CHALLENGE: REMOVE LARGE VOLUMES OF CO2 FROM THE ATMOSPHERE OVER THE LONG TERM AND ECONOMICALLY BIND IT IN PRODUCTS

Since the Industrial Revolution, people have extracted and burned enormous amounts of carbon in the form of oil, coal and natural gas. The greenhouse gases released in the process change the lives of people across the globe in a dramatic way. Extreme weather and its effects, such as droughts, floods and forest fires, have been increasing for years. They destroy livelihoods and threaten the health and life of people. The global community agrees: global warming has to be limited to less than two degrees Celsius compared to the level before the beginning of industrialization. This is why countries like Germany have formulated goals and steps for how they want to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases over the coming years and decades. Progress has, in fact, been made here. Emissions are dropping, but much too slowly.

Climate experts agree: (further) reducing CO 2 emissions will not be enough. We have to succeed at removing enormous volumes of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere in order to undo emissions of the past. Innovators from all around the world have already shown that this is technically and methodically possible. These methods are extremely expensive, however, are often very energy-intensive themselves and are limited in their scalability.

WE NEED DISRUPTIVE INNOVATIONS

TO REMOVE CO 2 FROM THE ATMOSPHERE. SUSTAINABLE.

SCALABLE.

ECONOMICAL.

WE NEED COURAGEOUS IDEAS. WE NEED YOU.

This is why, at the end of 2021, we put out invitations for this futurerelevant Challenge in the fight against climate change to develop a solution for removing CO 2 from the atmosphere for the long term which is scalable and can be implemented in an economical business model. The crux of the Challenge is that the CO 2 must be integrated into products sustainable over the long term with a negative CO 2 footprint.

The way our Challenge teams achieve this goal and the technologies which are used as a basis for removing the CO 2 from the atmosphere are being determined by them: whether via direct air capture, bio-energy with CO 2 separation or the processing of organic materials or the like. The teams are demonstrating how they are transforming the CO 2 of the atmosphere into raw materials or products which bind the carbon for decades. They are also showing how their solution makes the overall process from CO 2 separation to the produced raw material or product economical and scalable as well.

Teams

• CARBON-TO-CONCRETE is the Saxony-based team of OCS GmbH, which could make concrete production CO 2 -negative through the use of the mineral olivine. The team is working on methods of synthesis where olivine can replace components of concrete, thereby starting a revolution in the construction industry.

• The CARBO CULTURE company located in Finland has developed a technology with which biological waste can be converted into functional biochar. Thanks to its electrical conductivity, biochar can be used as an additive in cement to make it heatable, for example. Here, CO 2 is bound in the form of biochar and additional emissions are prevented during the production of cement and thanks to the functionality of the construction material.

• C-CAUSE , a consortium of start-ups and research institutions led by Dr. Mar Fernandez-Mendez of AWI, is planning to operate giant algae plantations in the Atlantic. Through fermentation, the biomass gained is converted into raw materials for plastic production. This both binds atmospheric CO2 and produces a replacement for fossil raw materials for chemical production.

• ROBINIA , comprised of representatives of the Fraunhofer IWS Dresden, Fraunhofer WKI Braunschweig, STRAB Ingenieurholzbau Hermsdorf GmbH and LEAG Cottbus, is researching a construction material replacement for concrete and steel structures. It is developing a composite material from the quick-growing and very durable robinia tree. This composite material is to be used for the construction of bridges and wind turbines and can withstand from 80 to 100 years of weather, even if untreated.

The ENADYNE team is working on a resource-saving form of plasma catalysis. Thanks to the technology of this Saxony-based company, CO 2 and hydrogen can be synthesized into hydrocarbons in a low-energy process for the chemical industry.

We support successful teams throughout the entire course of the Challenge with over two million Euros. At the end of April 2022, our external jury chose five teams from over 60 submissions.