To combat global warming, companies are building direct air capture (DAC) facilities worldwide to remove carbon from the atmosphere. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a new method for testing the materials used in these plants to capture carbon. The agency plans to release an early-stage reference material that the DAC industry can use to test equipment.

More than 100 facilities designed to remove carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere are in various stages of development around the world. In the United States, the first DAC plant opened last fall in Northern California. The U.S. Department of Energy is funding four more regional DAC hubs with billions of dollars in seed money.

Now, NIST aims to facilitate the development of this rapidly emerging technology that the International Energy Agency (IEA) says will be a “key technology” for combating global warming.

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