"It is such a privilege to get to work on arguably the most important problem for our generation with a solution that has a very solid chance of becoming incredibly significant."

This newsletter features Paebbl, an organization co-founded by Pol Knops, Marta Sjögren, Andreas Saari, and Jane Walerud. 

Can you briefly describe what Paebbl does?



We turn gaseous CO₂ into solid stone powder using a process called mineralisation. CO₂ mineralisation is a natural process that turns carbon dioxide into stone–but as with most geological processes, it takes centuries. Based on 20 years of research, Paebbl has found a way to accelerate the process by a factor of more than a million, with minimal energy use. Paebbl combines captured carbon with abundant minerals to create a carbon-negative raw material which can be used to make products such as paper and concrete. 

Initially, this work was Pol’s single man journey. Why were more people later brought in?

Pol: After working alone for more than a decade, I realized that this project was too big for a single man. I needed multiple viewpoints and disciplines, and was lacking some of the required experience, knowledge, and network. I’m very happy to have found a team, or as they would say, they found me. 

Marta & Andreas: Independently, we had both scouted the market for a technology ready to be scaled up that would combine permanent CO₂ storage and upcycling into a valuable product. The list of such proven solutions is quite short; when you add a wish for a low energy requirement and high verifiability, it gets even shorter. To us, it seemed like accelerated mineralization was a solution completely overlooked relative to its promise, and we were incredibly lucky to have a chance to partner with Pol on building a company around this technology.

What are the goals for Paebbl? 

Our main goal is to develop a process to safely sequester CO₂ that is both environmentally impactful and economically sustainable, by utilizing the CO₂ and by permanently binding it. From a total CO₂ footprint perspective, it gets particularly interesting because the mineralized CO₂ can create significant avoided emissions; we have already proven that it performs well in concrete, which is one of humanity's largest emission sources. To that end, Paebbl aims to create the technological infrastructure to turn CO₂ sequestration into an opportunity to decarbonise essential materials. 

What needs to happen in order for these goals to be realized?

For our technology to be widely deployed as a means to transform captured CO₂ into the opportunity that it is, we need to take further steps down the cost curve of our process. We have quite a good idea on how to do that.

At the same time, we are opening markets for our material through joint development projects with early customers. We believe that once the possible co-delivery of permanent CO₂ sequestration and utilization in products becomes more widely known, the field will change quite rapidly. 

How can this goal be realized faster?



It has been known for a long time that we need to reach net zero, but that realization stayed largely at an academic level. It took time to “translate” this understanding for the general public and turn that fact into policy changes and funding. Building a company like this now is much easier than it would have been five years ago, let alone a decade ago. 

It is clear that policy can play a role in accelerating the adoption of CCUS technologies: creating regulatory or government-backed incentives to adopt "circular CO₂"-based products instead of ones based on virgin raw materials could make a big difference. In the best case, something like this would even create a spike in demand for sourcing more CO₂ as feedstock to these new materials, thus helping scale up industries like Direct Air Capture. 

What is your prediction for the field of CCU?

We predict that there will be more attention toward processes like mineralization (especially when combined with negative emissions). At the moment, most of the attention is on using CO₂ to make fuels and chemicals, but these routes demand a lot of renewable energy, and the fuels/chemicals are eventually still burned, releasing the CO₂ again. Mineralization, however, is permanent, requires less energy, and results in products that serve as a substitute for heavily emitting mineral products. Further, it includes industries which have only recently begun to realize net zero is also required for them (cement and paper just to name a few).

What inspires you all to keep going in the face of difficulties?

Wallace Broecker has a very inspirational quote.



"I am convinced that, in the long term, we must turn to solutions that involve chemical neutralization (immobilization) of CO₂, as opposed to simply storing it in gaseous form. Hence I consider petroleum reservoirs and saline aquifers as interim storage solutions. Ultimately, we must learn to economically bind CO₂ with the magnesium and calcium contained in silicate rocks, whether it be under in situ or ex situ conditions."

It is such a privilege to get to work on arguably the most important problem for our generation with a solution that has a very solid chance of becoming incredibly significant. Being part of solving the practical engineering and commercial challenges related to the scaling up of this technology is also proving to be a magnet for some absolutely incredible people that have recently joined us; that in and of itself is a reason to get out of bed. 

These considerations are amply assisted by a fundamental belief that this simply must be done.

News in a Nutshell

Carbon Capture Coalition backs CCU Parity Act

Global CO₂ Capture Investment Reached $6.4 Billion In 2022, Expert Says 

Putting Carbon Dioxide to Good – Scientists Use Electrochemistry To Convert Carbon to Useful Molecules

Biden-Harris Administration Announces $2.5 Billion to Cut Pollution and Deliver Economic Benefits to Communities Across the Nation

Carbon-removal companies launch group to lobby U.S. government on policies

Carbon Capture Scotland To Capture 1M Tons Of CO₂

Imminent Events

AirMiners Investor Demo Day

April 26, 2023

Calling all accredited investors! AirMiners is holding a unique event to introduce you to their advanced accelerator program teams.

TEA/LCA Workshop on Harmonizing CCUS Assessments

May 16-18, 2023

This fifth workshop in the series is planned and conducted by the International CCUS Assessment Harmonization Group with members from the USA (GCI at U-M, NETL, NREL, ANL), Canada (NRC), Germany (RIFS, formerly known as IASS), Switzerland (ETH Zürich), and Japan (NIAIST). We are looking forward to one-and-a-half days of intense dialog and work that will advance transparent and uniform assessments of CCUS technologies and products.

Keep in touch

We want to hear from you! Is there something or someone that you would like to see featured in a future issue? Let us know!