Carbon dioxide captured（捕捉） from the air could be turned into baking soda（小蘇打） and stored in the oceans，thanks to a newly identified material that researchers say could revolutionize the direct air capture（DAC） industry.
For years，carbon capture technology has focused on capturing CO2 from pollution sites before it enters the atmosphere，such as the chimneys of coal and steel plants.Extracting carbon directly from the air poses a greater challenge due to its low concentration and the need for more energy and materials.Consequently，current DAC plants are expensive to operate，with the cost of pulling a tonne of CO2 from the air amounting to hundreds of US dollars.
Arup SenGupta at Lehigh University in Bethlehem，Pennsylvania，and his colleagues have developed a new absorbent material called a sorbent，capable of pulling more CO2 from the air than current materials，thus boosting the effectiveness of DAC by two to three times. "This material can be produced at very high capacity rapidly， "says SenGupta. "That definitely should make the process more cost-effective."
The captured CO2 can be changed into baking soda，by adding seawater.This can be safely stored in the ocean，which serves as an"endless sink"for captured CO2.SenGupta suggests that releasing baking soda into the ocean wouldn't harm the environment；in fact，with a high PH level，the baking soda may help reverse ocean acid imbalance caused by CO2 that is mixed with the ocean water.Eventually，DAC plants using this sorbent could be installed offshore，enabling countries without the potential for underground carbon storage to remove carbon from the atmosphere.
Stuart Haszeldine at the University of Edinburgh praises the proposal as "elegant and clever chemistry" given the deep ocean's huge capacity.Still，it remains uncertain whether energy companies are willing to invest in the expansion of the global market.Additionally，there may be legal barriers to releasing the baking soda，potentially classified as industrial waste，into the ocean.
（1）What is a major problem of current DAC plants？ BB
A．They are not time-saving.
B．They are not cost-effective.
C．They find it hard to capture CO2.
D．They find it dangerous to extract CO2.
（2）What can we learn about the sorbent mentioned in the passage？ DD
A．It has entered mass production.
B．It can be safely stored in the ocean.
C．It can change CO2 into baking soda.
D．It might be a breakthrough in the DAC industry.
（3）What does the underlined word "reverse" mean？ AA
A．Change.
B．Accelerate.
C．Maintain.
D．Prevent.
（4）What's the last paragraph mainly about？ DD
A．Potential benefits of the research findings.
B．Supporting evidence for the research results.
C．A further explanation of the research methods.
D．Certain concerns about the research application.
【答案】B；D；A；D
【解答】
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發布：2024/6/26 8:0:9組卷：2引用：2難度：0.5
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