Grant Faber

Comparisons of emerging carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technologies with equivalent incumbent technologies are necessary to support technology developers and to help policy-makers design appropriate long-term incentives to mitigate climate change through the deployment of CCU. In particular, early-stage CCU technologies must prove their economic viability and environmental reduction potential compared to already-deployed technologies. These comparisons can be misleading, as emerging… Show more

Comparisons of emerging carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technologies with equivalent incumbent technologies are necessary to support technology developers and to help policy-makers design appropriate long-term incentives to mitigate climate change through the deployment of CCU. In particular, early-stage CCU technologies must prove their economic viability and environmental reduction potential compared to already-deployed technologies. These comparisons can be misleading, as emerging technologies typically experience a drastic increase in performance and decrease in cost and greenhouse gas emissions as they develop from research to mass-market deployment due to various forms of learning. These changes complicate the interpretation of early techno-economic assessments (TEAs) and life cycle assessments (LCAs) of emerging CCU technologies. The effects of learning over time or cumulative production themselves can be quantitatively described using technology learning curves (TLCs). While learning curve approaches have been developed for various technologies, a harmonized methodology for using TLCs in TEA and LCA for CCU in particular is required. To address this, we describe a methodology that incorporates TLCs into TEA and LCA to forecast the environmental and economic performance of emerging CCU technologies. This methodology is based on both an evaluation of the state of the art of learning curve assessment and a literature review of TLC approaches developed in various manufacturing and energy generation sectors. Additionally, we demonstrate how to implement this methodology using a case study on a CO2 mineralization pathway. Finally, commentary is provided on how researchers, technology developers, and LCA and TEA practitioners can advance the use of TLCs to allow for consistent, high-resolution modeling of technological learning for CCU going forward and enable holistic assessments and fairer comparisons with other climate technologies. Show less

This study explores strategies for identifying and mitigating greenwashing of carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technologies. A literature review was conducted to determine the most common forms of greenwashing, and the ‘seven sins’ (hidden trade-off, no proof, vagueness, worshiping false labels, irrelevance, lesser of two evils, and fibbing) along with the notion of executional greenwashing are explored in the context of CCU. A list of questions is provided to help stakeholders such as… Show more

This study explores strategies for identifying and mitigating greenwashing of carbon capture and utilization (CCU) technologies. A literature review was conducted to determine the most common forms of greenwashing, and the ‘seven sins’ (hidden trade-off, no proof, vagueness, worshiping false labels, irrelevance, lesser of two evils, and fibbing) along with the notion of executional greenwashing are explored in the context of CCU. A list of questions is provided to help stakeholders such as consumers, investors, non-governmental organizations, and employees uncover potential instances of greenwashing. The article concludes by exploring ways to disincentivize greenwashing of CCU products along with future areas of research. Show less

Today’s industrial food systems contribute significantly to climate change and environmental degradation. Mitigating food-related impacts may require some level of behavioural change by consumers. Some of this change can be implemented using nudges, specifically in the form of choice architecture or default interventions that lead to increased consumption of less environmentally harmful, plant-based options. This study offers a framework for calculating the differences in emissions, land use… Show more

Today’s industrial food systems contribute significantly to climate change and environmental degradation. Mitigating food-related impacts may require some level of behavioural change by consumers. Some of this change can be implemented using nudges, specifically in the form of choice architecture or default interventions that lead to increased consumption of less environmentally harmful, plant-based options. This study offers a framework for calculating the differences in emissions, land use, and water use attributable to the implementation of a plant-based nudging strategy at a generic conference. A customisable Excel model enables readers to calculate impacts from their own event or run their own analysis. A case study using this framework demonstrates a significant decrease in food-related emissions, land use, and water use from plant-based nudging alone, although these results are highly dependent on many factors including the efficacy of the intervention and the ingredients chosen. Show less

The International Carbon Capture and Utilization Assessment Harmonization Group emerged in 2020 to harmonize related efforts on the part of many different organizations. This group consists of experts from research institutions and organizations from both North America and Europe including the Global CO2 Initiative at the University of Michigan, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, National Research Council Canada… Show more

The International Carbon Capture and Utilization Assessment Harmonization Group emerged in 2020 to harmonize related efforts on the part of many different organizations. This group consists of experts from research institutions and organizations from both North America and Europe including the Global CO2 Initiative at the University of Michigan, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, National Research Council Canada, IASS Potsdam, TU Berlin, RWTH Aachen, the University of Sheffield, and EIT Climate-KIC. Representatives from each organization joined task teams to work on topics relevant to LCA and TEA, and the group held a series of corresponding webinars in May 2021. Topics for the teams ranged from integration of LCA and TEA results to technology learning curves, and the results of the team focused on the AssessCCUS website are discussed in this article. Show less

Technologies that valorize carbon dioxide are becoming an increasingly relevant component of the portfolio of solutions necessary to mitigate and reverse climate change. Assessing the environmental and economic characteristics of these technologies early in their developmental trajectories can help technologists either efficiently accelerate emissions reductions and commercialization or realize potential infeasibility and direct resources toward better opportunities. To aid in such assessments,… Show more

Technologies that valorize carbon dioxide are becoming an increasingly relevant component of the portfolio of solutions necessary to mitigate and reverse climate change. Assessing the environmental and economic characteristics of these technologies early in their developmental trajectories can help technologists either efficiently accelerate emissions reductions and commercialization or realize potential infeasibility and direct resources toward better opportunities. To aid in such assessments, this article constructs a typology of carbon removal and utilization technologies and identifies specific pathways in need of early-stage life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic assessment (TEA) templates. Based on published literature and project experience, example LCA and TEA templates are developed for high-priority pathways with relatively low technology readiness levels including direct air capture, chemical synthesis, algae products, carbonated concrete, and carbonated aggregates. The templates attempt to capture the most important elements of early-stage LCA and TEA in an easily understandable and usable manner that still allows for reliable, order-of-magnitude estimations and hotspot analysis. Opportunities for other practitioners to use and build upon the templates are also discussed. Show less

This project aims to address how communities in the United States with socioeconomic challenges can establish spaces of resilience in order to adapt to a future with fewer resources and greater climate instability. This will be done specifically in the context of Ypsilanti, Michigan to understand and address needs that communities of similar demographic makeups may have as we experience increasingly frequent climate impacts. Climate disasters and emergency declarations have been on the rise… Show more

This project aims to address how communities in the United States with socioeconomic challenges can establish spaces of resilience in order to adapt to a future with fewer resources and greater climate instability. This will be done specifically in the context of Ypsilanti, Michigan to understand and address needs that communities of similar demographic makeups may have as we experience increasingly frequent climate impacts. Climate disasters and emergency declarations have been on the rise over the past two decades due to anthropogenic climate impacts. The significant amount of support needed to address and respond to such impacts can quickly deplete institutional resources, leaving citizens to act without assistance from outside of the community and instead turn to one another for support during such times. The research resulting from this project serves as a procedural guide to enhance adaptive strategies to climate events through community-operated and designed gathering spaces, referred to as resilience hubs. While the focus of this study is on the community of Ypsilanti, a unique feature of a hub is that it often operates on the scale of a neighborhood, and networks of hubs can provide the anticipatory, adaptive strategies necessary to build resilience at the community level. This will be discussed here to guide Ypsilanti residents and decision-makers in gathering data and making progress toward implementing resilience hubs. Show less

While virtual conferences emit far less greenhouse gas emissions relative to their physical counterparts, they still have a considerable impact on the environment arising from participant computer life cycle emissions, network data transfer energy use, server energy use, and other activities that would not have happened without the conference. This article proposes a modifiable framework for systematically measuring the emissions attributable to such conferences using data about participant… Show more

While virtual conferences emit far less greenhouse gas emissions relative to their physical counterparts, they still have a considerable impact on the environment arising from participant computer life cycle emissions, network data transfer energy use, server energy use, and other activities that would not have happened without the conference. This article proposes a modifiable framework for systematically measuring the emissions attributable to such conferences using data about participant computers, Internet energy intensity, network data transfer, server power ratings, and other relevant factors. Strategies to reduce emissions attributable to virtual conferences are also proposed based on the framework. Show less

The use of carbon dioxide as a feedstock for a broad range of products can help mitigate the effects of climate change through long-term removal of carbon or as part of a circular carbon economy. Research on capture and conversion technologies has intensified in recent years, and the interest in deploying these technologies is growing fast. However, sound understanding of the environmental and economic impacts of these technologies is required to drive fast deployment and avoid unintended… Show more

The use of carbon dioxide as a feedstock for a broad range of products can help mitigate the effects of climate change through long-term removal of carbon or as part of a circular carbon economy. Research on capture and conversion technologies has intensified in recent years, and the interest in deploying these technologies is growing fast. However, sound understanding of the environmental and economic impacts of these technologies is required to drive fast deployment and avoid unintended consequences. Life cycle assessments (LCAs) and techno-economic assessments (TEAs) are useful tools to quantify environmental and economic metrics; however, these tools can be very flexible in how they are applied, with the potential to produce significantly different results depending on how the boundaries and assumptions are defined. Built on ISO standards for generic LCAs, several guidance documents have emerged recently from the Global CO2 Initiative, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory that further define assessment specifications for carbon capture and utilization. Overall agreement in the approaches is noted with differences largely based on the intended use cases. However, further guidance is needed for assessments of early-stage technologies, reporting details, and reporting for policymakers and nontechnical decision-makers. Show less