A Novel Strategy for CO2 Sequestration and Clean Air Protection

Upon ratification, the recent climate treaty negotiated in Kyoto, Japan, would require the United States and other developed nations to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases below 1990 levels by the year 2010. Because most anthropogenic greenhouse-gas emissions (particularly CO2) come from the use of fossil energy, this agreement has the potential to affect the entire fabric of society. Here, we present a practical and revolutionary method that can sequester greenhouse-gas emissions and at the same time benefit both agriculture and the economy. The proposed strategy utilizes an innovative application of chemical processes to convert CO2, NOx, and SOx emissions into valuable fertilizers [mainly, NH4HCO3 and (NH2)2CO] that can enhance sequestration of CO2 into soil and subsoil earth layers, reduce NO3 contamination of groundwater, and stimulate photosynthetic fixation of CO2 from the atmosphere. This systematic technology concept (Fig. 1) could contribute importantly to global CO2 sequestration and environmental protection.