Fuel Cell Tech for CO2 Capture: Scaling Carbon Repair Innovation

Advancements in Direct Air Capture Technology

Current direct air capture (DAC) technologies typically demand substantial heat input to facilitate CO2 removal after absorption into filtering materials. Historically, this process has proven to be both complex and notably energy inefficient. A critical missing element has been the development of more effective CO2 capture methods initially.

The core of the challenge lies within the filters themselves, an area of focus for numerous startups over the past several years.

RepAir Carbon's Innovative Approach

RepAir Carbon, a company based in Israel, has introduced a novel technique inspired by the principles of fuel cell technology. This approach recently secured $1.5 million in seed funding, co-led by Counteract and ESIL, with additional investment from Consensus Business Group, ImpactAssets, and others.

ESIL represents a strategic partnership between EDF Renewables, Johnson Matthey, and Bazan Group.

Modular Direct Air Capture and Reduced Energy Consumption

RepAir Carbon’s objective is to refine this “cell” based methodology for what they term “modular Direct Air Capture,” aiming to capture and store greenhouse gases on a “gigaton scale”. The anticipated benefits include significantly reduced energy consumption and a more cost-effective, modular design leveraging electrochemistry.

The company asserts that its system utilizes an electrical current and a selective membrane to isolate CO2 from the atmosphere, requiring “up to 3 times less energy per tonne of CO2 captured” compared to existing methods, and eliminating the need for extreme temperatures or substantial pressure differences.

Statements from Leadership

According to Amir Shiner, co-founder and CEO of RepAir: “Direct Air Capture is essential in scenarios limiting global temperature increases to below 2°C. However, current solutions are prohibitively expensive, energy-intensive, and resource-demanding. We are dedicated to creating a technology with a minimized energy footprint suitable for broader deployment. This funding will enable us to refine and enhance our TRL3 prototype.”

The RepAir team also includes co-founder and Chairman Yehuda Borenstein, CTO Ben Achrai, PhD, and Board Member Yushan Yan, PhD.

Investor Perspectives

Andrew Shebbeare, managing partner at Counteract, commented: “We are strong believers in the role of Direct Air Capture, but also recognize the need for technological evolution. RepAir’s promising platform and exceptional team lead us to believe they are advancing the field and will contribute to responsible, scalable DAC solutions.”

Eli Cymbalista, CEO of ESIL, stated: “Our focus is on accelerating and commercializing startups that deliver economically viable solutions supporting the transition to a NetZero world. RepAir perfectly aligns with this mission, and we are eager to provide the expertise and resources of our partners’ network to expedite their progress.”

Scalability and Deployment Flexibility

In a recent discussion, Shiner explained: “Ultimately, we envision a system of scalable blocks, similar to Lego components. This modularity allows for flexible scaling. For instance, we could position our device adjacent to a wind farm, utilizing its energy supply. Our device’s location is highly adaptable as it processes ambient air, rather than emissions from a specific source.”