A structure and system for the adsorption of carbon dioxide from air, the system comprising a sorbent structure comprising a porous substrate having a porous alumina coating on the surfaces of said substrate, and the sorbent for carbon dioxide is embedded on the surfaces of said porous alumina coating. The substrate is preferably a porous monolith, formed from silica or mesocellular foam. The sorbent is an amine group-containing material, preferably loaded at 40 to 60 percent by volume relative to the porous alumina coating.