The urgent implementation of emissions control measures is inhibited in part by the expense of carbon capture technology. A large part of the cost of amine based approaches is in the heat regeneration of the absorbent. An alternative way to do this could be through use of abundant solar energy. In a new approach, direct chemical action on the absorbed CO₂ was achieved by use of a reversible photoacid. Irradiation of the CO₂ loaded solution resulted in CO₂ removal by action of light.