Direct Air Capture (DAC) covers technologies that absorb CO₂ directly from the atmosphere. It produces a concentrated CO₂ gas for storage (Carbon Removal) or utilization (synthetic fuels, beverages, etc.) Technically, it utilizes a liquid or solid material to bind CO₂ from the passing air and a thermal or electrical regeneration step. First-generation DAC approaches mostly use solid sorbents for absorption and thermal regeneration for desorption. Phlairs approach uses a liquid solvent and electrochemical regeneration.

Carbon removal is needed because emission cuts, though the priority, cannot go all the way: sectors like aviation, cement and agriculture leave residual emissions, and the atmosphere already holds more CO₂ than a 1.5 °C pathway allows.