The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report shows the unavoidable requirement of negative emissions pathways to reach the 2-degree climate target. More in-depth transformation scenarios of members of the consortia show that land usage change and reforestation alone will not solve the problem. Instead, large scale negative emissions technologies are required; amongst those, Direct Air Capture and Storage (DACS) seems promising.

Therefore, the goal of the project DACStorE is to prepare for a large and sustainable scale-up of DACS technology. Six Helmholtz-Centers and the TU Berlin investigate technical solutions for CO₂-capture from ambient air and its storage in geological formations. In an open technology approach three promising DAC technology paths are investigated, compared, and further developed into prototypes. A major focus is on reducing energy requirements and improving scale-up opportunities by developing and testing suitable materials, plant designs and operational concepts. Additionally, requirements posed by large-scale industrial manufacturing are addressed already in the early development phase. In addition to these technical properties, the economic and ecological aspects of the technologies are investigated, including societal acceptability and legal framework conditions. The aim is to tailor technology options and their operational concepts to the given local conditions. Furthermore, important requirements will be pointed out to technology developers already at an early stage of development in order to enable a successful market introduction and market ramp-up.

An essential aspect of this project is the exchange with stakeholders from industry, society, and politics, who will ultimately implement the sustainable market ramp-up. Consequently, the ‘DACStorE Transformation Hub’ is being established as a single point of contact for DACS technology consulting and co-creation in Germany.

The ‘Helmholtz Research School for Negative Emission Technologies’ supports young scientists during their research in the DACStorE project and offers a structured education in the field of negative emission technology. In addition to technical training, the school places a special focus on fostering transdisciplinary thinking and personal career development.