The British government revealed on Friday the recipients of funds totaling 54 million pounds ($65 million) for research into technology to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, including Rolls Royce and EDF.
Only a few modest projects are now active globally, despite Britain’s claims that greenhouse gas removal technology will be crucial to achieving its climate target of net zero emissions by 2050.
In order to build a Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant that might be fueled by waste heat from the upcoming Sizewell C nuclear station in Suffolk, England, EDF was awarded three million pounds.
When air passes through a facility, chemical reactions are performed to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), which is then either permanently stored or can be used for industrial purposes.
With the help of engineers from the University of Nottingham, Strata Technology, Atkins, Doosan Babcock, and Sizewell C, EDF said the financing will allow it to construct a demonstration unit that can remove 100 tonnes of CO2 from the air annually.
According to a statement from EDF, a scaled-up DAC unit fueled by heat from Sizewell C may eventually capture 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 annually if the consortium’s demonstrator project is successful.
A DAC demonstration unit, which would also capture 100 tonnes of CO2 annually, has also been funded with 3 million pounds by Rolls-Royce, with a full-scale version aiming to remove 1 million tonnes annually.
By 2030, Britain hopes to have removed 25 million tonnes of CO2 annually from the atmosphere.
The University of Exeter, which is creating a device to remove CO2 from seawater, and the Scottish company SAC Commercial, which is creating equipment to absorb methane produced by cattle, are two of the 15 groups that have received the money.
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