The circular economy is all about replacing the current “linear” model of growth and reducing the strain on planet Earth’s limited resources. Currently, the global economy is only 9% circular – just 9% of the 92.8 billion tonnes of minerals, fossil fuels, metals and biomass that enter the economy are re-used annually. However, as policymakers and businesses start embracing the circular model they need science and research to provide fact based knowledge that can dictate policy and direct businesses towards effective strategies and away from pointless “greenwashing”.

The idea of mitigating climate change by removing carbon from the air is nothing new. It has been present on the desks of academics, businessmen and policymakers for over twenty years, taking a central role in climate change prediction models and leading to intense debates on its feasibility and potential for scale up so as to avoid catastrophic climate change. A new study published in the Energy and Environmental Science journal outlines a new ground-breaking technology that may be able to overcome some of the criticisms levelled at direct air capture for carbon storage technologies.