Defossilisation – Reversing Fossil Combustion through Circular Carbon Recycling

CEWT Concept Note Defossilisation – Reversing Fossil Combustion through Circular Carbon Recycling The Challenge For over two centuries, civilisation has relied on fossil fuels by extracting carbon that has been locked underground for millions of years. Every combustion process transfers this geological carbon into the active atmosphere. The fundamental challenge of climate change is therefore not combustion itself, but the one-way transfer of fossil carbon from the Earth’s crust into the atmosphere. Reducing emissions slows this transfer. Carbon storage attempts to manage its consequences. CEWT proposes a different approach. The Principle Every combustion reaction has two sides. Oxidation (Energy Production) CH₄ + 2O₂ → CO₂ + 2H₂O + Energy Combustion converts methane into carbon dioxide and water while releasing useful energy. Instead of treating carbon dioxide and water as waste products, CEWT regards them as valuable resources. Using renewable electricity, water is electrolysed to produce renewable hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is then used to convert captured carbon dioxide back into methane. The regenerated oxygen is returned to the combustion process. The result is a circular carbon cycle rather than a linear one. Water – The Enabler of Defossilisation Water is more than a combustion product. It is the renewable source of hydrogen required to reverse combustion. Through electrolysis, water produces both hydrogen and oxygen: * Hydrogen enables the reduction of carbon dioxide back into methane. * Oxygen replenishes the oxygen consumed during combustion. Water therefore enables the reversal of the fossil combustion pathway. Nothing Becomes Waste In the CEWT philosophy: * Carbon dioxide becomes a carbon resource. * Water becomes a hydrogen resource. * Oxygen is regenerated and reused. * Renewable electricity supplies the energy required to drive the cycle. Every molecule has a purpose. Rather than continuously extracting new fossil carbon, the same carbon atoms are recycled repeatedly. Defossilisation CEWT defines Defossilisation as: The progressive replacement of newly extracted fossil carbon with continuously recycled carbon, using renewable energy to reverse the carbon pathway created during combustion. The objective is not merely lower emissions. The objective is to progressively eliminate dependence on transferring geological carbon into the atmosphere while maintaining reliable energy supply. A New Way of Thinking The Industrial Revolution was enabled by fossil carbon. The Defossilisation Revolution can be enabled by renewable electricity, water and circular carbon recycling. This is the scientific philosophy behind CEWT’s Circular Carbon Recycling Technology (CRT). ⸻ CEWT Vision Transforming combustion from a one-way oxidation process into a renewable oxidation–reduction cycle where carbon is continuously recycled rather than continuously extracted. From Fossilisation to Defossilisation.