Tesla and SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk has announced that he is donating $ 100 million towards a prize for the best technology that can capture carbon dioxide.
Musk, who passed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest man this month, made a statement on Twitter late Thursday, saying he would share more details next week.
“Am donating $100M towards a prize for best carbon capture technology,” Musk tweeted to his 42.7 million followers.
What Is Carbon Capture Technology?
Carbon capture is the process of capturing carbon dioxide waste directly from the air, or just before it is released into industrial and biological plants.
For the latter, the first step is usually to install solvent filters in the factory chimneys, which hold carbon emissions before they are released into the Earth’s atmosphere. Once extracted, carbon dioxide can be transported or piped to an escape route (usually deep underground) to prevent it from contributing to global warming.
Most of the captured carbon dioxide remains underground, but some of it can also used to make plastics and fizzy drinks.
Why Do We Need This Technology?
Global carbon dioxide emissions have increased over the past 100 years, leading to unprecedented global warming and climate change.
There are currently around 20 carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) projects operating commercially worldwide, according to the International Energy Agency.
The agency said 30 new projects had been agreed upon since 2017, but stressed that more was needed to prevent carbon emissions from raising global temperatures by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
The IEA believes that CCUS projects can reduce carbon emissions by about one-fifth, and also reduce the cost of dealing with climate change by 70%. Adapting a heavy industry to using clean energy is very difficult and expensive compared to installing carbon imaging systems.
U.S. President Joe Biden has promised to focus more on cutting emissions than his predecessor and said he wants the U.S. to be carbon neutral by 2050.
‘Afforestation’
The award, which Musk said he would contribute to, was linked to the Xprize Foundation, reports TechCrunch, citing an unknown source. The foundation is a nonprofit that puts on competitions to promote and support innovation.
Aniruddha Sharma, chief executive officer of Carbon Carbon Clean, a technology engineer, said he was “very pleased” to see businessman Musk “put both his money and his name behind carbon capture.”
He added: “In 2018 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the results which found that capture and storage of carbon is important in reducing climate change. It’s 2021 and the world is not getting cool – now is the time to invest in proven solutions. We are not far from a bad, cheap solution. ”
According to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, Musk has a total value of $ 201 billion, while Bezos has $ 193 billion. Microsoft founder Bill Gates is the next richest man in the world, with a total value of $ 134 billion.
Musk recently asked his Twitter followers what he should do with his money.
“Critical feedback is always super appreciated, as well as ways to donate money that really make a difference (way harder than it seems),” he tweeted Jan. 8.
Synopsis
Elon Musk has announced that he is donating $ 100 million to the one who invents an advanced technology that can capture carbon dioxide.
Musk, who passed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest man this month, made a statement on Twitter late Thursday, saying he would share more details next week.
Carbon capture is the process of capturing carbon dioxide waste directly from the air, or just before it is released into industrial and biological plants.
