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The small Swiss company that comes up in the U.S. out of

The Zurich company Climeworks in the U.S. receives a lot of attention. The idea of the Swiss young entrepreneurs, and to filter carbon dioxide from the air, "c

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The small Swiss company that comes up in the U.S. out of

The Zurich company Climeworks in the U.S. receives a lot of attention. The idea of the Swiss young entrepreneurs, and to filter carbon dioxide from the air, "could change the future of humanity", writes the "New York Times Magazine". "The small Swiss company that thinks they could help stop climate change" was the headline of the author.

The two founders, Christoph Gebald and Jan Wurzbacher operate with your company since two years ago on the roof of a refuse incineration plant in Hinwil, Switzerland, a plant, the CO2 from the air filters. The Gas you sell to a vegetable producer, whose greenhouses are in the vicinity.

The big throw, the two ETH graduates, who now have about 60 employees planning, however, in Iceland. Their technology is used in a geothermal power plant, to guide the Gas into the substrate and to bind. The carbon dioxide is mixed with water, reacts with the basaltic rock, and is a mineral within a period of two years to a harmless Carbonate. By the end of the year, here are 50 more Climeworks modules are to stand and help stop climate change.

"The small Swiss company that thinks they could help stop climate change": the New York Times magazine reported on the Zurich-based company. (Image: Screenshot nytimes.com)

Worldwide, three companies are working on the idea of CO2-emissions to reverse by filtering the Gas from the air – Climeworks but most, says Christoph Beuttler, Manager, negative emission technologies at the company, on request. Reports like in the "New York Times Magazine," would help not only to attract investors, but also on the current state of the climate crisis. "Climate science today knows that we need to get in the future, huge amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere to the objectives of the Paris agreement to comply with," said Beuttler. The article makes it clear that you need in terms of climate protection, new approaches.

Own emissions undo

make it So Private, it should soon make its CO2 emissions to be reversed and, for example, a flight from Zurich to London to compensate. "Currently, the approximately 120 Swiss francs would be the cost," says Beuttler. Compared with other compensation measures, it has to be expensive because the technology is still at the beginning. "The more customers we can find, the faster prices will fall." One is to develop an offer. Already now we have customers in this area, the report on its own Initiative – including Swiss companies.

"We perceive a strong growing interest," says Beuttler. The current protests for climate protection in the Swiss cities were also an important sign that the issue had reached the people.

The technology could play in combating climate change, in fact, an important role. According to the report of the world climate Council IPCC by 2018, it is impossible to limit the warming to the year 2100 just by switching to renewable energy sources such as Wind and solar power, electric cars, and the like to 1.5 degrees. The intergovernmental panel on climate change, the UN expects to have 100 to 1000 billion tonnes of CO2 that would have to be removed from the atmosphere, depending on how fast the greenhouse gases are reduced.

more Efficiently than trees

"Often, I hear that you can plant trees to better, what should absolutely be done," says Beuttler. "But we know already now that this will not be enough." Because the reforestation needs a lot of space and water. "Our systems are about 400 times the surface area more efficiently than trees, including the provision of energy such as by solar systems," he explains. In the area of negative emissions technologies in the technology belong to filter CO2 from the air, from a scientific point of view, the most promising approaches.

the aim of Climeworks is to eliminate until the mid-2020's 1 percent of annual CO2 emissions worldwide. That's the equivalent of a year of around 300 million tonnes of CO2.

to achieve this, would have to build the company according to the calculations of the "New York Times Magazine" to 250'000 of such investments, such as on the roof in Hinwil, Switzerland. This corresponds to about 4.5 million modules. For the company, which has built 100 such modules (and 14 small plants in the whole of Europe has), are the big ambitions.

technology industrialize

The construction and Installation of the 18 modules in Hinwil, which were assembled in a workshop in Zurich, by Hand, at a cost of between 3 and 4 million Swiss francs. This is the main reason for this is that it will cost the company between 500 and 600 francs, to filter a ton of CO2 out of the air.

This is currently the biggest Problem of the former ETH Zurich Spin-offs. In Switzerland, the production of a Tonne of CO2 from ammonia production is 150 to 250 Swiss francs is the cost. Only thanks to private investors and the support of the Swiss Federal office for energy, the young can offer to the market company that is currently suitable prices.

In some lines of business in the beverage industry, the need of CO2 for the carbonation, could be already profitable, says Christoph Beuttler. "Because, we can filter carbon dioxide from virtually anywhere from the atmosphere. So that we can eliminate transportation costs." Through the production of synthetic fuels, a new emergent market. With the air filtered carbon dioxide and hydrogen, any fossil fuel can be replaced. In this way, around aircraft or heavy transport, was not to personalize easy-to-electr, CO2 could be made neutral. "Again, currently, this is still expensive," said Beuttler.

the interest in The young company's investors – which include, among others, the Zürcher Kantonalbank big – yet. Climeworks has an investment capital of over 50 million francs. Thus, the entrepreneurs want to make their technology more industrial and mass production to prepare, in order to reduce costs.

(editing Tamedia)

Created: 13.02.2019, 14:49 PM

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