Most US elementary school students learn about photosynthesis in their science class. The process is very simple – chlorophyll in the leaves and green stems absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen back into the atmosphere. It is nature’s elegant way of capturing carbon dioxide. Carbon cycle is where humans and human activities put out carbon dioxide and processes such as photosynthesis absorb it. But when the NET carbon dioxide into the atmosphere exceeds what is absorbed – that to the extent of 30 – 50 gigatons of carbon dioxide, then we have a problem on our hands. Observing and learning from nature our guests Beth McDaniel, President and Dr. Steve McDaniel, CEO and Chief Innovation Officer of Reactive Surfaces try to replicate the carbon capture process in nature in their solution. They have created coatings that can be applied to surfaces to capture carbon – just like nature does it with leaves and stems. Using polymeric materials thinly spread on a surface, adhere to the surface and then cured. These surfaces when exposed to sunlight, will photosynthesise, capturing and fixing carbon, using the photosynthetic process to carbohydrate. To learn more about this truly fascinating solution listen to our latest episode of Mindful Businesses.
Mentions:
Embassy Row Project – Envirotech Pre – accelerator
Xprize
Musk Foundation
#climatechange #carboncapture #carbonsequestration #mindfulbusinesses #reactivesurfaces #photosythesis #learnfromnature #sustainablematerials