A comprehensive review of solar-assisted carbon capture technologies: Exploration of emerging trends and research progress

Abstract

The growing concern over CO 2 emissions resulting from economic growth and population increase has led to a heightened interest in integrated solar energy carbon capture technologies. This systematic review examines trends, technological developments, and future directions in solar-assisted carbon capture (SACC), which combines solar energy with other power sources for carbon capture, and solar-powered carbon capture (SPCC), which depends entirely on solar energy. The review used bibliometric analysis of 126 Scopus-indexed publications from 2005 to 2025. The results show that local climate and solar collector costs have a major impact on the viability of SACC, making large-scale deployment difficult. China, Australia, and the USA lead in publishing research. While SPCC faces challenges such as land use issues and high levelized costs of electricity, SACC addresses these hurdles by integrating solar with other power sources. The review underscores the importance of optimizing collector sizes and solvent storage to enhance economic viability. Key barriers to the advancement of SACC include insufficient research on the impact of climate on solar collector efficiency and the economic measures necessary for cost reduction. SACC systems have much lower GWP and higher CO₂ abatement efficiency as compared to fossil-based capture techniques. Nevertheless, LCA studies show that the environmental benefits of SACC may be counterbalanced by factors such as the manufacturing of solar collectors and infrastructure development. Hence, it is necessary to consider SACC technologies within the system-wide approach. Future research could focus on the economic benefits and obstacles associated with SACC, compare it with alternative carbon capture technologies, and identify the technological and policy support needed for progression.