3775-year-old wood burial supports wood vaulting as a durable carbon removal method

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Zeng, Ning; Zhao, Xinpeng; Poisson, Ghislain; Clifford, Bryson; Liu, Yu; Liu, He; Meng, Taotao; Picard, Laura; Zeng-Mariotti, Elisa; Zaitchik, Ben; Hu, Liangbing
• 署名单位: University System of Maryland; University of Maryland College Park; University System of Maryland; University of Maryland College Park; University System of Maryland; University of Maryland College Park; University System of Maryland; University of Maryland Baltimore County; University of Maryland College Park; University System of Maryland; University of Maryland College Park; Johns Hopkins University; Michigan State University
• 刊物名称: SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0036-11411
• DOI: 10.1126/science.adm8133
• 发表日期: 2024-09-27
• 页码: 1454-1459
• 关键词: consumption; decay

摘要

Six-times more carbon dioxide (CO2) is removed each year by terrestrial photosynthesis than fossil fuel emissions. However, the carbon is mostly returned to the atmosphere by decomposition. We found a 3775-year-old ancient wood log buried 2 meters belowground that was preserved far beyond its expected lifetime. The wood had near-perfect preservation, with carbon loss less than 5% compared to a modern sample. The lack of decay is likely due to the low permeability of the compact clay soil at the burial site. Our observation suggests a hybrid nature-engineering approach for carbon removal by burying woody biomass in similar anoxic environments. We estimate a global sequestration potential of up to 10 gigatonnes CO2 per year with existing technology at a low cost of $30 to $100 per tonne after optimization.