Carbon capture technology is emerging as one of the primary solutions for combating climate change. Applied correctly this technology could slows down global warming and also reverse some its devastating effects by restoring natural equilibrium. But current solution on the market are expensive and difficult to scale. This is where Captura, a startup spun off from Caltech, comes into play.
Captura uses ocean natural carbon dioxide absorption mechanisms to develop its technology. Its Direct Ocean Capture system functions only with two basic components
- seawater
- renewable electricity.
Their proprietary electrodialysis membranes extract CO2 straight from sea water which is permanently stored or reused. After separating carbon from water the ocean automatically takes in atmospheric CO2 to find its equilibrium. The net result is the removal of excess CO2 from the atmosphere via the ocean, without adding anything to the ocean.
The innovative carbon capture procedure produces zero waste while needing only slight amounts of land and no fresh water during operation. The company has received funding from stakeholders like the U.S. Department of Energy and Elon Musk. This strong backing indicates how promising this novel solution could be in combating climate change.
The ocean-based CO₂ removal capabilities of this technology could become essential for worldwide climate change mitigation because of its yearly gigaton extraction potential. The vastness of ocean provide Captura with a scalable cost-effective solution to restore substantial amounts of our planet’s health.
Reference-MIT News, Captura website & newsroom, Interesting Engineering, Popular Science