A comprehensive review of carbon capture: From conventional to emerging electrochemical technologies

The increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) from various emission sources have become a critical factor in global climate change, making the urgent development of effective carbon capture technologies necessary. This review offers a comprehensive analysis of both conventional and emerging electrochemical carbon capture technologies, with a specific emphasis on electrochemical CO₂ capture (ECC) technologies. Conventional approaches encompass a range of technologies, including absorption, adsorption, membrane separation, and cryogenic processes, as well as combustion-based strategies such as pre-combustion, post-combustion, and oxy-fuel combustion techniques. They are widely implemented at an industrial scale but frequently face challenges due to high energy demands, operational complexity, and limited scalability. In contrast, electrochemical technologies present promising alternatives because of their lower energy requirements, modular design, and compatibility with renewable energy sources. The review critically evaluates key ECC strategies such as pH-swing processes, redox-active carriers, bipolar membrane electrodialysis, CO₂ electroreduction, and electrochemical mineralization. Advancements in catalyst development, membrane engineering, and system integration are assessed concerning CO₂ capture efficiency, Faradaic efficiency, selectivity, and scalability. Despite significant advancements, challenges remain in the areas of material stability, energy efficiency optimization. The transformative potential of ECC and the future research pathways aimed at addressing current limitations and accelerating commercialization are also explored. • Conventional CO₂ capture faces high energy and regeneration costs. • Electrochemical capture is modular, low-energy, and renewable-integrated. • Redox carriers, pH-swing, and BPM electrodialysis enable reversible CO₂ separation. • Electrochemical CO₂ capture couples with eCO₂RR and mineralization to form useful products.