“The era of global boiling has arrived”: These are the words of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressing his sense of urgency about the acceleration of global warming in July 2023 in response to the prediction that the average global temperature is expected to rise. Unprecedented heavy rains, droughts, wildfires, and various other disasters have been reported around the world as a result of global warming.
The main cause of global warming is the increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted by humans in the course of our daily lives. Governments, corporations, and communities across the globe are continuing to make efforts to reduce CO2 emissions from the burning of fossil fuels, with slogans such as “Let’s reduce thermal power generation to reduce CO2 emissions” and “Let’s switch from vehicles with internal combustion engines to electric vehicles (EVs) to reduce CO2 emissions.”
Against this backdrop, groundbreaking research has begun that is aimed at capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and using it as a raw material for clothing and energy. Hitachi's vision for the future is to “Transforming the future one step at a time.” Can this really be achieved? This article looks into the state of the cutting-edge research.
