NASA SPRUCE (Sustainably-powered Planetary RejUvenation via Carbon Entrapment) Exploring direct greenhouse gas removal via intelligent, airborne systems
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The document discusses the spruce initiative, which focuses on airborne systems for direct greenhouse gas removal to combat climate change caused by human activities. It highlights the importance of artificial photosynthesis and proposes solutions from the Department of Energy to effectively reduce CO2 and CH4 emissions. The airborne approach promises versatility and efficiency compared to traditional ground installations, enabling rapid deployment and operation across various emitters.
NASA SPRUCE (Sustainably-powered Planetary RejUvenation via Carbon Entrapment) Exploring direct greenhouse gas removal via intelligent, airborne systems
- 1. SPRUCE (Sustainably-powered Planetary RejUvenation via Carbon Entrapment) Exploring direct greenhouse gas removal via intelligent, airborne systems Challenge • The leadingdriverof climatechangeis humanactivitygenerating growinglevels of CO2 and CH4 in the atmosphere.In 2016, aviation was responsiblefor 2.5% of globalCO2 emissions • Rapidlydeterioratingclimatetrendsare due to anthropogenic greenhousegases (GHG) and projectedextremereleaseof methanefrom naturalsources (e.g., meltingpermafrostandfrom beneaththe seafloor) Expected Impacts •Exploring direct greenhouse gas removal via intelligent, airborne systems •GHG-tailored artificial photosynthesis Partners and/or Participants • Department of Energy Proposed Solutions • Leverage artificial photosynthesis, a chemical process that biomimics photosynthesis to convert sunlight, water, and CO2 to value added products. • Benefits of airborne cleanup approach (Fig 3) compared to SOA (Fig 2): • Dynamic: No expensive ground installations; no cost of dismantling; in place on time. Can be black boxed and installed onto many vehicle types • Versatile: Handles a broad range of emitters, human-made and natural; operates at optimal proximity; autonomous system accommodates state- of-the-art components Results • Provided an effective SME-directed pathway for identification of high-value Opportunities, and cross-disciplinary research • The most effective way to mitigate GHG is to prevent emissions via persistent monitoring and localization Lyndsey McMillon-Brown