COLD PLASMA - GREEN CHEMICALS
How enaDyne is revolutionising the chemical industry
Since the Industrial revolution, humanity has extracted and burned enormous amounts of carbon in the form of oil, coal or natural gas. The greenhouse gases released in the process are dramatically changing the lives of people around the world. Weather extremes and their effects, such as droughts, floods or wildfires, are on the rise. They destroy livelihoods and threaten people's health, lives and well-being. The global community agrees: global warming must be limited to less than two degrees Celsius compared to the level before the beginning of industrial era. That is why countries like Germany have formulated goals and steps on how they want to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in the coming years and decades. And indeed, there is progress. Emissions are falling - but so far far too slowly.
Climate experts agree: reducing CO₂ emissions in itself will not be enough. We must also remove enormous amounts of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and thus reverse past emissions. Innovators from all over the world have already shown that this is technically possible. However, these methods are immensely expensive, often energy-intensive and frequently fail to scale.
That's why we invited innovators to join this future-relevant challenge at the beginning of 2022 - to develop a solution in the fight against climate change that removes CO₂ from the atmosphere in the long term, is scalable and can be implemented in an economic business model.
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The challenge: To remove large quantities of CO₂ from the atmosphere over the long term and bind them economically in products.
The way in which our Challenge teams achieve this goal, the technological basis on which CO₂ is extracted from the atmosphere, is up to them, be it via direct air capture, bioenergy with carbon capture, processing of organic materials or any other method. They demonstrate how they turn atmospheric CO₂ into raw materials or products that sequester carbon for decades; and how the process from CO₂ capture to the produced raw material or product is or may be economically viable. To contribute to the fight against climate change, it must also be able to be implemented at scale.
Without breakthrough innovations, we cannot sufficiently reduce the CO₂ content of the atmosphere. As a result, we are in danger of missing our climate goals. The SPRIND Challenge is our chance for a breakthrough.
Carlos Härtel, Chief Technology Officer, Climeworks
Participating in the Challenge will push the teams to comprehensively stress-test their idea. We therefore provide intensive and individual support. This includes funding the teams as well as individual support from a Challenge coach, who has significant experience in the Challenge area and has already implemented high-impact innovations.
In the first year of the Challenge, SPRIND will fund the teams’ work with up to 600,000 euros. In the further course of the Challenge, this funding may be higher. We provide funding quickly and unbureaucratically, so that the teams can concentrate fully on their innovations. At the end of the first stage of the Challenge, the jury decides which teams will continue to participate in the Challenge based on interim evaluations. As finalists, these teams will have the opportunity to comprehensively demonstrate their breakthrough.
Thinking one step further: Ideas with the potential for a breakthrough must be brought to market for the benefit of people and planet. That is why SPRIND continues to support projects with breakthrough potential even after the Challenge has formally finished.
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After months of intense work, experimentation, and collaboration, the three teams were declared joint winners of the Carbon-to-Value Challenge by the expert jury in September 2024. Each team successfully demonstrated significant advancements in their unique carbon sequestration technology. While the approaches varied—from creating carbon-negative building materials and seaweed farms to transforming CO₂ into hydrocarbons—all three teams have shown pathways towards making climate solutions both technologically and financially viable.
Science Youtuber Jacob Beautemps introduces the five Challenge teams of the 1st stage at Breaking Lab
Our jury of scientists and science entrepreneurs has selected the teams that have what it takes to implement breakthrough innovations.
Mark Hartney
Anne Lamp
Carlos Härtel
Henrik Pontzen
Richard Templer
Do you have any questions about the Challenge? Write to us at challenge@sprind.org.
The chemical industry has a problem. It depends on crude oil. Crude oil is not only finite, it also has a huge carbon footprint. Alternatives are needed – process engineer Christian Koch and business economist Philipp Hahn have found one.
Specifically, the start-up is working on non-thermal plasma catalysis.
We want to replace fossil processes with an electrical process,explains Hahn, CEO of enaDyne.
On the one hand, these are processes that are currently powered by fossil fuels, and on the other hand, they are chemical processes that require fossil resources as raw materials.
Specifically, the start-up is working on non-thermal plasma catalysis.
Non-thermal plasma catalysis means that the energy for the reaction of molecules with other molecules is not provided by heat and pressure, but by a cold plasma,explains Hahn.
You can see the plasma even without measuring equipment because the gas starts to glow, CO₂, for example, glows purple.
- Philipp Hahn
To generate this plasma – a plasma with a temperature between 50 and 150 degrees Celsius – an electric field is needed. enaDyne creates this field between two ceramic electrodes. The company then feeds CO₂ and methane into the electric field. Many energetic electrons fly around and collide with the inert gas molecules. They transfer their energy to the molecules and ionise them.
Using a solid catalyst, the company can control the plasma to produce the desired end products.
Plasma technology can also be used to render extremely climate-damaging gases harmless.
You can see the plasma even without measuring equipment because the gas starts to glow,explains Hahn.
CO₂, for example, glows purple.
Using a solid catalyst, the company can control the plasma to produce the desired end products.
Specifically, we produce C1 to C4 hydrocarbons, including synthesis gas, methanol and ethylene. Basically, we cover the whole spectrum of basic chemicals,says Hahn proudly.
Plasma technology can also be used to render extremely climate-damaging gases harmless.
This is particularly important for gases that occur in small quantities but are a thousand times more harmful than CO₂,explains Hahn.
By splitting the molecules, we can prevent them from reassembling.
The process is also energy efficient. Hahn explains:
We compare it to a hammer and a scalpel.The heat and pressure normally used for plasma catalysis are like a big hammer compared to cold plasma.
Our approach with the electrons is more like a scalpel. We can control very precisely that we only add as much energy as is needed, and we can switch the process on and off at any time.
Ideally, there will be a wind turbine or solar farm next to the biogas plant, says Hahn, describing the vision for the future.
Then we will be able to supply our containers with renewable energy and actually produce completely CO₂-negative energy.
At the moment, enaDyne is still doing research in the laboratory.
We have validated our technology for biogas and are now working on increasing the flow rate of the plant, says Hahn. The first large-scale pilot tests at a biogas plant are planned for 2026. Several biogas plants and large chemical companies have already expressed interest in working together.
Instead of one large reactor, enaDyne is relying on a decentralised system.
The containers will primarily be used alongside biogas plants. This is because the gas from biogas plants consists of both methane and CO₂. The gas is usually separated for electricity generation. The methane is used, while the CO₂ is often emitted into the atmosphere.
We want to pack many small plasma reactors into one container,explains Hahn. Each container will be equipped with 200 to 250 individual reactors, and the containers and reactors will be produced in series.
We are scaling up in a way that is familiar from the automotive industry and not the way we are used to in the chemical industry,says Hahn.
The containers will primarily be used alongside biogas plants. This is because the gas from biogas plants consists of both methane and CO₂. The gas is usually separated for electricity generation. The methane is used, while the CO₂ is often emitted into the atmosphere.
But we can work directly with the gas mixture. This not only saves a step in the process and is better for the climate, but also opens up a new source of revenue for biogas plants,says the business economist.
Industry is interested in enaDyne not only for climate protection reasons, but also for financial reasons. The company wants its green base chemicals to compete on price with conventional chemicals made from crude oil.
Hahn entered the world of green molecules by chance. As a consultant, he helped future CTO Christian Koch with patent negotiations, but Koch's idea of non-thermal plasma catalysis stayed with him. A few months later, he called Koch again and asked:
We won't succeed in the short term, but in the long term we will continue to reduce our energy costs. At the same time, the CO₂ tax will make the fossil-based production process more expensive, explains Hahn.
In ten years' time, green molecules will cost no more than grey ones do today.
Hahn entered the world of green molecules by chance. As a consultant, he helped future CTO Christian Koch with patent negotiations, but Koch's idea of non-thermal plasma catalysis stayed with him. A few months later, he called Koch again and asked:
Can you explain it to me again?The business graduate had experience of setting up start-ups and quickly realised that Koch's research had enormous potential:
We think the technology is definitely a quantum leap in this area.
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