Paebbl, the Nordic-Dutch company permanently turning captured carbon dioxide (CO₂) into a solid carbonate-based (CO3) composite, has successfully transitioned to pilot-scale batch production. The new 500L batch production unit, “Obelix,” grows Paebbl’s CO₂-processing capacity 100x in less than six months. Through Obelix, Paebbl will take the first step in scaling up production to meet early customer demand for permanent, carbon-storing industrial materials.
For every tonne of CO₂ Paebbl stores through their proprietary process, it generates up to two-and-half tonnes of material – which, in turn, can be used to substitute today’s heavily emitting alternatives. This gives the company’s process a “carbon leverage effect”; each tonne of stored CO₂ helps further avoid emissions elsewhere. Obelix will produce up to 100 tonnes of carbon-storing materials annually.
Paebbl expects to start shipping samples produced by Obelix to early adopter customers across the Benelux and Nordic regions in early 2024. The materials produced in Obelix will have an ultra-low CO₂ footprint, a step closer to genuinely carbon-negative products, which store more CO₂ than what is generated in the process. The next scale-up step will be a ten-fold, continuously operating pilot plant, expected to be active by the end of 2024. While increasing Paebbl’s production capacity further, this step will produce CO₂-negative materials and serve as an essential step in de-risking the technology for full commercialization.
Committed
Paebbl co-founder and co-CEO Andreas Saari says that Obelix is “a clear statement of intent” that Paebbl is committed to meeting the strong industry demand for our products. “Obelix is an important milestone that will allow us to cater to the wider industry and the next step on our path to decarbonize the built environment – which currently accounts for 38% of global carbon emissions. Our current mission is to scale up our technology as fast as possible to meet the needs of the market and the planet.”
Through its patented technology, Paebbl accelerates the natural mineralization process by a factor of over a million by capturing CO₂ to react with abundant silicate minerals in an energy-efficient industrial process. “What takes the planet centuries, Paebbl can do in one hour”, the company claims.
Once Paebbl processes the CO₂, a rock powder is produced. The silica-enriched mineral product can be used as an inert industrial filler or as an ingredient in building materials such as concrete, bringing the CO₂ footprint of concrete down by up to 70%. The company aims to bring a cost-competitive commodity material from its first commercial facility to market.
