Industrial sectors such as cement, steel, aluminum, ammonia, and oil and gas form the backbone of the modern world. They build our cities, power economies, and supply essential materials for infrastructure and manufacturing. Yet these same industries collectively account for approximately 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 85% of manufacturing emissions worldwide. Unlike sectors such as buildings or passenger transport, these industries cannot simply switch to electricity and achieve full decarbonization. The challenge lies in the chemistry of production itself.

In cement manufacturing, for example, more than half of carbon dioxide emissions come from calcination , the chemical decomposition of limestone required to produce clinker. In steelmaking, carbon is essential for reducing iron ore into usable metal, generating unavoidable CO₂ emissions in the process. These are known as process emissions, and they cannot be eliminated through renewable electricity alone. For these sectors, carbon capture is not just an optional climate technology. It is one of the most viable pathways available for deep decarbonization.

The Growing Need for Carbon Capture

Global carbon capture deployment remains far below what climate targets demand. Current operational carbon dioxide capture capacity is just over 60 million tons annually. However, the International Energy Agency’s Net Zero Emissions by 2050 scenario projects that capture capacity may need to reach nearly 2.3 billion tons by 2035 and exceed 6 billion tons by 2050. Whether or not those exact figures are achieved, one reality is becoming increasingly clear: fossil fuels and emissions-intensive industries will likely remain part of the global economy longer than previously expected. Ironically, this means the eventual need for carbon capture may become even greater.the longer high-emission systems remain operational, the more important scalable carbon capture technologies become.

Why Carbon Capture Deployment Has Been Slow

Despite decades of discussion, carbon capture deployment has progressed slowly. One major reason is that carbon capture has often been treated as a single universal solution. In reality, industrial emissions vary dramatically. The exhaust gas from a cement kiln may contain between 14–33% CO₂ alongside particulates and high temperatures. Natural gas processing streams can approach 95% CO₂ concentration. Aluminum smelting exhaust may contain less than 1% CO₂. These are fundamentally different operating environments.

Treating all industrial emissions as if one carbon capture technology could solve every case is similar to prescribing the same medicine to every patient regardless of their condition. Different industries require different capture strategies. At the same time, policymakers, investors, and industrial operators often lack a practical framework for understanding which technologies are best suited for specific industrial applications.

Five Carbon Capture Technology Families

Our recent research published in Nature Reviews Chemistry evaluates five major carbon capture technology families and examines how each aligns with specific industrial emissions profiles.

1. Chemical Absorption

Chemical absorption is currently the most commercially mature approach. It uses liquid solvents, often amine-based, that chemically react with CO₂ and release it upon heating. This technology performs well in several industrial applications, but reducing the energy required for solvent regeneration remains one of the biggest challenges.

2. Adsorption

Adsorption technologies rely on solid materials such as activated carbons, zeolites, and metal-organic frameworks that bind CO₂ onto their surfaces. These systems are attractive because they can offer lower energy consumption and modular deployment opportunities.

3. Membrane Separation

Membrane systems use selective barriers that allow CO₂ molecules to pass through preferentially. The challenge lies in balancing selectivity with permeability while maintaining cost-effectiveness at industrial scale.

4. Cryogenic Separation

Cryogenic technologies cool gas mixtures to isolate CO₂ through phase change. These systems can be highly effective in high-concentration CO₂ streams but require substantial energy for deep cooling.

5. Electrochemically Mediated Capture

Emerging technologies such as electroswing capture use electrically driven cycles to capture and release CO₂. These systems remain at relatively early development stages but represent exciting frontiers in electrochemistry and advanced materials engineering.

Matching Technologies to Industrial Context

One of the most important findings from our work is that no single carbon capture solution fits every industrial sector. For high-purity CO₂ streams, such as ethanol fermentation or ammonia production, relatively simple and low-cost separation approaches may be sufficient. Capture costs in these cases can range between 14–20 USD per ton of CO₂. For industries such as cement and steel, where CO₂ concentrations are moderate, more advanced solvent- or sorbent-based systems are required, significantly increasing costs. Meanwhile, dilute CO₂ streams, such as those from natural gas power generation or aluminum smelting, present the greatest thermodynamic challenge and therefore require the highest degree of innovation.

This highlights the importance of tailoring technologies to specific industrial environments rather than pursuing generalized solutions.

The Future of Carbon Capture Infrastructure

Historically, carbon capture projects have been vertically integrated, meaning one company managed capture, transport, and storage together. However, the industry is beginning to shift toward shared infrastructure and “part-chain” business models. CO₂ transport and storage networks are increasingly being developed as shared services that multiple industries can access. This evolution could fundamentally reshape deployment. If transport and storage become commoditized infrastructure similar to electricity grids then carbon capture technologies can become more specialized, modular, and adaptable to individual industrial sectors. Companies are already beginning to offer capture-as-a-service systems designed for specific emissions profiles.

Why Chemistry Innovation Is Critical

For technologies such as chemical absorption and adsorption, chemistry remains the primary driver of future cost reductions.

One of the largest operational expenses in carbon capture is regeneration energy the energy required to release captured CO₂ and recycle the solvent or sorbent for reuse. Innovations such as water-lean solvents, phase-change solvents, and sterically hindered amines could dramatically improve performance if designed specifically for target industrial conditions. Similarly, advances in membranes, sorbents, and electrochemical systems must focus not only on laboratory performance but also on real-world deployment requirements.

A Necessary Step for Climate Mitigation

Six of the nine planetary boundaries have already been crossed, including the climate change boundary. Addressing industrial emissions is therefore essential for meaningful climate action. Carbon capture alone is not a complete solution. However, for hard-to-abate industries where electrification is insufficient, it may become one of the most important tools available.

Our research aims to bridge the gap between laboratory innovation and industrial deployment by providing a practical framework that connects carbon capture technologies with specific industrial needs. Scaling carbon capture to the gigatonne level will require not only technological breakthroughs, but also strategic deployment, targeted investment, and industry-specific solutions. The path forward depends on matching the right chemistry with the right industrial challenge.

Adapted from the Frontiers Planet Prize thought piece (link:https://www.frontiersplanetprize.org/news/thoughtpieceuae2026 ) and supported by the published paper in Nature Reviews Chemistry (link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41570-025-00733-3#Ack1).