Paul Wheelhouse, Scottish Government Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands was at Aberdeen University’s School of Engineering to meet with Carbon Capture Machine (UK) Ltd. A group of U.S. Senators also attended the event. The delegation of Senators was led by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Carbon Capture Machine (UK) Ltd  – Carbon capture and conversion technology is a spin-out company formed at the University of Aberdeen.

It is the sole European entrant to reach the finals of the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE, a major international competition that incentivises the development of breakthrough carbon conversion technologies to reduce global CO₂ emissions.

 A tour of laboratory facilities was followed by a presentation on the company’s work to develop technology capable of capturing CO₂ from large industrial emission sources, and turn it into valuable carbon-negative industry feedstocks and building materials for use in construction projects.

Emeritus Professor Fred Glasser, Chair in Chemistry, and Dr Mohammed Imbabi from the School of Engineering conceived and developed the technology over several years.  Together with Professor Zoe Morrison, formerly of the University of Aberdeen Business School, and others, they form the team competing in the Carbon XPRIZE finals.

Professor Glasser said:

“We were delighted to meet the U.S. Senate delegation and Mr Wheelhouse to talk about our development of this technology, which has the potential to be a game-changer in carbon capture and utilisation, as our progression to the XPRIZE finals testifies.

“Our initial aim in developing the technology is to deploy it for use in large-scale industrial settings, de-carbonising at source from power stations, factories, and other major CO₂ sources.

“In the future, we envisage that it can also be scaled down and miniaturised for use across a wide range of emission sources, from different transport platforms to people’s homes.

“By de-carbonising at source and converting CO₂ into sustainable products and materials we can have a major impact in reducing global CO₂ levels.”

University Senior Vice-Principal Karl Leydecker said:

“It was an honour to welcome members of the U.S. Senate Committee and Scotland’s Energy Minister to Aberdeen today.

“The University is renowned for its strength in interdisciplinary research that aims to address global challenges, and the creation of CCM (UK) Ltd underlines our commitment to supporting and commercialising emerging technologies that have been developed here.