The world’s largest plant that sucks carbon dioxide directly from the air and deposits it underground started operating on Wednesday last week, the company behind the nascent green technology said.
Swiss start-up Climeworks AG, which specializes in capturing carbon dioxide directly from the air, has partnered with Icelandic carbon storage firm Carbfix to develop a plant that sucks out up to 4,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. That’s the equivalent of the annual emissions from about 790 cars. Last year, global CO2 emissions totaled 31.5 billion tonnes, according to the International Energy Agency.
Direct air capture is one of the few technologies extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and it is viewed by scientists as vital to limit global warming, blamed for causing more heatwaves, wildfires, floods and rising sea levels.
Photo: Bloomberg 照片:彭博社
The Orca plant, a reference to the Icelandic word for energy, consists of eight large containers similar in looks to those used in the shipping industry, which employ high-tech filters and fans to extract carbon dioxide. The isolated carbon is then mixed with water and pumped deep underground, where it slowly turns into rock. Both technologies are powered by renewable energy sourced from a nearby geothermal power plant.
Direct air capture is still a fledgling and costly technology, but developers hope to drive down prices by scaling up as more companies and consumers look to reduce their carbon footprint.
There are currently 15 direct air capture plants operating worldwide, capturing more than 9,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, according to the IEA. US oil firm Occidental is currently developing the largest direct-air-capture facility, to pull 1 million tonnes per year of carbon dioxide from the open air near some of its Texas oilfields.
(Reuters)
世界上最大,可直接吸取空氣中之二氧化碳,並將其儲存於地底的工廠,已於上週三開始運作,提供該新興綠色科技之公司表示。
瑞士新創公司Climeworks AG專門從空氣中直接捕集二氧化碳,它與冰島碳儲存公司Carbfix合作開發了一座工廠,每年可吸收多達四千噸二氧化碳,這相當於大約七百九十輛汽車一年的排放量。根據國際能源署的統計,去年全球二氧化碳排放量總計為三百一十五億噸。
直接從空氣捕集是少數能夠從大氣中提取二氧化碳的技術之一,科學家認為它對限制全球暖化極為重要。全球暖化被認為是造成熱浪、野火、洪水更頻繁,以及海平面上升的罪魁禍首。
此工廠名為Orca,源於冰島語「能源」一詞,是由八個看似航運貨櫃的大容器組成,採用高科技過濾器與風扇來提取二氧化碳;所分離出的碳加入水混合後,再打入地底深處,讓它在地底慢慢變成岩石。這兩種技術所使用的動力,均來自附近地熱發電廠的可再生能源。
直接從空氣捕集碳仍屬新興且成本高昂的技術,但有越來越多的公司與消費者希望減少碳足跡,開發商盼通過擴大規模來降低價格。
據國際能源署統計,目前全球有十五座空氣捕集廠在營運,每年捕集的二氧化碳超過九千噸。美國西方石油公司目前正開發最大的直接空氣捕集設施,每年將在德州一些油田附近的空氣中提取一百萬噸二氧化碳。
(台北時報林俐凱編譯)
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
It’s no secret that Japanese people have a deep affection for noodles. Like in the rest of East Asia, noodles are an important staple food, second only to rice. Japanese people have enjoyed noodles for over 1,000 years. The first noodles came from China and were introduced around 800 CE. As time passed, noodles in Japan not only became widespread but also developed some unique Japanese characteristics. The three most popular types of noodles in Japan are ramen, soba, and udon. Ramen, typically made from wheat flour, is usually thin and firm. The dough is kneaded and left to
Rice is an essential ingredient in Taiwanese cuisine. Many foods are made of rice, adding more variety to our cooking, such as rice cake, or “gui.” Wagui is made by steaming rice flour batter in a bowl. The term “gui” refers to a type of food made from rice, while “wa” refers to a bowl. The pronunciation of “gui” in Taiwanese Hokkien is similar to the word for “nobility” in Chinese, so it is common for people to prepare various types of gui, including wagui, as offerings to the gods or ancestors,. 米是台灣重要的主食,用米製成的食品十分多元,豐富我們的飲食,如米做成的「粿」。粿的意思是米做成的糕點,碗粿是將在來米漿倒入碗中蒸熟,因而得名。粿因為音同「貴」,因此碗粿等粿食常用作供品祭拜神明和祖先。 nobility (n.) 高貴,高尚;貴族 offering (n.) 供品 While Taiwan may not be
Continued from yesterday(延續自昨日) https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang As with many aspects of Japanese culture, there is etiquette to follow when you enjoy noodles. To fully experience noodles like a local on your next visit to Japan, consider these simple guidelines. First, be careful where you put your chopsticks. Don’t leave them sticking up in the broth or set them at the side of the bowl. When you have finished eating or if you’re taking a break, place them on the chopstick rest next to the bowl. Also, it is impolite to wave chopsticks around or bring them above mouth-level. Second, don’t take too