The increase in the global atmospheric CO concentration resulting from over a century of combustion of fossil fuels has been associated with significant global climate change. With the global population increase driving continued increases in fossil fuel use, humanity's primary reliance on fossil energy for the next several decades is assured. Traditional modes of carbon capture such as precombustion and postcombustion CO capture from large point sources can help slow the rate of increase of the atmospheric CO concentration, but only the direct removal of CO from the air, or "direct air capture" (DAC), can actually reduce the global atmospheric CO concentration. The past decade has seen a steep rise in the use of chemical sorbents that are cycled through sorption and desorption cycles for CO removal from ultradilute gases such as air. This Review provides a historical overview of the field of DAC, along with an exhaustive description of the use of chemical sorbents targeted at this application. Solvents and solid sorbents that interact strongly with CO are described, including basic solvents, supported amine and ammonium materials, and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), as the primary classes of chemical sorbents. Hypothetical processes for the deployment of such sorbents are discussed, as well as the limited array of technoeconomic analyses published on DAC. Overall, it is concluded that there are many new materials that could play a role in emerging DAC technologies. However, these materials need to be further investigated and developed with a practical sorbent-air contacting process in mind if society is to make rapid progress in deploying DAC as a means of mitigating climate change.

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A 3D Tröger’s-base-derived microporous organic polymer with a high surface area and good thermal stability was facilely synthesized from a one-pot metal-free polymerization reaction between dimethoxymethane and triaminotriptycene. The obtained material displays excellent CO2 uptake abilities as well as good adsorption selectivity for CO2 over N2. The CO2 storage can reach up to 4.05 mmol g–1 (17.8 wt %) and 2.57 mmol g–1 (11.3 wt %) at 273 K and 298 K, respectively. Moreover, the high selectivity of the polymer toward CO2 over N2 (50.6, 298 K) makes it a promising material for potential application in CO2 separation from flue gas.

Employment of semirigid double-hinged di-1,2,4-triazoles has led to the synthesis of an isostructural series of metal-organic nanotubes (MONTs). The ditriazole ligands adopt a syn conformation between rigid metal chains while an appropriate anion choice provides a "capping" of the metal ions, leading to MONT formation. This approach of utilizing a variety of both semirigid ligands and metals is the first general methodology to prepare this class of 1D nanomaterial. The local geometry at the metal center depends on the metal ion employed, with Cu(I) centers adopting a tetrahedral geometry, Ag(I) centers adopting a seesaw geometry, and Cu(II) centers adopting a square-pyramidal geometry upon MONT synthesis. The pore size of the MONTs is adjusted by changing the central portion of the double-hinged ligand, allowing for a predictable method to control the pore width of the MONT. The adsorption properties of MONTs as a function of pore size revealed selective uptake of CO2 and CH4, with copper MONTs exhibiting the highest uptake. In the case of the silver MONTs, an increase in pore width improves both gas uptake and selectivity.

The potential of using an amine-functionalized metal organic framework (MOF), mmen-M(dobpdc) (M = Mg and Mn), supported on a structured monolith contactor for CO capture from simulated flue gas is explored. The stability of the unsupported MOF powders under humid conditions is explored using nitrogen physisorption and X-ray diffraction analysis before and after exposure to humidity. Based on its superior stability to humidity, mmen-Mg(dobpdc) is selected for further growth on a honeycomb cordierite monolith that is wash-coated with α-alumina. A simple approach for the synthesis of an Mg(dobpdc) MOF film using MgO nanoparticles as the metal precursor is used. Rapid drying of MgO on the monolith surface followed by a hydrothermal treatment is demonstrated to allow for the synthesis of a MOF film with good crystallite density and favorable orientation of the MOF crystals. The CO adsorption behavior of the monolith-supported mmen-Mg(dobpdc) material is assessed using 10% CO in helium and 100% CO, demonstrating a CO uptake of 2.37 and 2.88 mmol/g, respectively. Excellent cyclic adsorption/desorption performance over multiple cycles is also observed. This is one of the first examples of the deployment of an advanced MOF adsorbent in a scalable, low-pressure drop gas-solid contactor. Such demonstrations are critical to the practical application of MOF materials in adsorptive gas separations, as structured contactors have many practical advantages over packed or fluidized beds.