The United States is among numerous nations striving to reach net-zero emissions targets by 2050. However, that’s an undoubtedly ambitious goal. Although there’s more than one way to get to it, some options are more feasible than others. Here are some of them.
Planting Miscanthus Grass to Decarbonize the Aviation Sector
Tens of thousands of planes fly across the U.S. daily, carrying more than 1.7 million passengers. However, as useful as air travel is for creating transportation opportunities, the aviation sector is also widely recognized as one of the most challenging to decarbonize. Researchers from Arizona State University found a relatively straightforward way to get to net zero.
Their approach revolves around planting miscanthus grass on the 23.2 million hectares of marginal agricultural lands in the United States. That would produce enough biomass feedstock to fully supply the U.S. aviation industry with all the liquid biofuels it needs by 2040.
The researchers pointed out that getting serious about reaching net-zero targets means focusing on aviation. Estimates indicate its associated emissions will grow.
Part of the team’s investigation involved examining the current uses of these marginal agricultural lands and whether growing miscanthus grass on them would be profitable. Their results showed it would be and that the effort could meet a target of 30 billion gallons of biofuel per year for $4.10 per gallon on average.
Improving and Broadening Carbon Capture Methods
Scientists have long believed carbon capture techniques are instrumental in helping the United States and the world reach a net-zero status. There’s no single best way to use them, though.
In one example, Lehigh University researchers created a new filter technology that captures CO2 from the air. They envision a future when their development could be part of a renewable energy-powered system that sends the captured carbon into the ocean.
Experiments showed this method enabled a 300% improvement over existing direct-air-capture methods. This innovation involves enhancing a sorbent with copper. Sorbents are materials that absorb gases and liquids, and the result is strong and chemically stable. The process begins when air blows through a filter, capturing carbon dioxide.
Seawater is passed through the filter once it becomes saturated with gas molecules. The water converts the carbon dioxide to a dissolved form of sodium bicarbonate that’s released directly into the ocean.
Outside of academic labs, people are developing technologies that help people measure carbon sequestration results. One company involved is a subsidiary of ENGIE, which has 101,500 global employees and works to move toward a carbon-neutral world. The goal is to create an offering in the U.S. market where an entity can purchase measured and verified sequestrated carbon credits from a single place and platform.
Ramping up Renewable Energy Usage
Renewable energy has become more accessible and affordable, convincing many Americans that now is the time to switch. A Cornell University team specifically examined the impact of certain types of green power on the country’s net-zero goals. Their main aim was to see if New York could achieve a statewide carbon-free economy by 2050. Their findings indicate that could happen with five years to spare.
One of their takeaways was that geothermal energy and electric air heat pumps would replace natural gas, becoming the top ways to heat homes and buildings. The U.S. is already the world’s largest geothermal energy producer, so that prediction seems feasible.
They indicated natural gas would play a defining role in the early transition to carbon-neutral power and heating options. They believe it’ll become obsolete by 2040 to 2050, however. Additionally, New York will likely use offshore wind energy as its primary power source by 2050.
One potentially surprising finding was that solar energy would play a limited — but still important — role in the state’s net-zero future. That was due to the availability of other economically competitive options that are not so weather-dependent.
Although these takeaways related to New York, other researchers could likely expand upon the conclusions and use them for additional study. Seeing how specific findings apply elsewhere could save time and allow people to act faster.
A Varied Path to Net-Zero Emissions
These examples highlight how the U.S. must pursue numerous possibilities to reach its net-zero goals in time. The country is most likely to succeed when people keep an open mind about what could work while putting the most investment into highly feasible possibilities.