Two Irish-based companies have announced improvements to their carbon capture tech.

NEG8 Carbon, based in Waterford, has a direct air capture system that removes C0₂ from the air so it can be stored underground or turned into carbon-neutral products such as sustainable aviation fuel.

The company says its latest tech upgrade reduces the number of sorbents – insoluble materials used to capture the carbon – by 80% and is more efficient. The latter claim is based on a 90% reduction in regeneration time as well as a more than 20% reduction in energy consumption.

To showcase these improvements, NEG8 Carbon plans to create a demonstration unit in a real-world setting by the third quarter of 2024.

In 2022, Dublin-based company Carbon Collect unveiled a commercial-scale ‘mechanical tree‘ it claimed was up to 1,000 times more efficient than a natural tree at removing CO₂ from the air. Work is currently underway on the second generation of this device which is expected to capture significantly more C0₂ at a reduced operating cost. The company is in discussion with potential investors to support the development.

Carbon Collect plans to install its first version of the upgraded mechanical tree at the end of 2024, before having commercial deployments in 2025.