Swiss sports running shoe brand OnRunning has released a new high-performance foam material for running shoes, made from carbon emissions. The picture shows the production process. Image source: OnRunning official website

Using a patented distillation system, AirCompany converts atmospheric CO2 into ethanol to produce vodka. Image source: Related report on the British "Guardian" website

World trend of technological innovation

In a warehouse laboratory in Berkeley, California, Nicholas Flanders stands in front of a gleaming metal box the size of a washing machine. Inside the box is a new type of electrolyzer that uses only water and renewable electricity to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into syngas - a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen that can be made into a range of fossil fuel products. Oxygen is the only byproduct of this process.

Flanders is the co-founder and CEO of a startup company, Twelve. The company was founded in 2015 with the goal of replacing fossil raw materials. Based on its proprietary metal-catalyzed carbon conversion technology, it has developed a series of negative carbon chemicals, materials and carbon-neutral fuels called "CO2Made" to replace petrochemical products in industry and supply chains. In August this year, Twelve's pilot plant produced the world's first carbon-neutral jet fuel by electrolyzing CO2.

Twelve is one of many companies that have begun to use CO2 to make products, either captured from industrial emissions or directly from the air. High-end goods such as vodka, diamonds and sportswear, industrial materials such as concrete, plastics, foam and carbon fiber, and even food are beginning to be made with CO2. In order to reduce emissions, low-carbon technology companies have racked their brains and, with the help of technology, have come up with new ways to use CO2.

Step on industrial waste gas

Convert carbon emissions into foam soles

OnRunning, a Swiss sports running shoe brand that went public in September, realized that if it wanted to achieve radical net-zero goals, it needed to rethink shoe materials. The company's vision is that all of its sole foam materials will get rid of petroleum-based resources and use captured carbon as raw materials.

In November, the company announced plans to establish a supply chain alliance with US startup LanzaTech and chemical manufacturer Borealis. LanzaTech is a pioneer in the carbon technology industry that uses a fermentation process to make ethanol from carbon monoxide collected from factory waste gas. Borealis is a supplier of advanced, circular and renewable plastic solutions that uses polyethylene (ethanol can be converted into ethylene) to make foam materials.

OnRunning hopes to launch its first pair of shoes made entirely of carbon waste next year. Caspar Coppetti, co-founder and executive co-chairman of the company, said the manufacturing cost of the first pair of shoes was about $1 million. But ultimately, when proven feasible and production is scaled up, the price of the shoes should not be much higher than that of ordinary shoes.

Making Vodka from "Air"

One liter of alcohol removes one pound of CO2

Founded in 2017, New York-based startup AirCompany sells vodka and perfume made with CO2, and also produced hand sanitizer during the epidemic. Like Twelve, it uses water and solar power generation equipment to convert captured CO2 into ethanol to produce the world's first "negative carbon vodka."

Traditional vodka is made by fermenting starch-rich grains such as wheat or potatoes, a process that produces about 13 pounds of greenhouse gases, while negative carbon vodka is made only from water and CO2, and its production process actually removes CO2 from the air, that is, its carbon footprint is negative. It is understood that 1 liter of vodka can remove 1 pound of CO2.

In addition, AirCompany has also set its sights on jet fuel, which can also be produced from ethanol.

Concrete that "eats" CO2

Environmental and economic benefits

Founded in 2012, CarbonCure, a Canadian clean technology company, is one of the pioneers in the field of building materials and is leading the concrete industry towards a low-carbon future. The company has received support from investors such as Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) and is committed to solving the problem of concrete's carbon footprint. With its breakthrough CO2 conversion technology, the company has developed an economical way to reduce carbon emissions in the concrete manufacturing process.

CarbonCure's business model is to license its technology to concrete manufacturers. CarbonCure transforms existing concrete plants across North America and transforms them into carbon technology companies (CO2 is provided by waste emission sources in the company's area). Its patented technology can inject waste CO2 into concrete mixes during the manufacturing process to reduce CO2 emissions and increase strength. The injected CO2 reacts with the wet concrete and quickly becomes a permanent mineral, the same mineral composition as limestone. This concrete is more cost-effective and performs better, with less environmental impact.

This means that less cement is needed to make concrete. Most concrete can reduce the cement content by about 5%, and the addition of CO2 also strengthens the final material.

Carbon utilization remains controversial

Cutting CO2 emissions at the source is fundamental

"It's almost a sin to throw away a valuable resource," said Volker Sicker, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan and director of the Global CO2 Initiative. "The beauty of carbon is that you can make so many different things."

CO2 advocates believe that the transition away from fossil fuels is necessary. But if people want to live sustainably, they need to find new ways to produce products that rely on fossil fuels. This industry will not only help mitigate climate change, but also provide carbon-based products that people will always need.

However, the use of carbon remains controversial. Mike Childs, policy director at environmental campaign group Friends of the Earth, said innovation had played a role in curbing climate change, but this "brain-opening technology" was "unproven" in its envisioned large-scale applications and was therefore "a big gamble" on human life and the planet. He said: "Reducing emissions at the source is the best and cheapest way to limit global warming."

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