Skip to main content
Climate
Search

Main navigation

  • Climate 101
    • What We Know
    • What Can Be Done
    • Climate Primer
  • Explore
    • Explainers
    • Ask MIT Climate
    • Podcast
    • For Educators
  • MIT Action
    • News
    • Events
    • Resources
  • Search
MIT

Main navigation

  • Climate 101
    • What We Know
    • What Can Be Done
    • Climate Primer
  • Explore
    • Explainers
    • Ask MIT Climate
    • Podcast
    • For Educators
  • MIT Action
    • News
    • Events
    • Resources
  • Search
PostMay 20, 2021

Half of the world’s emissions cuts will require tech that isn’t commercially available

Carbon capture machine near green field

If the world hopes to eliminate carbon dioxide emissions by midcentury, nearly half the cuts will have to come from technologies that are only in early stages today, writes James Temple for the MIT Technology Review.

That finding, in a report from the International Energy Agency released Tuesday, points to the need for aggressive investment in research, development, and scale-up of clean energy technologies.

The IEA’s road map for eliminating energy-related emissions by 2050—and offering a shot at capping global temperatures increases at 1.5 ˚C—includes substantial roles for technologies that barely exist or are far too expensive today. These include batteries packed with far more energy, clean hydrogen as a fuel or feedstock for industrial processes, liquid biofuels for aviation, and equipment that cheaply captures carbon dioxide emissions from factories and gas- or coal-fueled power plants.

Read the full article at: https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/05/18/1025027/half-of-emissions-cuts-require-tech-innovation-climate-change-net-zero/

Image credits: Orjan Ellingvag / Alamy Stock Photo

by MIT Technology Review
Topics
Energy
Batteries, Storage & Transmission
Renewable Energy
Finance & Economics

Related Posts

PostOctober 3, 2025

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright ’85 visits MIT

MIT News
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright ’85 visited the MIT campus on Sept. 29. Wright earned a BS in mechanical engineering and spent two and a half years pursuing graduate studies in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science before leaving to become an entrepreneur in the energy industry.
PostOctober 2, 2025

A simple formula could guide the design of faster-charging, longer-lasting ...

MIT News
An artist's depiction of lithium ions moving from an electrolyte solution to a cobalt-oxide electrode, with color-coded spheres representing the different chemical constituents.
PostOctober 1, 2025

Concrete “battery” developed at MIT now packs 10 times the power

MIT News
An electron-conducting carbon concrete (ec³)-based arch structure integrates supercapacitor electrodes for dual functionality. The prototype demonstrates both structural load bearing and the ability to power an LED, with the light’s intensity varying under applied load, highlighting the potential for real-time structural health monitoring via the supercapacitor.
PostOctober 1, 2025

Palladium filters could enable cheaper, more efficient generation of hydrog...

MIT News
Palladium plug membrane at the end of the membrane fabrication process (left). Dashed green lines outline the membrane. Scanning electron microscopy image of the membrane shows the palladium plugs embedded inside the pores of the silica support (right).

MIT Climate News in Your Inbox

 
 

MIT Groups Log In

Log In

Footer

  • About
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • Contact
MIT Climate Project
MIT
Communicator Award Winner
Communicator Award Winner