Climate technology startup Clairity Technology announced it has raised $6.75 million in a seed round aimed at scaling up its Direct Air Capture (DAC) carbon removal solution.
DAC technology, listed by the IEA as a key carbon removal option in the transition to a net-zero energy system, extracts CO2 directly from the atmosphere for use as a feedstock or permanently removed when combined with storage. According to the landmark Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) climate change mitigation study released last year, scenarios that limit warming to 1.5°C include carbon dioxide removal methods that run into the billions. tons of removal annually over the next few decades, with DAC positioned to potentially be responsible for a significant portion of the total.
Founded in 2022 by Glen Meyerowitz, California-based Clairity has developed a system to capture diluted CO2 that requires far less infrastructure and energy than pure CO2-focused DAC, utilizing readily available materials and processes that are more energy-efficient. of energy and capital. The company's solution utilizes a solid sorbent approach, coating honeycomb monoliths with carbonate salts, which are abundant and durable – allowing them to be used in many cycles – that bind CO2 to the crystalline structure of the salts for collection and concentration. According to Clarity, the process uses the company's reactors, which use traditional and economical construction materials, avoiding the need for large quantities of concrete and steel required for high-purity systems.
The company created a process with CarbonBuilt, a company whose technology uses atmospheric CO2 to produce concrete products that aim to reduce embodied carbon by 70% to 100%. Clairity's process captured CO2 and fed it directly into the CarbonBuilt process, where it chemically reacted with CarbonBuilt's low-carbon binder and became permanently sequestered in the finished concrete.
The round was co-led by Lowercarbon Capital and Initialized Capital.
In a LinkedIn post announcing the seed round, Clairity Technology CEO and founder Glen Meyerowitz said:
“The climate crisis is serious and the worsening impacts of climate change can be seen everywhere. We need solutions that can be implemented and scaled today to mitigate the worst effects of climate change in the years to come.”
