidency of COP31 is shaping the agenda. Andrew reflects on what it has taken to build basic CDR literacy across government as a foundation for any of this to stick.The episode closes on workforce, Australia’s first novel CDR workforce report just landed, and Andrew outlines the four recommendations at its core. Sebastian brings in data from CDRjobs and European parallels to show why getting this right, and soon, matters.”
Will China Stand Up for Climate Policy & Carbon Dioxide Removal?—w/ Sarah Godek | Reversing Climate Change | 394: Will China Stand Up for Climate Policy & Carbon Dioxide Removal?—w/ Sarah Godek Reversing Climate Change 53:12 |
“If the US pulls out of climate action, is there room for China or another country to fill the leadership void? Or without the US, does climate multilateralism fall apart entirely?This episode is a direct response to my recent monologue episode, “How Carbon Removal Loses: The End of “Pre-Compliance”“, which walked through the political risks to climate and carbon removal policy in a world where the US pulls back. I looked at Canada, the EU, its various member states, and Japan as possible safe havens. One country I left out was China. So I invited Sarah Godek back on as my “sinologist on call” to help set the record straight.Sarah Godek is a returning guest and very knowledgeable about China. Our previous episode—a conversation about realism and liberalism in geopolitics, born out of a piece she co-wrote with Grant Faber on carbon security—is linked in the resources section and is a useful first step before diving into this one.In this episode, Sarah walks me through China’s energy security priorities, the difficult role coal plays in Chinese strategy, Tencent’s CarbonX Prize, the absence of a clear institutional home for carbon removal inside the Chinese government, and the much harder question of whether climate multilateralism can survive without American leadership.”
YOUTUBE VIDEOSHow a Tech Founder Is Turning Wildfire Waste Into Carbon Storage | Peter Reinhardt | A Climate Change With Matt Matern “Matt speaks with Peter Reinhardt, co-founder and CEO of Charm Industrial, about one of the most ambitious bets in climate tech: putting carbon back underground permanently. Peter explains how Charm takes wood from wildfire thinning projects in the Colorado Rockies, converts it into bio-oil through a process called pyrolysis, and injects that carbon-rich liquid deep into sandstone formations in Louisiana — where it stays for millennia. They discuss the cost curve challenge, why most carbon offsets are ineffective, what it actually takes to scale carbon removal, and the bipartisan legislation that could unlock wildfire biomass as a climate solution. Peter also shares why California’s regulatory environment has been a barrier, how AI is helping Charm’s frontline teams, and where he sees the industry heading by 2030.”
Can the Ocean Absorb More CO₂ Safely? Inside WHOI’s Ocean Carbon Removal Research | Carbon to Sea “This video takes viewers onboard with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) scientists leading the LOC-NESS project — a field research trial evaluating the environmental impact and effectiveness of ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) as a carbon dioxide removal solution.”
Terrapass Webinar: Get to Know the AgreenaCarbon Soil Carbon Project | Terrapass Webinar “In this webinar, we will take a deep dive into the mechanics of high-integrity soil carbon removal. We’ll explore how the AgreenaCarbon project utilizes Verra’s VM0042 methodology to turn activities like reduced tillage, cover cropping, and organic fertilisation into robust, permanent climate contributions. We’ll address the critical “how” and “why” behind the project: from establishing rigorous baselines and ensuring additionality to how carbon credit finance directly supports farmers in overcoming initial costs like machinery investments and temporary yield shifts.”
My Most Important Video in Years: Oceanic Uptake of CO2 Enhanced by Mesoscale Eddies | Paul Beckwith “Learn how ocean eddies (swirls of water on the order of 100 km to 300 km diameter, moving both clockwise and counterclockwise, typically spinning off from powerful western boundary currents (WBCs) like the Gulf Stream, Kuroshio Current (off Japan), Agulera Current (south of Africa), Eastern Australia Current (off east coast of Australia) and Brazil Current (off east coast of South America) naturally absorb vast amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere.”
Climate Restoration by 2050 via Localized Ocean Fertilization - LOF with Iron in Downwelling Eddies | Paul Beckwith “Recently I had the pleasure of attending a talk for the Canadian Club of Rome Ottawa branch by Peter Fiekowsky on Climate Restoration.Peter outlined in detail engineering plans to restore a safe climate essentially by 2050 by using a very interesting, low cost technique for CDR - Carbon Dioxide Removal, called Localized Ocean Fertilization.In a nutshell, this involves seeding the ocean with iron at select locations near and in downwelling ocean eddies, varying in diameter from 100 to roughly 300 km. Downwelling eddies are those rotating clockwise in the northern hemisphere (use the right hand rule, curl your fingers in the direction of the ocean current and your thumb points to where vertical water flow goes), and counter-clockwise in the southern hemisphere (use the left hand rule, similar to above).”
Opportunities in Climate Tech: Biological Carbon Removal (with Mitch Rubin) | Stanford Ecopreneurship Opportunities in Climate Tech: Engineered Carbon Removal (with Mitch Rubin) | Stanford Ecopreneurship Henrietta Moon, Carbo Culture on Building Multi-Revenue Carbon Removal | EUVC “In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm (EUVC) and Carmel Rafaeli (The Table) sit down with Henrietta Moon (CEO & Co-Founder, Carbo Culture) to explore how biochar is evolving from a niche concept into industrial-scale systems that lock carbon away for centuries — while building a viable business across energy, agriculture, and materials.”
Presentation of the report ‘Scaling up carbon dioxide removals’ | EU Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change “On 25 February 2025, the Advisory Board hosted a public webinar to present its recently published report ‘Scaling up carbon dioxide removals – Recommendations for navigating opportunities and risks in the EU’.”
Carbon Market Intelligence: Insights on Pricing, Removals, and Procurement Trends | AlliedOffsets “The AlliedOffsets team is excited to invite you to our upcoming webinar, Carbon Market Intelligence: Insights on Pricing, Removals, and Procurement Trends.As engagement with the voluntary carbon market grows, companies, financial institutions, and advisors are increasingly seeking reliable data to understand market movements, manage risk, and inform procurement and investment strategies.In this session, AlliedOffsets will present a data-driven overview of key market trends, including pricing, quality, liquidity, policy signals, and offtake activity, as well as evolving demand for carbon removals. Forliance will complement this with insights from the developer and buyer perspective, exploring procurement strategies, the growing role of long-term offtake agreements, and practical market examples.”
Strengthening Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage Protocols | Clean Air Task Force “Biomass carbon removal, or CDR, can deliver gigaton-scale climate mitigation by pairing the power of photosynthesis with engineered technologies to store carbon for centuries or longer. Some examples of biomass CDR include bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, biochar, bio-oil, and biomass burial. Strong standards are key to ensuring market and climate integrity.This panel discussion with CATF staff and academic colleagues dove deep into the results of our new study evaluating the greenhouse gas accounting approaches used in biomass carbon removal protocols that certify carbon removal credits in carbon markets. In May 2025, CATF convened leading experts to score approaches that 25 protocols take to three core components of biomass CDR systems: biomass production, bioconversion, and carbon storage, and also features that apply across the whole process.”
Weekly Carbon Removal Updates from 06 April - 12 April 2026 | Carbon Removal Updates BulletinDEADLINESFollow us on:Twitter | Bluesky | LinkedIn | YouTube | Substack | Podcast 1 | Podcast 2
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