Tech
Reinventing industry: Carbon capture technologies lead the charge against climate change
Researchers are testing a new method of capturing CO2 from energy-intensive industries and converting it into valuable chemicals and fuels.
In a potential game-changer for heavy industry, a magnesium-oxide mine in Greece received seven special containers in November 2024 with equipment designed to capture CO₂ and transform it into a valuable chemical, right there on site.
Long blamed for driving up the planet’s temperature, CO2 could now be converted into jet fuel for passenger aircraft—cutting emissions from both mining and transport.
“We just started capturing CO2, which is an amazing milestone,” said Dr. Haris Yiannoulakis, research and development manager at Grecian Magnesite, the producer of magnesium oxide.
The containers came from the Petrobrazi oil refinery in Romania. There, the carbon capture technology had been tried out as part of a project called ConsenCUS, involving seven countries and three test sites.
Getting down
The EU has set its sights on slashing greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. The ultimate goal: climate neutrality for industry by 2050.
ConsenCUS brings together new technologies to trap CO₂ from three notoriously hard-to-abate industries: oil refining, mining and cement production. These sectors face a double challenge, as CO₂ is generated both from burning fossil fuels and from the raw materials themselves.
For example, at the Grecian Magnesite mine site, raw material magnesite—a natural mineral found in rocks—is mined and heated up to 2,000°C to yield magnesium oxide. This material is crucial to a wide range of European industries, from steel and glass to fertilizers, animal feed and pharmaceuticals.
The downside, however, is that the thermal treatment releases CO2 both from the decomposition of magnesite and the fuel required for the process.
Three steps
The pilot plant in Greece is now tackling CO₂ conversion in three steps, explains Sara Vallejo Castaño, a chemical engineer at Wetsus research institute in the Netherlands.
First, a capture column separates CO₂ from factory gases, mixing it with water and potassium hydroxide. The CO₂ dissolves and reacts, forming potassium carbonate, which locks the gas in liquid form.
The second step uses electricity to raise the acidity of the solution, which releases CO2.
This method is simpler and greener than traditional heating or hazardous chemicals because it uses only electricity and water as resources.
A third step turns the CO2 into formic acid (or formate), a simple, naturally occurring chemical that can be found in nettles and ant bites.
“Formic acid is a well-known molecule used in the chemical sector,” said Dirk Koppert, the coordinator of ConsenCUS at New Energy Coalition, a nonprofit organization in the Netherlands.
One Dutch company, Coval Energy, already produces formic acid in this way from CO2. The acid is then fed to microbes to make fats and proteins. The proteins could be ingredients in cattle and fish feed, while the fatty acids could one day be used as a replacement for jet fuel.
Tough cement
The first testing site for the new technology was at Aalborg Portland in northern Denmark. This is one of the largest cement manufacturers in Europe, producing up to 1.8 million tons of gray cement and 0.8 million tons of white cement annually and operating since 1889.
Sustainability is a major selling point for its cement. The factory now uses non-fossil fuels for more than 30% of its heating needs for gray cement production, for example.
“We are reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and reducing CO2 emissions,” said Jesper Damfoft, sustainability director at the company.
But the manufacturing of cement still releases CO2 in the process.
The main cement ingredients in Aalborg are sand, dredged from the Limfjord waterway, and chalk from a local quarry. This calcium-rich chalk is heated to temperatures of about 1,500°C to produce lime (calcium oxide), which is essential for manufacturing cement.
When heated, the chalk’s carbon and oxygen atoms combine to form CO₂ gas, making cement production a major source of global emissions—by some estimates, accounting for 7%–8% of the world’s total.
A way forward is to capture and store CO2 underground, or put it to other uses, such as by making formic acid.
Under the EU’s emissions trading scheme, the price per excess ton of CO2 that companies have to pay stood at around €73 in June 2025, but it is expected to rise.
“Carbon prices are relatively low, but are predicted to be €150 per ton in 2030, and who knows what they will be beyond that,” said Yiannoulakis. Clearly, European industries must prepare.
The new capture technology remained in Greece until June for testing. The hope is to move the technology closer to a commercial plant and put it to work to capture CO2.
Working out the technicalities of how to capture CO2 gas and produce a desirable chemical required a dozen industry and research partners to come together, including those from universities in Canada and China.
“Without EU funds, we would not be able to build this project and test these technologies,” said Koppert.
Bringing communities on board
However, technical expertise is only part of the story.
Jacob Nielsenat from Robert Gordon University in Scotland has been investigating how to give citizens a voice in these new technologies.
He quickly realized that “lots of people didn’t know what carbon capture is, so we were asking people to give us their opinion on something they didn’t know anything about.”
Along with his colleague Kostas Stavrianakis, he invented a card game to prompt discussions on carbon capture. Both believe that results will come. “Most citizens are perfectly able to understand the complexities around these technologies,” said Stavrianakis.
He emphasized that the industry needs to talk to local people. “If you want a project to go ahead, it is always better to involve communities so they can feel part of it.”
This article was originally published in Horizon the EU Research and Innovation Magazine.
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Tech
The Best Cyber Monday Streaming Deals With a Convenient Roommate’s Email Address
HBO knows you’re bored and cold. It wants you to Max and chill with Noah Wyle in scrubs. The company offers some of the best Cyber Monday streaming deals with a ridiculously low-priced $3/month offer for basic HBO Max (it’s the version with ads and 2K streaming, but still, super-cheap). Disney Plus and Hulu deals are bundled up for $5/month. Apple TV wants back in your life for $6.
Of course, this deal is only meant for new customers. Not boring ol’ existing customers. If you already have basic HBO Max, you’re already paying $11 for the same service, and HBO would like you to keep doing that. Streaming apps are banking on you being complacent and happy in your streaming life. Maybe they’re even taking you for granted.
Sometimes you can get the current deal just by threatening to cancel, or actually canceling, your account. Suddenly, you’re an exciting new customer again! Another method is by using an alternate email account (perhaps your spouse’s or roommate’s?) and alternate payment information as a new customer. If you do use a burner email (you did not hear this from me), check in on your favorite app’s terms of service to make sure you’re not in violation by re-enrolling with different emails. I’ll also issue the caveat that you lose all your viewing data and tailored suggestions if you sign up anew.
But times and wallets are tight! And $3 HBO Max sounds pretty good. After all, every middle-aged American man needs to rewatch The Wire once every five years or so—assuming he’s not the kind of middle-aged man who rewatches The Sopranos instead. Here are the current best streaming deals for Cyber Monday 2025.
Devon Maloney; ARCHIVE ID: 546772
Regular price: $80
Tech
Hong Kong FWA services market set for 9.6% growth | Computer Weekly
Analysis from GlobalData is forecasting that fixed wireless access (FWA) service revenue in Hong Kong is expected to increase at a “healthy” compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.6% between 2025 and 2030.
The latest Hong Kong Total Fixed Communications Forecast set out to quantify current and future demand and spending on mobile services for the special administrative region of China. It noted that growth was being driven by Hong Kong’s extensive 5G network coverage and could also be attributed to local operators’ efforts to expand FWA services and position it as an alternative to traditional fibre broadband services for both residential and commercial sectors, meeting growing demand for high-speed connectivity in areas where extending fibre lines is challenging.
“High-density urban and suburban centres of Hong Kong create a strong business case for FWA services due to their cost-effective and rapid deployments without the complex infrastructure and civil work required for extending fibre-optic lines to such locations,” said Neha Misra, senior analyst at GlobalData.
“Competitive, feature-rich plans from the operators will also help drive its adoption over the forecast period. For instance, HKBN’s 5G Home Broadband Plan provides unlimited 5G broadband data (subject to a 300GB with a fair-usage policy) for HKD118 per month on a 24-month contract, along with a seven-day trial guarantee. The plan also includes a waiver of the HKD28 monthly administration fee and complimentary access to the basic HomeShield security plan.”
In addition to HKBN, the study noted that operators such as 3 Hong Kong and HKT are also using their extensive 5G networks to offer home broadband services, particularly in areas with limited fibre infrastructure. It cited HKT as recently having successfully deployed mmWave-based FWA to deliver ultra-high-speed internet to rural areas and outlying islands.
“Growing demand for FWA provides operators a strong revenue opportunity by expanding home and SME broadband without the high capital intensity of fibre roll-out,” Misra added. “By leveraging nationwide 5G coverage, introducing competitively priced service plans and bundling digital home services, operators can unlock higher ARPU [average revenue per user], accelerate market penetration in underserved areas and diversify beyond traditional revenues.”
GlobalData believes the Hong Kong government’s smart city initiatives will also open new opportunities for FWA, especially 5G FWA, which can deliver high-speed internet to power applications such as the digital economy, digital governance and e-health services, while supporting the city’s dense urban environment and digital transformation goals under the Smart City Blueprint 2.0.
The original blueprint was set out in December 2017, outlining 76 initiatives under six smart areas, namely Smart Mobility, Smart Living, Smart Environment, Smart People, Smart Government and Smart Economy. Blueprint 2.0 puts forth more than 130 initiatives that continue to enhance and expand existing city management measures and services. The new initiatives aim to bring benefits and convenience to the public so that residents can better perceive the benefits of smart city innovation and technology.
Tech
Prague’s City Center Sparkles, Buzzes, and Burns at the Signal Festival
And thanks to a mention in Dan Brown’s new novel, The Secret of Secrets, the festival has gained even more global recognition. Just a few weeks after the release of Brown’s new bestseller set in contemporary Prague, viewers were able to see for themselves what drew the popular writer to the festival, which is the largest Czech and Central European showcase of digital art. In one passage, the Signal Festival has a cameo appearance when the novel’s protagonist recalls attending an event at the 2024 edition.
“We’re happy about it,” festival director Martin Pošta says about the mention. “It’s a kind of recognition.” Not that the event needed promotion, even in one of the most anticipated novels of recent years. The organizers have yet to share the number of visitors to the festival this year, but the four-day event typically attracts half a million visitors.
On the final day, there was a long queue in front of the monumental installation Tristan’s Ascension by American video art pioneer Bill Viola before it opened for the evening, even though it was a ticketed event. In the Church of St. Salvator in the Convent of St. Agnes, visitors could watch a Christ-like figure rise upwards, streams of water defying gravity along with him, all projected on a huge screen.
The festival premiere took place on the Vltava River near the Dvořák Embankment. Taiwan’s Peppercorns Interactive Media Art presented a projection on a cloud of mist called Tzolk’in Light. While creators of other light installations have to deal with the challenges of buildings—their irregular surfaces, decorative details, and awkward cornices—projecting onto water droplets is a challenge of a different kind with artists having to give up control over the resulting image. The shape and depth of the Peppercorns’ work depended on the wind at any given moment, which determined how much of the scene was revealed to viewers and how much simply blown away. The reward, however, was an extraordinary 3D spectacle reminiscent of a hologram—something that can’t be achieved with video projections on static and flat buildings.
Another premiere event was a projection on the tower of the Old Town Hall, created for the festival by the Italian studio mammasONica. It transformed the 230-foot structure into a kaleidoscope of blue, green, red, and white surfaces. A short distance away, on Republic Square, Peppercorns had another installation. On a circular LED installation, they projected a work entitled Between Mountains and Seas, which recounted the history of Taiwan.
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