28.11.2022
The Netherlands has created a car that can absorb CO₂ while driving
Photo by: Bart van Overbeeke / Eindhoven University of Technology
Zero-emission electric cars have already taken their share of the car market in many countries around the world. But researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands have gone further. They have created the ZEM (zero emission mobility) concept car.
This electric car doesn’t just drive with zero CO2 emissions, it drives with negative CO2 emissions. In other words, not only does it not emit carbon dioxide when driving, but it also captures it from the atmosphere thanks to a unique filter.
The ZEM has two filters that can trap up to 6 kg of CO2 for every 100,000 km driven at 60 km/h. At first glance, that doesn’t sound like much. However, around 10 of these cars can absorb about the same amount of carbon as the average tree.
The team behind ZEM strives for carbon neutrality throughout the entire production cycle. For example, the car’s body and frame are made from recycled plastic using 3D printing, and recycled and environmentally friendly materials, such as artificial pineapple leather, are taken for the interior. The windows are made of polycarbonate instead of glass, which is less harmful to the environment. The car also features a modular infotainment system, electronics and lighting that can be removed and reused.
The ZEM was created not so much as a prototype for a specific model, but rather as a concept for implementing this approach in future or existing models of electric cars and fuel vehicles. “Even if conventional cars with a combustion engine are equipped with a capture filter and storage system, their carbon footprint will be lower,” say the authors of the project.
It is worth noting that in its operating principle ZEM is close to projects in the field of CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage), i.e. technology of capturing, beneficial use and storage of CO2. The basic idea here, too, is not just to be carbon-neutral, but to additionally absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The CO2 capture and storage industry is valued at $2 billion already in 2020. Analysts predict that this market will grow at an impressive rate of nearly 20% per year between 2021 and 2028 and will reach $7 billion by 2028.
Cover photo: Bart van Overbeeke / Eindhoven University of Technology
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