Global Thermostat has released a design for a direct air capture (DAC) machine that may be scaled to capture more than a million metric tons of carbon emissions from the atmosphere each year.
The company’s new M-Series DAC design builds on its earlier K-Series plant -- reportedly the largest of its kind in the world -- with a larger, more efficient, and cost-effective model. The company developed an original engineering design for its DAC system, capable of removing at least 100,000 tons of carbon from the air annually, with funding from the Department of Energy.
The new DAC system uses fans to pull air through contactors that may capture carbon for long-term storage or reuse using low-temperature heat. The M-Series includes larger modules than the earlier K series, allowing for 600% more contactors per module and therefore more carbon-capturing capacity, the company said. The modules are made of individual wedges for efficient mass production, shipping, and assembly.
"Global Thermostat's technology is inherently scalable with stackable contactors,” said Paul Nahi, CEO of Global Thermostat. “Our new M-Series design leverages the unique advantages and proven capabilities of our core solution while putting it into an even larger, more efficient, and more cost-effective form factor that can be deployed at the megatonne scale and beyond."
Global Thermostat is currently seeking fabrication and construction bids for the M-Series design to be used in large commercial projects.
According to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, carbon capture technologies will be needed to achieve net zero emissions, especially in reducing emissions from hard-to-abate sectors like shipping and industrial facility operations. However, most carbon capture technologies are in early stages of development and come with high costs.
Using low-temperature DAC rather than high-temperature, energy-intensive systems, may be a key piece of bringing prices down. According to the company, Global Thermostat’s low-temperature system and modular design may significantly lower the cost per ton of carbon removed.
Scaling carbon capture technology represents another major obstacle for the industry. DAC is currently far behind the necessary productivity levels outlined by the International Energy Agency -- most of the 27 currently operating DAC facilities are small-scale and currently capture about 0.01 metric tons of carbon annually, accothey will need to reach about 75 metric tons per year.
Technologies that are made to be easily scaled up, such as Global Thermostat’s M-Series, may support the speed of deployment required for the DAC industry to meet world emissions reduction targets.
