Human: Based on our current scientific understanding, what is the best pathway to follow for a fast decarbonization of our economies to mitigate climate change as much as possible?

Assistant: Decarbonization mainly needs two types of actions. One is to reduce the production of greenhouse gas emissions, and the other is to absorb emissions from the atmosphere.
To reduce the production, effective ways include:

- Use zero-carbon energy sources, such as wind, solar, hydropower, and geothermal instead of fossil fuels. To smooth out the intermittency of some energy sources such as wind and solar, more low-cost energy storage is required. Power plants also need to be more efficient by utilizing their waste heat.

- Redisgn industrial processes to reach a higher energy efficiency, or turn to zero-carbon energy sources. This is especially important but hard for processes highly dependent on fossil fuel combustion, such as steel, cement, and chemical production.

- Expand the usage of electric vehicles and mass transit options. For vehicles difficult to electrify such as airplanes, freighters, and long-haul trucks, low-carbon fuels, and better fuel efficiency are required. This can be achieved by developing hydrogen and synthetic liquid fuels, reusing waste heat, reducing drag, etc.

- Reduce the methane emission from agriculture. The methane from livestock production can be collected and utilized instead of directly emitted.

- Improve the efficiency of buildings. For example, switching to electric heat pumps for heating and cooling, improving insulation, and implementing smart management systems.

To absorb emissions, effective ways include:

- Afforestation and reforestation. This requires not only planting additional trees to remove and store carbon from the atmosphere, but also careful management to reduce negative impacts, such as pests and wildfires. Agriculture also needs to improve the utilization of land, which afforestation could compete for.

- Soil carbon sequestration. This is a low-cost method that can be deployed immediately by covering crops, crop rotation, and leaving crop residues on the field. However, the soil can become saturated after 10 to 100 years.

- Carbon mineralization. Injecting CO2 into natural reactive materials like peridotite or basaltic lava to form solid carbonate minerals can store it for millions of years.

Human: Tell me more about carbon mineralization.  What are the most effective ways to secure carbon from the atmosphere so that it can be mineralized?

Assistant: Carbon mineralization is a process of binding carbon dioxide in rocks as a solid mineral. It is a versatile and thermodynamically downhill process that can be harnessed for capturing, storing, and utilizing CO2 to synthesize products with enhanced properties. Carbon mineralization occurs naturally at a slow rate as certain rocks are exposed to CO2, permanently removing small amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere each year. The central challenge facing scientists and entrepreneurs is finding cost- and energy-effective ways to bring CO2 into contact with reactive minerals at scale without imposing unacceptable social or environmental trade-offs.

There are two primary types of geologic carbon mineralization: injection of CO2 into rock formations deep underground, or exposure to broken pieces of rock at the surface, such as leftovers from mining, called mine tailings. The two primary rock types that have the potential for carbon mineralization through injection are basalt and a broad category of rocks called ultramafic, meaning they have extremely high amounts of magnesium and iron. Laboratory studies have shown that ultramafic rocks have the fastest reaction times, and pilot studies have shown that injection of CO2 into basalt can lead to mineralization in under two years.

Carbon mineralization of crushed rocks at the surface, such as mine tailings or industrial waste, has been estimated to cost around $8 per metric ton of CO2. However, this is only cost-effective at the local scale and for already mined materials. If mining is required, the cost increases significantly. Carbon mineralization in deep underground basaltic formations could be around $30 per metric ton of CO2.

The most effective ways to secure carbon from the atmosphere so that it can be mineralized are as follows:

* Injecting CO2 into wells that go deep underground to igneous or metamorphic rock formations that have the potential for carbon mineralization.
* Exposing CO2 to ultramafic rocks or basalt at the surface. Often these rocks are in the form of crushed mining waste, such as asbestos mine tailings. Carbon mineralization of mine waste can be a much faster process than injecting the CO2 underground for mineralization, since there is more surface area on the crushed rocks for the carbon to form minerals. However, there is not nearly as much rock that can be mineralized on the surface as there is underground, so the overall amount of carbon storage is higher for underground injection than exposing CO2 to crushed rock on the surface.
* Complementing sedimentary brine carbon storage with carbon mineralization.

The benefits of carbon mineralization are that the carbon cannot escape back to the atmosphere and that it permanently stores captured carbon. The potential for carbon storage through mineralization is spread throughout the United States, though in markedly different locations. The climate change benefits of enhancing carbon mineralization processes could be enormous, and the report recommends that policy makers and businesses devote considerably more attention to carbon mineralization in their climate change strategies.