Reactive Surfaces
Paint that Captures and Sequesters CO2

The most amazing machine on Earth capable of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is the Earth itself. Nature is responsible for cycling in excess of 100 billion tonnes of CO2 annually. An innovative approach to carbon removal, basing its technology on this natural system, is being developed by a paint innovation company, Reactive Surfaces. If it succeeds in capturing and sequestering 1,000 tonnes of atmospheric CO2 using its CO2-eating paint, it could infuse $50 million into its ongoing efforts to capture and sequester millions of tonnes, and ultimately billions of tonnes of CO2 each year.

“Carbon Capture Coatings can be employed in a Swiss army knife of applications. This climate change solution is effective as a Direct Air Capture technology (DAC) or to capture CO2 from industrial slipstreams. It can function purely on solar power or utilize waste energy. It can be used on land or in the ocean. The captured CO2 can be converted to valuable byproducts or durably sequestered in the paint so it is not re-emitted. The paint is the hero here; it already works better than we had hoped,” says Beth McDaniel, president of Reactive Surfaces.

It might seem that in order to tackle the problem of 35 to 40 billion tonnes of additional CO2 emitted per year, one would build facilities that match that enormity in size. But that is not how nature does it. Nature distributes tiny carbon-removing factories (Cyanobacteria) ubiquitously in very thin layers on virtually every square millimeter of accessible surfaces on Earth.By painting as many surfaces as possible, Reactive Surfaces seeks to imitate the power of this widely distributed carbon-capturing powerhouse.

It can do this at rates in-film (in the paint) approaching the natural speed limit of photosynthesis of almost 800 milligrams of CO2/hr/m2.

The team found that once the CO2 is captured inside the paint film, it stays there. This in-film sequestration, especially when the films are desiccated, allows them to amass a potentially valuable raw material (in-film sequestered carbon).

One challenge Reactive Surfaces had to overcome was to imitate the modes of hydration and rehydration observed on natural surfaces (rain, dew, fog, high humidity, etc.). This was achieved by formulating the paint to remain highly hydrated and then have the capability to absorb atmospheric water. In this way, and unlike many other approaches to atmospheric carbon capture and sequestration that typically require copious amounts of water, carbon capturing and sequestering paints require little use of water resources, which is especially important where these resources are scant. Even if less than optimal operations variables are assumed, a single carbon capture paint module can capture and sequester 0.02 tonnes of CO2 per year.

We Imitate, Facilitate, and Accelerate Nature by entraining photosynthetic bacterial cells into a paint imitating the natural structure of lichen. Then, we facilitate the paint’s ability to be spread both vertically and horizontally using stackable re-cycled Intermediate Bulk Cargo Containers stuffed full of paintable surface area

“We turn to nature for inspiration. We Imitate, Facilitate, and Accelerate Nature by entraining photosynthetic bacterial cells into a paint, imitating the natural structure of lichen. Then, we facilitate the paint’s ability to be spread both vertically and horizontally using stackable re-cycled Intermediate Bulk Cargo Containers stuffed full of paintable surface area,” says Steve McDaniel, CEO, Reactive Surfaces.

The idea is catching the public’s attention. “We find that a majority of the public is concerned about global warming, but they are highly skeptical of injecting captured carbon into deep geological formations,” says President Beth. Reactive Surfaces’ technology offers a solution to that problem, making capture and sequestration measured in billions of tonnes per year feasible.